ARIOCC Chapter 81

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Due to the pain and blood loss, the big cat cried for a while before falling asleep.

This cat wasn’t small. It was slightly chubby, just the right size for a cat preparing for winter. It was clear that even though it was a stray, it had been well cared for.

Pei Shiyi withdrew his hand. He took the tissue handed to him by Bo Jin and wiped the big cat’s face before leaving the pet hospital with Bo Jin.

After walking a few steps, Pei Shiyi suddenly paused. “I forgot that my uncle and Yuan Jing are both at the cat café.”

Although his uncle might revert to his original form when tired, what if he didn’t? The third floor of the cat café only had one bed, which couldn’t possibly accommodate four grown men.

Pei Shiyi rubbed his forehead. “The living area at the cat café is too small.”

Buying a house was out of the question. The funds needed to prepare for the cat café’s branch weren’t a small amount. If it weren’t for the income from the two online accounts associated with the cat café, relying solely on the café’s earnings to secure a sufficiently large storefront in a city like Yuchuan would be quite a struggle.

Bo Jin held his precious Song Gao, gently pinching the cat’s soft paw pads, his expression unchanged. “Let’s go to my place. Song Gao hasn’t been back for a while.”

Song Gao was suddenly awakened by the pinching and stared blankly at his own paw. Two slender fingers are gently squeezing the soft little pad.

He looked up but couldn’t see the expressions on the two adults’ faces.

For Song Gao, as long as both parents were by his side, it didn’t matter where they went.

Bo Jin silently lifted Song Gao, as if to say it was Song Gao who wanted to go back, not him.

Pei Shiyi wrapped both the scarf and Song Gao in his arms. “Don’t let him catch a cold.”

Come to think of it, he had never been to Bo Jin’s home, while Bo Jin had been staying at the cat café all along. Pei Shiyi felt a bit apologetic, but with Song Gao present, he didn’t have the same thick skin as Bo Jin. He coughed lightly and said, “The cat café is too small for four people to sleep. Let’s go to your place first.”

Song Gao was already sleepy, snuggling into Pei Shiyi’s arms. Unaware that Bo Jin had pinned the blame on him, he nestled against Pei Shiyi and said, “Sir, I’m sleepy.”

Pei Shiyi kissed his ear. “Alright, let’s go home and sleep.”

Bo Jin, having successfully lured Pei Shiyi, kissed the drowsy Song Gao.

Bo Jin’s residence wasn’t far from the Supernatural Management Bureau, located in a high-end residential complex. It was a three-bedroom apartment. As the door opened, the air carried the faint scent of a place long unoccupied.

Pei Shiyi glanced around the entrance hall. The decor was exactly as he had imagined; everywhere exuded a minimalist, almost cold simplicity. The house remained unchanged, yet its owner had somehow acquired a touch of worldly warmth.

Although the Zhulong didn’t share the Phoenix’s obsession with cleanliness, as a divine being’s dwelling, it remained spotless even without regular cleaning.

Song Gao was already asleep. Bo Jin casually placed his son in the cat bed in the living room before wrapping an arm around Pei Shiyi, his breath brushing against Pei Shiyi’s ear. “Your Highness.”

Pei Shiyi’s ear tingled. He instinctively turned his face away. “What are you calling me that for?”

He had been addressed as “Your Highness” for centuries and never thought there was anything wrong with the title. But now, hearing it whispered in Bo Jin’s low voice, he felt an inexplicable shiver run down his spine.

Bo Jin: “Your uncle has already acknowledged me. When will Your Highness give me a proper title?”

Pei Shiyi suppressed the tingling sensation. “Fine, then. I’ll make you the Crown Princess tomorrow… Ouch, don’t bite. Song Gao is still here.”

Bo Jin’s fingertips repeatedly caressed the gaps between Pei Shiyi’s fingers. “He’s asleep. The official title won’t be mine until ‘tomorrow’, so today, Your Highness, won’t you grant me something more tangible?”

Only a floor lamp illuminated the bedroom. Moonlight filtered through the curtains, casting a silvery glow on Bo Jin’s brows and lashes. He lifted his gaze slightly to meet Pei Shiyi’s eyes, like a cold pond reflecting the moon, with stars shimmering in his gaze.

Pei Shiyi pressed a finger against Bo Jin’s lower lip and chuckled softly. “The moon outshines ten miles of frost, but you outshine a thousand autumns of moonlight.”

