Translator: Dj22031
Editor: Dj22031
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The next morning, as dawn broke, You Xu woke up early. Hearing the boy’s even breathing, she didn’t move, remaining nestled quietly in his arms.
After a while, the boy stirred, and You Xu sensed he was awake, so she nuzzled her head against his chest.
The boy stroked her head, sat up holding her, and then stroked her fur gently. They stayed quietly for a while. The boy stroked her belly, and then, as yesterday, he made her a small nest out of straw before going out.
After waiting a while, You Xu stood up, circled the room, and found the small hole the mouse had crawled into yesterday. The boy had blocked the entrance with straw. You Xu used her mouth and claws to remove the straw. The hole was a bit small; the mouse could easily squeeze in and out, but it was a little difficult for her. Fortunately, the ground was soft soil, without any hard rocks, so she used her claws to dig.
After digging for a while, she managed to widen the hole a bit. You Xu squeezed in, finding herself wedged right between her lower back and hind legs. She struggled forward, shedding countless hairs in the process, before finally managing to crawl out.
The snow outside had stopped, the world now a uniform white, layers of snow piled on the branches, and snowdrifts of varying sizes dotted the ground, marked with footprints of varying depths.
You Xu found the snow slippery. She noticed the boy’s hut was in a rather secluded spot, with no neighbors around, making it stand out starkly against the white snow.
Unsure which way to go, she circled around to the entrance and followed the boy’s footprints. Reaching the back, she found his footprints had disappeared, so she continued in that direction.
You Xu looked around as she walked, noting the path she was taking. Later, she noticed a low-lying area extending down the roadside, blocked by many branches, but she discovered a frozen lake there.
She walked down the small slope, weaving through the branches. Some of the snow, too heavy for the branches to bear, fell on her, making her shiver. She shook her fur to get rid of the snow.
The frozen lake was as smooth as a mirror. You Xu’s feet slipped a couple of times, but after regaining her balance, she walked even more cautiously.
She saw an old man wearing a straw hat fishing by the lake. He had carved a small hole in the lake, baited a hook, and placed it in, then sat quietly on a small wooden stool to wait.
You Xu walked over to him and saw that his bucket already contained two large fish and one small fish. The old man, seeing a cat approaching, assumed she was going to steal the fish and waved her away.
You Xu had no choice but to go to the side. She looked at her paws and tried to pry at the ice, but after a long time, she couldn’t even make a dent.
She had to give up and wait silently.
As darkness fell, the old man, having caught his bucketful of fish, carried it away.
You Xu immediately went to the spot where the old man had been fishing. Looking into the water, she saw faint shadows of fish and crouched down beside the opening.
It was getting darker, and she could only see the indistinct shadows of the surrounding trees.
Although she had fur, the chill of the icy lake penetrated her very bones, making her stiff.
You Xu belatedly realized she was too close to the opening; and the fish, noticing her, dared not approach.
She took four or five steps back, ready to pounce at any moment.
Finally, a fish surfaced, and You Xu rushed forward, but before her claws could touch it, the fish had already escaped.
She failed more than ten times in the next few attempts— either her stiffness prevented her from rushing fast enough, or her feet slipped, missing the optimal moment, or her pounce wasn’t decisive enough.
Her body was almost completely soaked, her fur clinging wetly, and the wind made it even colder.
You Xu was frozen numb, but she couldn’t give up. Finding food at this time of year was difficult, and the lake would freeze over again tomorrow.
Thinking of the boy repeatedly striking the flint, and his thin, bony body, You Xu closed her eyes and resumed her vigil.
A half-moon hung in the sky, its silvery light shimmering on the frozen lake, creating a picture-perfect stillness. In this stillness, a small wildcat repeatedly pounced.
“Splash—” Water splashed.
You Xu gritted her teeth, shook the water off her face, and finally caught a crucian carp. It was small, barely the size of her palm, but at least she’d gotten something.
She carried the fish back along the same route.
Soon, her mouth felt tired and sore. Honestly, without hands, constantly biting with her mouth was exhausting.
