CAT - 34

Chapter 34

Even after his bath, Yun Xing didn't feel much better. It was only after Tan Xu lowered the air conditioner's temperature significantly that the heat became barely tolerable for him.

Tan Xu was lying under the covers while the air conditioner overhead blew a steady stream of cold air. Yun Xing was giving him a massage—or at least, that was what Yun Xing thought he was doing.

Since he had ruined the curtains, Tan Xu was currently browsing for new ones on his phone. Yun Xing pressed his paws against Tan Xu, rhythmically flexing and retracting his claws. "Tan Xu, does this feel good?"

The kitten's paws were soft, and through the thick blanket, Tan Xu couldn't feel a thing. However, the sheer weight of the cat sitting on his chest was impossible to ignore. Seeing how hard Yun Xing was working, he hummed in agreement. "Master Xingxing has excellent technique."

Yun Xing lifted his chin proudly, his paws kneading even faster.

Tan Xu scrolled through Taobao. Watching the kitten’s claws rake against the blanket, leaving faint signs of snagging threads, he figured he’d have to add a new set of bedsheets to his shopping list later.

As Tan Xu lowered his eyes back to his phone, Yun Xing scratched for a while longer. Getting no further reaction, he grew bored. But the moment he stopped moving, he felt the stifling heat creeping back in, even though the AC was already set extremely low.

Unconsciously, he brought a paw to his mouth and nibbled on it. Tan Xu put his phone down and looked at him. Yun Xing patted Tan Xu's leg. "Play with me for a bit!"

Tan Xu rubbed the kitten's head. "What do you want to play?"

Yun Xing thought about it but couldn't come up with anything. "Never mind, you should keep picking out curtains. I'll continue your massage!"

Tan Xu let out a helpless chuckle. "Thank you, Master Yun Xing."

The curtains online were all pretty much the same. In the past, Tan Xu would have just bought whatever had the best blackout capabilities. But going by Yun Xing’s aesthetic tastes, plain black definitely wouldn't cut it.

After adding a few shortlisted options to his cart, he figured he would let Yun Xing make the final choice later. Suddenly, the weight on his chest multiplied.

It felt as if a dozen Yun Xings had suddenly stacked themselves on top of him. He snapped his head up, only to realize that the creature straddling his waist was no longer a little calico cat—it was undeniably a human.

The young man looked exactly as Tan Xu remembered. Soft brown hair fell obediently across his forehead, and his eyes were bright and striking. Tan Xu felt his breath hitch.

Yun Xing had been feeling unbearably hot, as if he were a roast duck strapped to a merry-go-round inside an oven. His spiritual energy had been surging wildly through his body. He originally thought the transformation process would be agonizing, but to his surprise, it happened in the blink of an eye.

He looked down at Tan Xu, who was leaning back against the headboard, staring right at him. Yun Xing was just about to announce that he had successfully transformed when he suddenly realized he was completely naked. 

In an instant, all the blood in his body rushed to his face. He snatched a pillow from the side and smashed it hard against Tan Xu.

"What are you looking at! Hurry up and find this Mountain God some clothes!"

Taking a pillow straight to the face, Tan Xu finally realized this wasn't a hallucination. But since Yun Xing was still sitting squarely on top of him, he had no choice but to reach out and pat the boy's thigh.

Yun Xing’s skin was fair, and beneath Tan Xu's fingertips, it felt incredibly soft, warm, and smooth. Tan Xu retracted his hand instantly as if he'd been electrocuted. His Adam’s apple bobbed. "Get off me first."

Yun Xing stripped the blanket off Tan Xu, wrapped it tightly around himself, and rolled to the side. Looking like a giant, bundled-up silkworm chrysalis, he urged, "Hurry, hurry!"

Tan Xu slipped on his slippers and opened the wardrobe. "I don't have any new clothes left."

Yun Xing wriggled a couple of times and stood up on the bed. Looking like a mutated, giant silkworm, he cast a huge shadow over the wardrobe. "Just grab anything, I'm not picky."

Tan Xu found a clean set of pajamas and handed them over, then looked at Yun Xing. "What about underwear?"

