Strange Life of a Cat
Chapter 377 - Chapter 377 Chapter 368 Pretending to be a Turtle_2

Chapter 377: Chapter 368: Pretending to be a Turtle?_2 Chapter 377: Chapter 368: Pretending to be a Turtle?_2 Zheng Tan and Ermao arrived while the sun had not yet set, it was still hot, there were hardly any people in the grocery store, and the clerk was sitting on the side playing with his phone; Huang was still at the counter, blowing a small fan and reading a newspaper.

Upon seeing Zheng Tan, the clerk’s eyes lit up, which made Zheng Tan pause in his steps; he didn’t know why the clerk’s look seemed as if he had seen RMB.

Huang had the clerk bring out a folding table, fried two small dishes, brought several bottles of beer, and the three men and a cat made do with their meal.

Seeing Zheng Tan eating the same as them, Huang wondered, “Is it okay for this cat to eat like this?”

“It’s fine,” Ermao wasn’t worried at all. After he served Zheng Tan’s portion, he added some roast duck, a few slices of beef, and some side dishes on the counter, which became Zheng Tan’s dining table on top.

Zheng Tan didn’t mind, he had eaten a lot at noon and had slept for an afternoon without much movement, so he wasn’t very hungry. He came just to see what kind of remarkable person Huang really was. In Zheng Tan’s understanding, those who had a good relationship with Ermao seemed not to be simple characters. Remembering how Huang had subdued a hooligan on a rainy day, he grew even more curious.

Just as he was thinking, he heard a soft clang, and Zheng Tan looked up.

A white cat jumped onto the counter and stood half a meter away from Zheng Tan, even seemed to be moving closer, apparently curious about the food in Zheng Tan’s bowl.

Zheng Tan pushed the disposable paper bowl filled with his food into his bosom to protect it, not wanting any other cat’s saliva on his food–a concern he still held. In others’ eyes, however, this was seen as guarding his food.

The white cat sensed Zheng Tan’s guardedness and no longer approached, just stared and meowed twice at Huang, who was sitting nearby.

Huang picked up some duck meat without sauce and passed it to the white cat’s feet.

The white cat sniffed at it then ate it with an air of reluctance, causing the clerk to purse his lips.

“It was more obedient when it first arrived, now it knows how to put on airs, not cute at all,” Huang said as he took another piece of meat and gently tapped the white cat’s head with the other end of the chopsticks, “The little ingrate.”

“My cat isn’t like that; Heimi is very obedient and never throws a tantrum,” Ermao claimed proudly.

Zheng Tan scoffed inwardly, skeptical of Ermao’s words.

He had wanted to hear more gossip and learn what was exceptional about Huang, but Ermao didn’t steer the conversation in that direction at all, just chatted about mundane daily matters. Zheng Tan felt so bored he wanted to doze off; he began to regret coming here, finding the dull talks less appealing than just staying home and enjoying a good meal.

After eating and drinking, the sun had set. Some customers had come to the store, and the clerk had gone to serve them without needing Huang’s intervention, so Ermao and Huang had continued sitting at the folding table at the front, chatting and drinking, only now they had moved the folding table further inside the store to avoid disturbing the customers.

Zheng Tan was squatting on the counter, dozing off, too lazy to move even as the clerk rang up sales and picked merchandise nearby. Suddenly, Zheng Tan twitched his ears and looked towards the outside of the store.

Outside, a car and a van arrived, and the first two people to emerge from the van were the ones who had come to the store to cause trouble on the rainy day.

Seeing a few men with a “here to cause trouble” demeanor, the customers in the store stopped buying and quickly left, though they didn’t go far, just stood nearby discussing whether they should call the police if a fight broke out.

People in the vicinity also noticed the situation and joined in the discussion, though most of them were just there for the spectacle; these small merchants didn’t want to mess with the hooligans.

Ermao and Huang also saw these people, but their expressions showed no concern. Ermao even scrutinized the newcomers with interest, then stood up and said, “I’ll go out first; you take your time dealing with this.”

As he reached the counter, Ermao also motioned for Zheng Tan to come out with him.

Zheng Tan glanced at Ermao, jumped down from the counter, and walked out of the store with him. Ermao was even in the mood to stop by a small vendor selling melons on a wooden cart, bought a sweet melon to munch on, and then leaned against the cart, watching the situation inside the store.

Zheng Tan didn’t go far; seeing that Ermao had no real intention of leaving, he jumped onto the seat of a small tricycle in front of the car, observing the store.

Inside, the clerk was anxious and wanted to call the police, seeing the unfriendly newcomers, but was stopped by Huang. Seeing the clerk holding ground instead of running away, Huang told him to just stay nearby.

The clerk, however, felt a strong dissatisfaction towards Ermao, having been cordial with his boss during meals but now fleeing at the first sign of trouble–truly lacking in loyalty.

The leader of the nine newcomers, called “Yu,” had a tattoo of a dragon on his arm, apparently wanting everyone to know it was an Azure Dragon, with the words “Azure Dragon” tattooed next to it.

That “Yu” sauntered over with his cronies to Huang, tilted his chin up, and asked, “Him?”

“Yes, Yu, that’s him!” The young man Huang had wrestled earlier came forward and added.

Huang, unruffled, took out a pack of cigarettes, tapped gently on the box, and a cigarette popped up, soon caught between two fingers. The cigarette spun nimbly between the fingers before coming to a stop.

Huang offered the cigarette to “Yu” and said, “Wanna try?”