“Tell her to come to my study,” Shen Yi commanded coldly, handing her trench coat to the butler and heading straight upstairs.
She paused at the foot of the stairs. Her inscrutable gaze fell upon the gate.
The butler explained with some embarrassment, “After that day, the Young Mistress restricted the cat’s range…”
She didn’t dare mention it was because the cat was still restless, trying to go to that room. She didn’t know what was so attractive about it…
In truth, the butler had thought CEO Shen would be furious and punish the cat for barging in that day. She had been anxious for a long time, only to find that her employer never brought it up again. That heart-stoppingly gloomy and erotic aura that had been present when Shen Yi first emerged from the room was gone; she seemed somewhat satisfied.
As a businesswoman, Shen Yi followed one important principle: honoring a deal. Whether it was the rule about not bringing lovers to the main residence, or the agreement with Shen Ruoshuang regarding her continued studies in Chemistry in exchange for the cat.
She had broken the former rule first, but her reason for not taking it out on the cat was also because she had been coaxed into a comfortable state by Xu Yinian’s subsequent submissiveness and that extreme beauty and flavor.
“It should have been done long ago,” Shen Yi sneered.
Just then, to the surprise of both women, a sudden thud came from behind the stairs, followed by the sound of a cat meowing.
The butler’s face paled. That cat, which never meowed except to hiss at people, only acted this coquettish toward the Young Mistress. For over two years, it had been as quiet as if it didn’t exist whenever it was under CEO Shen’s nose. Why today…? CEO Shen would surely be disgusted!
The pet room was designed to avoid offending Shen Yi; one couldn’t see anything inside from the entryway, dining room, or living room. Only at this staircase landing could one see it by deliberately turning their head.
Shen Yi’s brow furrowed. Her dark, aloof gaze, which usually ignored everything beneath her, turned for the first time toward the glass room nestled deep near the stairs.
There, she saw a fluffy, orange-and-white creature rolling onto its belly, letting out sweet, coquettish meows. Its hind legs were clearly disabled and lacked flexibility, yet it seemed to be trying all the harder to roll over, appearing exceptionally clumsy in its efforts.
The cold, elegant tension in Shen Yi’s features inadvertently softened.
She had heard far more of Xu Yinian’s “special brand of acting spoiled” than Shen Ruoshuang ever had. She instantly recognized the almost identical sweetness in the cat’s behavior. Whether it was the physical defect, the tone of its voice, or that awkward way of playing cute… the animal bore the girl’s shadow.
This was the first time Shen Yi had seen the “frivolous toy” that Shen Ruoshuang had brought home and cherished like a treasure. With a single glance, Shen Yi understood why her daughter was so infatuated and indulgent. She had even brought it all the way back from Yuanwu—the place where the girl had grown up.
Shen Yi guessed it. This was Xu Yinian’s cat, which was why her presence lingered in its every movement.
She had reviewed Xu Yinian’s files long ago and knew that Shen Ruoshuang’s feelings had begun as early as high school. However, this was the first time she had come face-to-face with the evidence of this deep-rooted, three-year-long obsessive crush.
In the past, Shen Yi would have only felt disdain. She would have criticized this “devotion” as childish and laughable, a waste of energy on an insignificant person and trivial matters.
But the subject was that woman.
Even Shen Yi herself was clear-headed yet sinking, destined to repeat the same mistakes.
…Xu Yinian.
Shen Yi suddenly retracted her gaze. Without a word, she headed straight upstairs.
The Butler stood by, dumbfounded. She watched as the usually aggressive, rebellious cat acted like a pampered little darling, shamelessly acting cute. Is this cat a social climber? she wondered. It acts more obediently for each master it meets.
Seeing that CEO Shen had left without making things difficult, the Butler let out a long sigh of relief. This rebellious cat might be fierce, but at least it knew how to read the room. If it had dared to hiss at CEO Shen the way it hissed at the staff, even Miss Shen wouldn’t have been able to protect it.
Shen Ruoshuang’s expression was dark. Earlier, when she noticed Buwang’s strange enthusiasm—so different from its usual guardedness—she had wanted to stop it. She hadn’t expected that as Shen Yi approached, the cat would flop onto its back and show its belly to the woman outside.
When that specific tone of meowing started, even someone as composed as Shen Ruoshuang couldn’t help but frown. It was partly worry, but it was also jealousy.
Shen Yi had indeed looked over. After a moment of eerie silence, she hadn’t started a fight. The mother and daughter didn’t even lock eyes, but both harbored their own strange thoughts and considerations.
Only after the sound of Shen Yi’s footsteps completely vanished did Buwang look visibly disappointed, pacing around as if trying to find her again.
Buwang’s change in attitude toward Shen Yi was undoubtedly due to the “lover” she had brought home that day—the cause of its sudden frenzy and its attempt to bolt out the door. Was it because Shen Yi still carried that woman’s scent? Or—
Did Buwang remember the scent and try to suck up to Shen Yi so she would take it to find her…?
Such a humanized assumption felt too bizarre to apply to an animal. But Shen Ruoshuang knew how sentient and special Buwang was.
Setting the cat’s oddity aside, why had Shen Yi refrained from attacking the cat twice now? Their deal only stated that Buwang could stay in the Shen residence and that Shen Yi wouldn’t interfere with it, but that didn’t mean she would be indulgent. It was common knowledge that Shen Yi hated living things, especially furry ones. It couldn’t possibly be that Buwang’s brown-nosing had actually worked.
Though it was hard to understand, Shen Ruoshuang instinctively felt that every time Shen Yi broke her own principles, it was inextricably linked to that “lover.”
The key to the problem remained that lover, whose trail had gone cold.
Sensing that Shen Yi might actually be serious this time, a flash of irony crossed Shen Ruoshuang’s eyes. So what if she’s serious? Is she going to remarry that woman?
Shen Yi’s desire for control stemmed from extreme egoism; everyone, including Shen Ruoshuang herself, was nothing more than a tool to her. If Shen Yi truly could go to such lengths for one person, Shen Ruoshuang might actually have to look at her “mother in name only” with a bit more respect.
