Chapter 57: A Flurry of Meow-Meow Punches

Wait a minute...

Why is it an orange cat?

When she got a clear look at the creature behind her, Wen Qian breathed a sigh of relief. ’I guess I was just being paranoid.’

She couldn’t help but take a second look.

Wen Qian realized the chubby orange cat sitting primly in front of her looked a little familiar, as if she’d seen it somewhere before... Could it be one of the cats that had been hanging around her front door these past few days?

With that thought, Wen Qian couldn’t help but crouch down and give it a polite wave.

Amber eyes quietly watched the girl’s every move. After a long moment, the orange cat tilted its head up slightly, showing no intention of acknowledging Wen Qian.

On the contrary, when Wen Qian moved closer, it warily took two steps back.

Thinking of Ling Xuan and his Meow Meow Team, Wen Qian stood up with a knowing look. The members of the Tiger Clan always acted like this toward her. She was already used to it.

Her schedule was packed today. By the time her last class, bioinformatics, rolled around, even a top student like Wen Qian couldn’t muster any energy.

As for Fan Lin next to her, she had already woken up from who knows how many naps.

"Qianqian, the usual..." Fan Lin groggily tugged on Wen Qian’s sleeve. She propped herself up and, after shaking off her sleepiness, said, "If the professor takes attendance again, just tell him I went to the restroom."

This class always made Fan Lin drowsy. She had enrolled in the Zoology and Beastman Studies program because she was interested in Beastmen.

But now she was discovering... the program was almost entirely focused on animals, with only a handful of topics related to Beastmen.

The only truly substantial course was taught by an external hire, Professor Gu.

This was one of the reasons Fan Lin had a crush on Gu Mian. His perfect looks combined with his profound knowledge made him her absolute dream professor.

Wen Qian had no idea what Fan Lin was thinking. She forced her eyes open and gave her an "OK" sign. Seeing this, Fan Lin grinned, quickly closed her blank notebook, and ducked out of the classroom.

Watching her friend’s retreating back, Wen Qian suddenly felt how exhausting it was to maintain her "top student" persona. If the professor wasn’t constantly glancing in her direction, she would have loved to skip class and go home to rest.

By the time class ended, it was already four-thirty in the afternoon.

Wen Qian yawned as she went to the cafeteria and ordered a rice bowl, looking completely lethargic.

Ever since she’d stepped onto campus, that feeling of being watched had vanished. She glanced back several times but saw no sign of the orange cat.

Instead, the two "resident orange cats" on campus kept sizing her up with curious gazes.

Sunlight streamed through the second-floor window of the cafeteria, landing on the cyan tabletop. Wen Qian shifted her chair to the side, calmly avoiding the patch of gold.

She thought she’d be even sleepier after eating, but surprisingly, she felt more awake.

Wen Qian checked the time and decided to take a walk on the athletic field.

She would be starting her internship soon. Wen Qian wasn’t worried about it at all; instead, she felt a little reluctant to leave campus life behind.

For a top student like Wen Qian, the university would prioritize arranging an internship position for her.

She’d heard that the available companies were all major firms. Not only were they stable, but if she was lucky, they could even help with housing and residency registration.

Wen Qian had always been pragmatic. She believed that before you knew what you truly wanted, following the established path was the safest choice.

"Qianqian, you haven’t left yet!" A boy with delicate features spotted her familiar figure from afar. He abruptly ditched his dorm mates and ran up to say hello.

Although Wen Qian was a good student, she didn’t have a single close friend at University A. Her relationships with everyone were lukewarm; she was polite but distant to all. Because of this, many people saw her as an extremely mysterious person.

Naturally, this tended to attract the attention of the opposite sex.

"Mm, yeah..." Wen Qian smiled politely, completely lacking the outgoing confidence she had when surfing the web.

She had to admit it: she was a social butterfly online, but a socially anxious mess in real life.

The boy with the crew cut also seemed a bit shy; his ears started turning red after just one sentence. He lowered his head, scratched the back of his neck, and stammered, "D-Do you want to... together?"

"Huh?" Wen Qian was dumbfounded.

Wen Qian remembered he was in her class, but aside from collecting and handing out homework, the two of them had never spoken privately.

The worst part was, Wen Qian couldn’t remember his name at all.

Just as she was hesitating over how to turn him down, a silver gradient cat shot out from nowhere. Before Wen Qian could react, she saw it hiss and throw a series of phantom kitty-punches at the boy.

’Dude... what the hell are you doing?!’

Recognizing Ling Xuan instantly, Wen Qian was speechless. She feigned composure and, under the boy’s astonished gaze, put a hand to her forehead. "No, thanks. I still have to go home and feed my cat."

The image of Yin Zhi’s crestfallen expression suddenly popped into her head, and Wen Qian’s mood soured.

The boy was clearly startled by Ling Xuan and took a large step back. After a moment, he straightened up and pointed hesitantly at the silver gradient cat. "Is this him?"

At his words, both Ling Xuan and Wen Qian shook their heads furiously.

"Oh, I see..." The boy pressed his lips together.

Just then, his dorm mates walked over. The boy glanced at Ling Xuan on the ground, then back at Wen Qian. Though reluctant, he still bid her farewell in a low voice, "Well, Qianqian, I’ll talk to you next time."

Only after the boy had walked far away did Ling Xuan turn his head.

His two amber eyes were narrowed slightly, his gaze toward Wen Qian filled with a hidden meaning.

Wen Qian was amazed that she could read so many expressions on a cat’s face. Just as she was about to ask something, she saw the silver gradient’s mouth move imperceptibly...

’What the heck?’

’He’s not secretly cursing me out, is he?’

Wen Qian raised an eyebrow, about to confront him, but the silver gradient arrogantly turned its head away and, a second later, WHOOSHED out of sight.

Holding in her frustration, Wen Qian felt her whole mood darken again.

By the time she left the school, the sky was already growing dark. The sun, trailing a vibrant, colorful tail, gradually disappeared over the horizon.

Wen Qian checked the time again and decided to try her luck at the place where she’d seen the fox before.

City A was densely populated. Trying to find a person was like looking for a needle in a haystack, let alone a cunning fox that would deliberately hide itself.

But Wen Qian couldn’t help but want to try.

She admitted she was a pretty laid-back person, but she also took promises very seriously... Breaking one didn’t sit well with her.

Even though Wen Qian had come up with many reasons to console herself, she couldn’t stop worrying about the fox.

It was one thing when she hadn’t remembered, but now that she did, Wen Qian felt she had to do something. Even if it was just to ease her own conscience, she couldn’t pretend it had never happened.

As night fell, Wen Qian arrived at the residential complex where she had last seen the fox.

The complex was near a commercial street. At night, a tide of people flowed through the grand avenues and small alleys, which glittered with magnificent lights and were filled with the sounds of laughter and joy.

After getting out of the car, Wen Qian didn’t go directly into the complex, but instead strolled around the surrounding area first. In her memory, she had hardly ever come back here since the old buildings were demolished.