AVSFCBH 13

Chapter 13

Xiao Cheng Zong blushed. “Meow, meow.”

She’s not that amazing… Haven’t you ever seen a guqin before? It’s really nothing special. When I get back, I can graciously play it for you. Though it’s been a long time since I last played, so I might not be very good anymore.

Shen Yunmiao gently touched the photograph, her fingertip coming to rest over Cheng Jianian’s eyes in the picture. For one fleeting moment, Cheng Jianian felt as though it wasn’t the photograph being touched, but her own eyes. They began burning uncontrollably.

Shen Yunmiao’s voice became even softer, as though drifting down from distant clouds.

“But her temper isn’t very good. Just like you, she’s always so fierce and doesn’t like talking to people.”

“Meow!!!”

Xiao Cheng Zong panicked. Since when was her temper bad? That was pure slander! Shen Yunmiao had never even tried getting a little closer to her or having a proper conversation before deciding she had a bad personality. What an injustice to this cat!

She simply didn’t like dealing with annoying people. But if it were Shen Yunmiao… she definitely wouldn’t ignore her!

The very next moment, Shen Yunmiao’s words silenced the agitated little cat completely.

“But I just can’t stop making up countless excuses for her. Some of them are so unreasonable that even I know they can’t possibly be true… But, sweetheart, I’m not doing it on purpose. I can’t help it… I’ve really, really liked her for such a long, long time.”

By the end of her sentence, Shen Yunmiao’s voice choked with emotion once more.

She didn’t notice that the cat in her arms—its tail, paws, ears, every part of its body—had frozen completely, as though struck by a spell that stopped time itself.

Liked…

Her???

Seven years!!!

Cheng Jianian couldn’t process the information.

She tried calming herself down. So what if someone liked her? So what if it had been seven years? That was perfectly normal…

Normal my paw!!!

First of all, this was an old-fashioned romance novel, right?

Secondly, Shen Yunmiao was the heroine of this novel. She was supposed to go through a heart-wrenching romance with Ji Hanfeng. As for Cheng Jianian, she was the vicious supporting female character whose job was to make life difficult for the male and female leads in every possible way, wasn’t she?

And lastly, before turning into a cat, she hadn’t even known Shen Yunmiao!

Her astonishment overwhelmed any joy she might have felt. An indescribable emotion surged through her.

While racking her brain to recall the pitifully few interactions she’d ever had with Shen Yunmiao as a human, Xiao Cheng Zong was also overwhelmed by a powerful sense of unreality.

Shen Yunmiao… liked her.

What kind of liking was it? The romantic kind? Or just the kind between friends?

No… it couldn’t be friendship. Otherwise, why had Shen Yunmiao never taken the initiative to become friends with her?

It had to be romantic feelings!

It definitely was.

But if that were true, why had Shen Yunmiao never told her?

After a long while, Shen Yunmiao’s voice finally steadied, though it remained soft.

“Perhaps one day… I won’t like her anymore.”

“I hope that day comes soon.”

Xiao Cheng Zong exploded.

“Meow!!”

How could you have so little perseverance? You just decide to stop liking someone like that? You don’t even know me! Why would you suddenly stop liking me???

Seeing such a dramatic reaction from the cat, Shen Yunmiao smiled.

“Sweetheart, do you want to look at the other photos?”

The moment she heard that, Xiao Cheng Zong quieted down.

She watched eagerly as Shen Yunmiao turned the pages one by one.

The notebook was actually filled entirely with photographs of her.

From her first acting role at the age of seven until she was eighteen, eleven years of her life had somehow been condensed into this slim notebook.

Shen Yunmiao didn’t explain much.

She simply stroked each photograph slowly, as though caressing a priceless treasure, as though through those pictures she could retrace all the hidden years no one else knew about.

Her dark eyes were warm and gentle, like a flawless piece of white jade brushed with varying shades of ink. Now, that beautiful jade seemed to glow as she quietly gazed at the photographs with unwavering focus.

The person she was looking at…

Was now looking back at her from within her embrace.

Chapter 12

My Wife Got Carried Away by Someone Else!

At three o’clock in the morning, Xiao Cheng Zong still couldn’t fall asleep.

What had happened before bed had been far too stimulating. Her mind was completely shaken.

Meanwhile, the person responsible for turning her thoughts upside down had already fallen sound asleep, her gentle breathing accompanied by the crisp scent of fresh snow, making the cat blush furiously.

Coming to terms with the fact that Shen Yunmiao liked her would take a very, very long time.

Late that night, the snow-white kitten quietly leaped onto the balcony. The white gauze curtains rippled gently, like a soft white sea of sand cradling the little cat lost in thought.

Moonlight poured down.

Her white tail rested across her paws, elegant and noble.

In the silent night…

A cat was thinking.

…Shen Yunmiao really was an amazing person.

But… love…

Cheng Jianian licked her paw anxiously. She had never encountered anything like this before and had absolutely no idea how to deal with it.

There had certainly been many people who liked her.

But most were attracted by her family background and appearance, driven by personal gain, or eager to tame her pride, fantasizing about making the arrogant young heiress lower her head.

Never had there been someone like Shen Yunmiao…

Someone who simply loved quietly, asking for nothing in return and expecting no outcome.

