Strange Life of a Cat
Chapter 315 - Chapter 315 Chapter 308 Coming to See the Arctic Cat

Chapter 315: Chapter 308: Coming to See the Arctic Cat Chapter 315: Chapter 308: Coming to See the Arctic Cat Isn’t that Zhong Yan, who used to always zone out in the corner, carried bricks on construction sites behind his family’s back even in his senior year, and then like a dark horse upset the whole school in the college entrance exam? Thinking back, this guy should be a junior in college now.

Zheng Tan really hadn’t expected to bump into this kid here.

In Zhong Yan’s eyes, however, confusion prevailed. Even if he thought the person seemed familiar, given the distance between Chuhua City and Beijing, he didn’t recognize the person with the backpack and the bad attitude. Besides, Zheng Tan was dressed like a white cue ball, which didn’t make recognition any easier. Now it was even harder to be sure.

Actually, Zhong Yan didn’t really think that this was the cat he knew, but the cat’s expression was too familiar. Even though he hadn’t seen it for more than two years, out of all the cats Zhong Yan had seen, that one was the most special. Look, it was even waving its paw at him, wasn’t it?

Could it really be that cat?

Should he ask this person?

While Zhong Yan was hesitating, Fang Wenjie, who had just gotten his reference book, turned around and saw someone standing behind him staring at the backpack. He glared and said, “What are you looking at! Haven’t you ever seen a cat before?”

Fang Wenjie turned to leave, but after just a couple of steps, he heard a voice from behind him say, “Black Cat?”

Hearing this, Fang Wenjie paused in his tracks and turned back to look at the person he had just seen.

“Is it really Black Cat?” Zhong Yan’s eyes lit up, and the irritation from the books getting squeezed out of his hand dissipated.

“You know it?” Fang Wenjie asked in bewilderment, pointing to the backpack behind him.

“Yeah, but, isn’t it supposed to be in Chuhua City?” Zhong Yan wondered if the cat could have been sold to Beijing. But didn’t they say back at the construction site that the cat had someone powerful looking out for it?

Hearing “Chuhua City” from Zhong Yan, Fang Wenjie’s guard went down a notch, but he still wasn’t sure. He pulled out his phone to call Fang Mengmeng, asking her to come over. The bookstore was too big and there were too many people; he couldn’t find her immediately, so calling was more convenient.

But even the Jiao Family wouldn’t necessarily recognize everyone Zheng Tan knew. There were many people he knew from his walks that the Jiao Family was unaware of, let alone Fang Mengmeng. These two, surnamed Fang, could only judge whether the person was an acquaintance based on Zheng Tan’s behavior.

Fang Wenjie’s plan for the afternoon was to buy books and then take a nap at the bookstore because it was too cold outside and he didn’t want to move. When it was time, he would head straight to the restaurant for a meal. Now that he had run into Zhong Yan, he dragged him into a conversation out of boredom, curious about how Zhong Yan knew the Black Cat. As for Fang Mengmeng, she came and then left again; she had found a few books that interested her and wanted to read them longer. When a seat in the corner’s rest area became available, Fang Wenjie quickly claimed it before someone else could sit down, marking the four seats with his bags and books.

Zhong Yan had come with a friend today. He met two friends while working part-time at a fast-food restaurant during his freshman year–they were from different schools. One of them was the friend he was with today, and the other had graduated this year. Zhong Yan’s tutoring job was introduced by this friend. He went to tutor a high school senior in the morning, and since there was nothing to do in the afternoon, he came here with his friend, who also tutored, to look for reference books for high school seniors.

Many people say the college entrance exam isn’t a fair platform, filled with regional discrimination, but Zhong Yan didn’t care, he had already gotten through it. Picking up reference books for high school seniors now was merely to tutor another beleaguered high school senior. Different provinces have different college entrance systems, and different preferences for question types and policies, all of which need to be studied. Having tutored for two years, the first year part-time was a bit difficult to adjust to, but the second year went a lot smoother. Zhong Yan was never rigid, knew how to adapt, could provide targeted help, and had good reviews–parents were happy to pay him well.

