Chapter 13: Hiring a Cat

As dawn painted the sky with hues of rose and gold, the streets stirred to life. Pedestrians grew in number, neighbors exchanged greetings, some pushing single-wheeled handcarts towards their toil, others unbolting their shop doors to commence the day's trade. Anxi Street finally exuded the warmth and bustle of mortal life.

Hidden within the shadows, a small black cat watched with vigilant, cold eyes, yet it remained rooted to the spot, unwilling to depart.

"That bead must be incredibly important to you," Chen Ji murmured to himself, "Even after I've teased you with it repeatedly, and even when the bead itself bounced you away, you still refuse to give up."

He waved a hand towards the little black cat, signaling for it to follow him into the medical hall. But the cat offered no reaction, merely observing from the periphery.

Just then, a commotion arose from the rice shop opposite. Stout shop assistants were removing the heavy door planks, carrying cage upon cage of steaming buns and mantou to the entrance. The steamers, bathed in the early morning sunlight, billowed with white vapor.

Chen Ji's gaze lifted once more, only to find the little black cat staring intently at the steamers... The look in its eyes mirrored the yearning he had felt in his youth, staring at the instant noodles on another's table while on a train journey.

Hesitating for a moment, Chen Ji stepped forward and inquired, "How much for a steamed bun?"

The rice shop attendant smiled and replied, "Ah, little Doctor Chen! Steamed buns are still two *wen* each, no change."

Chen Ji extracted two *wen* coins from his sleeve – the sum earned from sweeping the floor the previous day, and all the coin he possessed. "I'll take one," he said, pressing the coins into the attendant's hand.

The attendant, pleased, asked, "Just one? Won't that be enough?"

Chen Ji replied with a smile, "I only have two *wen*, I can't afford more."

The attendant was momentarily surprised. In this era, who would admit such embarrassment, unwilling to buy even one more steamed bun for two *wen*? One steamed bun cost two *wen*, a *jin* of rice was ten *wen*, and a *jin* of eggs twenty *wen*. Even the most impoverished families could likely produce two *wen*.

Yet, Chen Ji's calm demeanor suggested he felt no shame in his predicament.

"Alright then, just one steamed bun it is," the attendant said, recovering his composure and speaking with renewed enthusiasm.

Chen Ji glanced at the little black cat perched on the eaves, then suddenly inquired, "May I ask you something? Is there a place nearby that sells fish?"

"You wish to buy fish?"

"I'm just inquiring for now, I don't have the money to buy yet."

The attendant chuckled, "Nearby, we only sell smoked salted fish. If you want live fish, you'll have to go to the East Market. That's more than an hour's journey there and back."

"Are fish expensive?"

"That depends on the fish," the attendant laughed. "Carp and grass fish are cheap, ten *wen* a *jin*. Bass is a bit more expensive, perhaps thirty *wen* a *jin*. The East Market is frequented by wealthy merchants and scholars from the north and south, who say they can even eat fish from the sea there. I heard that when Luocheng was prosperous, many sea fish were transported in daily."

Chen Ji casually asked, "Is Luocheng not doing well anymore?"

"Times have changed, you see. In the previous dynasty, this was the capital, a place of revelry and extravagance. Now it's fallen, and only a few old masters still boast about its past glory. But everyone knows the truly prosperous places now are Shengjing in the north and Jinling in the south," the attendant said, lifting the lid of the steamer and, amidst a rush of white mist, wrapped a steamed bun in hemp paper and handed it over. "Here, your steamed bun."

Chen Ji accepted the steamed bun but did not eat it. Instead, he turned back and placed it on the threshold of the medical hall. Only then did he bend down, pick up a shoulder pole and buckets, and sway as he walked into the medical hall.

The little black cat leaped down from the eaves and approached the medical hall door. It sniffed the steamed bun, then raised its head and walked away, seemingly unwilling to accept Chen Ji's goodwill.

However, after taking only a few steps, it turned back and cautiously bit into the steamed bun. Standing at the medical hall door, it watched Chen Ji's retreating figure carrying water to the back courtyard, a flicker of desire to follow appearing in its eyes. But ultimately, it turned and left.

***

Since She Dengke and Liu Quxing's confrontation in the back courtyard, they had not set foot in the main hall again. With the master away, both were too lazy to venture out and work. Chen Ji, for his part, was content with the tranquility. When hungry, he would fetch a coarse grain biscuit from the kitchen; when thirsty, he would ladle water, boil it, and drink. If a patient arrived with a prescription, he would weigh the medicine. If they sought consultation, he would politely decline.

He spent almost the entire day studying the general outline of medical arts, focusing specifically on the subject of external injuries.

He knew not how much time had elapsed when Chen Ji, having unknowingly drifted off to sleep leaning against the counter, awoke to find the black cat he had seen in the Late Star Garden quietly perched on the counter, watching him. The cat's fur was disheveled, and a fresh wound on its neck oozed blood.

Chen Ji chuckled, raising a hand to greet the black cat. "How did you arrive so silently? Been beaten up again?"

The black cat held its head slightly high, a hint of stubbornness in its posture. That stance was remarkably similar to the defiant posture of many men after a brawl: claiming no advantage had been gained! Truth be told, such words were typically uttered by the vanquished...

