Chapter 131

Chapter 131

After a long while, Chang Xu finally responded softly, "...Mm."

Chen Ji's eyes crinkled with laughter. He placed a hand on Chang Xu's shoulder, gently touched his earlobe, and was about to speak when suddenly a powerful force struck his arm. Before Chen Ji could react, he was pulled from his seat. In the span of a breath, Chang Xu's cold, handsome face was inches away.

The warm breath brushed against Chen Ji's cheek, causing the fine hairs to sway slightly. Chen Ji looked up at him, meeting those sapphire-blue eyes.

Chang Xu's voice was slightly hoarse but earnest: "Don't touch."

Chen Ji raised an eyebrow, the surprise in his eyes turning into an overflowing smile. Before he could speak, Chang Xu covered his mouth, silencing him.

—Chen Ji had a silver tongue. If he spoke, Chang Xu was no match for him.

"..." Chang Xu gripped Chen Ji's waist, lifting him effortlessly onto his own lap. Chen Ji lowered his head, the back of his head pressed against the car roof, but if he moved downward, he would be face-to-face with Chang Xu.

Chang Xu wrapped his arms around Chen Ji, holding him tightly, and buried his face in Chen Ji's chest, taking a deep breath. Chen Ji was amused but didn't move or speak.

After a long while, Chen Ji was about to ask if his Da Mi (his pet cat) had calmed down when suddenly he felt a sharp pain in his chest. He looked down and saw only Chang Xu's dry, smooth black hair. Chang Xu slowly lifted his head, revealing a clear bite mark on Chen Ji's chest. The thin undershirt perfectly captured the imprint.

Those seemingly cold eyes now held a faint red hue, the pupils narrowed into vertical slits. He stared deeply at Chen Ji for a moment before burying his face in Chen Ji's chest again, but his eyes remained fixed on Chen Ji's face like those of a hungry beast.

For a moment, Chen Ji even thought he was facing the one who sat high upon the divine platform. Whenever that one came to see him, no matter the form, as long as Chen Ji saw his eyes, they held the same gaze—as if the slightest anomaly from Chen Ji would provoke him to pounce and tear him to shreds.

"Heh," the thought popped into Chen Ji's head unexpectedly, and he laughed before he could stop himself. He wrapped his arms around Chang Xu, pressing his head against his chest, not allowing him to rise. "Alright, alright, bite if you want."

"I confess, I brought you down the mountain today to get you your feline triple vaccine... Don't be angry, alright? We won't do it if you don't want to." Chen Ji mussed Chang Xu's hair affectionately. "Don't be mad, be good... If you really need to, you can bite me again to vent?"

Chang Xu's breathing gradually steadied. He lifted his head: "I'm not a cat. Not getting vaccinated won't kill me."

Chen Ji laughed and leaned against him, raising his hands in surrender. "I was wrong. Sweetie, can I get down now?"

Chang Xu didn't release his waist; even his tail emerged and wrapped around Chen Ji's leg. He said seriously, "I don't dislike it. It's ticklish, but I like it."

He didn't dislike Chen Ji touching him, but it made him ticklish. Still, he liked it.

He liked it so much that he couldn't suppress his animal instincts, wanting to cling to him, encircle him, and stay attached to him every moment.

Chen Ji's breath hitched. It felt like a long time, yet also like an instant. All those complicated emotions vanished in that moment. He laughed again, cupped Chang Xu's face, and planted a kiss on his forehead. "I like you too, Sweetie."

"Alright, baby, let me go. I'll take you to buy some food, okay? Today, we'll only buy what you like. We won't share any with the one at home."

The thick tail released Chen Ji's calf. Chen Ji braced himself against Chang Xu's shoulder with one hand and smoothly returned to the driver's seat, accidentally bumping his head on the roof in the process. His head throbbed for a moment, but it was fine—only for an instant. His youthful, healthy body perfectly shook it off. He got out of the car and went around to the other side to help Chang Xu out.

Chen Ji hoisted the basket over his shoulder and smoothed down his slightly disheveled hair. Chang Xu stood beside him, half a head taller. He took Chang Xu's hand and led him toward the pet store ahead.

This was Chang Xu's first time in such a place. Everything was wrapped in metal or plastic, but even through all that, he could still smell the scent of meat.

The store clerk remembered the Second Master Huang that Chen Ji had brought last time—she couldn't recall Chen Ji's name, but she remembered the ferret called "Second Master Huang" very clearly. Second Master Huang loved compliments. As long as you praised him, he would do anything obediently. He was especially adorable.

When she saw Chen Ji, she instinctively looked into his basket, hoping to see an adorable ferret head pop out. The basket shifted, and sure enough, a head emerged—it was the System Cat.