As a phoenix, he was naturally adept at the art of romance and poetic flattery.

Bo Jin tore open the buttons of his shirt.

Pei Shiyi, intoxicated by desire, allowed himself to be led by Director Bo into the master bedroom. Entangled in each other, his mind grew as hazy as the drowsy Song Gao. It wasn’t until he was pressed into the soft bedding that Pei Shiyi offered a token resistance.

“Did you… change the sheets?”

Bo Jin’s shirt was half-unbuttoned, his skin pressed against Pei Shiyi’s bones. He had no time to think about sheets or anything else, murmuring soothingly to Pei Shiyi, “They’re clean.”

…

“Are you thirsty?”

Bo Jin brushed aside Pei Shiyi’s long hair and placed a kiss on the nape of his neck.

Pei Shiyi shook his head, picking up a strand of his hair. “Can you not get so excited? It’s making me lose control of my spiritual energy.”

His current appearance was merely a transformation. Losing control would revert him to his original form.

Bo Jin agreed absentmindedly while reaching down, only to be swatted by Pei Shiyi without even turning his head. “Get lost. Go pour some water and bring Song Gao over.”

Director Bo, having just indulged in carnal pleasures, was feeling clingy, wishing he could wrap himself around Pei Shiyi. Hearing this, he rested his chin on Pei Shiyi’s shoulder, planting soft kisses. “Xiao Shiyi…”

Pei Shiyi replied expressionlessly, “Stop clinging to me. Get down.”

Bo Jin lingered for a moment longer before getting up to fetch water for Pei Shiyi.

As soon as he left, Pei Shiyi immediately rose. He pulled back the covers and stripped the crumpled sheets from the bed, tossing them aside. Without a word, he headed to the bathroom to wash up.

When Bo Jin returned to the bedroom with a cat bed and a glass of ice water, he saw the balled-up sheets in the laundry basket. Pei Shiyi had just finished showering and emerged from the bathroom wearing Bo Jin’s pajamas.

Clearly, after the heat of passion, the phoenix’s mind had cooled, and his fastidiousness had resurfaced.

Song Gao was sound asleep, so Bo Jin placed the cat bed on the small cabinet beside the bed to avoid disturbing him.

Bo Jin casually set the ice water on the small table by the bay window. “I’ll change the sheets and duvet cover. Rest here for a while.”

The master bedroom had a bay window large enough to accommodate two grown men, padded with thick cushions and topped with a small, solid wood table. Drawing back the curtains offered a nighttime view from the twenty-fifth floor.

Pei Shiyi leaned against the small table, sipping water while admiring his shirtless boyfriend making the bed.

Once Bo Jin finished tidying the bed, he walked over and wrapped his arms around Pei Shiyi. “Ready to sleep now? Or would you like some wine?”

Pei Shiyi pinched his chin and leaned in for a kiss. “Time to rest. Crown Princess, you served me well… though my back aches. How about next time, it’s my turn?”

Bo Jin simply lowered his head and kissed him again.

…

When Yu Gao regained consciousness, he found himself lying in a “patient room” at the veterinary hospital, having already received an IV drip. Beside the pee pad were food and water.

Yu Gao looked down at his paws. Yes, they were indeed paws, not human hands.

He peered into the bowl of water to examine his reflection. His current form was that of a black cat with a white left ear.

In the span of a single day, Yu Gao transformed from a human into a cat. Beyond the horror, what overwhelmed him most was sorrow. He was alive, but the original owner of the black cat’s body had vanished.

He remembered clearly that just before closing his eyes, he had heard a piercing, mournful cry. Perhaps on the brink of death, transcending human understanding, he had eerily comprehended that cry.

“Don’t be afraid.”

Then, his weightless “body” suddenly grew heavy. He had shifted from human to cat. From the cat’s perspective, towering humans surrounded the chaotic accident scene, pointing and murmuring. He lay by a flower bed, dragging a broken leg, his belly and bones aching.

Zuo Bai had also been hit. But being so small and light, he was flung directly beneath the flower bed.

Yu Gao felt himself growing colder and colder when suddenly, he was lifted into someone’s arms. A wave of warmth, carrying the vitality he so desperately craved, surged into his body. The bleeding stopped, and the pain was soothed.

Who had saved him? A passing demon? Could they save Zuo Bai, too?

He drifted into unconsciousness.

