A few minutes later. Ning Qing and her grandma were in the kitchen. Ning Qing was looking through the pantry for some snacks while her grandmother was boiling the tea.
"He seems like a sweet boy."
"Haha, grandma you've just met him, how can you know that?"
"Nonsense, you can tell these things."
"Is that why you invited him to stay over?" Ning Qing said with a smile.
"Well, you're the one who said Yuerong was busy at her work, and that his mother is not often home, so I thought he would be lonely by himself. That family is always taking care of us."
Ning Qing didn't expect her grandma to take the words she had said in passing so seriously.
She went over to her grandma who was standing in front of the stove and hugged her from behind, leaning her head on her shoulder, "Grandma you're so nice…"
"You should invite that boy over more, he looks so thin he's probably not eating enough! And anyway he's a bit similar to your sister. I think they can get along well."
"Alright."
Meanwhile in the courtyard.
Ning Yao was still squatting down on the ground trying to entice the fat cat who was lying lazily on the ground playing with a flower.
"Do you feed him cat food?"
"Yes but Mr. Moonlight is picky." She turned to look up at Lin Yuan and said seriously, "He's a gourmet."
Looking at the white cat who even he would have difficulty picking up, Lin Yuan wasn't sure how much to trust her words.
"Do you have a crush on my sister?"
"Huh?"
Lin Yuan was taken aback by her sudden question. What does that have to do with cat food?
He glanced down at Ning Yao who was staring at the fat cat, "No."
"Then why do you walk her home?"
"It's not safe to walk alone at night."
Ning Yao looked at him with a puzzled expression, "Aren't you walking alone?"
"I'm a boy."
"Hmm…" She didn't really believe it.
"I can run very fast." This was true, even though Lin Yuan had low endurance he had a high top speed. He was an assassin type.
"Because you're light?"
"Yes." He replied jokingly.
"That makes sense."
Seeing her nodding with a serious face, Lin Yuan was confused. Why am I the one that feels humiliated right now?
"My sister is very strong."
"..."
They were silent for a while until Lin Yuan spoke with a soft voice.
"By the way, why did you ask that?" Did she say something…
"No reason."
Ning Yao still had that same expressionless face, so Lin Yuan couldn't tell what was the truth.
A few minutes later, they were all seated around the small table on the veranda. Mr Moonlight was on the floor next to them engorging on a small pile of cat food.
Lin Yuan noticed it didn't seem like a lot of food. He guessed that Ning Qing was trying to restrain its weight. Though, it clearly wasn't working. The fat cat probably went to a lot of houses.
While they were drinking tea, Ning Qing's grandmother asked Lin Yuan a lot of questions. Lin Yuan usually gave one word answers, however Grandma Ning seemed used to it and didn't pay it any mind.
By the time the tea was finished the cat had disappeared. Ning Yao didn't look sad however, and explained, "Mr Moonlight doesn't stay very long. He's not attached to worldly things."
"..." Lin Yuan had a blank face. He thought this girl had a lot of thoughts.
Later. At the gateway.
Lin Yuan was about to say goodbye when Ning Qing spoke.
"My grandma says you seem like a very sweet boy." She smiled.
"Oh." Lin Yuan was a little happy.
"You don't seem surprised, or are you that type of person that old people like?"
"Yes."
"Haha, you don't deny it."
…
…
…
Night.
Lin Yuan's bedroom.
Lin Yuan was reading on his bed when his phone buzzed. It was a message from his sister.
[I'll be late today as well, so don't wait up for me]
"..." Lin Yuan glanced at the time.
[Drive carefully.]
[Of course! Don't worry my XiaoHuang is the most dangerous beast on the road.]
His sister was coming home late for the last few days. Lin Yuan assumed she would probably crash out in a few days.
He looked at the pile of books next to him. He had spent the last hour going through English books, sometimes he would use a dictionary, other times he would just try to guess the meaning by the context. Actually it was helpful, he could feel that it was becoming a little easier. Of course, that only means the easiest children's books like 'Little Red Riding Hood'.
Lin Yuan sighed and put down his book. He needed to relax a bit. He took another book from the pile on his bedside table. This was a new book he had found online, 'The Hidden Love of the Emperor'.
Opening his new copy, Lin Yuan leaned back against his bed frame.
"..."
"I just think she's an interesting person."
His voice was soft in the quiet room.
"A person who has gone through so much but can still smile. Someone like that is strong unlike me."
Lin Yuan began reading again.
…
…
…
Saturday, 12th of November. Afternoon.
The sun was low on the horizon. Warm orange skies were sparsely painted with strokes of thin white clouds. It was unusual now for Lin Yuan to go to school on a Saturday.
During his second year of highschool he had gone to attend the olympiad training class every week, but even though it had started up again in October, Lin Yuan hadn't gone back till today.
Walking down the long streets, Lin Yuan thought back to the training class. Actually it wasn't as bad as he'd expected. There were a few other third years who were also part of the olympiad class who were there as well so most people didn't really pay much attention to him.
Lin Yuan was somewhat absentminded as he turned a corner into a smaller street when he felt something large crash into his feet. There was a sense of deja vu as he looked down after regaining his balance.
It was a cat.
It looked familiar in shape but instead of the pristine white coat of 'Mr Moonlight', this cat was completely dark. Only the sharp blue eyes and hefty figure were the same.
Listening to its incessant meows, Lin Yuan spoke unsurely, "Mr Moonlight?"
The fat cat just rubbed against his pants, and then scuttled behind his feet.
Lin Yuan was about to squat down when he heard loud hissing coming from up ahead.
One by one, out of a dark alley, cats began to emerge. Their furs were rough and molted, and they had a fierce glint in their eyes. Some of them even had scars down their face - oh wait, that was just the light. Lin Yuan felt he was getting carried away.
The fat cat was loudly meowing behind him.