◇ Chapter 82: Poor
Yimuer stared at Bai Yu blankly, his tears still stuck in his throat. He opened his tearful eyes, his beautiful lake blue pupils dilated, as if he couldn't believe what he saw.
Doctor? Why is the doctor here?
...Is it a dream?
The doctor's hands that supported him were steady and strong, and he easily lifted him off the wet ground. He then held him in his arms, and the warmth passed through his clothes, isolating him from the cold. The doctor's slender fingers stroked his stiff back to comfort him.
Imur's mind was in a mess, and he subconsciously stretched out his claws and grabbed Bai Yu's fingers.
Then, his drooping tail curled up and naturally wrapped around the doctor's wrist.
...Is it a dream?
Imur thought in confusion and rubbed his cheek against the doctor's palm.
It might as well be a dream.
Bai Yu sighed softly.
The kitten sobbed, tears wet the corners of its eyes, its tail and ears drooped limply, its body twitched slightly in pain, and it looked weak. But despite this, its claws still held Bai Yu tightly, as if it was afraid that he would run away.
Bai Yu held it in his arms, rubbed the kitten's head, and coaxed it, "Don't cry, okay?"
To be honest, Bai Yu is not good at coaxing people. He hasn't cried since junior high school, but the dumpling in his hand was so tiny, with its fluffy tail tightly wrapped around it, as if it had suffered a great injustice.
When you are sick and crawl into the dark underground, feeling cold and without food, of course you will feel wronged.
But it didn't matter if he didn't coax her. Once he did, the tail around her wrist tightened even tighter. Imur rubbed himself tightly in his arms, his short little claws stubbornly wrapped around him, and he pawed at Bai Yu like a dragon guarding treasure.
No...Dragonite.
Bai Yu is the treasure that is several times bigger than him, but he insists on taking it for himself.
The doctor shook his head slightly and laughed dumbly, almost indulging Imur to rub his chest wet. The kitten's cheek was buried in his chest through a thin layer of cloth. Then he nodded its head and coaxed it again: "Imur, don't cry, okay?"
…
What?
Imur's drowsy mind cleared up for a moment. He raised his eyes blankly, looked at the doctor steadily, blinked, and even burped slightly.
What did the doctor call him?
...Imur?
Ymur?!
Bai Yu had always called him Tuanzi or Little Cat, but Imur was the name of Grand Duke Illia, so how could Bai Yu know that? How could he call a little cat Imur?
This identity is the Duke's deepest secret, and it is also a deadly secret that can be easily grasped.
His aching head was still unable to think calmly, but in an instant, it was as if some carefully buried landmine was suddenly detonated, and suspicion, uneasiness and fear surged up in him.
Yimuer's hair stood up all over his body, and he unconsciously shifted his center of gravity backward, distanced himself from Bai Yu, and struggled violently, thrashing about in panic, as if drowning. Bai Yu almost couldn't hold the kitten steady, and finally, the kitten screamed and fell straight off his arms -
The only thing left in Imur's chaotic mind was "No, no, I can't let anyone know. They will look down on me! They will be hated! They will die!"
Even though slavery existed in name only in Illia, slaves sent as tribute from foreign nations were still the lowest of the lowest. They were considered lowly and unclean and could be toyed with or even executed at will. This identity was his deepest scar and his most silent pain, which still rotted and festered and had never healed. The slightest touch could make him live a life worse than death.
Imur didn't dare to gamble.
...The doctor knew that he was the Grand Duke, but the person the doctor hated the most was also the Grand Duke.
The Doctor had always wanted Archduke Imur dead.
The moment this thought came to his mind, Imur's lake-blue eyes were filled with mist again, and grievances spread, lingering in his heart.
He had only been in the doctor's arms for two minutes, and before he could even smell the doctor's scent, his identity had been revealed.
Why not let him rub it a little more?
The time it took to land was longer than any other time. The weightlessness and fear made the kitten close his eyes, but the violent impact did not come - Bai Yu reached out and gently pulled him back.
Being resettled back into the arms.
Before the fear spread, the bitter smell of the doctor's body first penetrated into the body, and the tense nerves were also soothed.
Bai Yu sighed, "Yimuer, stop moving. I can't hold you anymore. Your short legs have so much strength."
