"Little Li…" 'Fu Lin' stared at the woman before him, who was radiating a terrifying aura. His tail fluffed up instantly, swaying from side to side, revealing his intense fear and unease. He slowly backed away.
Until his backside bumped into the bedroom door, producing a sharp sound. In a panic, he squeezed through a narrow gap and disappeared from the room with a whoosh.
Mei panicked when she saw 'Fu Lin' disappear. She quickly put on her shoes and chased after him…
But all she saw was Raiden Ryoma leaning against the door, sitting on the ground with a sorrowful expression, holding his head in his hands. The surrounding atmosphere felt hazy and dim…
Mei rushed to Raiden Ryoma and anxiously asked, "Dad, did you see Little Li?"
-------------------------------
Raiden Ryoma lifted his head in a daze, looking at Mei in front of him. With tears streaming down his face and snot running from his nose, he choked out,
"Wuuu… Mei, I think I saw your mom last night. She said she missed me and wanted to take me with her, but I couldn't leave you alone, so I refused… wuuu…"
"..." Perhaps infected by Raiden Ryoma's emotions, Mei's eyes reddened as well. She choked up and said, "Dad, I know you're really sad right now, but… did you see Little Li?"
Raiden Ryoma's crying stopped abruptly. He looked at the drafty little cotton-padded jacket in his arms, and the sadness in his heart disappeared,
"...Little Li? Let me think… Just now, it seemed like he wanted to go outside, so I opened the door…"
"Ah?!" Hearing this, Mei's face turned pale with shock. She glared at him reproachfully before opening the door and running outside. She stared blankly at the empty street, but Fu Lin's figure was already nowhere to be seen.
Mei bit her lip. The thought that Fu Lin might never return left her heart feeling hollow.
Raiden Ryoma chased after her, rubbed Mei's head, and said, "Ah, don't worry. When he's tired of playing, he'll come back. It's almost winter — let's go back inside first. Be careful not to catch a cold."
"…Dad, you're the worst!" Mei pushed Raiden Ryoma away, wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes, and ran into the distance.
"Is my daughter entering her rebellious phase?" Raiden Ryoma scratched his head, sighed helplessly, and ran back inside to grab a jacket before chasing after Mei,
"Hey, it's so cold out! At least wear something while you're looking for him!"
...
At that moment, Bianca and Rita stood outside the gate…
"Lady Bianca, it's cold — make sure to stay warm and come back early."
Rita carefully wrapped a scarf around Bianca's neck, stood by the gate, and smiled warmly as she waved goodbye — looking just like a wife watching her husband leave for work.
(System Spirit, Madam, you don't want to…?)
"I'm quite resistant to the cold," Bianca loosened the scarf around her neck and waved goodbye to Rita before preparing to continue her surveillance task.
However, after walking a short distance, Bianca stopped in her tracks when she spotted a familiar-looking cat ahead. She froze for a moment, then tiptoed carefully toward it.
Her gaze burned as she stared at the cat — Fu Lin — licking itself on the ground. Her hands hovered in the air as if ready to grab it, her face full of impatience.
"Meow!" But before she could get close, Fu Lin let out a sharp cry, darted into the bushes nearby, and then poked its head out from the other side before running off into the distance without looking back.
"Wait! I mean no harm!" Bianca watched Fu Lin's fleeing figure, stretched out her hand, then slowly lowered her arm with a disappointed expression and murmured,
"I just wanted to pet it…" Just as she was about to continue her task, Bianca suddenly realized that Fu Lin was the very target of her mission. Her eyes lit up, and she immediately took off in pursuit.
Making sure not to startle him, Bianca maintained a certain distance and silently followed Fu Lin.
They walked and stopped along the way until the villa area disappeared behind them. Bianca's expression filled with confusion,
"Where is he going?"
While Bianca was distracted, a skinny, sharp-faced man suddenly appeared from a corner, holding a net. With practiced skill, he caught Fu Lin and stuffed him into a sack before hopping onto his companion's motorcycle and speeding off.
"Meow!!!"
"This cat has great fur — it'll definitely fetch a good price. Let's go!" Bianca stood frozen in the wind, her expression instantly turning cold. For a hardcore cat lover, nothing was more unforgivable than cat traffickers.
But looking at the receding figures, Bianca swiftly stopped a passerby on a bicycle. Under the passerby's bewildered gaze, she took off after the cat traffickers, chanting under her breath,
"Unforgivable. Cats are so cute, so soft — how dare they kill them so cruelly!"
(System Spirit, Tight grip on the handlebars? Pedaling hard? Trying not to laugh? (?w?) hiahiahia)
The accomplice driving the motorcycle glanced into the rearview mirror and saw Bianca closing in on a bicycle. His mouth dropped open in disbelief.
With a trembling voice, he said, "B-Boss… s-someone is chasing us… on a bicycle…"
"Do you think I'm an idiot? How could a bicycle possibly keep up with a motorcyc—"
Smack! The sharp-faced man slapped his companion on the head, then turned to look behind them — and his gaze locked onto Bianca's fierce, murderous eyes as she gained on them.
His expression shifted immediately. He slapped his companion on the shoulder and shouted, "Speed up! Hurry, speed up!"
The accomplice, seeing Bianca closing the distance, swallowed hard and said, "Boss, I can't — this bike can only go so fast. Any faster and the engine will blow…"
The sharp-faced man didn't care, "I don't want to hear excuses! If she catches us, we're finished! Just give it all you've got!"
Then, looking back at Bianca, who was still furiously pedaling to catch up, he cursed under his breath, "Damn it! Where the hell did this monster come from?! I've never seen anyone ride a bicycle like this before!!"