Chapter 54: Returning to Cat Village

Chapter 54: Return to Catfolk Village

On June 8th, the cat café run by two Catfolk owners held a grand opening.

The tabby cat, dressed in uniform, carried a silver tray with one hand, weaving gracefully between the coffee tables.

Pang Qiu smiled at every customer who came in, the corners of his mouth lifting to reveal two small, gleaming fangs.

At the central bar in the hall, a pure white Lion Cat held his head high, perched aloft with an air of dignity, his gaze sweeping the room with reserved pride.

The Big Cat posed elegantly, his tail curled around his body, his two mangosteen-like paws pressed together in front of him.

His fur was fluffy and smooth, glistening under the lights, like a giant dandelion.

His large, round golden eyes were sharp and alert, immediately spotting whenever a guest aimed a camera at him.

When a guest raised their phone, Fei Yu gave a slightly haughty nod.

The big cat discreetly adjusted his posture, his tail by his feet swaying gently from side to side, striving to strike the perfect pose for the camera.

But when the guest, overwhelmed by cuteness, eagerly approached him, reached out a hand, and gave the signal for a pet,

the Lion Cat nimbly dodged, suddenly leaped down, landed with a thud on the nearby coffee table, and pretended nothing had happened as he lowered his head to lick his paw.

He was now a cat with a partner, so he couldn’t let just anyone touch him.

Ding-dong, ding-dong, the wind chime at the door rang crisply, and the café’s glass door was opened from outside.

Suisui, who had just finished school, trotted into the café on his short legs, looked around, and headed straight for the Lion Cat on the coffee table.

“Kitty!” the Little Meow exclaimed, his cheeks flushed, his eyes narrowed into two thin slits, and he buried his head in his father’s soft belly, rubbing vigorously.

Song Ji, with Suisui’s sunflower-print little backpack hanging from his arm, strode in behind him.

The man sat down at the coffee table and ordered a coffee with a Lion Cat latte art.

When the coffee arrived, it was too adorable to drink, so he just curled his lips and watched the father-and-child interaction in front of him.

Suisui looked at his father in front of him, then at Brother Pang Qiu approaching, puffed up his cheeks, and blinked expectantly at the latter.

Baby also wants to turn into a cat, you know.

The tabby cat caught on immediately. After getting Fei Yu’s consent, he gave a mischievous grin, picked up Suisui, and ran toward the changing room. “Suisui’s plane is taking off!”

With Suisui gone, Fei Yu thought he should treat everyone equally at work.

The Lion Cat slid his gaze away innocently, casually straightened up, and prepared to leave.

But then Song Ji suddenly sighed, his eyelids drooping.

The man said in a low voice that his work today hadn’t gone smoothly, the business partners were troublesome, and it would be nice if a cat could comfort him.

The naive cat boy hesitated for two seconds, couldn’t help but lean in, rubbing his furry head against Song Ji’s arm.

“Meow.”

The cat loves you.

Song Ji gave a wry smile, then scooped the soft-hearted, easily swayed Fei Yu into his arms.

His broad, warm hand glided over the cat’s back, stroking from top to bottom, while his fingers skillfully scratched under Fei Yu’s chin.

The man had a deft touch, and his fingers always pressed the soft spots just right.

Having worked hard all day, Fei Yu fought with all his might but couldn’t resist. His body went limp, and he couldn’t help lying back in Song Ji’s arms, closing his eyes and purring softly.

The earlier rejected guest was very unhappy. Seeing Pangqiu passing by, he quickly grabbed him to complain.

“I can understand the kid, but why does that man get the cat’s affection?”

The guest glanced at the tall, handsome man across the room and gave up. “Is your cat shallow?”

The tabby cat followed his gaze, looked at the man, and paused for two seconds.

That's not a guest—that's his partner.

He gently placed the little kitten in his arms on the table and said, “How about you ask Suisui the cat?”

The little kitten tilted his head, familiar with humans, approached the guest, meowed softly twice, and voluntarily rubbed his body against the guest’s hand.

The guest’s eyes lit up, and he was instantly distracted by the soft, adorable little creature.

In mid-June, the family of three boarded the train back to Catfolk Village.

Chugga-chugga, the green iron train wound its way through the mountain roads, crawling forward slowly like a giant caterpillar.

Catfolk Village was nestled deep in the mountains, and the scenery along the way was green and beautiful, but the man by the window had no time to appreciate it.

As the only human to have become a partner of a Catfolk and raised a baby with one, Song Ji was nervous—and that’s an understatement.

Song, the CEO, accustomed to dominating the business world, rarely felt so uncertain and anxious.

What if the villagers of Catfolk Village thought he wasn’t good enough? What if the Cat God didn’t acknowledge his existence?

Would Fei Yu still be willing to accept his proposal?

The man worried the whole way, but his face showed nothing, and he chatted normally with Fei Yu and Suisui.

When Maotou Mountain appeared before the family of three, Suisui, in Song Ji’s arms, suddenly brightened.

The enthusiastic Little Meow pointed at the ear tip of the cat’s head and turned to say excitedly, “Dad, we’re home!”

Fei Yu gently squeezed the hand holding Song Ji’s, as if he knew what Song Ji was worried about, and smiled, blinking at him. “We’re home.”

“Okay.” Song Ji’s heart immediately filled with confidence. Holding Suisui with one hand and taking Fei Yu’s hand with the other, he got off the train.

He was unreservedly chosen by the Catfolk, so what was there to worry about?

The Catfolk’s houses were built according to their own unique cat heads.

From a distance, it looked like cat heads of various colors and patterns were placed on the ground, scattered throughout the mountain village.

