Chapter 13

"Who are you chatting with? You're all smiles." Li Xuan sent Miao Miao's photo to her grandmother and told her that Li Miao was doing well and that her grandmother didn't need to worry too much.

"One of my roommates asked me if my profile picture was pretty, and he said it was the cutest of all."

"Hahaha, of course, my Miaomiao is the cutest little cat." Li Xuan wholeheartedly supported such praise.

As he smiled, the curve of Li Xuan's lips instantly froze.

Li Miao shares a dorm room with another serious cat lover!

With trembling lips and a nervous heart, Li Xuan cautiously asked, "Which roommate?"

"Brother Pei Huai," Li Miao said softly, her beautiful cat-like eyes wide open, "What's wrong?"

"Aaaaaaah!"

They even asked me what was wrong!

Li Xuan was pulling at his hair, his mind racing with frustration.

It hasn't been that long, and he's already calling that brat Pei Huai "brother."

"Who are you calling brother? You're not allowed to call anyone else but me." Li Xuan gently pinched his younger brother's cheek with his fingers.

Li Miao, confused, asked why.

"Of course it's because I'm your best brother. If you call someone else 'brother,' I'll get jealous. I'm not happy, hmph!" Li Xuan pouted to express her dissatisfaction.

Oh, I see.

“Alright then, I’ll just call you brother like that,” Li Miao said obediently.

"As expected of my good little brother, do you want some more shrimp?" Li Xuan's plan had succeeded, and she took the initiative to put a shrimp ball on her brother's plate.

Li Miao touched her full little belly and opened her lips.

Adding another shrimp ball is no problem at all!

Before leaving the restaurant, Li Miao asked the waiter to pack up the remaining food.

In order to get Li Miao to be taken care of by her roommates, Li Xuan temporarily suppressed her dissatisfaction with Pei Huai and ordered two new dishes for Li Miao to take home.

On the way back, they also took a car. Li Miao held the insulated bag that the restaurant had packed for her with both hands and sat with her knees together.

The night was deepening outside the car window.

Li Xuan subconsciously wanted his younger brother to stay at his place for one night, but then he remembered that Li Miao had to take the food back, so he didn't invite him.

"Brother, I want to ask you something, but I don't know if you know it."

"Just ask me what's wrong. I'll tell you if I know the answer."

Li Xuan thought Li Miao was going to ask about the heat cycle in adulthood.

“It’s my roommate Pei Huai. He loves cats, but he’s been like this since he was little…” Li Miao had promised Pei Huai that she would help him find out the truth about this matter.

I haven't had time to ask the oldest cat, who has been staying at Kyoto University the longest, these past two days.

He thought he should ask his older brother, since his brother might have more experience and knowledge than him.

"This matter..." Li Xuan, who had been looking relaxed, lowered his eyes slightly, and his expression became more serious.

"I'll tell you about it when we get off at school; it's not convenient to talk about it on the bus," Li Xuan said.

"Mmm." Li Miao nodded.

Kyoto University was just as lively at 9 a.m., with many university students still strolling around outside.

Li Xuan then took his younger brother back to his dormitory.

On the way back, he explained why Pei Huai was hated by all the cats and was disliked by them.

The reason he knew the whole story was because he had inquired about Pei Qingsong's past and asked the elders of the Spirit Cat Clan about Pei Qingsong's dislike by the cats, and finally investigated and summarized the matter.

Pei Qingsong's mother and Pei Huai's mother have been rescuing kittens and dogs since they were young.

When Pei Qingsong and Pei Huai were children, their mother rescued a group of kittens from a cat abuser.

When they were rescued, the cats were in very poor mental and physical condition, and were on the verge of death.

They were severely abused by humans for a long time. Some cats went to cat heaven before they were successfully rescued. The remaining cats hated the abusers and, by extension, hated humans.

So for a long time afterward, those dozen or so cats looked at humans with hatred, wariness, and fear in their eyes when they approached.

Despite being attacked and yelled at, Pei Qingsong and Pei Huai's mother, along with other volunteers, were not saddened. On the contrary, they felt extremely sorry for the cats and patiently cared for them.

