"Why didn't you stop me?!"
"How could you drag me into such a huge mess?"
"I look after the children for you, I look after the bookstore for you, I look after the school for you—and that still isn't enough? You want me to take the blame for you too? Where's your conscience? Do Ancient Wizards lose their hearts once they rise above a certain level?"
Yellow Flower Cat's indignant voice made the small bookstore hum and tremble. It also woke the two newborn Rat People beneath the blanket. Before they could figure out what had happened, they sensed a savage aura erupting without restraint outside the thin blanket. They huddled beneath it, shivering and not daring to move.
Watching the trembling blanket beneath its eyes, the tabby grew even more furious. It suddenly had the urge to rake a few bloody scratches across Mr. Wu's face.
It turned around and glared viciously at the bookstore owner, a glint of ferocity flashing through its narrow pupils.
On the recliner, Mr. Wu still had a book covering his face as though he were taking a nap. Yet his right index finger suddenly rose and wagged at the tabby. "A gentleman uses his mouth, not his claws... If you scratch me, there'll be no dried fish for you."
"I'm a freaking cat! Not some hazelnut mushroom!"
Yellow Flower Cat answered irritably, its tail standing high like a flagpole, or a spear about to charge. It widened its eyes, stared at the bookstore owner, and demanded again, "Why didn't you stop me just now?!"
If the other's answer did not satisfy it, then even if it meant no dried fish, it would pounce over and claw the bookstore owner's face into a bloody mess.
"Guidance is better than obstruction. Stopping you was not