The kitten was still scared and wanted to hide, but Bai Yu protected him and brought him back, covering him with his coat. He huddled in the coat and covered his head. No matter how Bai Yu called out, he could not come out, trying to send a message to the doctor.
——No, I am not Imur, you are mistaken.
The warm coat calmed the stressed kitten down temporarily. The doctor rubbed his brows with a headache and said, "Finally you're willing to listen to me?"
Imur curled up in his coat, shrinking himself into a smaller one. He took a long time to calm down, then stuck his head out and looked around. He imitated other kittens and rubbed against the doctor in a flattering way, pretending to be an innocent kitten: "Meow——"
——I am really not Ymur.
The doctor sighed again.
Bai Yu had lost count of how many times he sighed today. He poked the kitten's head in dismay and said with a smile, "Yimuer, do you think I'm a fool?"
"……?"
What?
Platinum Dumpling had a bewildered expression, stared blankly, and started to act stupid.
When he was at Bai Yu's house, he often got away with it like this.
Bai Yu laughed out loud, and said with an ambiguous meaning: "You won't cry until you see the coffin, Yimuer. You want to ask me, I'll tell you how I know."
He began to count them one by one: "The Duke fell into the water, and I found you by the river. The Duke was stabbed in the abdomen, and you also had a wound in your abdomen."
"On the day you left, a ruby appeared in my home. It was of excellent quality and very expensive."
"Later, when I arrived at the Grand Duke's Palace, the Duke acted strangely and indulged me in every way."
"Then the Duke went to stay at his mother's house, and you showed up at my house."
"Besides, I saw you both times I couldn't find my glasses, right?"
"Once in the wine cellar, you appeared immediately after I saw the cat, and once in the small building, I found the glasses after the cat called. Is this a coincidence? Hmm? Imur, tell me, is this a coincidence?"
“…”
The doctor's tone was calm, but it made the fur on the Duke's tail explode, and Imur shrank back into the doctor's coat, covering his ears with his paws.
——If you don’t listen, you won’t know.
Relying on the cute appearance of the kitten, he didn't care about the Duke's manners at all.
Bai Yu laughed in anger. He was not going to tolerate it. He stripped Yimuer and pressed his paws to force him to listen: "There are so many loopholes in everything. You don't think I can guess it, right?"
Bai Yu had a cold personality since childhood, and he would see through things but not speak them out. Even if he had suspicions in his heart, he would not easily expose them without absolute certainty. At that time, Bai Yu heard a cat meowing in the small building, and then found glasses with the same degree. Bai Yu's suspicion, which was originally 6 points, suddenly increased to 10 points, but Yimuer really thought he had hidden it well, and he gave him wine and sent him out of the city. Bai Yu repeatedly asked to see Yimuer and tried to be honest with him, but he avoided him and treated Bai Yu as a fool.
Imur: “…”
Although the doctor was still holding him steadily, Imur inexplicably felt that the eyes behind Bai Yu's monocle were cold and sharp, and very dangerous, as if if he dared to say something wrong now, there would be uncontrollable consequences.
Imur shrank his neck in fear, making the kitten's already short neck even shorter. Then he raised his head, feeling guilty but trying to please: "Meow——"
No, not at all.
But the strange thing was that amid the doctor's questioning, his wandering heart finally settled down and silently settled down.
The doctor confirmed his identity. He had been exposed long ago. The doctor had countless chances, but he did not kill him.
...Perhaps the Doctor is not so loyal to the Black Robes, does not hate Ymur so much, does not want the Archduke dead so much, and the situation is not as bad as he thinks?
The kitten tentatively stretched out its claws and grasped the doctor's fingers again.
After the fright, he looked up at Bai Yu's expression and finally discovered that there was not a trace of disgust or impatience in the doctor's eyes.
The doctor knew he was Imur, but the doctor did not hate him.
So the kitten tentatively coiled its tail around him, and Imur rubbed it against the doctor's arms.
He buried it contentedly, as if he had found a small animal in familiar territory.
The cold faded, the pain eased, and the doctor hugged him, silently comforting him.
All the years of depression and grievances were isolated, and the long-lost sense of security surrounded him. Imur felt like he was back in the doctor's home. Lying on the windowsill filled with sunshine, he couldn't help but take a deep breath.
--like.
