Strange Life of a Cat
Chapter 297 - Chapter 297 Chapter 290 Old Friend

Chapter 297: Chapter 290 Old Friend Chapter 297: Chapter 290 Old Friend Zheng Tan hated dealing with children of this age the most. It was impossible to reason with them, and even if it were possible, Zheng Tan couldn’t do it. If you didn’t cooperate with them or slightly retaliated, they would cry and summon their parents. Compared to that, Zheng Tan found Zhuo Xiaomao much easier to handle.

Although it was troublesome, Zheng Tan wasn’t the type to just sit there and wait to be hit. When the little brat reached into the bag, Zheng Tan was ready to be thrown at; indeed, a round object came flying accurately towards him, indicating that the kid had quite some practice with it.

Zheng Tan raised his hand and slapped the small round ball that was about to hit his head back to where the child was standing.

The thrown ball was slapped away, and not only did the child not cry, his eyes lit up and he seemed much more energized, stretching his hand into the bag to throw another ball.

After slapping away three balls, Zheng Tan no longer wanted to play with this brat. Jiao Ma was watching him slap the balls away with her two kids. Initially, they intended to stop the child’s actions, but seeing that the small round ball was soft and didn’t hurt upon hitting, and that their cat seemed to be playing very “happily,” they didn’t intervene. Now, seeing that their cat showed no interest and the child clearly hadn’t had enough fun yet, Jiao Ma feared the child might come over and bother their cat, so she stood up from the stone bench nearby, ready to talk to the child.

Before Jiao Ma could walk over, someone on the other side was already calling the child’s name, apparently the child’s parents.

A couple came over; the woman went to grab the child who was raising his leg intending to walk towards Zheng Tan’s group, and the man glanced at Zheng Tan, hesitated, then his gaze moved to Jiao Ma nearby. He seemed a bit puzzled and uncertain, and stepped forward to ask, “Are you from Professor Jiao’s family?”

Jiao Ma glanced at the person before her. He seemed somewhat unfamiliar, and even if they had met, she didn’t have much of an impression. However, the man seemed easy-going, so she politely smiled and responded.

Upon hearing her, the man knew he hadn’t mistaken and his smile deepened, “It really is you guys!”

Zheng Tan had found this person somewhat familiar but couldn’t recall who it was. Now, when the man introduced himself to Jiao Ma, Zheng Tan remembered meeting this person named Zheng Xuan when he had returned to Mr. Jiao’s ancestral home for the New Year; the man had given Mr. Jiao his business card. Zheng Tan remembered him because he worked in South City and also because he shared the same surname as Zheng Tan. Thinking about it now, it really seemed like fate.

Zheng Xuan had come to Nanhua City today with his wife and child to attend a relative’s wedding and had not expected to encounter the Jiao family. He made annual visits back to his hometown to pay respects, but except for the year he met the Jiao family, subsequent New Year’s were just brief visits without bringing elderly or children. He had heard of the Jiao family though, as Professor Jiao was frequently praised by many elders in that area. Among some traditional-thinking elders, a university professor held a higher social status than businessmen, so whenever there was talk of celebrities from the surrounding villages, Zheng Xuan often heard about Professor Jiao; he just never met him in person. Though he had a good memory and remembered people and details, even if he didn’t remember what the Jiao family looked like exactly, he remembered the distinctive Black Cat always with the Jiao family, which left a deep impression on his child who particularly liked playing with cats after returning to Nanhua City.

Learning from Jiao Ma that Professor Jiao was nearby, Zheng Xuan decided to stay a while to chat with Professor Jiao when he returned, since they were from the same hometown. Encountering a fellow townsman in Nanhua City wasn’t very difficult, but meeting one with a certain social status was not so easy.

Since they knew each other and were fellow townsmen, Zheng Xuan invited his wife and child to sit for a while.

Zheng Xuan’s son, the little brat who had been throwing balls at Zheng Tan, kept staring at Zheng Tan, seemingly always ready to grab a ball from the bag to play with Zheng Tan. Zheng Tan ignored him, not even glancing at the little brat, confident with Jiao Ma, Jiao Yuan, and Little Youzi around, he wasn’t worried about the child throwing things.