Pei Qingsong and Pei Huai happened to be there at the time, so they joined in taking care of the abused cats.

Despite our best efforts, half of the severely injured cats could not be saved.

Those souls, filled with hatred and resentment, lingered around Pei Qingsong and Pei Huai, unwilling to leave. They hated that there were cat abusers among humans, yet they also longed for the tenderness that human children had shown them in their final days.

Since then, the vengeful spirit of the cat possessing Pei Qingsong and Pei Huai has not completely disappeared.

Cats can sense things that are invisible and intangible.

The cat souls inside Pei Qingsong and Pei Huai are filled with hatred and malevolence.

The cats, ever perceptive, noticed this and naturally kept their distance.

Occasionally, they could smell the malevolent aura emanating from abused cats. This scent would make the cats sense the abuser's malice, causing them to attack Pei Qingsong and Pei Huai.

"Well, they were just kids back then, and they took good care of those abused cats for a long time. Those cats should have been reincarnated, but their resentment was still there, and they couldn't bear to part with the gentle care of the children... The adults' souls were too strong for them to possess, so they stayed with the children when they were still kids."

"To put it bluntly, Pei Qingsong and Pei Huai did nothing wrong."

"Those souls who haven't left yet are actually quite pitiful."

"I was able to get close to Pei Qingsong because our spirit cats were only slightly affected by the vengeful spirits of cats..." Li Xuan said slowly in a deep voice.

As soon as he finished speaking, he had already escorted Li Miao to her dormitory building.

The lights inside poured out, enveloping their faces.

Just then, Li Xuan noticed that his younger brother's eyes were red, with glistening tears glistening in them.

"Why are you crying, you silly little cat?" Li Xuan rubbed his younger brother's head.

"Waaah, I just feel so sorry for those cats that have been abused and lost their lives... Waaah..." As she spoke, Li Miao's nose tingled, and she couldn't help but sob.

"Why are there such evil humans?" Li Miao's voice trembled.

"Hey, humans are a very complex group. There are a huge number of humans, and naturally there are good people and bad people. Look, like Pei Qingsong and Pei Huai's mother, and those animal rescue volunteers, they are all very kind."

Li Xuan stood downstairs comforting her younger brother for a long time before Li Miao's tears slowly receded.

Li Miao raised her hand and wiped her eyes with the back of her hand, then slowly said, "Thank you for telling me so much, brother. Now I know the reason. Can I tell Pei Huai about this?"

“It should be possible, but he might not believe it, after all, there’s this cat vengeful spirit following him…” Li Xuan said, “It’s up to you, you can choose what to say.”

"Well... Brother, it's getting late, I'll go upstairs now." Li Miao stood on the steps and obediently said goodbye to her brother.

Li Xuan waved to his younger brother until he could no longer see his brother's back as he went upstairs, then he turned and left.

As Li Miao walked outside the dormitory, she heard the sounds of people playing games coming from inside.

He took out his key and opened the door. Liang Yixuan and Li Hang were playing a game together.

Pei Huai sat in his seat reading a book.

Hearing the door open, Pei Huai's ears twitched slightly. He turned around and greeted, "You're back from dinner with your brother?"

"Mmm! This is some delicious food I brought for you. Are you hungry? You can have it as a late-night snack~"

The two, who were still engrossed in the game, immediately lost interest in playing when they heard there was a late-night snack.

"You guys can eat after you finish playing the game, there's no rush," Li Miao said understandingly.

"Ahhh, how can we have such a great roommate like Li Miao? We're so lucky!" Liang Yixuan flattered.

Li Hang also expressed his enthusiasm like a puppy: "Yes, it's such a blessing to have such an easy-going roommate in this lifetime."

"You guys are going a bit overboard. I'll just put the food on the table then, you can eat it after you finish this game."

Liang Yixuan and Li Hang both said "okay" in unison.

Li Miao took out two of the most delicious items from the packaged food bag and handed them to Pei Huai.

Pei Huai wasn't hungry, but he certainly wouldn't refuse the late-night snack that Li Miao had specially prepared for him.

Taking the chopsticks and breaking them open, Pei Huai opened the insulated box, which was full of crispy salt and pepper shrimp balls, and another dish was crab roe seafood soup.

