The air in the living room felt like it had solidified into a physical entity; a silent current flowed through it every second.
Zhi Ai stood with one hand on her hip, her other hand’s fingertips tapping impatiently on her phone screen.
Her glazed eyes, like two clusters of icy flames, swept back and forth between Bai Wanxue and Su Yuqing.
She had clearly lost the last of her patience.
“Out with it!”
She finally spoke.
Her voice was sweet, yet every word carried shards of ice, breaking the suffocating silence.
“Once you’re done talking, this cat is going to tear apart the stinking face of this Fox Spirit who appeared out of nowhere! It saves her from being an eyesore here!”
Bai Wanxue, who had been maintaining a tense, defensive posture, immediately turned to Su Yuqing.
Her pale red eyes were a mix of a longing for instructions and hostility toward Zhi Ai.
Her voice held a near-pious tone of inquiry.
“Please give the order, Master. As long as you allow it, Wanxue will surely go all out—”
“First of all!”
Su Yuqing quickly interrupted, her voice a bit sharp with urgency.
She continued to spread her arms, trying to separate the two bristling cats who were about to pounce on each other.
“I don’t need you to ‘go all out’! At least not for this! Everyone, calm down!”
She took a deep breath, trying to steer the conversation toward a direction that could pause the conflict.
She turned her gaze to Zhi Ai.
“Secondly, Little… no, Zhi Ai! Listen to me. You actually know Wanxue! There’s… a history between you two!”
“Hmm?”
Zhi Ai raised an eyebrow, an undisguised expression of absurdity on her face.
She tapped her chin with her fingertip and tilted her head, sizing up Bai Wanxue.
“You’re saying I know this Fox Spirit? What kind of joke is that? That’s absolutely impossible, meow! With my noble taste, how could I know someone…”
She hummed contemptuously.
“…who reeks of such poverty?”
“Oh, come on! Think carefully!”
Su Yuqing leaned forward anxiously, trying to jog her memory.
“Our incomparably noble Great Idol, have you forgotten? The first time you came to my house, in this living room, you saw that… that little white cat who didn’t talk much and liked to curl up in the cat bed in the corner? The Silver Tabby with the slightly black tip on its tail! It’s her…!”
“Her?”
Zhi Ai drawled, a flicker of realization passing through her glazed eyes, but it was quickly replaced by deeper mockery and malice.
“Oh—so it’s that lit-tle, ug-ly, cat. This cat was wondering why, from the very first second she saw my world-class cute face, she looked like she wanted to rush over and eat me.”
She clapped her hands as if suddenly seeing the light, her smile bright yet cold.
“So… your skin is itching again? You want to experience the ‘pleasure’ of a High-Altitude Free Fall once more? Should I help you remember?”
These insulting words were like a sharp knife, instantly piercing Bai Wanxue’s already fragile nerves.
Her body trembled violently, and a layer of mist instantly covered her pale red eyes.
Grievance, anger, and a soul-deep fear intertwined, making her almost pounce immediately.
“Master! Look at her! She’s talking like that! Can Wanxue really not beat her up?! She almost killed me back then!”
she cried out to Su Yuqing, her voice shaking.
“Don’t get excited yet! Just calm down!”
Su Yuqing’s head was spinning.
She could only try to soothe the seemingly weaker Bai Wanxue first, but she habitually made excuses for Zhi Ai.
“Her mouth is just like that! She’s been spoiled since she was little, and some of those bad habits can’t be changed… Don’t stoop to her level…”
she whispered, trying to keep the peace.
“Hey! You two!”
Zhi Ai was clearly dissatisfied with being ignored, especially seeing Su Yuqing and Bai Wanxue whispering so closely.
Her anger flared even more.
“What are you whispering about in front of this cat? If you want to fight, do it quickly! Don’t dawdle! This cat will definitely see it through to the end! If you’re not going to fight, then get out of here!”
“Wanxue isn’t afraid of you!”
Spurred on, Bai Wanxue bristled completely like a cat whose tail had been stepped on.
She took a sudden step forward and let out another threatening low growl.
“Hiss!”
Zhi Ai immediately refused to be outdone and snapped back, except her voice was louder and her posture more provocative.
“Hiss!”
“Stop—!!!”
Su Yuqing felt like she was being driven crazy by the brain-piercing cat growls.
She shouted with all her might, spreading her arms once more to stand between the two.
“Are you two for real?! This house! Me! Su Yuqing! I’m the real owner who works hard every month to pay the mortgage!”
“Oh?”
Zhi Ai drawled, her glazed eyes narrowing slightly.
A dangerous light flickered within them.
She approached Su Yuqing step by step until their noses almost touched, then slowly asked word by word, “Are. You. Real. Ly. Sure. Meow? Does the name on the Property Deed represent everything?”