Soon, Mr. Jiao and their group came over chatting, and Zheng Tan didn’t expect that Yuan Zhiyi also knew Zheng Xuan. They greeted each other with a “Mr. Yuan” and “Mr. Zheng.” Knowing that Zheng Xuan and Mr. Jiao were fellow townsmen, Yuan Zhiyi was delighted; with this relationship in place, he saw that there was no intention from the other party to distance themselves, and the business deal that hadn’t been settled last week might still have room for negotiation.

Thinking this, Yuan Zhiyi glanced at the Black Cat squatting by the river watching the night scene. Just before, Zheng Xuan had mentioned they had planned to go straight home until they turned around to find their child had run off. After searching, they found their child playing with the Jiao family’s cat, and that’s how they recognized the Jiao family members.

Thinking so, Yuan Zhiyi felt inwardly moved; indeed, it was fortunate.

So, feeling joyful, Yuan Zhiyi got carried away and his intermittent amnesia acted up, forgetting Zheng Tan’s name while introducing him to a former university classmate, calling him, “This is Mingsheng’s family’s Lucky Cat.”

This led Mr. Jiao’s university classmates to believe that Zheng Tan’s name was “Lucky Cat,” commenting on how down-to-earth the name was. Compared to the various westernized names of pets around, “Lucky Cat” indeed sounded very local. However, after hearing Mr. Jiao explain Zheng Tan’s actual cat name, the two looked at Zheng Tan and said, “Oh, Heitan is even more down-to-earth.”

Knowing that Mr. Jiao and Yuan Zhiyi would be staying in Nanhua City for a while, those two university classmates were in no hurry, even arranging to meet with a few classmates working in the area later on for a gathering. After they left, Yuan Zhiyi began discussing the previously unsuccessful business deal with Zheng Xuan; fortunately, Mr. Jiao was also there, and since the company also involved Mr. Jiao, he could offer some advice.

This time, Zheng Xuan was much more amicable in his demeanor than the last time he spoke with Yuan Zhiyi, clearly adopting a “this matter can be discussed” attitude. This surprised Mr. Jiao, as for many businessmen, friendship was friendship, but business was business, and they kept them quite separate.

Today, Zheng Xuan presented this attitude precisely to get acquainted with Mr. Jiao and Yuan Zhiyi.

Zheng Xuan, though a grassroots individual, had managed to build up a considerable fortune through his capabilities. The first time he met members of the Jiao family, Zheng Xuan was in a high-ranking position working for someone else; later, he started his own business and became the boss, and his company in South City had been doing quite well over the last two years, which was why Yuan Zhiyi had approached him. He had his own way of dealing with people.

“I’m heading back to South City tomorrow, as I can’t leave the company for too long. Maybe Professor Jiao and Mr. Yuan, when you come to South City, we can all have a meal together?” Zheng Xuan said.

“Sure, we’ll go to South City next week, just not sure if Mr. Zheng will be available then,” Yuan Zhiyi said with a smile.

“Even if he’s busy, he’ll have to make some time; I’ll be waiting for you guys in South City then.”

Zheng Xuan’s cellphone rang, and he didn’t continue chatting with Mr. Jiao. After excusing himself, he took his cellphone to talk with someone, meanwhile waving to his wife and kid to leave.

From the moment South City was mentioned, Zheng Tan had been all ears. Hearing Zheng Xuan mention the location of his company, Zheng Tan was very familiar with it. That area was filled with commercial office buildings, and Zheng Tan had been there often because his biological father’s company was also located there.

So, Zheng Tan decided that he would cheekily follow Mr. Jiao and Yuan Zhiyi there, knowing that Jiao Ma and the kids would not stay long in that area when they went to South City.

