In the very moment I was suffering such tragic humiliation at the paws of beasts—a familiar, tiny mewl drifted down from above. It was a distinctive, kittenish squeak, belonging to none other than the uninvited guest who had driven Ren Xing to the sofa and slept in my arms for a week: the little black kitten. Xiao Hei let out a series of meows and purrs as it leaped between the branches above, looking down with an air of profound indignation. Though it was small, as it slid down the nearly vertical tree trunk, the other dogs and cats scattered in an instant. Those dogs began wagging their tails frantically and bolted into the bushes as if they’d lost their minds. A few old cats formed a semi-circle but didn't dare approach; they were sent scurrying by my delicate, short-legged little kitten’s fierce cries. Xiao Hei watched the dozen or so animals flee, took a few symbolic steps in pursuit, and finally puffed out its tiny chest to let out a few more high-pitched mews. It looked incredibly majestic.
Holy crap! Love really can’t be trusted! In a moment of crisis, a pet is more reliable than the police! Comrade Ren Xing, it seems our days of happy bromance are over. Goodbye to you!
Ren Xing didn't want to have a "bromance" with me anyway. He insisted he had been "seduced" and claimed he had to hold his ground so the mysterious scent on my body wouldn't turn him into a "dead gay guy." That very night, he banished both me and Xiao Hei to the sofa. I felt so pitiful, being heartlessly abandoned so quickly. Thus, our sweet weekend date was canceled due to an early breakup. My weekend activity shifted to accepting Pi Zhang’s invitation to "move bricks" at the university hospital, which was currently under renovation. I felt like I’d never love again. Ren Xing actually sat on the sofa and laughed at me! Is this what happens when the love dies? I see you for who you are now, Officer! Fortunately, he was soon called away by a phone call from his superiors, which gave me a great deal of satisfaction.
Our university hospital was incredibly eerie, nicknamed "The Little Western Paradise"—a place where people went in but never came out. Someone once went in for a scraped arm and ended up being transferred to another hospital with a fracture; it was baffling. Beyond that, there was a lingering chill around the hospital; even in the height of summer, walking past it sent a bone-chilling shiver through you. It was said that the west side was actually a family graveyard for a local wealthy clan from the late Qing and early Republican era. The rumors were quite detailed.
Recently, the hospital was slated for demolition, and the building was being cleared out to serve as a teaching facility for a newly established college. Since we needed to clock in hours for social practice anyway, Pi Zhang had pulled some strings and taken over the job, letting us come for half a day of symbolic labor to make up the numbers. When I arrived, quite a few people were already working away with great fervor. To my surprise, I saw Lu Daoshi walking around in a construction hat. When I asked what he was doing, he pointed toward a narrow path on the east side of the hospital, cordoned off by a wooden fence. "The old men in the department have been wanting to dig up those graves for ages. Now that this place is being torn down, do you think they could resist?"
I couldn't help but laugh. "You mean that family graveyard from the late Qing era?"
Lu Daoshi nodded as if it were the most natural thing in the world. "Yeah."
"You're joking, right?"
"Why would I lie to you?" Lu Daoshi waved a hand. "They might dig up several coffins." Having said that, he rushed off impatiently to stop the students who were moving bricks too close to the gravesite.
Pi Zhang walked over, flicking a cigarette butt, and patted my backpack. "Is Lu Daoshi digging again?"
"He's just waiting for the demolition."
Pi Zhang let out a surprised sound. "Since when did you start keeping a pet?"
Only then did I realize that Xiao Hei had calmly crawled into my backpack, nudging the opening with its paws to peer out at the scenery. I was amused by its serene gaze and scratched the soft fur under its chin. Xiao Hei rubbed against my fingers and meowed softly, looking very docile.
"Where'd you get it?"
"It just showed up."
"A cat showed up at your place and I didn't know? Speaking of which, I haven't seen you lately."
I said ruefully, "I moved out." And then I was abandoned.
Pi Zhang paused mid-flick of his cigarette ash. "You didn't move out to live with your roommate, did you?!"
"Don't shout." I felt the weight of everyone's meaningful stares, feeling like a widow caught in an affair being paraded through the streets. "It's not my roommate, it's just a regular friend, a police officer... Has my roommate not been back to the dorm either?"
Pi Zhang shrugged. "Haven't seen him. The door's always locked."
I thought to myself that maybe my roommate was washing dishes until so late that no one noticed when he returned. It was a heartbreaking thought. But who knew? Maybe washing dishes was a form of cultivation to level up his powers. That was the only way I could comfort myself.
After talking to Pi Zhang, I went to help move bricks and push cement. Xiao Hei played by itself on the large lawn in front of the hospital. Whenever it saw other cats or dogs, it wanted to go play with them, but all the cats hissed and bolted up trees, and all the dogs barked frantically and ran as far away as possible. Xiao Hei was left to occupy the vast lawn alone, licking its paws and sunbathing, rolling around to show off its soft, pinkish-white belly. Many girls saw it and wanted to scratch its belly, but its low growls kept them from getting close. That was when I bravely stepped in. I picked up Xiao Hei to let them pet it; Xiao Hei squirmed but couldn't escape, its large eyes turning watery and melting everyone's hearts. As soon as I loosened my grip, it lunged onto my chest, rubbing against my neck and meowing. I had never seen such a clingy cat. It seemed my plan to use Xiao Hei to get a girlfriend was going down the drain. I put it back on the grass to sunbathe and went back to pushing cement.