Yun Xing plopped onto his stomach on the bed, sticking a single hand out of the blanket to grab the pajamas. "Didn't you buy some new ones recently?"

Hearing this, Tan Xu had no choice but to pull out a fresh pair. "These probably won't fit you, right?"

Yun Xing replied righteously, "What do you mean they won't fit? You're way too stingy! It's just a pair of underwear!"

Tan Xu: "..."

Yun Xing wriggled around inside the blanket for ages before finally managing to get the pants on. However, buttoning the pajama shirt while trapped in the blanket proved too difficult. Exasperated, he threw the blanket off. "I'm dying of heat!"

Tan Xu looked at the rumpled, completely crumpled blanket and bedsheets, his eyebrow twitching fiercely. "If you're hot, come out of the covers."

Yun Xing spread his arms wide and plopped down on the edge of the bed. "Help me button it!"

Tan Xu stepped closer, looking down at the person before him. When he was a cat, he ate like a maniac, his body slowly approaching the shape of a semi-truck. Who would have thought that after turning into a human, he'd actually be a bit too skinny?

He crouched down and began buttoning Yun Xing's shirt, one button at a time. The boy's feet weren't well-behaved in the slightest; they swung back and forth, constantly kicking against Tan Xu's calves.

Once he had fastened the final button at the hem, Tan Xu reached out and grabbed Yun Xing's ankle. "Stop moving."

Feeling restricted, Yun Xing started squawking again. "Don't grab me! You're being a pervert again!"

Tan Xu dragged him by the ankle, shoved him back under the covers, and gave the bedsheets underneath him a firm tug. "Cover up. Are you still hot now?"

Yun Xing poked his head out of the blanket. "Much better now! Hurry and get the tablet. I need to tell Grandpa and the others the good news!"

Tan Xu grabbed the tablet from the desk and handed it over, then bumped the AC temperature up a notch. "You know how to unlock it, right?"

Yun Xing shot him a glare. He had figured out how to unlock it ages ago. Who was he looking down on?

Opening WeChat, he navigated by recognizing profile pictures. Both Tan Xu's and He Mi's icons were easy to spot, as they were both pictures of him. He kicked the blanket off again, his feet dangling and swinging in the air.

The video call connected quickly. He Mi seemed to still be on a film set, her heavy makeup unable to mask her exhaustion. Seeing a stranger's face on the screen, she was initially shocked, but she quickly caught on. "Xingxing?"

Yun Xing pursed his lips into a smile. "It's me, Mom."

"Oh my god!" He Mi exclaimed in shock, but she quickly lowered her voice and glanced around. "Baby, you finally transformed!"

Yun Xing hugged the tablet and rolled over on the bed. "I did!"

He Mi was thrilled, all traces of exhaustion vanishing from her face. "I have to tell your grandpa and the rest of them. Oh my, this is such wonderful news."

The two of them chatted excitedly for ages while Tan Xu sat quietly to the side, watching them. The apartment was a two-bedroom layout, and the guest room had remained unoccupied and untidy. 

Seeing that Yun Xing showed no signs of ending the call anytime soon, Tan Xu picked up the longevity lock that had fallen onto the bed, placed it on the nightstand, and got up to prepare the other bedroom.

By the time Yun Xing hung up and rolled over to pull the blanket over himself, Tan Xu said, "You're sleeping in the next room."

Thinking "the next room" meant the living room, Yun Xing felt a bit wronged. "But I can't fit in the cat bed anymore."

"Not your cat bed. The other bedroom," Tan Xu explained patiently.

Yun Xing shook his head, looking at Tan Xu with big, pleading eyes. "But I want to sleep with the cold AC air."

"That room has an air conditioner too."

"Well... then I think your bed is softer!" Yun Xing racked his brains to come up with a counterargument.

"They're the exact same mattress." Tan Xu sighed. Now that Yun Xing was human, even though the master bed was large, sleeping in the same bed was simply too weird. 

Even though he had long known Yun Xing wasn't a normal cat, actually sharing a bed with a human man was completely different.

