Chapter 21
When I got home, I couldn't avoid being nagged by Li Ying'an again. His words were not harsh and there was no tone of admonition. It was just pure and heartfelt concern.
I knew he was afraid that something might happen to me. After all, none of the cats he had raised before had a good end. I even heard him say to himself that if something happened to me again, he would never keep a cat again.
The injury I got today was indeed an accident. I thought Li Ying'an wouldn't take it too seriously, but I didn't expect him to feel the pain when it hit me. Before going to bed, he held me like we were outside, massaging my injured legs and feet, saying that this would promote blood circulation and speed healing. I nestled in his arms, enjoying his care, but I couldn't help but feel sorry for him.
He has a very hard life, so I have to find some honey for him.
During the days after my injury, I went out as usual, and Li Ying'an never restricted my freedom of movement, although he did complain to me the day before, but he couldn't stand me meowing at the door all the time.
I attended classes as usual.
My workplace operates a two-shift system, and I'm almost done with it for a month now. In a few days, I'll also be working the night shift. Those working the morning shift with me have already swapped shifts with Sui Yusheng's mother. Today was the first time I'd seen Sui Yusheng's mother on the morning shift, and she looked more energetic than usual.
On the evening of my last day shift, I saw two familiar customers coming into the bustling supermarket.
Sui Yusheng walked straight to the cashier as soon as he entered the door. He was holding fruits and vegetables in his hands. I heard them discussing whether these things would be enough to entertain the guests.
The woman thought it was enough, but since they were already there, she decided to let Sui Yusheng go to the snack area to buy some of his favorite things.
"Aunt Deng."
As soon as Sui Yusheng left, someone followed him.
I looked in the direction of the voice and saw that it was someone I knew.
Wen Liangxi stood where Sui Yusheng had stood, cradling a cluster of vibrant carnations, their petals stained with shimmering water droplets. The soft sunset light streamed in through the glass, illuminating the water droplets with a golden sheen, and the warm orange glow stained the clean-cut man's entire body.
Every time I saw Wen Liangxi, he was smiling, and he is the same now.
The smile stained by the twilight spots seemed softer. His eyebrows were curved, his eyelashes were long, and the curve of the corners of his lips attracted the flowers in his arms. The flowers looked more vigorous, more beautiful and even brighter, especially against the backdrop of his plum green linen jacket, one pink and one green. It really felt like the flowers were still resting on the branches illuminated by the tranquil sunset.
"Look at you, kid. You just come to play and you always bring me a bouquet of flowers. Your house is almost like a flower garden."
Wen Liangxi said: "We must not neglect matters of etiquette."
Such a heartwarming scene naturally attracted many onlookers, and Wen Liangxi was a beautiful girl, so people who came here to buy food after get off work in the evening couldn't help but take a few more glances at her.
Wen Liangxi noticed everyone's gaze and instinctively looked around, but as soon as he turned his head, he met my eyes.
Who made me stand opposite such a scene...
"It's you," he took the initiative to speak, "What a coincidence."
I also think that this encounter is really a coincidence. I didn't expect that he and Sui Yusheng are friends. Looking at Deng Yu's attitude towards him, the relationship between the two is probably like that of close buddies.
"Xiao Xi, do you two know each other?" Deng Yu asked.
"We've met a few times and we can be considered friends." After answering Deng Yu's question, Wen Liangxi immediately began to care about me.
He lowered his gaze to the cashier counter. I felt his gaze staring through the cold table at my legs. "Have you taken all the medicine? How do your legs feel now?"
I lowered my head and moved around a little: I'm fine now.
"You also know that Xiao Feng is injured. I saw him walking unsteadily a while ago. I heard that he was injured."
Wen Liangxi didn't answer immediately. I looked up in the silence and found that Sui Yusheng had walked up to Deng Yu with a basket of snacks and was ready to pay.
After Sui Yusheng put down the things, he turned around and looked at me, followed by Wen Liangxi's kind smile and gaze.
Wen Liangxi felt a little embarrassed, even his smile was tinged with guilt. "His injury was largely due to me. I was riding my bike a little too fast that day and accidentally bumped into him at the corner. I took him home for a quick stroll. We'd met before, so we chatted and became familiar with each other."
Sui Yusheng's expression changed instantly after hearing Wen Liangxi's words. I intuitively felt that his brows twisted slightly, and his originally relaxed and expressionless face became a little tense and indifferent. Even the eyes hidden under his eyelashes flashed with an imperceptible dark color.
