The black cat rolled over. She turned her belly toward the outside. She raised her head to look at the girl. At this moment, the girl was already there changing her shoes.
She lightly sniffed. Her gaze could not help but drift toward the bag in Luo Yunzhi’s hand. She smelled the aroma of pure meat sausages.
“You little gluttonous cat.”
The girl walked over.
Luo Yunzhi smiled lightly. Of course she had noticed that the black cat’s eyes were tightly fixed on the plastic bag. She felt both helpless and amused.
“Here. Eat quickly.” The girl took out the sausages. She placed them on the sofa using the bag as a pad. She was not even afraid of the oil seeping through. She simply stood there with a face full of indulgence.
The sofa could be washed again if it got dirty. But the black cat’s mood needed to be taken care of at all times. She thought about it… For some reason she had the illusion of raising a child.
Luo Yunzhi smoothed back her hair.
She shook her head.
“Meow.”
She’s quite sensible today.
“Meow.”
Not bad. Not bad.
The black cat sat up and let out a happy cry. It was not in vain that she had made up her mind to stay. Then she opened her mouth and began eating the sausages.
To be honest, the sausages had been grilled for a bit too long. So the skin did not have a very good texture. However, given her financial situation, Bai Ziyu did not mind too much either.
Even though she did not understand why Luo Yunzhi had suddenly stopped filming videos. However, right now she was still more concerned about matters related to yokai.
So small matters like money.
She temporarily did not bother with them.
“Alright. I’ll go finish cooking.” She gently stroked the little cat’s head with her hand. The girl ran to the kitchen. She began washing her hands and preparing the ingredients.
She hummed a light tune in her mouth. After all, life had returned to peace now. It seemed she no longer needed to worry about anything.
The sound of rushing water kept slapping against the edge of the sink. Occasionally water droplets splashed out. They wet her apron slightly.
Luo Yunzhi washed the vegetables.
She blinked.
“Why exactly is that?” She muttered to herself. Then she suddenly remembered the words Sister Li had said to her at the convenience store.
Was that really just normal social favor? Although her heart wanted to think so… But there was always a faint, wrong feeling surrounding her.
Luo Yunzhi turned her eyes. She looked at the black cat on the sofa who was rolling around out of boredom. Then she could not help but let out a sigh.
“What exactly is going on?”
“Whether it is the golden retriever… Or Sister Li’s sudden concern. And not long ago, that girl named Su Qi.”
“They all care a lot about Xiao Bai.”
“Why is that?”
The girl gritted her teeth. She could not understand. She only felt that right now she seemed to be shrouded in fog. She could not clearly see any path forward.
The education Luo Yunzhi had received since childhood made her a firm materialist. So no matter how wildly she thought, she seemed unable to go beyond this limit.
The black cat was very smart. Much smarter than a normal cat. Could she be an important experimental subject that had escaped from some laboratory?
This seemed very scientific.
And Su Qi did not want her to film videos.
Was she afraid of being discovered?
“Mm. What am I thinking about?” Luo Yunzhi knocked on her own head with her hand. Even though water droplets followed her hand and stained her cheeks, she did not care.
“Xiao Bai is just Xiao Bai. No matter what she is, it does not matter to me.” The corner of her lips curled upward slightly. She revealed a light smile.
“After all, no matter when.”
“Xiao Bai.”
“Is mine.”
……
After Sister Li’s concern that day, life seemed to have returned to peace once more. And afterward, Sister Li never mentioned the black cat again.
Luo Yunzhi was very happy about this. She was also able to completely let go of her worried emotions. It seemed that it really was just ordinary social favor after all.
The girl continued as usual. The cycle of going to school, working part-time, and returning home repeated. Although it was tiring, this was the daily life she possessed.
This kind of day would continue for a long time.
She thought so.
“It is actually raining.” Luo Yunzhi stretched out her hand. She looked up at the sky. Rainwater fell on her palm. It brought a slight cold sensation.
The sky was already dark now. And she did not know if it was because of the rain. Tonight was much darker than usual.
The girl took a step back. She hid inside the building. The light from the convenience store shone on her body. It seemed to dispel quite a bit of this darkness.
Luo Yunzhi withdrew her hand.
She let out a breath.
“Little Luo. You are here.”
“Sister Li?”
“Here. This is for you.”
“Eh? An umbrella?”
“That’s right. It is an umbrella.” Sister Li slowly walked to her side. There was a chuckling smile on her face. She also glanced toward the dark night outside.
“This rain is really heavy.” She sighed. She looked at the clock on the wall. Then she opened her mouth. “With such heavy rain, there probably will not be any customers coming.”
“Little Luo. Go home.”
Sister Li paused.
“I see that you did not bring an umbrella. So I will just give this umbrella to you. You do not need to pay me. After all, I got it quite cheaply when I took the goods.”
The middle-aged woman rubbed her hands. “These are also for you.” She took out a bag from the side. “There are no customers. It would be a pity to throw these things away.”
Luo Yunzhi was first stunned for a moment.
Then she took it.
Inside the bag… were sausages. As well as already heated rice balls and such. These had short shelf lives. If they could not be sold, they would have to be thrown away.
Actually, employees were not allowed to take these home. After all, they were afraid something might happen from eating them. So this time, it could be considered a violation of the store’s rules.
“Sister Li, this…”
“It does not matter.”
Sister Li waved her hand.
“I am the store manager.”
Luo Yunzhi smiled lightly. “Then thank you.” Afterward the girl did not act overly polite either. She carried the bag in one hand. With her other hand she opened the umbrella.
She stepped out of the store door with both feet. The light inside the convenience store became much weaker when it shone on her body. She took a deep breath. The air carried quite a bit of coldness.
“The temperature has dropped.” She shook her head. She walked into the curtain of rain. The convenience store behind her gradually became farther and farther away.
This heavy rain was falling very rapidly… and very heavily. This made Luo Yunzhi recall the night when she had met the black cat.
That day was just as cold as today.
It was so cold that it pierced to the bone.
She had ‘carried’ the black cat home. Even because she was afraid the black cat would get wet from the rain, she had tilted the umbrella. As a result, she had almost gotten completely soaked herself.
If it were not for her good constitution and the fact that she had taken a hot shower in time, she would probably have caught a cold, right? She thought. Her lowered eyelashes trembled slightly.
“Today I will go home earlier.”
The girl murmured.
“Will she be happy?”
Luo Yunzhi raised her head. She looked toward the distance. It seemed she could see the direction of home. And in that home, there was a cute black cat waiting for her right now.
There were always people in the world who said that once you had someone you loved, life would have motivation. She had a cat she loved. It should be more or less the same.
The rain was really heavy. Those torrential water droplets smashed against the surface of the umbrella. The weight they transmitted made the umbrella sway unsteadily.
There was also thunder streaking across the sky.
“Boom!”
The rain became even heavier.