Chapter 8: An Absolute Cat Slave!
Chu Yansen’s finger hovered over the screen. The words “Snow Crystal Cat” in the title instantly grabbed his attention.
Exclusive Footage: Infant Snow Crystal Cats Having Lunch! Cuteness Overload, You Have Been Warned!
A Snow Crystal Cat? A kitten? Eating on a live stream? The combination checked every single one of his boxes. He clicked play without a second thought.
As the video started, Chu Yansen’s pupils dilated. Four snow-white kittens were huddled together, their small furry heads nudging back and forth as they jostled to find the most comfortable spot. These were clearly living little angels, not some artificial mechanical replicas!
A gentle female voice drifted from the speaker: “Our babies aren’t cold machines…”
Then the camera focused on one of the kittens while the owner introduced just how velvety soft the Snow Crystal Cat’s fur was. Chu Yansen instinctively reached his hand toward the screen, wishing he could feel that plush coat himself. Just then, a kitten let out a massive yawn, curling its tiny pink tongue and revealing its sharp, needle-like teeth. Chu Yansen’s heart skipped a beat, and his slender fingers snapped back like he’d been shocked.
“Brother Chu, what’s wrong with you?” Shu Can noticed his friend’s bizarre reaction and leaned over to peer at the phone screen. “Wait… is that a real cat?” Shu Can asked, his voice laced with the exact same shock.
Chu Yansen didn’t answer. His eyes remained glued to the screen.
In the video, the four kittens were drinking milk, clutching the massive nipple of the feeding bottle tightly with their tiny paws, suckling greedily. Their paws kneaded rhythmically, loosening and tightening as they milk-stepped in pure bliss. Their deep blue eyes were breathtakingly beautiful, shining with contentment. Their little bellies gradually expanded from thin and gaunt to perfectly round and furry.
The girl in the video cooed, “Drink slowly, you little gluttons.”
Chu Yansen felt a direct hit to his chest.
“Holy crap, Brother Chu, they look like the real deal!” Shu Can was thoroughly hooked now. “Oh my God, look at it eat! That’s the cutest thing I’ve ever seen.”
Unfortunately, the video was far too short. Before Chu Yansen could get his fill, the screen cut to black.
Shu Can was equally devastated. “What the hell? That’s it? They need to shoot more footage!”
For the first time in his life, he realized that watching a kitten eat could be so incredibly captivating. No wonder his friend lost his mind over cats whenever he was drowning in stress.
Chu Yansen stared at the blank screen, an overwhelming sense of emptiness washing over him. Those few minutes of footage had permanently seared the image of the milk-drinking Snow Crystal Cats into his mind. He remained silent, his fingers unconsciously tracing the glass of his phone.
“Shu Can, I don’t want the mechanical pet anymore.”
“Huh?” Shu Can blinked, dumbfounded. “But Brother Chu, you already dropped a one-million-credit deposit!”
Chu Yansen shook his head. “How can cold metal even compare to a living Snow Crystal Cat? You saw it yourself—they’re so incredibly intelligent and expressive. A man-made machine doesn’t even come close.”
If he hadn’t watched the video, he might have been able to convince himself to settle for a high-end substitute. But now? There was absolutely no going back.
Shu Can grew anxious. “Brother Chu, calm down! Let’s at least go inside and take a look. Man, I spent days traveling on starships with you and put so many of my own projects on hold just to get here. Now that we’re standing right outside, you’re backing out? Besides, what if the mechanical pet turns out to be insanely realistic? Having something is better than nothing!”
Chu Yansen hesitated. Shu Can had a point; they should at least go in. Not for the robot, but to speak with the shop owner he’d made the deal with. Deep down, though, he knew that no matter how flawless the imitation was, it wouldn’t match a ten-thousandth of the real thing.
The two men pushed open the door and stepped inside Pet Love Home.
The lighting inside the shop was soft and warm, and a delicate, floral fragrance hung in the air. Their eyes scanned the room. The artificial plants the owner had somehow acquired looked incredibly lifelike, and even the scent effect was uniquely authentic.
Su Wudeng was slacking off behind the front counter when the door chimed. Two towering figures stepped into the shop.
Her eyes lit up instantly. Both men possessed exceptionally striking appearances. One wore a flawlessly tailored suit and exuded a calm, commanding aura, while the other had vibrant blond hair and a bright, sunny handsomeness. Their mere presence seemed to instantly elevate the entire class of her humble shop.
Either filthy rich or high nobility, the phrase immediately popped into Su Wudeng’s mind.
But her admiration quickly turned to sheer dread. He was here—the wealthy client who had called about the multi-million-credit Moon Shadow pre-order! Chu Yansen. It had to be him.
A luxury Moon Shadow mechanical beast? She hadn’t even laid eyes on one, let alone had one in stock to give him. She had no choice but to offer her most sincere apologies to this major client. Not only that, she had to refund his one-million-credit deposit.
The problem was, she was completely broke; she didn’t even have a tenth of that amount. All she could do was confess the truth and beg him to give her some time to scrape the funds together, hoping he would be merciful.
Shaking off her inner panic as the two men approached, Su Wudeng forced a polite smile. “Hello, gentlemen. Welcome to Pet Love Home.”
Chu Yansen nodded. “Good morning, Shopkeeper Su.”
He scanned the counter, and though he didn’t see the pre-ordered Moon Shadow unit, he actually felt a wave of relief. The tables had turned. It seemed the owner didn’t have the mechanical pet, which meant he wouldn’t have to break his word to reject it. His mind was entirely consumed by the four snow-white kittens, their velvety fur, their round blue eyes, and their soft, milky cries. He simply couldn’t stomach a machine anymore.
