Chapter 197: The Young Girl and the Cat

At a deserted corner of Dongma Street, Bai Luoxue placed the small clay pot containing egg drop porridge on the ground, then lightly smoothed her skirt and slowly squatted down, hugging her knees as if waiting for something.

To the side, Jiang Qingshang, who had followed her, watched the girl’s blinking cat-tailed peach blossom eyes and then looked at the small clay pot in front of Bai Luoxue.

The egg drop porridge in the small clay pot was a bit burnt, appearing to be somewhat of a failure.

“Meow~”

Just then, a tender meow came from deep within the alley.

A small figure emerged from somewhere, its four short legs cautiously creeping toward the egg drop porridge.

It was a little female Calico Cat, looking only about five months old.

The Little Calico Cat raised its head, its large, bell-like eyes looking at Bai Luoxue and then at Jiang Qingshang beside her.

The little female Calico Cat lowered its head and sniffed Bai Luoxue’s small feet, as if matching a familiar scent in its memory.

Finally, the little female cat sniffed the bowl, rested its two small paws on the clay pot, and stuck out its little tongue to eat.

As the little female cat ate the slightly warm egg drop porridge from the clay pot, the young girl watched quietly.

The young girl’s cat-tailed peach blossom eyes blinked, showing no signs of joy or sorrow.

The girl and the cat seemed like the most beautiful painting in the world.

“How long did you simmer the egg drop porridge?” Jiang Qingshang smoothed her skirt and squatted down, looking at the kitten as she spoke.

Hearing Jiang Qingshang’s voice, Bai Luoxue glanced at her, seemingly confirming she was being spoken to, then turned her gaze back to the kitten.

“I simmered it for an hour.”

“The time is right, but what about the amount of water?”

“One finger deep.”

“One finger deep?” Jiang Qingshang extended her fair, tender palm toward Bai Luoxue.

Bai Luoxue’s eyes blinked, and she then extended her own small hand.

The two girls’ palms met.

“Miss Bai’s fingers are about the same length as mine, so the water amount should be correct in principle,” Jiang Qingshang said with a smile as she withdrew her hand. “Then it can only be a matter of the heat. Next time, Miss Bai can try using a lower flame.”

“If the fire is too low, it won’t be cooked.” Bai Luoxue brought up her previous failed experiences.

It seemed there were times when the egg drop porridge Bai Luoxue cooked was underdone.

“A lower flame makes the heat easier to control. As for the cooking, just simmer it longer. However, you must observe it frequently and pay attention to adding water,” Jiang Qingshang said after thinking for a moment.

Hearing Jiang Qingshang’s explanation, a glint of light seemed to flash through Bai Luoxue’s eyes.

“Mm, I will try that. Thank you.”

“It’s nothing.” Jiang Qingshang smiled and shook her head.

Truthfully, Jiang Qingshang felt a bit dazed by their current conversation.

She never could have imagined that one day she would be discussing how to cook egg drop porridge with the Saintess of the Huanxi Sect.

“Actually, if Miss Bai wants to eat egg drop porridge, I can send some over to you in the morning. Miss Bai doesn’t need to make it personally.”

Jiang Qingshang originally wanted to say she could come to her house to eat in the morning, but remembering that Bai Luoxue was, after all, the Saintess of the Huanxi Sect, she changed her wording.

After all, she was different from Sister Nongqin.

Although she had great confidence in her husband and didn’t believe the Saintess of the Huanxi Sect would fall for him…

And although Bai Luoxue had somehow suppressed her Bewitching Bone…

But what if?

What if one day something went wrong with the suppression of Bai Luoxue’s Bewitching Bone, even just a little? What then?

The Bewitching Bone’s lethality toward men was immense; even Cultivators couldn’t withstand it. Her husband was just an ordinary person, so it went without saying.

Could she possibly snatch Bai Luoxue away and have her husband take her as a concubine?

No! Absolutely not!

“Thank you, Miss Jiang, but there’s no need,” Bai Luoxue shook her head. “I cook it myself every day. The parts I can’t finish, I give to it.”

Bai Luoxue cooked egg drop porridge for herself every day. Even if it was burnt, she would eat some to know where the taste went wrong and then adjust.

However, Bai Luoxue truly didn’t enjoy eating, so after eating a bit each time to remember the taste of failure or success, she would give the rest to this little female cat.

“Is Miss Bai simmering porridge for someone?” Jiang Qingshang asked with a smile.