Zhong Yan’s classmate was originally flirting with a girl, but when he saw what was happening here, he came over, and the three quickly struck up a conversation.

One said, “It’s hard work. As soon as vacation hits, it’s all about cram school,” and the other two nodded in agreement, “Yeah, every time we go to tutor, those students look at us as if we were their archenemies.”

Zheng Tan, listening to their talk on the side, learned from their conversation that Zhong Yan hadn’t returned home since coming to Beijing, and he had been earning his own tuition and living expenses. It seemed that his relationship with his family was still at a low point, which explained why he hadn’t been seen in Chuhua City for the last two years.

When Fang Wenjie heard that Zhong Yan had been an extremely dark horse in the college entrance exam, jumping from average in his class to top three in the whole school and slapping some faces quite loudly, he got excited. He thought dark horses were divine beasts that existed to show off and slap faces; consequently, he found Zhong Yan much more pleasing to the eye.

Although Zhong Yan didn’t talk much about his own affairs, he occasionally ran into high school classmates in Beijing, and those close to him had heard bits and pieces. So when his friend brought it up, Fang Wenjie got excited, and once that topic started, it couldn’t be stopped.

As Fang Wenjie chatted, he mulled over in his mind that his mom was currently looking for a tutor for the winter break. Instead of finding someone else he didn’t like, it might as well be Zhong Yan and his friends. It would be nice to have someone to talk to when he was bored, and based on the conversation they just had, Fang Wenjie thought Zhong Yan and his friend were quite interesting. They didn’t have the same airs as the previous tutors his mom had hired, who always acted like “I’m a genius,” “What I say is even more correct than the answer key in reference books,” “You have to listen to whatever I say,” even if they seldom showed it outwardly. Fang Wenjie could tell that’s what those people really thought.

Fang Wenjie also voiced his own thoughts, not as a joke, but seriously.

“I’m not up for it. Coaxing people is one thing, but for actual tutoring, you’d better find Zhong Yan. At least he’s from Jing University, and he’s not going back home for the New Year, so he’s got time,” said a friend of Zhong Yan. He could tell that the Jiao family was well-off. Though taking on this gig would definitely make him a tidy sum, he also understood that the wealthier the family, the more they valued the reputation of the school. So, given his slightly less prestigious institution, he could only graciously decline to avoid eventually being shown the door by the parents.

“Not going home? Then it’s settled. Zhong Yan, you won’t need to take on any other tutoring jobs over the winter break. Don’t worry, my mom is super generous when it comes to paying!” Fang Wenjie was not wrong in saying that; his mom was indeed very generous with tutors. Apart from the agreed upon salary in the contract, she also gave out occasional bonuses, and the amount of money in those red envelopes was never much less than what the contract stipulated. That was one of the reasons Fang Wenjie looked down on those tutors; they hadn’t produced any results yet they had the nerve to accept bonuses? That also gave Fang Wenjie an excuse to pick on the tutors. The last tutor left because he directly scolded them away, after all, most intellectuals aren’t thick-skinned.

Zheng Tan felt that the people of the Fang family, even though they seemed unreliable on the surface, were actually not so in reality–with Fang Shaokang being a prime example. As Fang Shaokang’s nephew, Zheng Tan didn’t think Fang Wenjie was foolish. Take the matter of hiring a tutor, for example. Fang Wenjie’s invitation wasn’t made on a whim. Naturally, part of the reason was that he simply liked Zhong Yan and the others. Plus, during their previous chat, Fang Wenjie seemed to casually vent about a few study problems while in a heated rant, all of which were solved by Zhong Yan in a straightforward and more understandable manner, leaving Fang Wenjie quite satisfied.

Fang Wenjie never considered himself stupid. He found it difficult to understand what the previous “advanced tutors” taught, mainly because they always used swathes of jargon, as if it were embarrassing to explain in layman’s terms. Can’t common simplicity kill? Is there such a clear distinction between highbrow and lowbrow? Fang Wenjie was impatient with such attitudes.