"Wait a moment," Chen Ji said, going to the kitchen to retrieve a piece of 'fire inch strip' to catch a flame. He used it to light the oil lamp on the main hall counter. The small flame flickered, casting only enough light to illuminate their immediate vicinity, a small space shared by one person and one cat.

Chen Ji blew out the thin piece of burning wood and mumbled, "You fight with Yunfei every day, doesn't Jingfei help treat your injuries? Or are you hiding from it? Otherwise, you might be beaten to death."

The black cat raised its head, a look of apparent disbelief in its eyes.

"You don't need to look so unconvinced," Chen Ji gestured. "You're still small, probably not even a year old yet. It's already so big, it's normal that you can't win. A gentleman's revenge is best served ten years later, right? Wait until you're fully capable, then you can go find it again." Speaking thus, Chen Ji's expression turned serious. "But remember, when that time comes, you must strike to kill, leaving it no chance to recover."

The black cat seemed to ponder his words, a thoughtful expression appearing in its eyes.

Chen Ji was slightly perplexed. "Can you truly understand what I'm saying?"

The black cat remained silent.

Chen Ji smiled. "Let me apply some medicine for you."

The black cat watched as Chen Ji quickly flipped through the medical book, the young man muttering to himself, "Let me see what medicine is good for external injuries, I specifically studied this today... Ah, Cnidium Monnieri. There's a large quantity of this, Old Man Yao definitely won't notice if I take one gram."

The black cat's initially tense body relaxed slightly.

Chen Ji took some dried Cnidium Monnieri and carefully ground it into powder. He looked at the black cat. "I'll apply some hemostatic medicine for you, don't scratch me, alright?"

However, he was surprised to discover that when he applied the powder to the black cat's wound, it did not dodge or hide, as if it knew this was for its own good. The black cat remained still as a small sculpture, its gaze following Chen Ji's movements. Finally, its posture, which had been ready to puff up at any moment, gradually softened.

The little black cat's fur was dense, requiring careful parting to examine the wounds, a time-consuming process. By the time Chen Ji had finished tending to all the black cat's injuries, he finally showed a triumphant smile. "Success!"

As he spoke, he realized the black cat had fallen asleep, its small head resting on his palm. Chen Ji remained silent for a long time, his hand not moving away. One person and one cat stayed in the small circle of light, quiet and gentle.

Chen Ji lowered his head and looked at the little black cat. After a long period of silence, he spoke absentmindedly, "Only with you can I truly speak."

He leaned against the edge of the counter, his eyes fixed on the flickering flame. "When I was in Aoshan Hospital, I thought I wouldn't die. I was so thoroughly prepared, even having a diagnosis for mental illness ready, intending to use it to escape punishment after killing someone. But in the end, I was killed instead. Still, dying was fine, as long as revenge was taken."

"Li Qingniao told me that people from North Jialuzhou were responsible for smuggling me. I don't know exactly what he meant. Where is North Jialuzhou? What are the Forty-Nine Heavens? How did I suddenly reincarnate as an apprentice, living alone in this world..."

"When I learned from Master that I still had family, I wasn't really expecting much... Well, perhaps a little expectation lingered. But that evening, as the sunset's afterglow gradually faded from my body, I felt abandoned by the world."

"Is that a bit pretentious..."

Chen Ji rambled on, his words a jumble of thoughts. Since arriving in this world, he had found no one he could trust, no one worthy of his confidence. Those secrets and confusions could only fester within him, finally spilling out to a sleeping little cat. He seemed to feel a touch of absurdity in this, so he lowered his head and whispered to the black cat, "Thank you for listening to my rambling, I feel much better now!"

At that moment, the little black cat actually opened its eyes and gently placed a paw on Chen Ji's wrist, as if offering comfort. Chen Ji gazed at the furry little paw, stunned for a long while, then asked, "I'm guessing you didn't win against the white cat, and Jingfei and Chunrong were annoyed by your lack of effort, so they didn't treat your injuries or feed you. So the cat raised by an esteemed *wangfei* misses a meat bun, right?"

The little black cat looked at him silently.

Chen Ji seriously asked, "Or, later, when I have the means to leave the medical hall, will you come wander the *jianghu* with me?"

The little black cat wore a look of confusion.

"No, there must be a sense of ceremony!" Chen Ji retrieved a piece of paper used for writing prescriptions from the counter and, with a brush, awkwardly wrote down an ancient prayer for hiring a cat: "The raccoon slave of Luocheng's ways, its body enveloped in black clouds. Now Chen Ji hires 'Black Cloud' to return home. As there are no dried fish, a crystal bead shall serve as the hiring gift. May the Kitchen God bear witness, and the City God affirm grace and justice."

As he finished the last stroke, he took a cinnabar seal paste and looked at the black cat. "If you truly understand my words, and are willing to follow me, then press your paw print yourself."

In the young man's gaze, the black cat hesitated for a moment, then actually lifted a paw, dipped it in the cinnabar paste, and pressed its paw print onto the hiring document.

The next moment, the hiring document, without fire, spontaneously combusted, turning into scattered points of light in the air.

Chen Ji looked at the brilliant scene before him and murmured to himself, "This world is indeed not normal..."

A voice asked, "What isn't normal?"

Chen Ji's head slowly turned towards the black cat...