The System Cat yawned. It had been woken by hunger. It had recently grown accustomed to waking late, and today it had risen too early. It had slept the entire way since crawling into the basket.

The store clerk disappointedly averted her eyes. Though the cat was cute, she preferred Second Master Huang! She put on a customer service smile and said, "Welcome! How can I help you?"

Chen Ji lifted the System Cat out. "Not sure what it likes, so I brought it along to choose for itself. By the way, do you have goat's milk formula?"

"Yes, yes. We have three types of goat's milk formula, all very suitable for feeding..." The assistant watched as the orange part-time stray cat hopped down and immediately forgot the rest of her words. She exclaimed in delight, "Wow, it's so pretty! How did you raise it to be so big?!"

Chen Ji laughed. "It's just fat. Solid muscle."

The System Cat turned its head and gave Chen Ji a disdainful look: Meow, can't you speak properly?!

Chen Ji continued, "Please watch over it. My friend and I will look around on our own."

Chen Ji pulled Chang Xu toward the shelves, which were lined with premium imported cans. Though slightly more expensive than buying online, the variety was better, and there was no minimum purchase required. Chen Ji glanced at Chang Xu and pointed to a can. "This is the mousse can."

Chang Xu picked it up. He had seen this kind of packaging before. You just pry open the metal lid, and inside is tender, melt-in-your-mouth meat paste. It was fragrant and fresh.

Chen Ji pointed to another can and lowered his voice. "This is the salmon you like."

Chang Xu picked it up to examine. Chen Ji noticed his nostrils flaring and asked curiously, "Can you smell it?"

Chang Xu nodded, then shook his head. "The scents here are too mixed."

Chen Ji was surprised. He took the can from Chang Xu and examined it carefully. The packaging was intact. He leaned in and sniffed—there was no smell at all. Could he smell through the sealed can?

Thoughtfully, Chen Ji turned and fetched a shopping cart, placing it beside Chang Xu. He prepared himself for a splurge. "Take whatever you like. It's fine."

Chang Xu nodded upon hearing this. Without hesitation, as Chen Ji had said, he placed can after can of his favorites into the shopping cart. Soon, the cart was filled with cans—and they had barely taken two steps.

The entire cart was filled with mousse cans and salmon cans.

The store clerk, who had been following the System Cat and was already carrying three toys, came over to get a cart and was surprised to see Chen Ji's fully loaded one. "So many?"

Chen Ji nodded and pointed at Chang Xu. "He likes them."

The store clerk nodded, instinctively assuming Chang Xu had a cat at home that liked them. "Then I'll get you a bigger shopping cart... We have case quantities in the warehouse. Should I bring those?"

"No need," Chen Ji said. "This is fine."

With that, Chen Ji pushed the full shopping cart to the register and grabbed a new one. Chang Xu had already moved to the snack shelves, where he saw many snacks he had eaten before, like cattle bone marrow and chew treats. He looked at Chen Ji, who nodded. "Take whatever you like."

And so, Chang Xu began filling the cart with cattle bone marrow.

Because the System Cat was so adorable, the store clerk bought it a pack of freeze-dried meat treats with her own money. As it buried its head in eating, she stroked its fur and frantically texted her best friend.

{Awesome! This super cute couple just came to my shop!}

{When picking cat food, they both said it was what the other liked haha How can they be so adorable?!}

A pleased and satisfied smile appeared on the store clerk's face. She cautiously glanced back at Chen Ji and Chang Xu, then covered her mouth and giggled.

Chang Xu paused, the chew treat in his hand, and said to Chen Ji, "She's watching us."

"Mm." Chen Ji said, amused, "Not used to it?"

"Sweetie, you're so good-looking. More people will be looking at you later."

"What are they saying?" Chen Ji curiously took a step forward, his arm brushing against Chang Xu's. He leaned in, waiting for Chang Xu to share their gossip.

Even though he could roughly guess what was being said, he still wanted to hear it. But from this distance, unless he walked over, there was no way Chen Ji could see what was on the phone screen.

Chang Xu's breath hitched. His lips moved slightly. "...N-Nothing."

The System Cat's lazy voice popped into Chen Ji's head: [She's saying you're an adorable gay couple, you're so cute, you and Sweetie...]

It stopped abruptly at this point: [The following is paid content! Three buckets of cat treats?]

Chen Ji agreed without hesitation: ["Deal!"]

Only then did System Cat continue: [They've already gotten to the part where you bought an extra-large cat collar from them before, guessing whether it was for Xiangxiang...]

Chen Ji looked at Xiangxiang, suddenly recalling that long-neglected collar, with a pang of regret. Chang Xu was still watching him, calm and attentive, as if waiting for him to continue.

Chen Ji: "..."

Forget it, that'd be too cruel.