Lin Zhiyou dreams every night that she's a cat, adopted by a gloomy, handsome young man.
The boy is quiet, but treats her very well. She helps him in ways both obvious and subtle, and even saves his life before she dies.
Lin Zhiyou is very satisfied with her life as a cat. Even after she forgets the boy's name and what he looked like, she treasures the dream and mentions it from time to time.
Like now:
At a company retreat, she gets picked for a game of Truth or Dare. The aloof CEO from headquarters, who has come to inspect the company, watches her from afar with a deep, inscrutable gaze. He takes the host's microphone and speaks up for the first time that evening:
"What's the most unbelievable thing you've ever experienced?"
She pauses, then smiles shyly and replies, "When I was in college, I spent two years as a cat in my dreams."
The year his parents died, Xie Moxun had just turned sixteen. His elderly grandfather took over the Xie Group again, too busy to look after him.
He drifted through each day, sleeping by day and staying up at night, until he found that cat.
This tabby, named Youyou, drove away the thick gloom in his life with her athletic build, unruly personality, and forceful presence.
One day, she scratched his uncle's face to ribbons.
"That's for taking advantage of young women and bringing shame to the Xie family. Hope you get a scar!"
The next, she knocked over the expensive red wine his cousin had given his grandfather.
"Didn't you know Grandpa can't drink anymore? Don't think I don't know what you're really after!"
His grandfather wasn't angry at all. He just chuckled and petted her head.
The day after that, she scratched the arm of an executive at the company.
"You lousy moron! Say one more bad thing about my baby and next time I'll get your face!"
Xie Moxun: Baby? Who?
In time, Xie Moxun finally accepted the fact that he could hear a cat's thoughts.
He'd never cared much for animals, but at some point he started taking care of her himself: cleaning her litter box, bathing her, and stroking her fur. He endured her unbearably foul thoughts, forcing himself to cuddle the cat even as his heart raced.
Later, he took her everywhere he went, until she died for him.
And he couldn't even find her body.
He went on living. His methods grew harsher, and he climbed ever higher, yet he was always tempted to leap down and hear the crisp sound of his bones breaking.
Until ten years later, when he heard that voice in his mind again.
Everyone says the newly appointed President Xie is as odd as he is capable.
They say he bought an expensive grave for his dead cat.
They say the grave is empty, yet he still visits it to pay his respects.
They say there's an identical grave beside it, waiting for him.
Some even say he's fallen in love with a cat.
But one day, someone saw President Xie, who normally kept everyone at arm's length, holding a beautiful, lively young woman in his arms. His eyes were impossibly tender as he nuzzled her cheek and whined softly:
"What? Am I not your baby anymore?"
Posted 2026.1.12 / Screenshot saved
Theme: The world is beautiful because of you