Simmering porridge day after day, just to be able to reach the most delicious state at any time.

This reminded Jiang Qingshang of when she was with her husband; she was just like this when she first started cooking.

But who could Bai Luoxue be making it for?

Besides her husband, there was only Lin Xun.

But if Bai Luoxue had really found Lin Xun, she would likely have already used a Secret Technique to control him and returned to the Huanxi Sect. Why would she still be simmering porridge?

Thus, only one possibility remained.

Gradually, Jiang Qingshang’s gaze became kinder.

However, Bai Luoxue was not Wang Chen; she didn’t have the Seven-Aperture Exquisite Heart and didn’t even know how to “read people.”

So, looking into Jiang Qingshang’s smiling eyes, she didn’t know the other’s thoughts.

“Mm, it’s not for myself,” Bai Luoxue nodded calmly, looking straight into Jiang Qingshang’s eyes.

Looking at Bai Luoxue’s calm and pure appearance, Jiang Qingshang’s eyes blinked, and for a moment, she didn’t know where to direct her hostility.

Because in Bai Luoxue’s eyes, it seemed she was merely simmering porridge for another man without any other emotions involved.

“Does Miss Bai have someone she likes?” Finally, Jiang Qingshang sighed softly and asked.

“Like?” Bai Luoxue tilted her head. “What is ‘liking’?”

“Liking is…”

Suddenly asked this question, Jiang Qingshang didn’t know how to answer for a moment.

But Bai Luoxue wasn’t in a hurry; she just waited quietly.

“Perhaps… liking is being able to give everything for a person. You can do anything for him, and he is more important than your life.”

“Millions of people in the world could praise you countless times, and you wouldn’t feel happy. But just because the other person says ‘this dish is delicious,’ you’ll be joyful for an entire day.”

“You’ll get angry because of him, sometimes thinking you’ll never talk to him again. But when he hugs you from behind and says a few sweet words, you’ll find you can’t stay angry anymore.”

“You’ll be happy because of him. It seems that as long as you see his happy face, no matter how many troubles you have, they will all vanish.”

“Sometimes his actions are clearly so childish, yet you always find them cute.”

“Sometimes his requests are clearly unreasonable, yet you always do your best to satisfy him.”

Jiang Qingshang looked up and smiled at Bai Luoxue. In her mind, every little detail of her life with her husband surfaced. “Perhaps, this is what liking is…”

Looking at Jiang Qingshang’s happy eyes, Bai Luoxue’s eyes blinked softly.

“I don’t understand,” Bai Luoxue shook her head. “Why? Why would I be happy because he is happy? What is happiness? And what is sadness?”

“…”

Looking at Bai Luoxue’s pair of bewitching eyes, Jiang Qingshang didn’t know what to say for a moment.

Only then did Jiang Qingshang remember the tenet of the Huanxi Sect—”Severing Emotions and Desires.”

The Huanxi Sect only accepted female Disciples, and due to their Secret Techniques and cultivation methods, all female Disciples had to sever their emotions and desires.

In the hearts of the Huanxi Sect’s Disciples, love didn’t exist. All men in the world were merely tools and Puppets for their cultivation.

Even the Saintess of the Huanxi Sect, who could only be with one man in her lifetime, didn’t remain chaste because of love.

It was because of the Secret Technique that she had to remain chaste for that man in order to control him.

However, regardless, it was only that the Disciples of the Huanxi Sect couldn’t fall in love; joy, anger, sorrow, and happiness still existed.

But the girl before her…

She possessed the world’s most perfect face, an exquisite figure, and a Bewitching Bone seen once in ten thousand years.

If judged solely by feminine charm, she was the temptress every man in the world dreamed of.

Yet, she was like a blank sheet of paper, not knowing what “liking,” “happiness,” or “anger” meant.

Perhaps the reason she simmered porridge for her husband was merely to show gratitude.

It might even be that she was simply following the etiquette of the Mortal World; in fact, she might not even know what the emotion of gratitude felt like.

Despite being born with a Bewitching Bone and being hailed as the most beautiful and talented Saintess in the history of the Huanxi Sect…

This Saintess was like white snow that had just fallen from the sky.

For a moment, Jiang Qingshang didn’t know whether this was a blessing or a tragedy for her.

She even felt, for some reason, that this girl was like a Fairy descended from the heavens, falling from that pure and stainless world into this bustling Mortal World.