Pei Huai smiled and said thank you.

"You're welcome, eat it while it's hot." Li Miao stood to the side, her shoulder leaning against the wardrobe by Pei Huai's bed, looking down at the boy who hadn't left.

Pei Huai was about to taste it when he unexpectedly discovered that Li Miao's eyes were bloodshot, like a little rabbit with red eyes.

"Why are your eyes so red?" Pei Huai asked casually as he ate a shrimp ball.

"Uh." Li Miao blinked his clear, bright eyes and said softly, "No, I'm probably just a little sleepy."

Pei Huai did not ask any further questions.

Li Miao was actually thinking about how to tell Pei Huai what her brother had told her.

Will Pei Huai believe that's the reason? Will he accept it?

Pei Huai thought that Li Miao saw him eating a late-night snack and wanted to eat some more too.

When Li Miao blinked again, a round, steaming shrimp ball appeared in front of her.

"Awooo." Without the slightest hesitation, Li Miao swallowed the food in one gulp.

Pei Huai smiled and continued eating, but found that Li Miao was still standing next to him and wouldn't leave.

"Are you hungry and want to eat? I've noticed you've been standing here the whole time," Pei Huai asked softly. "Want to eat together?"

Li Miao swallowed the food in her mouth, shook her head gently, hesitated for a moment, and then whispered, "I'm not hungry. I'm standing next to you because I wanted to tell you something."

"What is it?" Pei Huai asked directly.

Li Miao glanced at the other two people in the dormitory: "I'll tell you on the balcony after you finish eating."

“Okay.” Pei Huai raised an eyebrow, wondering what was going on so mysteriously.

After a quick two-item late-night snack, Pei Huai and Li Miao went to the balcony, closing the balcony door behind them.

Li Miao: "Actually, it's about the cat disliking you. I know why now."

"So fast?" Pei Huai exclaimed in surprise.

"Yes, I asked my brother about it when I was having dinner with him today, and he happened to know the answer."

"I see. Then tell me, I'm listening," Pei Huai said in a deep voice.

"Okay, I'll tell you why, you might not believe me~~"

“I won’t disbelieve you,” Pei Huai said with a light laugh.

On the balcony, Li Miao slowly and carefully explained to Pei Huai about the cat spirit that had been following him.

"Don't be too sad. The kittens that run away when they see you don't dislike you. It's just that the aura of feline vengeful spirits and the bloody, malevolent energy frighten them."

Li Miao stood upright, facing Pei Huai, giving Pei Huai time to slowly digest the truth.

"Of course, if you think what I'm saying is nonsense, you don't have to believe it."

Pei Huai lowered his eyes and remained silent for a moment. He licked his lips and said, "No, I believe what you said."

"Yes, that's about it."

Pei Huai felt heavy-hearted. So that's why he hadn't been liked by the kittens for so many years. No wonder only he and his cousin had this constitution; it was actually related to that incident from their childhood.

Even today, Pei Huai still remembers the names of the kittens he rescued. They were given to him on the spot by his mother, aunt, and volunteers: Flower Ball, Milk Coffee, Blackie, and Biao Ge...

The cats that were successfully rescued were gradually found adoptive homes.

Some cats weren't so lucky; they fell asleep a few days later and never woke up again.

Pei Huai and his cousin buried the cats under the big tree together.

"Don't be too sad. They won't stay with you forever. They'll probably fade away in a few years."

"Once they're all gone, new kittens will definitely come to you and keep you company."

Li Miao patted Pei Huai's shoulder reassuringly.

Pei Huai: "Well, there's one thing you said that's not quite right."

Li Miao: "Huh? Which sentence?"

Pei Huai chuckled softly, his eyes and brows filled with tender affection: "I don't need to wait for them to leave before the kittens come near me. In my current state, even if I have kittens with me, they'll still be a bunch of kittens."

As soon as he finished speaking, a gentle breeze brushed against the boy's face from the balcony, where the windows were closed and there was no wind.

It was as if the vengeful spirits of cats were greeting Pei Huai.

They seemed happy that the little boy from back then had finally discovered their existence.