"Can't I just sleep with you? At Grandma's house, I slept with you every single day." Yun Xing was getting a little angry. What is wrong with Tan Xu!

Why was it that now that he was a human, they couldn't sleep together anymore?

"Xingxing," Tan Xu sat on the edge of the bed and held his shoulders. "You are a human now. Only married couples sleep in the same bed every day."

Yun Xing blinked. "What's a married couple?"

"It means two people who have a very, very close relationship," Tan Xu pondered for a moment. "Like your mom and dad."

Yun Xing nodded. Dad served Mom at home every day, giving her massages, bringing her tea, and pouring her water. Looking at it that way, there was no difference between that and his dynamic with Tan Xu. Wasn't it just a master-servant relationship?

Wait, no. Tan Xu wasn't his servant anymore; Tan Xu was his assistant. That meant their relationship was a whole tier higher than a married couple's!

"Our relationship is far more advanced than a married couple's." Yun Xing blurted out whatever came to his mind.

Tan Xu fell deep into thought. What relationship is more advanced than a married couple? Father and son?

Seeing Tan Xu go quiet again, Yun Xing timidly tested the waters, "Can we sleep together now?"

"No." Tan Xu rejected the idea firmly.

Yun Xing dropped the act. He crossed his arms, ready to teach Tan Xu a lesson on who the real master of this house was. "On what grounds!"

The two of them reached a stalemate. Suddenly, Yun Xing spotted the tablet resting on the bed. His eyes darted around. Wait. If I sleep by myself, does that mean I can secretly play on the tablet?

He was a pro at unlocking the tablet now; he didn't need anyone's help. "Fine... then I'll sleep by myself!"

He reached out, hugged the tablet to his chest, and fished for the slippers on the floor with his feet. As he walked past Tan Xu, he sneaked a cautious glance at him.

Just as he was about to step out the door, Tan Xu stopped him. "Hold on. Leave the tablet."

Yun Xing whirled around and hid the tablet behind his back. "What tablet? I don't know what you're talking about."

Tan Xu walked over and easily pulled the tablet from behind his back. "No staying up late."

Yun Xing stared at his newly empty hands. "I won't stay up late! I'm just going to play for a little bit!"

Tan Xu wasn't falling for his tricks. He placed the tablet back onto the nightstand. "If it's just for a little bit, play with it in here. When it's time, go back to your room and sleep."

Yun Xing stomped his foot. Seeing from Tan Xu's expression that the man wasn't going to yield a single inch, he huffed out of the room angrily. "I'm not playing anymore! I'm never talking to you again!"

Tan Xu let out a sigh and followed him. He caught Yun Xing before he could bolt to the living room and guided him to sit down in the guest bedroom. "It's not that I won't let you play, but staring at a screen for too long is bad for your eyes. If you play on the tablet too much, you'll become nearsighted."

"Nearsighted?"

Tan Xu nodded with feigned solemnity. "Being nearsighted means you won't be able to see things far away clearly. If you play too long, you might even go blind and not be able to see anything at all."

Yun Xing pondered this. "Really?"

"Really." Tan Xu crouched down and placed his hands on Yun Xing's knees. "I shouldn't have been so stern with you just now. I'm sorry, can you forgive me?"

Yun Xing blinked again. It seemed Tan Xu just didn't want him to become a blind little cat. Plus, since Tan Xu had apologized so sincerely, he could probably forgive him.

But not wanting Tan Xu to think he was a pushover, he feigned haughtiness and let out a soft hmph from his nose. "I suppose I'll consider it."

"Please forgive me, King Xingxing." Tan Xu gently rocked Yun Xing's knees. Then, he lifted Yun Xing's ankle and fastened the longevity lock—which used to hang around the kitten's neck—securely around it. "How about I take you clothes shopping tomorrow?"

Tan Xu's hands on his knees tickled a little, so Yun Xing gave him a light kick. He then looked down at the longevity lock on his ankle. Remembering just how incredibly expensive this lock was, he felt a sudden pang of guilt.

"Fine, I will begrudgingly forgive you."