Chapter 66 Cat Rice.

Chapter 66: Cat Meal.

Something was amiss.

Yu Xin shook his head, attempting to clear his mind and assess the situation, but the alcohol had already numbed his brain, making any rational judgment impossible.

Perhaps there just happened to be an empty room next to the General's?

Come on, even a three-year-old wouldn't fall for that.

Yet, Yu Xin couldn't conjure a more plausible explanation. Maybe it truly was just a coincidence.

But... he wasn't oblivious to Ji Yixing's consistent special treatment. From the umbrella offered at their first meeting, to helping him win the PK in the livestream, to their reunion on the variety show, and his unwavering defense when Yu Xin was falsely accused—Yu Xin doubted anyone would go to such lengths for a stranger.

Human emotions are intricate and subtle, and navigating them was Yu Xin's weakest point. In some respects, he could be astonishingly obtuse, let alone now, when his mind was a complete muddle.

Yu Xin's head throbbed. Giving up, he buried himself in the soft sofa.

"Master, the system has detected that your heart rate has exceeded the average level, and your facial temperature is also higher than normal. The alcohol concentration in the air has been detected as above normal levels, but it is not sufficient to cause the above physiological reactions. Would you like to proceed with further health checks?"

In the quiet room, AC1201's sweet and pleasant female voice suddenly broke the silence.

Yu Xin: ...

This smart home system was just too intelligent for its own good!!!

Yu Xin was already flustered, and AC1201's analysis was like adding fuel to the fire. An accelerated heart rate, elevated facial temperature—none of it was what Yu Xin wanted to hear.

But what ill intentions could AC1201 harbor? It was merely faithfully reflecting physiological changes that even its master might not have noticed.

As for the reason behind these changes... Yu Xin couldn't fathom it himself.

Or rather, he dared not delve too deeply.

"...No need, thank you."

"Alright. Would you like me to arrange a hangover service? I can dispatch a household robot to prepare a bowl of hangover soup for you," the AI offered thoughtfully.

"No, that won't be necessary either," Yu Xin mumbled, his voice muffled. Right now, he wanted to see no one, not even a robot.

"Understood. Please feel free to call on me anytime you have a need. AC1201 is dedicated to serving you."

...Thank you. Leaving me alone in peace is exactly what I need most right now.

The black-haired young man sprawled on the sofa remained silent, as if already asleep. His expression was calm, yet the tips of his ears, faintly visible through his hair, were suspiciously flushed bright red.

Yu Xin was almost at the point of desperation, opening his terminal to find someone who could help him analyze the situation.

But the list of contacts in his terminal was pitifully short. Aside from the contacts left by the original owner, there were only the guests he met during the variety show and Cheng Zikun.

Sheng Xingyao and the others were clearly not suitable for discussing this kind of issue, and as for Cheng Zikun...

Just thinking of him, Cheng Zikun's rants like "perverted old man," "he definitely has ulterior motives," "he's just after your body," "don't be fooled"... echoed in Yu Xin's ears like 3D surround sound.

Yu Xin shook his head vigorously, feeling that he really must be out of his mind. Cheng Zikun had spouted such nonsense, yet for a moment, Yu Xin had actually considered turning to him for help.

How could Ji Yixing be the kind of person Cheng Zikun described? He was a Five-Star General of the Empire, a renowned war god across the star systems. If it weren't for the other's anorexia, Yu Xin might never have crossed paths with Ji Yixing in his entire life.

...Forget it. Overthinking was useless anyway. Ji Yixing hadn't said anything yet. He shouldn't jump to conclusions and end up making a fool of himself.

Whatever!

*****

Before he knew it, Yu Xin had been at the Iris Base for almost a week.

This week could be said to be the happiest time he'd had since arriving in the interstellar era.