It started snowing again, the wind whipping snow against her damp, cold fur. You Xu felt like she was turning into an ice sculpture.
About half an hour later, You Xu finally saw the small wooden house. She could vaguely make out a person huddled on the path outside, their shadow long and drawn out by the moonlight.
You Xu immediately thought of Duan Min waiting for her under the streetlight, and her heart skipped a beat. She quickened her pace and walked over.
The boy’s exposed face, hands, and feet were red and blue from the cold. When he saw the kitten running back, the world-weary gloom in his eyes faded, and his eyes brightened slightly.
He picked up the kitten, brushed the snow off her with his clothes, wiped her dry, and carried her inside.
You Xu was stunned. So he really was waiting for her, waiting for her, a cat?
“Meow— (Were you waiting for me?)”
“Meow meow— (Why don’t you go inside and wait?)”
You Xu continued her heartbroken lecture: “Meow meow meow!!! (What if you catch a cold?)”
The boy, thinking she was just cold, patted her head and hugged her even tighter.
You Xu: I hate this language barrier.
What she didn’t know was that when the boy returned in the evening and didn’t see her, he assumed she had left. He worried she might be freezing outside, starving, or perhaps she had found her way home and would never return.
He thought he could have nothing, deserved nothing.
It was as if it were his destiny that those close to him would leave.
But she came back. She was just hungry and looking for food; she didn’t want to abandon him, even if she didn’t understand these things. But it was good that she was back.
The boy placed her inside his collar. You Xu peeked out from under his collar, wanting to give him the fish, but seeing how busy he was, she could only continue chewing on the fish, her teeth aching.
The boy worked for a while before finally starting a fire. You Xu thought he was going to cook the fish, but instead, he held her in his hands, bringing her close to the fire to dry her wet fur.
You Xu bent down and placed the fish in his hand. He then tried to put the fish in her mouth, but You Xu shook her head and pushed the fish back to him.
The boy was clearly stunned, remaining speechless for a long while. He knew the kitten was very hungry and hadn’t eaten much, which was why it had run out to find fish. He hadn’t expected it to resist eating the food already in its mouth and bring it back… for him.
A warm feeling suddenly welled up inside him, like a warm breeze blowing across an untouched icy plain.
A person was enveloped in icy malice, and this little bit of warmth, coming from a kitten, had pried open a crack in that ice.
“Ah… ah…”
He hadn’t spoken in so long that he couldn’t utter complete sentences, only making some indistinct sounds.
You Xu listened intently for a while, but his words were so labored and his voice so hoarse that it was difficult to understand what he was trying to say.
She could only push the fish closer, gesturing for him to eat quickly.
The boy then picked up the iron bowl, put the fish in it, gutted it with a rusty knife, removed the innards, scraped off the scales, poured in some snow, and then put it on the fire to cook.
He wiped his hands, warmed them by the fire, and then picked her up to warm herself by the fire.
As the snow melted and her fur slowly dried, You Xu finally stopped shivering, and the stiffness in her body eased.
Before long, the fish soup was ready, and a faint aroma wafted through the rising steam.
The boy rummaged through the straw pile and found a large, cracked porcelain bowl and a pair of rough chopsticks. He used the chopsticks to cut the fish in half, put one half into the porcelain bowl, and poured in some soup.
You Xu thought the small porcelain bowl was hers, and just as she leaned over, the boy placed the iron bowl in front of her.
She paused, then looked up at him.
He patted her head, making a hoarse, indistinct sound: “Ah…”
You Xu still didn’t understand him, but guessed he wanted her to eat more of this.
She lowered her head and took a bite. Although there was no salt, the fish was tender and the taste was alright. The slightly hot soup went down into her stomach, quickly spreading warmth throughout her body.
The chill was gradually dispelled, and her body slowly warmed up.
The snow outside was falling heavier and heavier, drifting aimlessly in the wind, the dark silence mingling with the silvery moonlight.
Sparks crackled softly from the fire inside the cabin, and the boy looked down at the sleeping kitten in his arms.
He didn’t realize how gentle his gaze was, nor did he notice the curve of his lips.
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