Yu Gao was a patrol officer with just over a year on the job. After graduating, he had moved into an old-fashioned residential complex on his own. He didn’t have many friends, and the one he interacted with most privately was this black cat with a white left ear. Yu Gao had named him Zuo Bai.

Even as a human, Yu Gao had felt Zuo Bai was unnaturally clever. He was eerily human-like, truly understanding human speech. He’d come darting over instantly for food, water, or pets, but vanish without a trace at the mere mention of neutering. He often brought Yu Gao odd little gifts, though not the typical offerings cats exchange, like mice or cockroaches. Instead, they were unknown flowers or pretty stones.

Zuo Bai had a human’s sense of aesthetics. He understood comfort and companionship, but also independence. He never wanted to live with Yu Gao, yet he never forgot his human friend.

Deep down, Yu Gao suspected that perhaps demons and spirits truly existed in this world, and Zuo Bai was one of them.

To Yu Gao, Zuo Bai was his friend. A kindred spirit he couldn’t converse with but deeply understood.

Now, Zuo Bai had died saving him.

The thought made Yu Gao’s organs, skin, and bones ache with guilt. How could his conscience ever be at peace, having taken another living being’s body?

He had never done anything for Zuo Bai. What right did he have to accept such a sacrifice?

Yu Gao opened his eyes wide, tears streaming down.

“Why are you crying again?”

An exceptionally pleasant voice reached Yu Gao’s ears, tinged with helplessness. Struggling to lift his head, Yu Gao felt a soft tissue gently blot his tears, briefly obscuring his vision.

The person gently wiped away his tears. As the tissue was withdrawn, Yu Gao finally saw who it was.

It was the man whose arm he had clung to yesterday while crying.

Yu Gao looked up as the man gently stroked his fur.

This only deepened Yu Gao’s sorrow. So this was what it felt like when he used to pet Zuo Bai.

He pondered how Zuo Bai must have felt during those moments as the man continued to stroke him.

The man was Pei Shiyi. He had come to the animal hospital during the cat café’s closed hours to check on the cat his little uncle had rescued yesterday. He hadn’t expected to walk in and find the little one crying. Not the delicate, teary-eyed look of a cat, but with tears falling in heavy drops.

Pei Shiyi tapped the cat’s head. “What’s got you so upset?”

Yu Gao clung tightly to Pei Shiyi’s wrist, trying to prove he wasn’t just a cat, wanting to ask if the other knew how to save Zuo Bai…

But he couldn’t speak, only letting out meowing cries.

Though Pei Shiyi understood, he wouldn’t offer help rashly before figuring out the situation, so he simply smiled and said, “Focus on recovering from your injuries.”

After leaving the pet hospital, Bo Jin remarked, “He cried so pitifully. Aren’t you going to help him?”

Pei Shiyi picked up the smoke-gray scarf and wrapped it snugly around Bo Jin’s neck.

The scarf was knitted by Miss Penny for him. But Pei Shiyi, who disliked the heat, never wore it. Instead, he always draped it over Bo Jin whenever they went out.

Bo Jin remained still, letting him fuss. “I heard from Dan Huang that Miss Penny has been knitting sweaters these past couple of days. One for you and one for each of the kittens.”

Pei Shiyi sighed, “Spare me. I really don’t want to wear any sweater.”

It was already unbearably hot. He wished he could take off his coat and crank the air conditioning down to five or six degrees.

Bo Jin pressed, “You still haven’t said why you won’t help that cat.”

Pei Shiyi: “…”

Bo Jin persisted, looking as if he might cling to Pei Shiyi right there in broad daylight. Pei Shiyi quickly explained, “Fine. I was worried it might put you in a difficult position. Your Supernatural Management Bureau has so many rules. Who knows which taboo I might break by using some technique?”

Bringing the dead back to life was a major act of reversing the natural order. Back when the Phoenix clan threw themselves into the heavenly fire, they barely managed to save him alone out of fear of extinction. His uncle survived due to the innate nature of phoenixes, which was different from deliberate resurrection.

Pei Shiyi added, “You already know why. Why bother asking?”

Bo Jin replied, “I don’t know. You have to coax me before I’ll understand.”

Pei Shiyi was incredulous. “…Are you serious? Last night, I was the one who suffered. And you still have the nerve to ask me to coax you? Shouldn’t you be the one coaxing me?”

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