Living in a luxurious presidential suite, using the top-tier kitchen, the only thing he had to worry about each day was what to make for General Ji's breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

Experimenting with various delicious foods was originally Yu Xin's interest, not to mention that his diner, General Ji, was always incredibly appreciative. No matter what he made, General Ji would eat it all up delightfully, leaving not a single bite behind.

For someone who loves cooking, there's no reaction more gratifying than that.

His culinary skills made Yu Xin a huge hit in the base's social interactions. Aside from General Ji, Bai Yizhou, Professor Mo, Fang Yuting, the guards No. 7 and No. 12 whom Yu Xin had met before, and others at the Iris Base—anyone fortunate enough to taste a meal made by Yu Xin's own hands was utterly won over.

Not just people, but even the little black kitten Ji Yixing had mentioned before was completely won over after eating the cat food prepared by Yu Xin.

This kitten was rescued by a member of the Iris guard team from a garbage planet. During a mission, they found it, a tiny thing, wandering alone on the desolate garbage planet. Any creature slightly larger than it could easily take its life. No one knew how it had survived the harsh environment of the garbage planet.

Perhaps because of this wandering experience, the little black kitten was extremely wary of humans. It didn't allow petting or holding, and aside from feeding time, any creature that came within a meter of it would be hissed at.

Before Yu Xin arrived, the only person in the entire base who could get close to it was Fang Yuting. She was delighted to receive this special privilege from the feline master and took personal care of feeding and bathing the kitten, looking after it very well.

Yu Xin wasn't great with human relationships, but he had always had a good rapport with small animals. Back on Blue Star, he often encountered stray dogs and cats in the wild. Most of them had once been pets well cared for by humans, but when the era of pollution came, humans could barely look after themselves, let alone these pet dogs and cats.

These small pets, accustomed to hothouse life, had long lost the ability to hunt and survive in the wild. After being abandoned by their former owners, they had no choice but to wander pitifully in the wild, either becoming prey for stronger animals or struggling to even fill their stomachs.

Yu Xin couldn't save every one of them, but whenever he encountered these hungry little animals, he helped as much as he could. Over time, he honed his skills in making pet food.

That day, he casually used some leftover ingredients to cook a bowl of cat food for the base's kitten. It happened to suit the little black cat's taste perfectly—it even licked the bowl clean. After finishing, it seemed to want more, meowing at Yu Xin insistently for a long time.

After being fed a few times, the little black cat was completely won over by Yu Xin's food. It now allowed petting and holding without a fuss, and would even actively roll over and show its belly to Yu Xin, meowing in an incredibly sweet, high-pitched voice.

This even made Fang Yuting, who had been taking care of it all along, green with envy. She had worked hard to feed it for so long without receiving such treatment, yet after just a few meals from Yu Xin, this little ingrate was allowing itself to be petted, held, and kissed!

The little black cat had grown accustomed to the two-legged creatures providing food at set times. It had even memorized where Yu Xin lived and would actively appear outside Yu Xin's room when it was time for its extra meal.

Today was no exception. Hearing light scratching at the door, Yu Xin opened it a crack, and the little black cat walked in with proud, dainty steps.

This little black cat hadn't been given an official name after being brought to the base. Everyone just called it "Little Black," but it wasn't entirely black. Most of its body was pure black without a single stray hair, but its four paws and the tip of its tail were snow white. Fang Yuting had looked it up—in ancient Earth times, cats with this fur pattern had a beautiful and descriptive name: "black clouds covering snow."

Little Black had a slender and agile build, with glossy fur and large, shimmering eyes in a rare emerald green. It was truly a beautiful little cat.

After becoming familiar with it, Yu Xin's livestream added a new segment: kitten eating broadcasts.

Yu Xin thought interstellar netizens must be incredibly bored—they could actually enjoy watching a kitten eat.

