Outside the Imperial Academy, on a tree-lined street.
"Hmm? Huh!"
Xianchan Chenchen, who was lying in the passenger seat, suddenly woke up. He instantly pointed at Zhaoye Bai, who was holding a handkerchief, and demanded sharply, "What are you doing!?"
Zhaoye Bai raised the handkerchief in her hand. "Wiping your drool."
"What drool?"
"The drool you leaked while sleeping. It was dripping all over Feifei's head."
Xianchan Chenchen subconsciously wiped the moisture from the corner of his mouth, then lowered his head to look at the fat orange cat in his arms, which had endured all the humiliation of the thunderous rain and dew. He ground his teeth and said angrily, "How could I possibly... drool..."
"Then what was I wiping?"
Xianchan Chenchen trembled from head to toe. Explosions of light flickered in and out at his fingertips, and although the corners of his mouth twitched, he could not utter a word. Zhaoye Bai comforted him, "Adults drool in their sleep too. It's perfectly normal. I occasionally wake up with half my face wet, really."
With that step down, Xianchan Chenchen's expression clearly improved. He gave a cold snort, straightened his clothes and hat, and restored his cold, haughty expression. Zhaoye Bai took out her pocket watch and glanced at it. "We have to be on duty until midnight. Inspector, you're already sleepy—how are you going to make it through the rest of the night?"
Xianchan Chenchen glanced at the Imperial Academy's high walls and said coldly, "We don't get any of the benefits, yet they make us handle all the dirty and menial work... Taking a nap is already showing them plenty of respect! Normally, I'd already be in bed at this hour!"
"That early?" Zhaoye Bai asked in surprise. "Inspector, how many hours do you usually sleep?"
"Nine