"Good morning, Li Yi." Yingjun grinned as he led him inside, his little mouth chattering nonstop. "For breakfast today, we have the soup dumplings you like, along with egg dumplings and corn porridge."
"Thank you, Yingjun." Li Yi set down the cat carrier and said a little sheepishly, "The pet shop I found yesterday closed because something came up, so Sheriff might have to stay here for another day.
"Don't worry, today will be the last day. I promise I won't bring him over tomorrow, and I'll clean up the Little Wooden Cabin Sheriff stayed in."
Yingjun enthusiastically served breakfast and handed Li Yi a spoon. "It's fine. After you left yesterday, the young master had someone rush over to make Sheriff a little Cat Bed. They even stuffed it with lots of toys.
"You can go take a look after breakfast.
"The young master didn't chase Sheriff away, and he even had a Cat Bed made. That means he's tacitly agreed to let Sheriff stay here long-term~
"You won't have to take him home after work anymore. I can help you look after him."
"Thank you. I'll thank him in person next time."
No sooner had Li Yi finished speaking than Yingjun started gushing again. Tears poured from his electronic eyes, almost turning them into fountains. "Our young master looks cold, but he has a warm heart. He must have thought I would be lonely, a robot watching over such a huge villa all by myself, so he specifically allowed Sheriff to stay and keep me company. What a touching bond between master and servant.
"He's like a fire in winter, warming people's hearts."
"..."
Li Yi picked up his spoon without responding and quietly began eating his porridge.
Of course, having Sheriff live here would be better. It would make looking after him easier, and having Yingjun watch him would put Li Yi more at ease.
But why had Shi Yan suddenly allowed Sheriff to stay in the villa, and even sent someone to make him a Cat Bed?
Li Yi lowered his head to look at Sheriff in the carrier. He wasn't the sort of cat with particularly popular looks, just an ordinary black-and-white tuxedo cat. His face was simply rounder than most cats', which made him look rather cute.
That level of cuteness probably wouldn't catch Shi Yan's eye, would it?
Could it be?
A possibility occurred to Li Yi.
Shi Yan was planning to take Sheriff as a Cat Hostage!
Back at the interview, he'd suspected Li Yi of having ulterior motives. Yesterday, he'd even come over specifically to watch him work!
And today, he'd let Sheriff stay in the villa.
He definitely hadn't dropped his suspicions!
As the villain in the novel, Shi Yan was sinister and unhinged, and had distrusted people since childhood. It was normal for him to be suspicious of a biological son like Li Yi, whom the Lu family had brought back only to neglect for three years.
Anyone who had grown used to a life of hardship would surely dream of seizing the family fortune after suddenly being brought back into a wealthy household.
And since he wasn't favored and had no one to rely on, he would surely want to find himself a powerful backer.
Although Shi Yan wasn't wrong to think that way, Li Yi wasn't coveting the Lu family's fortune. He only wanted to hold on to the coming-of-age gift his grandfather had given him. It was the coming-of-age gift left to him by his grandfather, the only person in the Lu family who cared about him.
He had to protect it!
If taking Sheriff as a Cat Hostage could put Shi Yan at ease, Li Yi was willing to let Sheriff stay.
No matter how unhinged Shi Yan was, he wouldn't kill a little cat.
Only selfish, petty people like the Lu family would hold a grudge against a little cat over something trivial and wish they could rush over that very night to kill him!
Seeing that Li Yi had finished breakfast, Yingjun eagerly led him to see Sheriff's little Cat Bed.
"Ta-da~" Streamers scattered across Yingjun's display panel, and his voice was thick with joy. "This is the little Cat Bed the young master arranged for Sheriff. It's twice as big as the doghouse Sheriff stayed in yesterday.
"It's equipped with air conditioning, a cat tree, a cat treadmill, scratching boards, a lounge chair, a sofa, Whack-a-Mole, and all sorts of other toys.
"Over here, there are all kinds of cat snacks too: lickable treats, freeze-dried treats, jerky, little fish, quail eggs, duck liver, foie gras, canned food, and cat food from various countries.
"The preparations were a little rushed. If there's anything else you need, just tell me, and I'll order it right now."
He called this rushed? It was practically a Double 11 shopping spree.
There was enough food to last Sheriff half a year.
"It's enough, it's enough." Li Yi hurriedly waved his hands. "Our ordinary little cat is living the life of a rich family's pet now. He's going to go crazy with joy over all these treats."
"Then hurry and let Sheriff go in and try it out." Yingjun rubbed his mechanical hands together in a very human gesture. "I can't wait to see how excited Sheriff gets. I'll have to record it and send it to the young master."
"You need to record this too?" Did he even need to confirm that the Cat Hostage had moved into his room?
"Of course. When the doghouses were built before, the young master couldn't even be bothered to look at them, and I never heard him mention getting a dog afterward either. Sheriff is the first pet to move into Doggy Paradise. We have to show the young master~"
"All right, then. Go ahead." Li Yi bent down, lifted Sheriff out, and tucked him into the Cat Bed.
Unlike his reaction when he entered the doghouse yesterday, Sheriff was especially energetic today. He rushed straight onto the cat treadmill and started running with huffing effort.
The wheel creaked under his weight, and for a while, Li Yi worried Sheriff would run it right off its frame.
Fortunately, he only played on it for a short while before moving on to the other toys.
"Open some treats for Sheriff and see which ones he likes," Yingjun suggested as he switched on his camera and filmed.
"He usually likes this brand of canned food." Li Yi rummaged through the pile of treats before finally finding a can and opening it.
At the sound of the can opening, Sheriff's ears pricked up, and he immediately dashed over.
"I've marked it down. I'll buy this brand from now on," Yingjun said.
This time, he sent the video straight over without editing it.
There was a beep.
Shi Yan, who was working, immediately received a half-hour-long high-definition video.
The video had no messy music or filters added, nor any haphazard editing. It was simply clear footage of the affectionate interactions between a person and an animal.
The young man on-screen wore a relaxed smile, stroking the tuxedo cat's head one moment, then turning toward the camera to talk about the tuxedo cat's preferences the next.
His voice was clean and clear, like spring water in the mountains, refreshing and pleasant to hear.
Although he complained about how much the tuxedo cat ate and how picky he was, his eyes were full of affection when he looked at him.
The little boy Shi Yan had met as a child had also complained about his puppy while tearfully saying how much he missed it.
Saying one thing and meaning another!
Shi Yan made that assessment, tapped save, and set his phone back on the desk.
Just then, his phone sounded again.
He quickly picked it up, but after looking at it for a few seconds, his somewhat expectant expression fell.
He typed: Not going.
With a beep, the other person replied: Why aren't you coming again? You didn't come yesterday, and now you're not coming today either. What gives?
Hiding a beauty at home?
That's not fair of you. We've had this rule for years: whoever finds a partner has to tell everyone!
Shi Yan frowned slightly: I haven't.
The other person hesitated for a while before replying: I don't believe you. I heard you had a Cat Bed put in that precious villa of yours yesterday. You wouldn't get a Cat Bed for no reason.
Shi Yan: Fine. Come over after work.
Before you continue