novelraw Chapter 147
Chapter 147
Chapter 147: You Smell Good, Bro
“Adoption?”
“You’re going to adopt someone else’s director?”
After receiving Mianhua, Chen Tao and Fu Yuan felt it was about time.
They thought today’s business would end there and were about to leave when Xia Li, who had been silent for a long time, suddenly came up with an idea.
This is… not satisfied with just gathering information, wanting to directly poach the director from someone else’s place?
“This cat has been in the hospital for so long, it’s become a mascot, no one will be willing to give it away…”
“Okay!”
Fu Yuan was still trying to persuade Xia Li when he turned around and saw the receptionist at the front desk nodding in agreement.
Now, not only Chen Tao and Fu Yuan were dumbfounded, but even Xia Li himself was quite stunned. He had only casually asked the receptionist if the cow cat could be adopted, without much hope. If not, he would bring Lucia to interact with the cow cat next time.
To his surprise, the other party agreed so readily.
“Actually, we planned to put the director up for adoption from the beginning… you know, the environment in the hospital isn’t good, every day there are various animals with infectious diseases being sent over, and we’re also worried about whether the director will get sick.”
『You’re overthinking it, I’m not an ordinary cat, how could I get those diseases!』
As she spoke, the receptionist walked out from behind the counter, holding the ‘director’ in her arms and walked into the room.
Xia Li followed closely behind.
“Before you, many kind people have adopted the director, but without exception… the director has been returned.”
“Returned?”
“Yes, the families who adopted the director all said the director is very… very strange.”
As if worried about scaring the new adopter, the receptionist smiled tactfully.
“Specifically, it would vomit when looking in the mirror, steal snacks from the house, eat at the table, turn on various appliances like air conditioners and TVs when the owner is not home, and… howl in the middle of the night, wanting to escape anytime, anywhere.”
The receptionist said awkwardly, “The director has a lot of problems… so no family has successfully adopted it.”
As they talked, the two came to a room inside the staff break area.
The receptionist glanced around to make sure no one was in the room, then put the ‘director’ on the ground and took out her phone to make a call.
“Director, there’s a guest who wants to adopt the director…”
“Yes, not a student. This guest brought a stray cat to our hospital for a check-up the day before yesterday, got it vaccinated, and also bought cat food downstairs, quite reliable…”
Xia Li waited for the receptionist to finish her call.
He stood there, looking down at the cow cat squatting on the ground.
『This brother wants to adopt me?』
The cow cat flicked its tail, meowed and walked over, circling Xia Li.
It sniffed lightly, smelling the scent on Xia Li’s legs.
『Bro, you smell good. 』
『Not annoying…』
『But a bit strange, I seem to smell other species… and it doesn’t seem like the scent of ordinary small animals. 』
The cow cat circled Xia Li’s legs again and again, its wet black nose pressing against Xia Li’s shoes for a sniff, then smelling his trousers.
This cat, couldn’t be a pervert, right?
Xia Li discreetly pulled up his trouser leg.
『Hmm?』
The cow cat looked up, narrowing its eyes.
『Why are you acting disgusted with me?』
『Are you serious about taking a step back?』
『Stop pretending, you clearly want to adopt me, you must be mesmerized by my invincible appearance, right?』
『Man, you’re so fickle!』
“The director agreed, please fill out a form, it’s very simple.”
The receptionist turned on the light in the break room and took out a form from the drawer, writing down the date.
She had a good impression of the young man in front of her.
After all, he was willing to spend over a thousand yuan to get a stray cat a check-up.
From this alone, it could be judged how friendly this person was to small animals, as well as his financial ability.
So she didn’t ask Xia Li too many questions, just let him fill out the form according to the procedure.
“If there are any problems later, you can always return the director to us.”
After filling out the basic information, the receptionist made way for Xia Li to continue filling out, while she kept talking:
“We never gave the director a name, we just wanted to find someone to adopt it… It’s old now, its resistance is poor, staying in the hospital is prone to problems.”
After all, they had raised it for so many years, the receptionist’s tone was a bit reluctant, but more of it was happiness that the director had found an owner.
『Sis, I’m human, human! Not some ordinary cat that can only live for a dozen years!』
『I’m in the prime of my youth!』
Two voices entered Xia Li’s mind at the same time, making his head spin.
Writing down his name, phone number, and home address, Xia Li landed his pen on the last column: reason for adoption.
Reason for adoption: Want to find a companion for the kitten at home.
Then he added: I like neurotic cats.
『Bro, your handwriting is good, you studied liberal arts, right?』
『Okay, I have no problem with companionship, I like that calico kitten. 』
The ‘director’ jumped onto the table, its white paws stepping on the paper, burying its head to look at every word Xia Li wrote, and didn’t forget to comment in its heart.
That action, so human-like.
“Okay, done.”
The receptionist smiled and tapped her finger on the upper right corner of the form.
“Here, give it a name!”
“Name…”
Xia Li was stumped for a moment.