Fei Yu’s home was a lifelike Lion Cat head. A big cat yawning, with the open mouth serving as the door.

Cats liked narrow spaces, so the interior of the cat head wasn’t large—a one-bedroom, one-living-room layout, neatly and warmly arranged.

The living room was furnished with a cat nest and a cat tree for resting, and the bedroom had a double bed in the center, with not much space left.

Even though they hadn’t been back for months, the furniture was still clean and tidy, the floor polished, with not a speck of dust.

"Cat God bless, not having to clean up is really great." Fei Yu sat down on the sofa with the baby in his arms, letting out a heavy sigh.

After a whole day of travel, both father and son were exhausted, curled up together on the sofa, unwilling to move.

After lying quietly for a while, Suisui squirmed in his daddy's arms and whispered, "Daddy, baby wants milk."

Fei Yu felt a bit thirsty too. "Alright, daddy will make baby some milk."

He pushed himself up on the sofa, but before he could get upright, an arm slid in front of him.

Song Ji had somehow come over, holding a bottle of milk for the baby in one hand and a glass of juice for Fei Yu in the other.

Suisui took the bottle with both hands and polished off half of it in one go.

The baby sipped the rest slowly, eyes half-closed, cross-legged on the sofa, sipping contentedly, purring softly.

Fei Yu took a sip of the sweet juice and thought happily, *Having Song Ji is really wonderful.*

The man half-lidded his eyes, rolled up his sleeves, exposing lean, defined arms, his muscles subtly flexed beneath the thin fabric, looking especially handsome and sexy.

After drinking the juice and silently admiring the view for a while, Fei Yu's heart raced, and his weary body felt recharged.

How could he make his boyfriend do all the work?

Fei Yu sprang up from the sofa and followed Song Ji toward the kitchen, but before he could enter, the man's arm blocked him.

Song Ji casually slid an arm around his lover's waist, kissed his earlobe softly, and said, "Babe, go relax. I've got this."

Fei Yu asked, worried, "You've been traveling all day too. Aren't you tired?"

Song Ji shrugged, unfazed. "It's nothing."

He shifted gears. "Didn't Suisui have a gift to take to the neighbor?"

"You two go ahead. I've got things handled here."

Suisui, having just finished his milk, let out a small burp.

Hearing his daddy’s words, he immediately turned around, waved his little hands, and exclaimed, "Baby wants to see Uncle Xisen!"

Fei Yu took Suisui’s hand and walked hesitantly across to the Siberian Forest Cat's house.

The cat-themed kitchenware was designed according to Catfolk habits, and Song Ji burned two fish in a row. Without changing his expression, he dumped them and started over, taking a while to get the hang of the catfolk cookware.

An hour later, he faced a table full of delicious dishes.

Song Ji washed his face, straightened his cuffs and collar again, and then nonchalantly walked over to the door across the way, gently knocking with his finger.

He was determined to see who this "Uncle Xisen" really was.

The door wasn’t locked, and with a light push, it swung open automatically.

Song Ji stood at the doorway, not rushing in. He waited for a long time, but no host came. Only then did he cautiously peer inside.

"Sorry to intrude."

Inside, there was no romantic rival as he'd imagined.

A huge Siberian Forest Cat sat on the ground, its tail curled around a kapok flower, watching a big cat and a little cat bouncing on the wall.

"Daddy!" Seeing his father, Suisui’s ears perked up, and he quickly jumped down from the cat tree by the door.

Before landing, the kitten transformed into a tiny human, draped over his daddy's shoulder and giggling.

The Siberian Forest Cat eyed the stranger at the door but stayed in cat form. It stiffly turned its head, twitched its tail, and gave a few low meows as a greeting.

Suisui leaned close to his father’s ear and whispered, "Uncle Xisen is an introverted cat. He usually prefers being a cat."

Song Ji: *...*

Hard to believe, but he'd spent a whole month jealous of a cat.

The summer night sky was clear and bright, shining with a deep blue glow. The stars were like sparkling diamonds scattered across velvet.

Distant mountains were shrouded in the night, like silent, deep-blue screens.

As darkness fell, fireflies waggled their glowing butts, one by one rising from the lake's edge.

Big cat and little cat stayed motionless in the grass, eyes wide open, observing carefully.

Song Ji fanned a palm-leaf fan, cooling the big cat and little cat beside him.

A cool lake breeze swept in from time to time. Little Meow's energy finally gave out. Lying back in his daddy's arms, he tilted his head and fell asleep.

Fei Yu transformed back into human form, gently placed the baby into the cat bed, and then slowly pressed his lips to Song Ji's, giving his lover their first kiss of the night.

Fireflies drifted softly, lighting the way around the lovers.

In the quiet night, the atmosphere was perfect. When they pulled apart, neither wanted to let go.

Song Ji’s eyes were dark as thick ink, his hot fingertips tracing his lover's damp lips. He was about to lean in again.

Suddenly a breeze from the lake swept through, flattening the grass. Two cat heads hidden deep in the grass were unexpectedly exposed, their ears perked up like spikes, eyes glowing like flashlights in the dark.

Cats: 0o0 ！

Fei Yu: ( //// )

Song Ji: ( …… )

The two cats stared at each other, then both abruptly looked up at the sky.

One said the moon was especially round tonight, and the moonlight was beautiful. The other agreed, saying yes, yes, and there were so many stars.

They kept their heads tilted up like that, scampered away with quick, tiny steps.

Fei Yu and Song Ji laughed and embraced, tumbling into the thick grass behind them.

On a summer night like this, there was no better place to be than in the arms of a lover.

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Author's note: Here it is!