These messages are captured in my eyes, and through my understanding, I always think of it as a creature expressing its displeasure at having its territory invaded.
But I don’t understand why Sui Yusheng would have such hostility towards me, as I clearly didn’t go to his house.
But the next second, the woman opened her mouth to invite: "In this case, we are all friends. Today is Xiaosheng's birthday, Xiaoxi is here too, Xiaofeng, do you want to come to our house to celebrate together?"
I understood what the woman meant almost before she finished speaking, and instantly glanced at Sui Yusheng's dead face.
As I expected, Sui Yusheng didn't seem to welcome me.
Finally, I smiled and shook my head.
Seeing that I was not interested, the woman did not force me to stay. Instead, Wen Liangxi invited me again, and I still refused.
Because shift work requires adjusting work schedules, I will get two days of rest.
Ever since I got hurt, I've been more obedient and headed straight home after work. Occasionally, I'd find time to look for Xiaoju, but time flies by like water. From the time I heard the news until today, the familiar smells are gone, and I'm forced to return home feeling lost.
It's been nearly three days since I last looked for Xiaoju. Normally, I wouldn't have allowed such a long break, but today, I didn't. Li Ying'an had specifically told me to go home early before work this morning because his boss was giving him an advance salary, which he planned to use to buy brighter lights at home.
I squatted by the door with nothing to do. The small bowl of cat food and water that had been outside had long been removed by Li Ying'an. Li Lan had told him that leaving food outdoors would attract cat abusers to poison it.
Bored, I lay on the ground on my side. After looking around, my big round eyes gradually became filled with sleepiness.
I was about to fall asleep, but unexpectedly I heard a noisy sound as I went down the stairs.
"Slow down, Master. Yes, there's another layer..."
This was Li Ying'an's voice, and my eyes widened instantly.
The master asked, "Is it the family with the cat at the door?"
Hearing this, Li Ying'an tilted his head from behind him and said, "Yes, it's the one with the tabby cat in front of the door. I'll open the door for you."
The keys jingled against the door, and I was the first person to enter the house after it opened.
The home renovations were almost complete. While not fully furnished, it certainly had everything he needed for daily living. Li Ying'an was a man of economy and cleanliness, and he kept the tiny, shabby house spotless every day. The first thing the decorator said when he walked in was to praise its cleanliness before complaining about its size.
"But it's enough for you to live alone with one cat."
That's true. Twenty square meters is enough for Li Ying'an and I to live in. Sometimes I even feel it's a little bigger.
"Okay." Half an hour later, the master slowly came down.
Li Ying'an quickly handed over the money: "Thank you for your hard work. This is the fee we agreed on before. Please check if it is reconciled."
"No need," the master took it without even looking at it and put it in his pocket without saying anything, "It seems you are an honest man."
Li Ying'an was not very happy with what he said. He twitched the corners of his mouth and smiled broadly, which made him look naive.
"Let's go then. Call me if you have anything."
"Okay, Master, please remember to drive slowly on the road."
Li Ying'an insisted on sending the person downstairs. After being rejected by his master many times, he stopped in front of the door and stared for a long time before turning around and closing the door.
I squatted on the ground, staring at the light above my head, lost in thought.
I don't know if Li Ying'an did it on purpose.
The ceiling light hanging in the center of the room is a small blue fish, clad entirely in aquamarine glass, with only a frosted white-gray outer ring. The curved shape of the fish's tail evokes a playful swim in the ocean, while the white-gray outer ring, in this moment, becomes more than just a decorative element, but rather a wave.
After a while of hard work, it still gets dark early even though spring has not yet arrived, and the house is already a little dark.
I couldn't wait to jump onto the table and turn on the light myself.
With a "pop", I couldn't help but open my mouth.
The fish seemed to come alive when the lights were turned on.
A hazy beige light enveloped the roof, and the light blue fish body took on the color of the ocean, as if a real fish were inside. Furthermore, two bubbles appeared near the fish's mouth. Reflected by the white-gray light from the outer edge, the shimmering fish scales within the bubbles floated like clouds. As the current coursed freely through the fish lantern's body, the scales seemed to move, rising and falling like a fish swimming leisurely on the waves.
"Cough cough..." Li Ying'an coughed lightly.
I turned my head, but Li Ying'an pointed at the ground.