After spending a few days in Nanhua City, Zheng Tan was distracted and not wholeheartedly enjoying himself. Jiao Ma thought Zheng Tan was not adjusting well to the local environment, not knowing that Zheng Tan was already very familiar with the area. Though he had lived in South City, he had frequented Nanhua City often; how could he not be acclimatized? He was just preoccupied with getting to South City, counting down the days.

Finding it hard to sleep the night before they left due to excitement, Zheng Tan didn’t manage to sleep on the car ride either, just staring out the window at the vaguely familiar scenery.

The last time he arrived in South City as a cat, Zheng Tan had wandered in, sneaking a ride on a pickup truck, sneakily getting off, avoiding the light, rolling around dirty and with nowhere decent to bathe. He ended up bathing in a cold fishpond in a residential area. Back then, he didn’t have an “ID card”, and Zheng Tan even forcefully took a noble and elegant Persian Cat’s cat card to wear for himself.

Reflecting on his life as a stray, it was truly a case of being cautious and vigilant at all times, genuinely terrified by the experiences and sights of those cat meat restaurants. Back then, Zheng Tan almost got chopped up and stewed.

But now, Zheng Tan was in this city rightfully and openly.

Looking at the streets of South City, Zheng Tan suddenly really wanted to shout out loud: I’m back!

Unfortunately, he couldn’t.

In South City, they could only stay in a hotel, and Zheng Tan started his days of hiding in the backpack again. Fortunately, it was only twice a day.

The next day after arriving in South City, Jiao Ma took the kids to meet some classmates she had contacted to foster relationships, asking Zheng Tan to join them, but Zheng Tan turned away, not going, acting as if he didn’t hear Jiao Ma’s words, staying put in Yuan Zhiyi’s car and refusing to budge. The car might still have been driven by Mr. Jiao for Jiao Ma, but Yuan Zhiyi was definitely heading to Zheng Xuan’s company, so Zheng Tan just lay down in Yuan Zhiyi’s car.

“Oh well, if it doesn’t want to go, then let it be. We’ll be eating a big meal later, and it’s not like South City has no pet-friendly restaurants,” Yuan Zhiyi said nonchalantly, and in fact, he was quite pleased with this situation as it might indicate good luck today.

Jiao Ma had no other options, and Mr. Jiao didn’t say anything, so they let Zheng Tan have his way.

Zheng Xuan had no objections to Mr. Jiao bringing Zheng Tan along. After the three of them finished discussing business, it was time to eat. Glancing at his watch, Zheng Xuan told Mr. Jiao and Yuan Zhiyi, “Today, I’ll take you to a great place. The food there will definitely make you want to return again and again. Oh, they allow pets there too, as long as you keep them under control.”

Zheng Xuan did not take Mr. Jiao and the others to any five-star hotel or fancy Western restaurant but instead to a restaurant with a somewhat rustic architectural style. Zheng Xuan’s car led them to the parking spot.

“Ancient Zither House?” Yuan Zhiyi pointed at the three characters above the restaurant’s entrance, turning to Mr. Jiao and asking, “Am I reading that right?”

“Correct, it’s the Ancient Zither House,” Mr. Jiao responded.

Zheng Xuan smiled, “Many people hear ‘Ancient Zither House’ and think it’s a place to learn about ancient zithers, and this place also looks like it fits that style, so most people who come here the first time misunderstand. But it’s actually a place to eat. As for the name, ‘Ancient Zither’ is actually the owner’s name. It’s said that her family had a royal chef and possesses an ancestral secret recipe. Anyway, I think their sauteed white cabbage here is better than anywhere else. Once you’ve eaten it here, the same dish everywhere else doesn’t taste as good. This place is often fully booked; you normally have to reserve a few days in advance, but luckily, I know the owner here, and he reserved a spot for me.”

Zheng Xuan led Mr. Jiao and Yuan Zhiyi inside, recommending the restaurant’s signature dishes along the way.

Staying inside the backpack, Zheng Tan thought, Ancient Zither House – that name sounds vaguely familiar. (To be continued. If you enjoy this story, please visit Qidian (NovelFire.net) to vote and cast your monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users can read it at m.NovelFire.net.)

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