While doing the manual labor, my arm was unfortunately scraped by the protruding edge of the cement cart, and it wouldn't stop bleeding. I thought it would be fine, that I would heal automatically, but the blood kept flowing. Pi Zhang kicked me toward "The Little Western Paradise," where I encountered a nurse with a faint mustache on her upper lip. She looked half-asleep as she dabbed iodine on me, and it stung like hell. As expected, I didn't have a "Red Buff" active today. That awesome "auto-heal" cheat was apparently just wishful thinking.
So, what happened those other two times?
Twice my heart had been targeted. The first time, there was no wound. But there were claw marks on my heart, so it was almost certainly real. I didn't see a wound afterward because it had healed rapidly. Either my roommate saw me after I had already healed, or he was lying. I thought the first hypothesis was unlikely. Normally, if he saw a dark shadow slipping away from my bed and jumping out the window, his first reaction would be to look out the window or check on me—there wouldn't be a third option. The time gap wouldn't have been that large; I should have still been bleeding.
But my roommate didn't mention it at all, acting as if nothing had happened.
I suspected he knew, or perhaps he was the one who gave me the "Red Buff" back then, and again at Ren Xing’s house. He had driven away those ghostly shadows and healed me, but for some unknown reason, he hadn't shown himself. Could he turn invisible? I didn't know, but my roommate just became a bit more formidable in my mind.
Since I was "honorably wounded," I couldn't move bricks anymore. I planned to go grab something to eat with Pi Zhang. I was on the second floor of the hospital, and right below the window was Pi Zhang, looking like a foreman with his paper and pen. I saw him finish talking to someone and called out, "Ready for lunch?" Then I realized that Pi Zhang wasn't the only one who looked up.
That familiar face was there, wearing a refined yet slightly mocking smile.
"Ye Xiao." Standing across from Pi Zhang, Zhang Litian called my name. "Long time no see."
I didn't want to see him at all and immediately thought of running. But just as I ran out of the surgical ward, I heard rapid footsteps on the empty stairs—many people. The nurse with the mustache yawned as she walked out, heading toward the stairs while shouting listlessly, "What's the rush? Go register downstairs first, one by one." Then I heard her let out a short, sharp scream, which was quickly buried by the sound of footsteps.
I immediately backed toward the window. The second floor wasn't high, and there were trees outside, making it easy to climb down. Once on the ground, I’d have Pi Zhang and Lu Daoshi, and it would be easier to run toward a crowd. So, when they burst through the door, I already had one leg out, perched on the windowsill.
"What is this! Is there a grudge?" Pi Zhang looked at me and then at Zhang Litian, completely bewildered. "Ye Xiao, be careful! Are you planning to jump?"
Lu Daoshi also ran over, shouting, "What's going on?"
But if I didn't jump now, would I ever get the chance? The surgical room was filled with people carrying weapons, all of them looking at me with cold smiles just like Zhang Litian. In a moment, they’d wave their hands from a distance, and I’d be falling headfirst. Not only would my brains be scattered, but I’d be trading my life and my heart for nothing. Was it worth it?
At that moment, Zhang Litian raised a hand, and the people in the room took a step back in unison. Zhang Litian called me again, "Ye Xiao."
I stared at him warily. He wouldn't try to negotiate with me now, would he? If I were the one trying to stall for time by talking nonsense, it would make sense, but it was strange for him to stall.
"Ye Xiao, it won't hurt too much. I hope you can cooperate so we can all save time."
I gave him a "heh." Getting my heart ripped out wouldn't hurt? What would, then? "What's the point of saying that now!"
"You're still as unreasonable as ever. How did you promise us back then?"
"What?!"
He let out a long "Oh." "You've already forgotten."
"You... what on earth are you talking about?"
Zhang Litian gave an elegant wave of his hand. "Then I'll just have to take it by force."
The moment he finished speaking, I found I couldn't move. My limbs felt as heavy as a thousand pounds; I couldn't even wiggle a finger! I watched helplessly as the crowd waiting in the room behind me rushed forward, knocked me down, and tied me to the operating table. The table was very narrow and sat against the wall; it was usually used by surgeons to examine patients' bones. Because it was old, the white sheet had rust-colored bloodstains that wouldn't wash out. They used bandages to secure my limbs and then actually intended to cut open my chest right then and there!
I heard Pi Zhang calling my name from below, and I heard him telling Zhang Litian to stop: "Whatever grudge you have, can't you talk it out! Why are you acting like some damn cult!" Lu Daoshi seemed to want to fight him, but I only heard a miserable cry.
Brothers, this isn't a cult at all! Hurry up and call my roommate!
In the split second before the scalpel hovered over my chest, our little black kitten meowed. It poked its head out from the dense leaves and jumped onto the windowsill with its short legs.
Its fur bristled aggressively as it cried out to those people: "Meow~!"