Her tone was full of implication and dominance, as if Su Yuqing were the one living under someone else’s roof.
Su Yuqing’s momentum was instantly crushed.
She stiffened her neck and defended herself with a lack of confidence.
“Uh… at least… on a legal level, on the Property Deed… it’s written like that…”
She took a deep breath as if she had found a reasonable excuse, then announced rapidly:
“So! If you’re going to fight, get the hell out and fight! Not in my house! I… I faint at the sight of blood! I’ll have nightmares if I see it!”
“Fine!”
Zhi Ai agreed readily, pointing a slender finger at the stormy night sky outside the window.
“Fox Spirit, wait for me at the basketball court downstairs! I’ll let you relive your old dream right now!”
“But!”
Su Yuqing immediately cut in, also pointing outside.
“Considering there’s a Typhoon out there! Heavy rain! Thunder and lightning! This fight of yours must wait! Wait until… until the weather is clear and the opportunity is right! This is for your safety!”
She tried to make her reasoning sound dignified.
“Heh.”
Zhi Ai sneered, crossing her arms and looking at Su Yuqing with mock interest.
“That suggestion of yours sounds ‘not bad,’ but the problem is, why should I listen to you? Who do you think you are?”
Su Yuqing was stumped.
Facing Zhi Ai’s persistent questioning and Bai Wanxue’s teary-eyed gaze, she felt unprecedented pressure.
Her mind raced.
Zhi Ai was willful and reckless, and Wanxue was obsessively loyal.
A head-on clash would only lead to both sides losing.
She had to find a reason that could temporarily suppress them both—one they might care about, or at least listen to…
In a flash, an idea crossed her mind.
‘Perhaps the key to solving the problem wasn’t in distinguishing right from wrong, but in confirming a certain “belonging”? An expression that could touch both of their core needs?’
“Because… because—”
Su Yuqing plucked up her courage.
Her voice wasn’t loud, but it carried a finality of burning her bridges.
Her gaze swept over Zhi Ai and Bai Wanxue in turn.
“You… you are both my… cats.”
These words were like a simple spell that instantly silenced the air.
Zhi Ai was visibly stunned, an extremely complex emotion flickering in her glazed eyes.
There was surprise and a trace of an undetectable… throb?
But it was immediately covered by her tsundere nature.
Bai Wanxue’s whole body trembled.
Her pale red eyes widened, filled with disbelief and a near-humble joy.
She murmured under her breath, her voice as light as a feather brushing past:
“Mas… ter…”
Su Yuqing caught this moment of silence and immediately struck while the iron was hot.
Her tone softened, carrying a plea.
“So… I’m begging you… please don’t let anyone in this house… get hurt, okay? Not physically, and not in their hearts…”
A silence fell.
The sound of wind and rain outside seemed to become distant.
Finally, Zhi Ai broke the silence first.
She huffed coldly and turned her head away.
Though her tone remained sharp, the murderous intent had dissipated quite a bit.
“Hmph! For… for the sake of you begging me so pitifully. Fine, Fox Spirit, consider yourself lucky.”
She then pointed at Su Yuqing and continued to issue orders.
“As for you! Get back to your own room to sleep tonight! Don’t come out without my permission! That’s final, meow!”
“Yes, yes, yes, no problem!”
Su Yuqing felt as if she had been granted a massive amnesty.
As long as they didn’t fight, anything was fine.
“I’ll listen to you as long as you don’t fight. I’m going back to my room right now!”
“Shut up!”
Zhi Ai snapped, her glazed eyes glaring at her.
“I haven’t finished speaking yet!”
Then, with elegant steps, she walked up to Bai Wanxue, who had relaxed slightly because of the easing tension.
Looking down at her, she wore a fake smile that held a sense of scrutiny and warning.
“As for you… Fox Spirit,”
Zhi Ai’s voice was soft, yet it carried an indisputable dominance.
“Don’t worry. This cat will definitely, definitely keep a ‘good’ eye on you in this living room tonight. You’d better be on your best behavior and don’t try any tricks.”
Bai Wanxue immediately straightened her back, meeting her gaze without fear.
Her tone was just as firm.
“You can rest easy as well. Wanxue will also definitely, definitely keep a ‘close’ eye on you here! Until Master is safe!”
Their eyes met once more, and it felt as if invisible sparks were flying in the air again.
But this time, it wasn’t a precursor to an immediate explosion of conflict; it was a fragile balance.
A storm had finally been temporarily paused with the “help” of a larger storm.
Su Yuqing watched the end of the confrontation.
While she breathed a sigh of relief, her heart remained hanging.
After all, this night seemed destined for no one to sleep peacefully…