He didn’t expect the adoption process to go so smoothly, and now they were directly naming it.
Names are important, whether for people or animals.
Xia Li felt that the name Lucia casually gave Mianhua was too random.
“The director’s previous adopters have called it ‘Black and White Impermanence’, ‘Jiang Ziya’, ‘Sesame’, ‘Mimi’…”
The receptionist reminded him gently.
『Listen to that, listen to that, are these names serious?』
『Who knows what young people are thinking these days!』
『My name is ‘Wuqi’!』
“Then let’s call it Wuqi.”
As Xia Li spoke, his pen had already landed.
The cow cat’s ears twitched, and a hint of surprise appeared in its clear, otherworldly golden-brown eyes.
『This brother… really knows how to do it!』
『He guessed it?!』
『Wait, the character for Wu is wrong, it’s Kou Tian Wu(口天吴?), not the Wu that means nothing!』
The cow cat’s voice was sharp with urgency, but it couldn’t change the words Xia Li had written.
“Then the director will be called Wuqi from now on!”
The receptionist was also very satisfied with the name and said with a smile, “I’ll add you on WeChat, we’ll do irregular video follow-ups on Wuqi in the future, is that okay?”
“No problem.” Xia Li nodded.
Coming out of the staff break area.
Xia Li had an extra pet carrier in his hand.
Inside was not only the ‘director’ of this pet shop, but also a starter pack that came with adopting the director.
“You really adopted it??”
Chen Tao was somewhat amused.
“No, wasn’t our goal this time to do research for Boss Xia… how did you end up poaching a big boss??”
Fu Yuan also found it funny: “…Boss, you’re really something.”
Their Boss Xia was like this, full of tricks and daring, whatever he said, he would do.
‘Forge ahead’
This phrase wasn’t out of place when used on Xia Li.
Unlike Fu Yuan himself…
He never had the courage to resist his surroundings, even pursuing the girl he liked, he would feel afraid.
“It’s just a cat, not a real director,”
Xia Li casually explained, “I saw Mianhua alone at home without a companion, so I found one for it.”
“That’s true,” Chen Tao clicked his tongue and said.
“With the frequency you and Little Lu are feeding us dog food, even cats would be full.”
◈◈◈
Carrying Wuqi and Mianhua back to the car.
Xia Li threw both cats onto the passenger seat.
Wuqi was locked in the carrier, the people at the pet hospital specifically instructed not to open the door before getting home, otherwise it would run away in minutes.
Xia Li cautiously followed suit.
He wouldn’t consider talking to this cat before getting home.
“Meow~”
『Little sister, little sister, look here, I’m in the cage~』
“Meow meow meow~~”
Wuqi’s clear meows echoed in the car.
Mianhua lay calmly on the seat, flicking its tail disinterestedly.
“Meow… meow…”
Wuqi was a little dejected, its voice rising and falling, trying to attract Mianhua’s attention.
“…”
Xia Li was concentrating on driving, he was annoyed by the string of meows and the ‘little sister, little sister’ calls that were bombarding his mind.
◈◈◈
“Does cat meat hot pot taste good?”
“Huh?”
The two brothers in the back seat were stunned by the question.
『Damn, 』
『New account, don’t mess around. 』
Soon, the meows in the car stopped.
“Where to now?” Chen Tao asked after a while.
Xia Li: “Pick up my girlfriend on Chunbei Road.”
“Alright, alright.”
Chen Tao realized he shouldn’t have asked this stupid question.
Ladies first, ladies first.
He had more than half an hour left for his lunch break, after Xia Li picked up Little Lu, it would be just in time to send him back to the company.
“By the way, Boss Xia, how are you planning to spend your birthday?” Chen Tao asked again.
“Huh?”
Xia Li looked up and glanced at Chen Tao from the rearview mirror.
He remembered that there was indeed such a thing as a birthday on Earth.
During the three years in the other world, he had never thought about birthdays.
These three years not only tempered his will, but also smoothed out his rough edges.
Xia Li’s birthday was in early winter.
When he was a child, he often heard Mrs. Fang say with relief that he was a winter baby, not a summer baby, otherwise he would have suffered a lot.
Xia Li calculated in his mind and realized that his birthday wasn’t tomorrow, was it? “No plans.”
Xia Li paused and said.
“What do you mean by no plans???” Chen Tao pressed.
After rekindling their friendship with Xia Li, their group of good brothers always celebrated birthdays together, was Boss Xia trying to be special?
“Boss has a girlfriend now, it’s different.” Fu Yuan explained for Xia Li.
“Damn, I knew it!” Chen Tao grabbed Fu Yuan’s arm.
“Yuanzi, are you going to be like this too in the future!”
“I, how would I know…”
“If you also betray the organization, that’s a double betrayal! After all, you and Anqi, count as two!”
“…It’s not even certain yet.”
Fu Yuan was embarrassed by Chen Tao’s words.
Their small group in Building Number Three had a total of five people, and only one of them was a girl.