Xiao Cheng Zong believed that if she hadn’t become a cat and accidentally discovered this secret, it might truly have remained hidden forever—even from the world’s own laws.

The person favored by this world had fallen in love with the very person the world had created to hurt her.

The thought itself was absurd.

Yet this absurd, hidden treasure box had somehow been opened by her.

How was she supposed to respond to Shen Yunmiao?

Honestly speaking, Cheng Jianian thought Shen Yunmiao was an incredibly wonderful person.

But…

Dating her had simply never been a possibility she’d ever considered.

What would that even look like?

She couldn’t imagine it.

But she could promise one thing.

If that day ever really came, she would never be like that useless Ji Hanfeng, allowing the person she loved to suffer endless undeserved hardships.

She would do everything she could to protect Shen Yunmiao.

She would never let her feel embarrassed over a mere four hundred yuan consultation fee.

She would never let her run around taking acting jobs just to earn money while enduring harassment.

She would never allow her to be bullied, isolated, or mistreated ever again.

She would make sure Shen Yunmiao was happy every single day.

They could buy a mountain villa in the newly developed district.

Since Shen Yunmiao loved cats, they could keep raising them. The whole mountain would belong to them anyway. Those cats could play wherever they wanted—as long as they didn’t bother the two of them every single day.

In spring, they could plant trees.

In summer, admire the flowers.

In winter, there’d be no need to ride bicycles through the cold anymore.

If Shen Yunmiao enjoyed listening to her play the guqin, she’d play a different one for her every day.

She could even teach Shen Yunmiao how to play…

Wait…

Realizing what she had been imagining, Xiao Cheng Zong’s ears turned bright red.

She really hadn’t been deliberately fantasizing about dating Shen Yunmiao!

She simply felt that…

Dating Shen Yunmiao didn’t actually sound so bad.

That was all.

Standing on the balcony, the little white cat patted her burning cheeks.

Her desire to turn back into a human became stronger than ever.

The next day was Thursday.

There weren’t many classes because it was club activity day at school, and Shen Yunmiao didn’t have any scenes to film that day either, so she slept in a little, only getting up at eight to prepare breakfast for herself and the kitten.

By the time she’d finished making the homemade cat meal according to the recipe, it was already half past eight.

Shen Yunmiao fished her own bowl of noodles out of the pot. After checking the time, she called Jian Shen.

“Director Jian, sorry to bother you.”

Jian Shen was still half asleep.

He gave a groggy hum in response.

The little cat had perked up her ears the moment she heard his voice. She quietly climbed onto the table and openly began eavesdropping.

Shen Yunmiao ignored her, simply placing one hand between the steaming bowl and the cat so she wouldn’t accidentally burn herself.

“I sent you a message last night, but I figured you were probably too busy to see it. I’m really sorry, but I don’t think our kitten can act. She’s very timid, and I’d hate for her to delay the filming schedule.”

Acting?

They wanted her to act?

Xiao Cheng Zong searched her memory.

She remembered this part of the story.

After Ji Hanfeng returned in a frenzy despite everything, “Cheng Jianian” learned about his feelings for Shen Yunmiao and deliberately ordered one of the artists under her company to make things difficult for Shen Yunmiao.

One of those methods was asking Shen Yunmiao’s cat to appear in the drama.

In the original plot, Shen Yunmiao had also refused.

The actress then took the opportunity to drive a wedge between Shen Yunmiao and Jian Shen, causing Shen Yunmiao to become isolated on set.

But that actress wasn’t satisfied.

She went on to manipulate her fans on Flow into launching an online hate campaign against Shen Yunmiao, who had still been an ordinary newcomer at the time.

Only later did Jian Shen recognize Shen Yunmiao’s talent, take the initiative to reconcile with her, and publicly clarify everything, finally resolving the matter.

So even though Shen Yunmiao had stopped Ji Hanfeng from returning home, this plotline was still being pushed forward by some unseen force.

Xiao Cheng Zong’s heart immediately tightened.

How could she avoid this part of the story?

Everything had started because Shen Yunmiao refused to let her cat act.

Then the solution was simple.

Just don’t refuse!

It was only acting.

As an award-winning actress in cat form, it would be easy.

She had to change this storyline.

She had to make sure Shen Yunmiao would never be isolated again.

Immediately she began meowing while pushing against Shen Yunmiao, who was still apologizing.

I can do it! Stop talking already!

Shen Yunmiao’s attention was instantly drawn to her.

She frowned at the kitten, who was clearly trying to stop her.

A strange thought suddenly crossed her mind.

Could Sweetheart… actually want to act?

She covered the phone’s microphone and cautiously asked,

“Sweetheart, do you want to act? If you do, meow twice. If you don’t, don’t meow at all.”

That way a single accidental meow wouldn’t cause a misunderstanding.

Xiao Cheng Zong sighed helplessly.

Keeping perfect rhythm, she meowed exactly twice.

Then she stretched out a paw toward Shen Yunmiao.

Silly big sister, hurry up and take back what you just said.

Blinking, Shen Yunmiao lowered her hand from the microphone.

“Sorry, Director Jian. I was still half asleep just now and wasn’t thinking clearly. Please don’t take what I said seriously. Sorry for bothering you.”