February 2nd, the twenty-eighth day of the lunar year.
According to the customs of Lian Province, on the twenty-eighth day, it's traditional to "wash away the dirt," aning it's ti to do a thorough house cleaning to get rid of a year's worth of dust, tissues, sunflower seed shells, snack wrappers, and coins—one jiao, one yuan, ten yuan, and even one-hundred-yuan bills.
When Ren Suo was young, his mom lured him into cleaning with this kind of "treasure hunt" trick. As he grew up, because there were things in his bedroom that couldn't be seen by others, he also had to clean by himself.
Although Ren Suo had already cleaned his house spotlessly, when he took the elevator up to the sixth floor carrying Luna, he wasn't surprised to see Yi Zhao rolling up his sleeves and wiping the door of apartnt 602. It's common for people to clean on specific days; not everyone, like him, is excellent enough to make such good behavior a daily habit.
Yi Zhao, hearing the sound of the elevator, turned his head, saw Ren Suo, and expressed his surprise. "Ren Suo? What a rare guest. Are you here to see ?"
Ren Suo stepped out of the elevator with the black cat in his arms and thought for a mont before saying, "I'm looking for Teacher Fan."
"Huh? Did Luna co to your place last night?" Yi Zhao imdiately understood sothing upon seeing the black cat in Ren Suo's arms. He dried his hands, rubbed them on his clothing, and then reached out to Ren Suo. "Could you please bring her back—"
"It's no trouble."
Ren Suo dodged Yi Zhao's hand. The black cat then climbed onto Ren Suo's shoulder, winding around his neck like a scarf, its dark green vertical pupils staring fiercely at Yi Zhao.
Yi Zhao laughed awkwardly. "She has never been very close to ..."
Of course not. You're the guy who took away Luna's family mber. She wouldn't feel affectionate toward you unless a ghost was involved.
To be more precise, it was Yi Zhao who made Fan Qiyu stop paying attention to Luna, and that's what Luna resented him for the most.
Luna didn't complain about Gu Yueyan sharing Ren Suo because Ren Suo didn't neglect her. She didn't mind sharing her happiness with others as long as she had enough happiness herself. That was Luna's bottom line.
But if Ren Suo ever dared to neglect Luna—given Luna's childlike and straightforward nature, it's hard to say what she might do... Look at how she now shows her disdain for Yi Zhao with no attempt to hide it; it's proof that she's a cat that doesn't want to, and can't, hold back.
While in the collapsing Dark Side of the Moon, Ren Suo made a lifelong promise to Luna. Naturally, he had no intention of breaking it. If he dared, Luna had a Moon God clone to back her up, and he might end up having nightmares every day. Thankfully, Luna now only had half an hour each day, and Ren Suo felt he could still withstand it.
"So is Teacher Fan in?" Ren Suo looked inside. "About Black... I an, about Luna, I have sothing to talk to you about."
Black Bell's real na was also Luna, sothing Ren Suo was no longer surprised by. When he had first casually written 'Ren Woxing,' various records from the Late Eastern Han Dynasty had started to include this character. Compared to the phenonon of history being twisted, Fan Qiyu having a similar naming taste to his own suddenly seed very reasonable.
Yi Zhao, feeling a bit awkward, invited Ren Suo in. "Just wait a mont, Xiao Yu... I'll go wake her up."
Ren Suo glanced at the ti. Still not awake after 10 o'clock? Can soone be this lazy? I'm already up at this ti.
Yes, Ren Suo had also just woken up.
After all, during the half-hour last night when Luna transford, she insisted on being close to Ren Suo, and he had to comply, happily suffocating in her affection. Once she transford back, he imdiately started his routine with coffee and a cold shower, not falling asleep until just before dawn.
The fact that he was awake by 10 a.m. already made him feel as diligent as he had been in college.
At that mont, the black cat dashed from the floor into the bedroom. Yi Zhao looked at Ren Suo, and naturally, Ren Suo stayed seated, not moving around. It was, after all, soone else's ho.
As Fan Qiyu's voice ca from the bedroom and Yi Zhao went in, the black cat dashed back out and owed at Ren Suo.
Ren Suo imdiately widened his eyes. "Really?"
Luna ow replied, "Truly!"
Just then, Yi Zhao and Fan Qiyu, who was wearing her coat, also erged from the bedroom. The three of them looked at each other. Only Fan Qiyu felt a bit embarrassed, and she promptly said, "Ren Suo, long ti no see. Congratulations on awakening."
"Thank you." Ren Suo almost felt that his past coma was a good thing, since now everyone had a fallback topic to talk about: his condition. "I'm here this ti to talk to you about Luna."
"Luna?" Fan Qiyu thoughtfully looked at Ren Suo, who was holding the black cat.
Yi Zhao frowned slightly and said, "Did Luna cause you any trouble? If she caused any damage, just tell us. She's part of our family, and we'll apologize and compensate for it."
Ren Suo glanced down at the black cat, which haughtily turned its head away. Although Luna didn't seem to like Yi Zhao, Yi Zhao indeed took her seriously as a mber of their family.
"Well... Luna didn't cause any trouble. On the contrary, I like her very much." Ren Suo chose his words carefully. He had initially wanted to see if he could buy Luna, but now he had overturned that thought. "Actually, I wanted to discuss with you the possibility of adopting Luna."
Although Ren Suo could have just walked away with Luna, they had discussed it and decided it was still best to have an official transfer of guardianship with Fan Qiyu, Luna's primary caretaker. After all, Luna still wanted to visit Little Jade from ti to ti.
Of course, Luna had also ntioned that whether Little Jade liked it or not, Luna would be sleeping with Ren Suo at night.
Yi Zhao was taken aback for a mont. "You want to adopt... our cat?"
