Chapter 9: Cat

It could only be said that she had indeed been slightly influenced yesterday, caught off guard by that little Su Ziyan.

She decided that once she recovered in two days, she would definitely make him pay the price.

Spurring herself on with such thoughts, Cheng Qingyun finally broke through the seal of the Quilt Demon.

She threw on some simple clothes and prepared to go grab a bite to eat.

She tied up her somewhat obstructive long hair.

Originally, she had planned to tie it into twin-tails, but after a moment of thought, she ultimately chose a high ponytail.

A high ponytail was certainly more convenient than twin-tails.

Her habitual desire to tie twin-tails was only because Su Ziyan liked them.

To be honest, with her loli-like physique, she didn’t particularly enjoy such cute hairstyles.

After all, she was already in her twenties; such a hairstyle always carried a suspicion of trying to look younger than she was.

However, for some unknown reason, Su Ziyan insisted that if she wanted to tie her hair up, she should do it in twin-tails, so she had agreed.

What she didn’t know was that the reason he wanted her to wear twin-tails was that Xu Duyan liked wearing a small suit and twin-tails when she worked as a bartender.

Fortunately, out of respect for her lover, she hadn’t looked into his background.

She only knew that he had an Elder Sister who was ten years older than him and had raised him.

Otherwise, she would have understood everything the moment she saw the files and Xu Duyan’s photos.

After tidying herself up like this, she found a breakfast shop and ate a quick meal.

The table at the shop was very clean, polished so brightly that it reflected her face.

She stared blankly at her reflection, feeling a bit out of place.

Ultimately, she untied her hair and bound it back into twin-tails.

‘Su Ziyan’s influence on me really is that great,’ she realized.

‘Over the last four years, I’ve truly changed so much.’

Her parents treated each other with formal respect and both loved her dearly.

She had always believed she grew up in a loving home.

It wasn’t until she grew up and discovered her father was supporting more than one mistress and even had another child that she angrily went to see her Mother.

However, she received an answer that completely shattered her worldview.

“It’s fine; wealthy men can’t be controlled anyway,” her Mother’s voice carried no emotional fluctuation.

“As long as he handles it well and doesn’t let those people show up in front of us, it’s fine. You will always be the only heir to the family; that will never waver.”

It was then that she realized that no matter what the two of them had experienced in their youth, and no matter how heart-wrenchingly they had loved each other in the past, there was absolutely no love left between her parents now.

All that remained was formal respect.

From that day on, she no longer understood what love was.

Later, she met Su Ziyan, a very interesting person.

Feeling the tenderness and attachment in his gaze, she chose to try being in a relationship with him.

At the beginning, although the two of them often went on dates together, their intimate contact was limited to holding hands and hugging.

Su Ziyan wasn’t impatient for more; he seemed perfectly satisfied with just a hug.

This made her very happy.

And so, after they had been dating for nearly one year, during a boring movie, she spoke to him in the theater.

“Do you want to try kissing?”

Su Ziyan’s face was filled with surprise, but he eventually nodded.

Their lips met just like that.

After a brief kiss, she stopped talking.

Su Ziyan, as if understanding her unspoken request, didn’t ask questions.

The two of them finished watching the boring movie in silence.

After the movie ended, they went to eat hotpot together.

Across the rising steam, she spoke.

“It feels like kissing isn’t that big of a deal. I don’t understand why lovers like it so much.”

“Perhaps it’s because of the sense of satisfaction,” Su Ziyan replied softly.

“Just hugging a loved one is already very satisfying, and kissing is a step further, so one naturally feels even more fulfilled.”

“I’m not asking you for a psychological analysis,” Cheng Qingyun said with a smile.

“I’m asking if you want to kiss again in a bit — with tongues.”

“After the meal?”

“How could that be?”

Cheng Qingyun gave Su Ziyan a coquettish glance.

“After I tell you a story.”

“Oh? Is there a story session at the dinner table today?”

Su Ziyan was stunned for a moment, then asked, “I’d like to see what kind of tricks you’re going to pull this time.”

Cheng Qingyun laughed even harder at the sight of the slightly guarded Su Ziyan.

It was true that she liked playing pranks, but today she simply wanted to tell a story.

“Did you know? When I was seven, I adopted a stray cat and kept it in the small garden in the backyard.”

“It took me more than twenty days to figure out everything about it: how it ate, slept, and pleased its owner… and then I lost interest. I handed it over to the family maid to feed.”

“Then one day, my father suddenly came to tell me it had run away, trying to comfort me. I told him it didn’t matter because I was a bit bored of it anyway. I hadn’t wanted to keep raising it for a long time, so if it wanted to run, let it run.”

“But I didn’t tell anyone that I was actually very angry. Very angry. Although I was the one who neglected it first, I simply couldn’t accept that it chose to actively abandon me, its owner. I decided to hold that grudge for a lifetime.”

Su Ziyan shivered slightly.

For some reason, he suddenly felt a chill down his spine, as if the Cheng Qingyun in front of him wasn’t talking about a cat from her childhood, but about him.

However, thinking it might just be the woman intentionally messing with him again, he spoke up.

“Then you really are narrow-minded.”

“Yes, I’m just such a petty person. Are you scared?” Cheng Qingyun laughed softly.

“I can’t find that cat anymore, but a living person like you is quite easy to find. If you ever provoke me…”

Su Ziyan watched in silence as Cheng Qingyun stopped midsentence and moved from across the table to the seat next to him.

She asked, “Forget it, let’s not mention that. Let’s kiss — with tongues.”

“To be honest, you’re making me a little scared right now.”

Su Ziyan looked at the face he dreamed of, yet the aura she projected was completely different from his memories.

He instinctively said, “Can I eat a clove of garlic to politely decline this kiss?”

“You’re being so wishy-washy.”

Cheng Qingyun directly grabbed a clove of garlic Su Ziyan had just peeled, tossed it into her mouth, and crushed it.

“Don’t act like you’re incapable.”

After saying that, she pressed directly against him, resulting in a strange-tasting first kiss.

Su Ziyan’s premonition at the time had not been wrong.

She had never actually raised a cat; everything she said was actually directed at the man in front of her.

Their progress after that was incredibly fast.

It took about one year to go from holding hands and hugging to kissing, but it took only one week to go from kissing to the bedroom.

Because at that time, she had already decided to lock up her little cat for a lifetime.