I don't know how long it took, so long that Yimuer had settled down in his arms, so long that he felt a little comfortable and wanted to sleep lazily. Bai Yu then held him in front of him and said with a smile: "Are you feeling better now?"
“…”
Imur couldn't help but shudder: "Meow..."
Bai Yu: "Now that I've recovered, let's settle accounts. I wanted to see you so many times before, why didn't you come?"
He was referring to when they were in the small building.
At that time, he guessed it was almost right, but he could not tell the interrogator and the butler about his guess that the Duke was a kitten. He could only make an appointment with the Duke himself alone. If Imur had met him, there would not have been so many troubles later.
Imur: “Mee…”
He began to feel guilty again.
But Bai Yu was holding him up, and suddenly raised his hand and slapped the kitten's butt lightly.
A strange numbness exploded from the coccyx. The tip of the tail trembled twice, then suddenly straightened. The shock wave went up along the tailbone. Half of his body went limp. Imur suddenly opened his eyes wide and looked at the doctor in disbelief.
Everyone knows he is a duke! And they still beat him!
Where is the Grand Duke’s dignity?
His hair stood up, and he instinctively turned his head and opened his mouth to bite someone, but Bai Yu pushed his head back: "Next time you have something like this, you have to discuss it with me, don't let your imagination run wild, understand?"
Bai Yu had no idea what Imur was thinking, and he was sure that the doctor would harm him if he knew his identity.
Yimuer flapped his short legs, wanting to rush over again to defend the Duke's dignity, but Bai Yu hugged him and said, "Okay, little cat, are you hungry? Do you want to eat?"
It was damp and cold underground, and the kitten was still sick. Without food, it would probably be very uncomfortable.
Imur tilted his head slightly: "Mmm?"
food?
Bai Yu: "We have to stay here for two days. What do you want to eat? Beef paste?"
Now they are a kitten whose identity cannot be discovered, a traitor who has already "died", and they are still being hunted by the Black Robe Society. Once caught, they will be killed without a complete body. Now Bai Yu can't go home, and can't stay in a hotel. Even the bridge hole is usually occupied by homeless people. It seems that there is almost no place to stay in Illia.
However, the Duke's Mansion, a forbidden area where no one can approach, is a good hiding place.
Bai Yu had wondered before, if it was a forbidden area, why was there no one guarding it, allowing him to come in freely. Now it seems that Xiaomao was afraid of being discovered, so he deliberately removed the guards and emphasized the title of "forbidden area" to prevent anyone from coming. Now it has made things convenient for him.
Bai Yu looked around and said, "This underground space looks quite large. With my credentials as a guard in the Duke's Mansion, I can go out to buy some things, do some renovations, and bring back some cushions and food to make it more comfortable for the next few days."
Imur: “Mmm?”
Bai Yu: "Stay here for a while, I'll be back soon."
Imur's body tensed instantly.
His pupils dilated and he looked at the doctor almost helplessly.
...Wait a while? But how long is a while?
The kitten is now extremely clingy and doesn't want to be separated from the doctor for a moment.
But Imur also knew that the sick kitten was a burden, and going up with the doctor would only be a burden to the doctor, so he put his hands back dejectedly.
Bai Yu turned to look at him.
Imur lay listlessly on the only table on the ground, his big tail sweeping back and forth along the surface, his eyelids drooping and his eyes dull.
——The kitten must not know how pitiful he looks now.
The doctor relented again.
Bai Yu always easily becomes soft-hearted when it comes to Imur.
He sighed, "Okay, I'll take you with me, but I have to climb up. How am I going to carry you?"
The stairs to the basement are straight rope ladders with wooden stepping boards. Due to years of moisture, they are covered with a layer of slippery moss. Even someone as agile as a doctor has to hold on to both sides to go up and down.
But in this way, he would have no arms to hold the kitten.
Bai Yu looked up and down at his clothes and sighed, "Okay, this is the only way."
Imur tilted his head suspiciously: "Mmm?"
The next second, he was picked up by the doctor.
The Duke's uniform was a corset style. The doctor tightened the belt and buttoned up his windbreaker, so that the belt and the collar of the windbreaker formed a space similar to a kangaroo bag. Then he picked up Imur and put him in.
Imur: “!!!”
What? !
The author has something to say:
The kitten buried his chest and fainted with happiness.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com