The thin and weak little orange cat didn't seem to live long in Qingmu and Crow's eyes, but perhaps out of sympathy for their shared loneliness, Yu Meiren regarded it as her most important companion after arriving in Wuzhong.
Shi Dazhuang was very busy with work, leaving early and returning late every day, sometimes not coming home for several days in a row. Occasionally, Hu Xing, Yao Jingjing, or Qingmu would come to see her, but that was only occasional. Although she did not experience any discrimination from anyone at the elite school, and was not afraid to interact with them, Xia Tian and Xia Chujue both from noble backgrounds, and it always felt like there was a great distance between them if they were to become true confidants.
She missed home, the mountains and rivers of Kuaziba and the people there, the wrinkled smile of Grandpa Enkun and his long pipe. The towering buildings in the city only gave her a few days of novelty, and then all that remained was a strange loneliness. She had nowhere to confide in, and only when she held her little orange cat could she feel a trace of warmth in her heart, a sense of stability in her wandering, and the courage to face the unknown alone.
Qingmu had once hinted to her that the cat's lifespan would ultimately be shorter than a human's. She was clever and knew the orange cat was sick, so she took even better care of it. As a result, the originally thin cat gradually became fat. Lying on the little "bed" that the Beauty had made for it, it looked like a ball of orange fur from afar. Anyone who teased it seemed cute and cuddly, but in reality, it was just because it was too lazy to move. So when Yao Jingjing saw it, she said it was just a fat version of Qingmu.
Yu Meiren named it " Hanran," meaning "to sleep Hanran and dream sweetly," hoping it could have a good night's sleep and sweet dreams every day.
When the " Cat-Killing Order " was first issued, Yu Meiren still went to school as usual. She wasn't worried that someone would break into her house and take Hanran away. This fat cat, whose body had become out of shape and seemed to have its brains filled with fat, was no longer the sick cat that used to wander in Spring City. You could chase it away, but it wouldn't leave, let alone run away on its own.
Unlike dogs, which bark and all the dogs in the neighborhood follow suit, cats are independent. But cats are smarter than dogs, and they maintain a close yet distant relationship with each other, forming their own society. If something happens to a cat outside, the cat at home will always sense it. This sense of connection is unknown, but it is very real.
The Cat-Killing Order was in full swing, and cats throughout the city were fleeing and Hanran for their lives. Even Hanran sensed the danger. It meowed anxiously in its room, hoping its little owner would return quickly to give it a safe embrace. Instead, it was met with a loud knocking on the door and angry shouts from outside, "There's a cat in this house!"
Shi Dazhuang was extremely disgusted by the irrational killing of cats, but as a criminal police officer, he had neither the power nor the ability to stop the situation from escalating, and indeed, the situation had developed to the point of being out of control. Killing a cat is not murder, and from a legal perspective, it cannot be dealt with; it can only be condemned morally. However, even the law does not punish the masses, let alone morality. When everyone believes that cats are harmful, even those who defend cats dare not speak out.
Morality lies where people's hearts are; morality lies where the power of discourse lies! Morality can be manipulated.
Now, public opinion and the power of discourse are in the hands of those who issued the " Cat-Killing Order." Even governments around the world have been caught in a dilemma and have let the matter slide, leaving others helpless.
But Shi Dazhuang was a responsible man after all. When Yu Meiren called him to say that someone was knocking on the door late at night and trying to break in, he rushed back in time and, with the authority of a policeman, stopped those who wanted to break into his house to catch his cat.
Some people recognized him, knowing he was the head of the criminal investigation team. While they dared not cause a scene, they still found an excuse to attack him. "Public officials should set an example. You can't keep cats at home. Don't you care about your own safety, or the lives of the people around you? You have money and power, so you can buy the best medicine, but ordinary people can't."
Shi Dazhuang said, "The cat is innocent. Besides, my cat has already been tested and doesn't carry toxoplasmosis."
"You think you can just say it doesn't exist? Even if what you're saying is true, it will still attract toxoplasmosis, posing a safety hazard to our community. If you can't bear to kill the cat, just send it to a shelter. Even the mayor's cat has been sent there!"
Shi Dazhuang thought sending her to a shelter was a good idea, and they could bring her back once things calmed down. But seeing Yu Meiren's sad expression, he couldn't bear to do it.
Yu Meiren knew she had put her uncle in a difficult position, but she really couldn't bear to let Hanran leave. Moreover, she had heard from her classmates that animal shelters were now killing cats because they simply couldn't accommodate so many stray animals, and the price for killing a cat online had risen to three hundred dollars.
The community persisted, especially those in his building, who were particularly enraged. When their attempts to force his way in failed, they held a homeowners' meeting demanding that Shi Dazhuang move out. Property management and neighborhood committee members visited him, trying to persuade Shi Dazhuang: "It's just a cat. If you really can't bear to part with it, find a relative in the countryside to take care of it."
But Shi Dazhuang knew that the countryside was now even less safe than the city.
Finally, on a day when Shi Dazhuang was working overtime, his door was tricked into opening. First, someone turned off his water meter valve, then pretended to be a plumber to get the naive Yu Meiren to open the door. Then, a group of people rushed in aggressively to catch the cat, which frightened Beauty.
But no matter what, she was still a girl who grew up in Kuaziba, someone who had followed Qingmu through Wu Suotun's camp and picked poppies. Yu Meiren only hesitated for a moment before shouting towards the room, " Hanran —run!"
The orange cat, which had been hiding under the living room sofa, heard its owner's command and darted out as everyone rushed into the room. But its chubby body couldn't escape people's eyes, and someone shouted, "Chase it!" People then retreated from Shi Dazhuang's house like a tide.
Shi Dazhuang was furious. For the first time in his life, he used public power for his own sake and arrested all those who broke into the house. But in the end, the law could not punish everyone, and no serious consequences occurred. They could not be charged with burglary or robbery. They only detained the ringleaders for a few days on charges of trespassing. Fortunately, they learned from the confessions that they had not caught Hanran. Yu Meiren finally held a glimmer of hope, but after waiting for seven days and seven nights, Hanran did not return.
Seeing that Yu Meiren looked haggard and the online " Cat-Killing Order " showed no signs of abating, Shi Dazhuang had no choice but to bring her to Qingmu, asking everyone to comfort the Beauty and discuss what to do next.
When the Boss Coal heard that the cat was lost, he said with great emotion, "Oh, it was annoying when it was here, but now that it's gone, I miss it terribly."
Upon hearing this, Yu Meiren burst into tears. She had always been a strong child; even when people pointed fingers at her and called her father Poison Scorpion, or when she was kidnapped to Masuba and forced to become the old man's bride, she had never cried. But she couldn't bear the pain of losing her dearest and most beloved friend; all the loneliness and bitterness that had accumulated over the days flowed out with her tears.
The Crow, bewildered, said, " Guagua, caw, I misspoke!" Seeing the Beauty's sad expression, it took flight and cried out generously, "I'll go find it! As long as this fellow is still alive and in Wuzhong, I'll find it!"
Qingmu asked, " Wuzhong so big, how are you going to find it?"
The Crow said, "People have their paths, and birds have their skies." Then it flew out the window and away.