Su Wudeng took a deep breath and braced herself to deliver the apology. “Mr. Chu, I am incredibly sorry…” she began, her voice dripping with genuine contrition. “Regarding the Moon Shadow unit you pre-ordered… the truth is, I don’t actually have it in my shop. If—”
Chu Yansen interrupted her with a slight nod. “It’s fine. I understand. That line has been out of production for a very long time, after all.”
Shu Can wore an I-told-you-so expression. “See? I told you a tiny shop like this wouldn’t have a Moon Shadow unit.” He turned his gaze back to Su Wudeng. “Well, since that’s the case, let’s keep it simple. Just refund the one-million-credit deposit.”
Su Wudeng was just about to nod when Chu Yansen held up a hand to stop his friend.
“Five hundred thousand will be plenty,” Chu Yansen said, looking directly at Su Wudeng. “To be honest, I was already having second thoughts about purchasing it. Since the deal fell through, a half-million refund is more than fair.”
Su Wudeng was utterly stunned. What kind of saint was this Mr. Chu? He had every right to demand the full million-credit refund, yet he was letting her off the hook for half? If she actually had the money, she would have transferred it instantly, but…
“Mr. Chu, you are far too generous…” Su Wudeng’s voice started strong but quickly withered into a timid murmur. “The thing is… I’m currently facing a severe financial crunch. Would it be possible to…”
Right at that moment, a faint, muffled meow drifted from the back room.
Su Wudeng paused. She maintained a perfectly blank expression on the outside, but her mind was racing: Wasn’t that little rascal fast asleep? Why is it crying again? Did it poop? No, wait, focus. I need to handle this major client first.
She quickly cleared her throat to continue. “Mr. Chu, could you give me a few days’ grace period? I promise to pay you back as soon as—”
But the moment that tiny cry reached Chu Yansen’s ears, his eyes ignited.
A cat’s meow? His pulse quickened. Did I just hear a real kitten?
But he immediately suppressed the thought. No, impossible. How could a real Snow Crystal Cat be inside a tiny shop like this? It had to be a hallucination. Wait, could it be the video?
He subconsciously pulled out his phone, only to see that the video had paused on a loop. The light in his eyes dimmed a fraction. He let out a sigh, closed the app, and pulled off his headphones. There’s no way I misheard it this time…
Chu Yansen shifted his gaze back to Su Wudeng, catching the tail end of her sentence: “…give me a few days…”
He frowned slightly. “You don’t have the money?” Did she think he was a pushover she could easily swindle?
He opened his mouth to speak, but another clear, unmistakable meow cut through the air.
Chu Yansen went rigid. There was absolutely no mistaking it this time. That soft, delicate cry belonged entirely to a real kitten!
He whirled his head toward the source of the sound, his Adam’s apple bobbing as his breathing grew rapid. Yes! The sound had come from the back room. He couldn’t be the only one who heard it. He turned to look at Shu Can and found his friend staring back at him, completely frozen in shock and confusion.
The two friends locked eyes, the same silent question passing between them: That was a real kitten, right?
Su Wudeng had been explaining her financial situation with a guilty conscience, but she noticed the two men had suddenly stopped listening entirely. She looked up in confusion, her gaze catching a glimpse of the video screen still visible on Chu Yansen’s phone.
“Oh, you’re watching that video too?” she blurted out. “I didn’t think the algorithm would push it to you so fast. Let me see… it hasn’t gone viral already, has it?”
Chu Yansen felt his brain go completely numb as the pieces of the puzzle violently clicked into place. He managed to find his voice, though it felt incredibly strained. “This video… don’t tell me you’re the one who uploaded it?”
He rapidly pulled his phone back up and tapped into the video’s details. The uploader’s handle was plain as day: Pet Love Home—the exact name of the shop they were standing in!
Only then did he realize that he had been so completely transfixed by the kittens that he hadn’t even glanced at the creator’s profile. He had completely overlooked the uploader’s information. Who could have guessed that the creator was the very shop owner standing right in front of him!
Which meant the kitten’s cry he just heard… had to be real.
Absolute shock mirrored across Chu Yansen and Shu Can’s faces. They never could have anticipated that they would go from watching a cat video on their phones one second to standing right at the source of the video the next!
Chu Yansen swallowed hard, his eyes locked onto Su Wudeng as he asked in a noticeably trembling voice, “So… your shop actually has… an authentic, living Snow Crystal Cat?”
Seeing their utterly blown minds, Su Wudeng felt a bit bewildered. Wasn’t the name of her shop clearly emblazoned all over the video profile?
She gave a blank nod. “Yes. They’re right through there, in the breeding room.”
Hearing this, Chu Yansen took a massive step forward, his eyes burning with intense fire. “May I… may I take a look, Shopkeeper?”
Su Wudeng blinked, entirely stunned.
This wealthy gentleman had been the absolute picture of cool composure just a moment ago; why had he turned into a frantic mess the second he heard about the Snow Crystal Cats? Wait… why did this behavior look so incredibly familiar?
A sudden realization hit her. Wait a minute… isn’t this exactly how those hopeless cat slaves look in the videos from my previous life?!
The more Su Wudeng thought about it, the more it made perfect sense. This Mr. Chu was clearly a young master born into extreme wealth and privilege. The luxury Moon Shadow mechanical beast line commanded an astronomical price tag of several million credits and was a highly sought-after, limited-edition collector’s item that had been discontinued years ago. For a man to personally travel all the way to a remote, fourth-tier sector just to hunt down an extinct mechanical replica, he had to be an absolute, unhinged cat fanatic.
Feeling as though she had completely unmasked Chu Yansen’s true nature, Su Wudeng smiled and pushed open the door to the breeding room.
The moment the door swung wide, the sight of four snowy-white Snow Crystal Cats playing happily together filled their vision.