Hey, bringing this cat along really was the right move! It wasn’t in vain that he carried such a heavy bag for so long. Fang Wenjie felt very happy in his heart; if this issue was resolved, his winter holiday wouldn’t be shrouded in darkness and oppression anymore.

Compared to Fang Wenjie’s sheer relief, Zhong Yan’s heart was filled with mixed emotions. He could think of what his friend had noticed: he had confidence in tutoring Fang Wenjie, knowing the guy wasn’t dumb, just a bit rebellious. By taking this gig, he wouldn’t have to worry about next year’s tuition, accommodation, or living expenses. Under normal circumstances, he wouldn’t have had such an opportunity. If it hadn’t been for the encounter with that cat and striking up a conversation with Fang Wenjie, even being from Jing University and going door-to-door wouldn’t necessarily have caught the family’s attention, as evident from the disdain in Fang Wenjie’s eyes when speaking of his previous tutors.

Glancing at the Black Cat sitting next to him, dressed like an Arctic bear and stretching its neck to look at something, Zhong Yan recalled that every time he encountered this cat, his luck seemed quite good.

A familiar face in a foreign land.

Zhong Yan could finally understand why the ancients considered this one of life’s four greatest joys. This feeling could only be deeply understood when one truly found themselves in that situation.

Even though this place was the Capital City, many times Zhong Yan would miss his hometown. Occasionally hearing the decade-old song “City Moonlight” could make him emotional. His phone calls home weren’t always pleasant; it had been two years since he last went home, not even for the holidays, just a phone call to assure his safety, then back to working and part-time jobs, earning tuition fees. His studies were also demanding, and he couldn’t slack on either front. Not yet part of the workforce, and he already felt the weight on his shoulders.

It’s fair to say that the past two-plus years of studying in the capital have been tough. Classmates? Of course, he had met some. With many schools in Beijing, and frequent outings, he had come across a few middle and high school mates, but the relations weren’t that good. Two of his high school classmates, in particular, didn’t take kindly to this dark horse of the college entrance exams and gave him a cold shoulder and sarcastic remarks, then everyone went their separate ways. They were hardly old friends.

A dark horse? Perhaps. But even the biggest dark horse can become just another face in the talent-filled Capital City.

Everyone dreams of soaring to great heights, but how many actually do? After the college entrance exam, Zhong Yan had thought he’d be one of them, but after facing some harsh realities, his confidence had waned significantly. The world is fascinating, yet also frustrating. How to move forward, stumbling and bumbling along, is the question. Continue on the path trodden, and perhaps there lies a better future.

After spending over two hours in the bookstore, Zheng Tan saw several attractive girls, including three mixed-race ones, and a celebrity with half their face covered by a hat and scarf who quickly ran away upon being recognized, leaving no trace when the staff gave chase.

Checking the time, Fang Wenjie called Meng Meng back and suggested that he, Zhong Yan, and his friend go out for a meal together.

The target restaurant was housed in a retro-styled building, reminiscent of an ancient tavern, complete with large red lanterns hanging outside.

As they headed towards the entrance, someone emerged from the parking lot on the side.

“Little Jiezi!”

A shout brought a sprinting Fang Wenjie to a halt. He turned to look and immediately grinned, “Yo, Mr. Beast, when did you get back to Beijing?”

“A couple of days ago, I came here for some business,” said Qin Tao, pulling out a constantly ringing phone, “I’m here already, stop hounding me! Hurry up and order. I’m starving…”

As Qin Tao was speaking, he looked up and noticed the head of a cat peeking out from behind Fang Wenjie’s backpack. He abruptly paused mid-sentence, stunned for a few seconds before snapping out of it due to the shouting on the phone. Ignoring the urging on the other end of the line, he said instead, “Er Sha, hurry over and look at the Arctic Cat!” (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to come to Qidian (NovelFire.net) to vote for recommendation tickets, monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please go to m.NovelFire.net to read.)

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