They all grew up together, now suddenly bringing this up, he felt awkward.
“Too far, too far… let’s not talk about something so far away.” Fu Yuan shook his head.
Chen Tao clicked his tongue twice.
“Tsk, Yuanzi, you’re so pure, not like Boss Xia, an old dog.”
“Your mom.”
Driving peacefully, Xia Li, who was suddenly backstabbed, couldn’t help but curse.
The car slowly stopped by the roadside.
Xia Li checked the time and sent Lucia a picture.
The picture was a composition of him with one hand on the steering wheel, with the text saying he had arrived at the destination.
Hmm, this pose…
A bit handsome.
Xia Li admired it from left to right, Lucia replied with a message.
Girlfriend: “I’m sprinting!”
The message was a voice message, after Xia Li clicked on it, the sound played directly from the car’s Bluetooth.
Now everyone in the car heard it.
Chen Tao lowered his head and didn’t speak, he didn’t like to laugh.
Fu Yuan stretched his neck to look outside, trying to identify Zhou Anqi from the crowd.
Xia Li couldn’t help but smile, clicking on the voice message and saying.
“No rush, take your time.”
Girlfriend: “We’re still on the third floor, there are so many people here!!”
Lucia’s voice was still the sweet and clear voice unique to girls, sounding like a crisp peach.
Sweet, crisp, the kind that would burst with juice when you bite into it.
Coupled with her hurried tone, the background sound was also ‘da da da’ running sounds.
“It’s okay, no rush.”
Xia Li’s tone was very gentle.
Chen Tao rubbed his own arms.
“Yuanzi, do you think the air conditioner is set too low?” he asked Fu Yuan beside him.
Fu Yuan was busy looking for someone in the crowd, shaking his head: “It’s okay, it’s quite warm…”
“But why do I have goosebumps!” Chen Tao roared.
『Toyota?』
『What model is this car, I can’t recognize it…』
In the carrier, the cow cat that had been quiet for a while started to scratch the cage.
Its gaze came out from the carrier, trying hard to see the car logo in the center of Xia Li’s steering wheel.
He recognized the car logo, but the more specific model, he had no clue.
『I’ve been away from Earth for so long, the world here is updating quite fast. 』
After muttering, Wuqi turned around in the narrow cage again, facing his butt towards Xia Li and his face towards the window.
Through the ventilation holes of the carrier, Wuqi saw the city outside with its towering buildings, feeling a sense of wonder in his heart.
『Where is this…』
『Has this world already developed to this extent?』
Wuqi’s inner voice reached Xia Li’s mind, Xia Li listened quietly.
He had a hundred questions he wanted to ask.
But, in order not to make Taozi and Yuanzi suspect he was mentally ill, Xia Li decided not to talk to Wuqi for now.
“They’re here, they’re here.”
From afar, Fu Yuan recognized the girl running towards them at high speed, holding shopping bags and leading a little girl who was a head shorter than her.
He suddenly felt nervous and at a loss, quickly shifting his position.
“Ouch, why are you squeezing me,”
Chen Tao couldn’t stand it anymore and directly pulled him over.
“You sit here, Anqi will definitely get in from the passenger side later, come here, come here.”
Just as he arranged Fu Yuan in the center position, the car door was opened.
Zhou Anqi got in first, she had a faint scent of perfume on her.
“Xia Ge, sorry for the wait.”
“It’s okay.”
Xia Li casually replied, turning his head to look at the short dragon who was struggling to climb into the car from outside.
The evil dragon’s chest can develop, shouldn’t these short legs also develop?
Clapping his hands.
The first thing Lucia did after getting into the car was to put the shopping bags on the floor.
Xia Li looked curiously, Lucia covered the opening of the bag with her small hand, not letting Xia Li see.
Lucia tucked the shopping bag between her legs and then fastened her seatbelt.
Finally, she picked up Mianhua, who was sleeping on the seat, and smiled sweetly at Xia Li.
“Xia Ge, sorry for the wait!”
“…”
The evil dragon is now learning to speak like a human, right?
“Yes, there is.” Xia Li nodded and said.
“…Huh?”
Lucia’s small face was slightly stunned.
Eh, when Xia Li replied to Zhou Anqi just now, he said ‘it’s okay’, but to her it became ‘there is’.
Lucia frowned slightly, knowing that Xia Li was bullying her.
But she didn’t mind.
The more boys bullied girls, the more it was a way of expressing their liking.
Xia Li liked her very much.
Lucia pursed her lips and smiled secretly, suddenly noticing an extra cat cage beside her.
She picked up the cage, thinking it was a new cage Xia Li bought, but when she held it in her hand, she found it was heavy.
“Eh??”
“Why is there another cat in the cage?”
Lucia’s face was full of surprise.
While Wuqi in the carrier had squeezed himself into a corner.
His gaze came out from the carrier, the moment he met Lucia’s eyes, he felt his soul tremble.
『This brother’s girlfriend…』
『Why, why does it feel wrong!!』