Taming the Kitten

Bai Yi carried the two girls back to the courtyard west of Suotuo City.

The moment Xiao Wu was set down, she bounced forward two steps, circled around in front of Bai Yi, tilted her head up at him, and said, "Bai Yi, change back already. That face is way too ugly. It scares me just looking at it."

Bai Yi raised a hand and swept it before his face. His rough, rugged features swiftly twisted and changed.

Under the moonlight, he stood in the courtyard with a tall, slender figure, refined features, and reddish-gold eyes.

He had filled out considerably more than he had two years ago. Most of his boyishness had faded, replaced by a touch more calmness and sharpness between his brows.

Xiao Wu immediately pounced on him, hanging from his body with her legs wrapped around his waist, her arms hooked around his neck, and her cheek pressed against his chest.

Her voice came out muffled, carrying an indescribable hint of grievance.

"You haven't come to see me for three months. You clearly said you'd visit me more often, but then you vanished again."

Bai Yi raised a hand to support her back and said, "Get down and talk. Isn't it tiring to hang like that?"

Xiao Wu shook her head. "Not tiring. My waist is plenty strong—I wouldn't get tired even if I hung here all day."

Bai Yi could not be bothered to argue with her, so he let her hang there.

Zhu Zhuqing stood at the courtyard gate without stepping inside.

Her gaze fell upon Bai Yi's restored face, and she seemed nailed to the spot. Even her breathing slowed by half a beat.

She recognized him.

Though his face had lost the baby fat from two years ago, its contours were more defined, and his features carried the heroic air of a young man, she could never mistake those eyes.

Those were the eyes she had seen when she looked up in the Star Dou Great Forest.

She had searched for him for two years and thought about him for two years. In that time, she had only glimpsed his hurried silhouette once in the Star Dou Great Forest. Before she could get a good look, he had disappeared.

Now, that face appeared before her with perfect clarity.

Zhu Zhuqing stared blankly, her heartbeat so loud that she worried the people beside her could hear it too.

Bai Yi took Xiao Wu off himself and set her on the ground. Then he turned toward the quiet figure at the gate and said, "Long time no see."

Zhu Zhuqing's body tensed slightly. A faint blush surfaced on her cool face as she said in a softer voice than usual, "You still remember me."

Bai Yi said, "How could I forget?"

Zhu Zhuqing's eyelashes trembled.

She had always thought that after so many years, he might have forgotten her. After all, he had been such an important light in her life, while to him, she might have only been a stranger he had saved in passing.

She lowered her eyes before finally saying softly, "I've always wanted to find you and thank you in person."

Bai Yi waved a hand. "Don't take something so small to heart."

Zhu Zhuqing raised her head, a trace of stubbornness in her eyes. "To me, it wasn't a small thing."

Bai Yi looked at her in silence for a moment, then said, "Since you put it that way, I won't stand on ceremony."

Zhu Zhuqing froze. "What do you mean?"

Bai Yi said, "Do you want revenge against your sister?"

Zhu Zhuqing's body abruptly went still.

Her cat ears pricked up slightly amid her hair, her cat tail stiffened for an instant, and a complicated emotion flashed through her eyes.

Her sister—the eldest legitimate daughter of the Star Luo Empire, inheritor of the Hell Spirit Cat bloodline—had suppressed her since childhood, opposed her at every turn, and had even sent people to hunt her down.

Half the reason Zhu Zhuqing had fled to Suotuo City and enrolled in Shrek Academy was to evade those pursuers.

Zhu Zhuqing fell silent for a while before saying, "I do."

Bai Yi nodded. "I'll give you an opportunity."

He walked over to the stone table and sat down, pouring himself a cup of tea. His tone was as casual as if he were commenting on the pleasant weather. "Become my subordinate. In the shortest possible time, I'll raise your strength to match your sister's—or even surpass hers."

Zhu Zhuqing's gaze flickered. "Why are you helping me?"

Bai Yi said, "I need people to handle matters for me outside. Sooner or later, I'll have use for someone in the Star Luo Empire. You have good talent, and your character is better than Dai Mubai's. I'll help you reclaim what belongs to you, and you'll work for me."

Zhu Zhuqing lowered her head and thought for a long time.

When she raised her head again, her gaze was firmer than before. "I accept."

Bai Yi took a sip of tea. "No regrets?"

Zhu Zhuqing said, "No regrets."

Bai Yi set down his teacup, the corner of his lips curling slightly as though he were smiling.

Xiao Wu leaned against Bai Yi's shoulder and looked down at Zhu Zhuqing's cool face. Her lips curled up as well as she sent Bai Yi a voice transmission. You've tricked another one in. There'll be more and more sisters in this courtyard from now on.

Bai Yi sent back, Stop talking nonsense.

Xiao Wu stuck out her tongue and fell silent.

By the time Ning Rongrong climbed over the courtyard wall, she had already removed her disguise and returned to her original delicate, pretty appearance.

Her landing footsteps were heavy, clearly deliberately forceful.

After steadying herself, her gaze first landed on Bai Yi, then shifted aside to Xiao Wu leaning against his shoulder.

Her eyes moved to the other side and found Zhu Zhuqing standing at the gate, her cat ears not yet fully retracted.

Ning Rongrong's eyes slowly widened, and her mouth opened slightly. She took a deep breath, then launched into a rapid-fire scolding at Bai Yi. "What do you mean, Bai Yi? You went out to fight in the spirit arena and brought back two girls? One's hanging on you, and the other's standing at the gate staring at you. Did you kidnap them or snatch them up?"

Sitting by the stone table with a teacup in hand, Bai Yi replied without changing expression, "I'm recruiting talent."

Ning Rongrong was so angry that her eyebrows shot up. "Do you need to carry people back tucked under your arm to recruit talent? Do you think I didn't see you?"

Xiao Wu lifted her face from Bai Yi's shoulder and blinked at Ning Rongrong. "He really is recruiting talent. I came back with him willingly, and being tucked under his arm was very comfortable."

Ning Rongrong stomped her foot and pointed at Xiao Wu. "Don't talk!"

She looked back at Bai Yi, her chest heaving sharply several times. She looked exactly like an angry cat with its fur standing on end.

Bai Yi put down his teacup and rose to his feet.

He walked up to Ning Rongrong, raised a hand, and placed it atop her head, gently rubbing it.

His touch was perfectly measured. It did not mess up her hair, yet carried a soothing warmth.

Ning Rongrong's mouth was still open as if a great many words were stuck in her throat, but the moment that hand rested atop her head, those words seemed to be blocked back down by something.

Her face reddened from the roots of her ears, spreading down her cheeks and all the way to her neck.

Her mouth opened and closed several times before she finally squeezed out a single syllable. "Hmph."

Bai Yi withdrew his hand, a faint smile at the corner of his mouth. "Not angry anymore?"

Ning Rongrong turned her head aside. "Who's angry? I just think you shouldn't bring people back so casually."

Xiao Wu leaned over the back of Bai Yi's chair and poked her head out. "You were obviously angry just now. Your whole face turned red."

Ning Rongrong abruptly turned and glared at her. "Shut up!"

Xiao Wu stuck out her tongue and pulled her face back behind Bai Yi.

Bai Yi sat back down on the stone stool. His gaze swept across the three girls in the courtyard and the quiet figure at the gate before he suddenly smiled.

A subtle sense of unease rose in the hearts of several girls at once.

Bai Yi folded his hands on his knees, his tone carrying a teasing smile as he said, "Since you're all here, there happens to be something I'd like your help with."