But the girl had never thought of merging into this Mortal World, nor did she know how.

This Mortal World hadn’t affected the girl in the slightest.

Unless there was someone who could truly enter her world, take her hand, and lead her into this Mortal World.

But did such a person really exist? Could anyone truly enter her world?

“How did Miss Bai meet it?”

Jiang Qingshang sighed softly, no longer thinking about that question, nor wanting to continue with that topic.

If she were to stop even her gratitude toward her husband, she would be far too cruel.

Moreover, her target was Lin Xun, so it was impossible for her to fall for her husband. Her husband was just an ordinary School Teacher and even less likely to enter her world.

So what if she made porridge for her husband? She would just pretend she didn’t see it.

Of course, only this once! Absolutely no next time!

“I met it when I came out to buy things and gave it some food,” Bai Luoxue replied.

“So after that, Miss Bai would meet it every time she came out and then feed it,” Jiang Qingshang guessed.

“Mm,” Bai Luoxue nodded. “I give it whatever I can’t finish.”

“I see,” Jiang Qingshang smiled. “Then has Miss Bai thought about adopting it?”

“Adopting?”

“Mm,” Jiang Qingshang explained. “It means taking it home and living with it.”

This Calico Cat was very cute; even Jiang Qingshang felt a desire to adopt it.

But because Jiang Qingshang had been bitten by a cat when she was young, she had a psychological shadow regarding cats for a long time.

Although her fear of cats had disappeared as she grew up…

When she came into contact with cat fur, she would still have an allergic reaction and itch. This was an innate Physique and wouldn’t disappear no matter how high her Realm became.

Even if Jiang Qingshang used spiritual power to quickly cure her allergy, the symptoms would return upon contact.

She couldn’t adopt it, but Bai Luoxue could.

Furthermore, Jiang Qingshang felt this little female cat truly shared a fate with Bai Luoxue, and Bai Luoxue gave her a sense of loneliness.

If there were a kitten to accompany her, perhaps this girl wouldn’t be all alone anymore.

Listening to Jiang Qingshang’s suggestion, Bai Luoxue looked at the kitten, which was still buried in the egg drop porridge.

“Meow~”

As if feeling Bai Luoxue’s gaze, the little female cat raised its head and let out a “meow” at this human who had very beautiful eyes, even though her face was hidden by a veil.

The girl and the cat locked eyes again. A kitten not even five months old and a girl like white snow—they seemed like the purest existences in this world.

“Miss Bai, I have things to do, so I’ll take my leave now.” Jiang Qingshang didn’t disturb them further and got up to leave.

“Mm.” Bai Luoxue stood up to see Jiang Qingshang off. Not until she disappeared around the corner did Bai Luoxue withdraw her gaze and slowly squat down again, smoothing her skirt.

The Little Calico Cat was still buried in the porridge, licking the last grain of rice from the small clay pot clean.

“Meow~”

The kitten raised its head again and looked at the girl in front of it.

“Meow~~” The kitten was a bit confused, because every time it finished eating, this big sister would take the bowl away.

Why is this big sister still looking at me now?

“Do you… do you want to come with me?” After a long time, Bai Luoxue looked at the kitten and spoke slowly.

“Meow~”

“I live in a courtyard; I’m the only one there.”

“Meow~”

“I want him to like me, but he doesn’t want me yet.”

“Meow~”

“If you don’t have anyone to adopt you either, we can live together. Then we won’t be unwanted anymore.”

“Meow~”

“Will you come with me?”

“Meow~”

Looking at the little female cat, Bai Luoxue reached out, wanting to touch it gently, but the kitten backed away slightly.

“You don’t want to leave?”

“Meow meow~”

Looking at the kitten, Bai Luoxue blinked.

Finally, Bai Luoxue picked up the small clay pot and got up to leave as usual.

But just as Bai Luoxue was about to take a step, she felt something tugging at her ankle.

Looking down, she saw the kitten using its small claws to hook onto her embroidered shoes.

“Meow~~” Noticing Bai Luoxue’s gaze, the kitten sat on the ground and looked up with a meow.

The girl squatted down and reached out again to touch it gently.

The kitten leaned back, still taking a step back, but just as the girl was about to withdraw her hand, the kitten took two steps forward and gently rubbed its head against her palm.

The bright and warm winter sun spilled onto the shoulders of the girl and the kitten.

The solitary girl and the unadopted kitten—the girl and the cat—at least, they were no longer alone.