But since the audience loved it, Yu Xin went along with it. As usual, he started with preparing the cat food. Yu Xin turned on the livestream from the small kitchen in his suite, first taking a piece of fresh chicken breast from the refrigerator and grinding it into fine mince with a food processor. He also prepared chicken hearts, chicken livers, shrimp, and salmon, grinding them all into mince and mixing them together. Then he cracked in an egg—for the kitten, he used salmonella-free sterile eggs, keeping only the yolk—and stirred it into a paste.

To ensure balanced nutrition for the kitten, he also diced a carrot.

Throughout his preparation, the kitten perched nearby, supervising, knowing the food being prepared by the two-legged creature in front of it was for itself. It watched intently from its perch.

After the livestream started, viewers gradually trickled in, and the chat gradually grew lively.

"I'm here, I'm here! Good morning, streamer! Good morning, Lord Little Black!"

"Another day of humans being inferior to cats. The cat gets to eat the streamer's food, but I can't. I used to envy people, now I even envy cats."

"Lord Little Black is supervising the work again today. No one can steal its food under its watchful eyes (shows claws)."

"Let me see what Lord Black is having today—chicken breast, large shrimp, salmon, chicken hearts, chicken liver... Help, who’s malding again? I’d rather be a rich family’s cat in my next life than a poor human. I’m done for."

The food for the kitten doesn’t need any seasoning; it can be steamed directly to keep it plain.

The steamed cat food needs to cool down first—a cat’s tongue can’t handle any heat. But usually, by this time, Little Black is already restless. Yu Xin has to stir the cat food with one hand while using the other to block Little Black from jumping toward the bowl.

Little Black can see the delicious food right in front of it but can’t eat it yet, meowing anxiously nearby.

"Next time, I’ll let you get burned once to teach you a lesson, you greedy cat."

Finally, when it’s cool enough, Yu Xin pours the cat food into Little Black’s dedicated food bowl. The impatient kitten rushes over immediately, practically shoving its whole face in the bowl.

The kitten isn’t concerned with table manners, chowing down noisily and happily, leaving Yu Xin with nothing but a view of its fluffy butt.

Today’s meal includes not only the steamed meat paste but also some shredded crab meat and dried shrimp that Yu Xin had previously baked in the oven as snacks for the cat. These are among Little Black’s favorite treats. The dried shrimp, made from Arctic shrimp over ten centimeters long, is its absolute favorite—it can chew on a single shrimp for a long time.

There’s also a small dish of goat milk—because a kitty needs to hydrate too.

The live stream audience loves watching Little Black eat the most; some have even made compilation videos of its eating moments, which have garnered quite a few views.

These weird humans, seething with jealousy, still can’t look away.

"I’ve had enough of this life where I’m worse off than humans and even worse off than cats..."

"Glancing at my own little menace at home—I work hard every day to earn money for its cans and kibble, and all it does is eat and sleep. It’s getting so chubby."

"Is it just me, or does Lord Black seem to be getting chunkier lately..."

"To the previous commenter, I can confirm it’s not your imagination. I compared screenshots, and Lord Black’s face is a whole lot rounder than before. It’s about to become a cat dumped for getting a fat face (evil whisper)."

"Cats with chubby cheeks won’t be abandoned! Humans get ugly with chubby cheeks, but cats only get cuter!"

After eating and drinking its fill, Little Black skillfully finds some high ground, curls into a loaf, and starts grooming itself. Yu Xin mischievously messes up its freshly groomed fur against the direction it was licking, earning a few angry meows in return.

The two coexisted harmoniously in the room, but the second Yu Xin looked away, while he was washing the cat’s food bowl, Little Black disappeared again.

Cats everywhere probably share a little gremlin habit—they love batting things off high places. By the time Yu Xin hears a crash and goes to check, Little Black has already hidden itself in some corner.

Yu Xin sighs and resigns himself to cleaning up the mess.

The kitten had somehow pulled out a bag with an unzipped opening, scattering its contents all over the floor.

Yu Xin picks up the bag, and his gaze suddenly freezes. Amid the jumble of miscellaneous items, a flash drive lies quietly there.