Fan Qiyu showed little surprise. She sat down and asked Ren Suo, "Why? If you want to adopt a cat, you can buy a kitten from a cattery or shelter and raise it from a young age."
"It's not that I like cats; I just like Luna."
Ren Suo shook his head. "Although it may be presumptuous of , Luna... Luna lived with for a while, and I believe she'll adapt to life with again. I really do want to adopt her. I hope you can allow it..."
While speaking, Ren Suo suddenly felt sothing was off. What was he doing? Consulting his prospective in-laws about marrying their daughter?
But in truth, the situation was sowhat similar. Generally, people don't give away pets they've raised for a long ti, not even for money (unless it's a whole lot of money).
After all, people have emotions. Caring for a pet involves a lot of ti, energy, and money, which naturally deepens the bond. Many people feel more for their totally dependent pets than for friends or family because they know pets are purely their own, won't betray them, and can be trusted absolutely.
Given the relationship between Luna and Fan Qiyu, Fan Qiyu had probably raised her like a daughter. Ren Suo surmised that even now, if he went so far as to suggest marrying her 'daughter,' the likelihood of Fan Qiyu agreeing would be low. After all, they weren't that close, and she might suspect Ren Suo of having so peculiar fetish concerning cats.
To Ren Suo's surprise, however, Fan Qiyu nodded and said, "Okay."
"Xiao Yu?" Yi Zhao sounded surprised.
Fan Qiyu smiled at her husband. "Actually, during those months I was sick, it was Ren Suo who helped feed Luna. Luna might be even more familiar with him than with ... Ah, I suppose I inadvertently let Ren Suo lure Luna away. By the way, what do you usually feed Luna?"
"Spicy strips."
Now that Ren Suo thought about it, Luna really had been enticed away by him with spicy strips...
Fan Qiyu paused before reluctantly saying to Ren Suo, "Now Luna doesn't like anymore. She's always out and about, and she'll go find you whenever you co... And I truly haven't been spending much ti with Luna; I've been busy catching up with my cultivation studies. If you truly love Luna, then I agree to let you take her."
"Of course, it's genuine!" Ren Suo affird.
Yi Zhao couldn't help but laugh. "You sound as if we're your in-laws."
At this point, Fan Qiyu went to the bedroom and ca back with a folder, which she handed to Ren Suo. "These are Luna's dical records. Last year, I had her vaccinated with the FVRCP vaccine, which is usually needed once a year or once every two years. If it's ti, and Luna is still... Well, you'll need to take her to the pet hospital for her booster shots. You can take all the cat food, cat treats, cat toys, and the cat litter box here."
"Also, Ren Suo, there's one thing I hope you can promise ."
"What is it?"
Fan Qiyu scrutinized Ren Suo, so much so that Yi Zhao, her husband, hugged her impatiently. Only then did she pat Yi Zhao's hand and co back to herself. After hesitating for a while longer, she spoke slowly, "It's about Luna's breeding..."
Ren Suo blinked, feeling awkward. Is Fan Qiyu planning to adopt Luna's future kittens? Ren Suo didn't know if Luna, if she really had offspring, would have them in litters one after another...
"...If you're not sure about it, I hope you can ensure Luna's safety as much as possible. Don't let her mate and get pregnant."
However, contrary to Ren Suo's expectation, Fan Qiyu was not suggesting Luna be bred. "Luna's still young, and pregnancy is quite risky for her..."
For so reason, Ren Suo suddenly felt a bit strange. Although Fan Qiyu was expressing concern for Luna and her reasoning was sound, he couldn't shake off the feeling that she was looking down on him.
Nevertheless, he agreed politely and then took all the cat food, the litter box, and the cat bed.
Ren Suo, carrying a pile of things, stepped out of apartnt 602, with Luna lazily coiled inside the topmost box. He turned his head to say goodbye to Yi Zhao and Fan Qiyu and noticed Fan Qiyu was still watching him amicably when he suddenly rembered sothing and said, "I wish the two of you a harmonious union and may you have children soon."
Having said that, Ren Suo took the elevator ho, leaving Yi Zhao and Fan Qiyu looking at each other in bewildernt.
After all, Ren Suo's blessing was so abrupt that they couldn't help but wonder about it.
"Yi Zhao! I told you not to do it so early in the morning... We were at it for an hour last night!"
"Getting up early keeps you spirited! Besides, if we don't try hard, we can't respond to the national call for eugenics and better births. As a cultivator couple, we should lead by example... But how did Ren Suo figure it out? Is he also an old driver?"
"Also?" Fan Qiyu raised an eyebrow slightly.
"That's right, I'm an old driver, and so are you. After all, I learned all my techniques with you, so you're an old driver too... I just can't figure out how Ren Suo beca an old driver. Could it be with...?"
"I'm not!" Fan Qiyu's face flushed red. She stamped over to the sofa, sat down, and turned her head away from Yi Zhao. "Next ti, don't even think about your dayti debauchery!"
"Aww," Yi Zhao went over to hug her, changing the subject. "Xiao Yu, why did you agree so readily? You cherish Luna so much; how could you just hand her over to Ren Suo so easily?"
In fact, Yi Zhao was more surprised than Ren Suo. He knew how much Luna ant to Fan Qiyu. Once, when he had nearly kicked Luna, Fan Qiyu had gotten so angry that she made him sleep on the sofa to reflect on his actions.
After pondering for a mont, Fan Qiyu said, "Luna hasn't been very affectionate towards lately. She's completely set on going with Ren Suo... There's no stopping her."
"Most importantly, I had a dream last night."
"A dream?"
"Yes, a dream where Ren Suo and Luna were living happily together. A very bizarre dream..."
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