Chapter Sixty-Seven: Both Cats and Dogs

The next day, Song Jiawei still didn’t go to work. After exchanging a quick greeting with Zhang Congwen, he hurried out the door. Zhang Congwen found this rather strange. He suspected that Song Jiawei and Xie Julie’s relationship was progressing a bit too quickly—they hadn’t known each other for long, yet already seemed to be in the throes of a passionate romance, skipping work altogether.

What surprised Zhang Congwen even more was that on the third day, Song Jiawei again gave him a brief greeting before rushing out. And it wasn’t just these few days; over the following period, Song Jiawei rarely went to work. Most times, he would leave the house mysteriously and not return until very late.

Moreover, every time Song Jiawei came home after not going to work, he looked utterly exhausted, as if all the energy had been drained from his body. What made Zhang Congwen feel even more puzzled was that during this period, Song Jiawei repeatedly told him not to look for a job—if there was money, he should enjoy a few more days of leisure. If he really had nothing better to do, Song Jiawei suggested picking up some dog-training gigs, just to keep busy.

Zhang Congwen was actually interested in training dogs, but he didn’t have Song Jiawei’s knack for finding clients. Even if he wanted to, there was nowhere for him to go. More than once, Zhang Congwen was tempted to secretly follow Song Jiawei to see what he was actually up to these days. But in the end, his sense of morality got the better of him, and he abandoned the idea of tailing his friend.

Perhaps it was simply getting used to a life without work, but Zhang Congwen truly lacked motivation to find a job, so he finally followed Song Jiawei’s advice and took a few more days to play.

During this period, Sun Zimu’s family sent feedback to Zhang Congwen. Ever since he had helped them train their dog, Nixue, the dog had become much more well-behaved, so they decided to continue keeping it. As for Sister Wang’s family, Sun Zimu’s household hadn’t asked much—no need to invite trouble. They simply said that Sister Wang’s dog barked less now, and even when it did, it was no longer as grating, making it just about bearable.

Other than these matters, Zhang Congwen had nothing else to occupy him. Bored to the point of restlessness, he finally decided to tour his own city and visit some sights. After all, he’d been in this city for quite some time but had never really explored it.

However, after only a few outings, Zhang Congwen gave up on sightseeing. Not for any other reason, but simply because the attractions were far too crowded. Even though it wasn’t peak tourist season, the sites were still packed with people. It made Zhang Congwen wonder if most people in the world were just as idle as he was, with nothing to do all day.

Just as Zhang Congwen was languishing in boredom, Xie Caizhe suddenly sent him a message.

“What brings you to remember your big brother now?” Zhang Congwen replied.

Xie Caizhe wrote back, “After you trained Lin Xiaoru’s dog, aren’t you going to do a follow-up visit? That’s pretty unprofessional. At the very least, you should check how the dog is doing now.”

Zhang Congwen replied, “Isn’t that your job?”

Xie Caizhe immediately responded, “I’ve been over there so many times, I’m starting to feel awkward. I can’t keep using this excuse forever, you know.” He even sent a sheepish emoji.

Zhang Congwen rolled his eyes. “So you just want to use me as an excuse to go over to Lin Xiaoru’s place again, is that it?”

Xie Caizhe shamelessly sent back a cheeky “Heh heh.”

Zhang Congwen refused outright: “I’m not going!”

Xie Caizhe instantly pleaded, “Big Brother Zhang, just help your little brother out this one time, I promise it’ll only be once.”

Seeing Xie Caizhe so sincere, and recalling that he really had nothing better to do, Zhang Congwen finally replied, “All right, just this once, since you asked so nicely. But it’s only this one time.”

“Great!” Xie Caizhe replied happily. “How about tomorrow? It’s the weekend, so we can stay a bit longer.”

Zhang Congwen shook his head. This kid really was sly—he’d even planned the timing perfectly. But since he’d already agreed, Zhang Congwen couldn’t go back on his word. He simply accepted his fate.

Yet, when they arrived at Lin Xiaoru’s house the next day, Xie Caizhe promptly abandoned Zhang Congwen, engaging in lively conversation with Lin Xiaoru. Zhang Congwen was helpless; after observing the French Bulldog named Big Ears for a long while, he saw that Big Ears was in excellent shape, not a single issue to be found. Clearly, ever since Zhang Congwen had come to train the dog, Lin Xiaoru’s family had been diligently following through.

Once the topic of Big Ears was exhausted, Zhang Congwen quickly ran out of things to say. After all, he wasn’t particularly skilled at socializing, unlike Song Jiawei, who always found a topic. He was about to get up and leave when he noticed Xie Caizhe casting a pleading look his way.

Resigned, Zhang Congwen steeled himself and began to survey Lin Xiaoru’s home. That’s when he discovered, sitting atop the kitchen microwave, a plump, sleek-furred tabby cat—an American Shorthair. Judging by its calm demeanor and adult size, it was clearly not a recent addition.

Curious, Zhang Congwen asked Yu Qin, “So your family keeps both a cat and a dog? I’ve been here twice before and never saw this cat. When did you get it?”

Yu Qin replied, “We’ve had it for a long time. When you came to train the dog before, we were worried it might be a distraction, so we locked it and all its things in a room and didn’t let it out.”

Only then did Zhang Congwen recall that during his previous visits, he had faintly heard a cat meowing. The sound was so soft he thought he’d imagined it, so he hadn’t given it any thought. He hadn’t expected that Lin Xiaoru’s family actually had a cat.

He looked at the tabby and asked, “What’s its name?”

“It’s called Birdie,” Yu Qin answered.

Zhang Congwen was taken aback. “That’s an unusual name.”

Before Yu Qin could explain, Lin Xiaoru interjected, “Because it doesn’t meow like other cats. Its call actually sounds just like its name, so we named it Birdie. I was the one who named him, you know.” Then Lin Xiaoru turned to the tabby and said, “Birdie, give us a meow.”

“Bird-ow!” the tabby cooperated perfectly, letting out a call.

The sound was completely at odds with the cat’s plump physique. Its voice was soft and coy; just by listening, one would imagine Birdie was a gentle, sweet, clingy little female cat. In reality, Birdie was a neutered male.

“So well-behaved,” Zhang Congwen remarked, intrigued. “Birdie, give me a meow.”

Mimicking Lin Xiaoru’s tone, Zhang Congwen addressed the tabby, but Birdie ignored him completely, showing no interest.

Yu Qin commented, “Well-behaved? Hardly. This cat is actually quite fierce. He loves bullying Big Ears, who nonetheless adores Birdie and always tries to play with him, only to get beaten up every time.”

Zhang Congwen couldn’t help but laugh out loud.

Sometimes the relationship between cats and dogs is truly odd. Take the cat he had as a child, for example; it was terrified of their family dog, who always stole the cat’s food. But the kitten born to that cat was completely unafraid of the dog and could always keep the dog in line. Yet, that kitten was terrified of its mother, fearful of a swat from her paw.

Although Zhang Congwen liked dogs, he was also fond of cats. Seeing this fat, big-eared tabby, he couldn’t resist the urge to pet it. He approached, observing the cat. Birdie showed no fear of strangers, remaining steady atop the microwave and watching Zhang Congwen warily.

Just as he reached out to pet the cat, Yu Qin quickly warned, “Careful, don’t touch him.”