I cast my gaze down on the ground.
The ground is alive, too. It's like the sea, embracing everything in the sky. I saw the fish that had been swimming on the roof suddenly come alive on the ground.
Fish in the sky can't fly, but fish on the ground can swim!
The most eye-catching thing is the fish scales that flicker inside the bubbles. Under the influence of light, they start a game of whack-a-mole. When some scales appear, others disappear, and even change positions. There is no pattern to it, it all depends on the mood of the light and your luck.
With such a rich variety of lights, I didn't rush to play with them immediately, but thought that someone must have spent a lot of money on them.
Seeing that I was just staring at him instead of playing, Li Ying'an was puzzled. "What's wrong, you childish boy? You don't seem interested. Did you exercise too much today, so you don't want to play with the lanterns anymore?"
I lowered my head, feeling a little overwhelmed for the first time.
I remember many people who were kind to me, but Li Ying'an is the only one who regards me as a part of his life.
I will always remember his kindness, but now this kindness is a bit too much for me and I can't accept it.
I need time to consider the love Li Ying'an gives me.
"Hello, your takeaway has arrived."
The door that was knocked was opened, and Li Ying'an took the full bag from the delivery boy. The bag seemed heavy, otherwise Li Ying'an would not have stumbled.
I could see through the transparent bag and tell that everything inside belonged to me: cat food, cat litter, canned cat food...
"Thanks to Li Lan for telling me I could order takeout. It's not only convenient, but since I'm new here, they also give me coupons."
Li Ying'an acted like he'd gotten a great deal. He happily took out the items from the bag and placed them in front of me one by one, sorted by category. "I didn't know what you'd like to eat, but these were all recommended to me by Li Lan. Her daughter Huang Huang has been eating these dishes and is now plump and adorable. I also hope you can eat well and become plump, so you look full of energy and don't get bullied outside."
"Of course, I'd like you even if you weren't fat," he said, rocking me in his arms. "After all, you're Li Youzhi."
His words made me a little dazed. The feeling of weightlessness turned all the water in my body into tears, which unconsciously began to flow up from the bottom to the top of my eye sockets, forming a small crystal clear lake.
I didn't want Li Ying'an to know that cats can cry. While it wouldn't be unusual, it would make the sensitive Li Ying'an think of many things. I pretended to be hungry and struggled to break free from his arms. I lowered my head and sniffed deeply at everything that belonged to me.
None of it belongs to Li Ying'an, it's all mine.
At first glance, these brands are well-known to cat owners. Famous brands have their own reasons, and it is true that they are expensive.
Li Ying'an, why are you spending money on me again?
You are so poor that you are almost as thin as an old man.
"Are you hungry? Should we eat cat food or cook some vegetables?"
I pushed the cat food away with my paw and jumped onto the stove with a look of disgust: I've told you before that I don't like cat food!
Li Ying'an couldn't read my thoughts. He just piled things in the place where I entertained, then put on an apron, took out the dishes that had been prepared long ago from the refrigerator, put the food in a wok, and heated the oil.
After dinner, I sat in a place covered by the shadows of fish, in a daze.
"You're acting weird tonight, you childish boy," Li Ying'an, who had just finished washing the dishes, came over to me, crossed his legs, and sat down with me. "You're always in a daze, and you don't have any energy."
Li Ying'an said this, and I think he must have seen through me a long time ago. I didn't want him to worry about me, nor did I want him to mistakenly think that I didn't like the things he bought home, so I pretended to be sleepy, stretched my chin, and rested my head on his lap.
"You're so sleepy, where did you go for a crazy day?"
I didn't look at him or pay attention to him, I just looked at the light.
Li Ying'an followed my gaze and said, "Do you like it? Actually, there are even prettier ones, but I'm too poor to buy them. I can only bring you something like this to play with for now. I'm going to make a verbal promise to you now. I'll work hard and make a lot of money to buy you delicious food and fun things. I'll also take you to live in a big house and get you a scratching post and a treadmill... Just eat well every day, be happy, and don't get sick, okay?"
What a big pie...
But I'd like to hang this cake around my neck.
Afterwards, Li Ying'an's eyes were filled with infinite longing for the future. He touched my head and said with a smile, "I don't seek great wealth, as long as I can live a simple life. This is home."
I looked at his profile and thought, is this home?
So this is home!
A warm little house will accept everything in your life.
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