Strange Life of a Cat-Chapter 239 - 232 Seeing Da Mi Again
Chapter 239: Chapter 232: Seeing Da Mi Again
Chapter 239 -232: Seeing Da Mi Again
Zheng Tan was brought over by Charlie, accompanied by a tall and beautiful woman.
Charlie’s face stayed red and he stuttered when he spoke. Despite having a girlfriend, he still became noticeably nervous in the presence of such a stunning beauty.
This beauty was Jin Ling, Zheng Tan’s partner for the interactive segment the next day. It was said that she was a model and a customer of the Pet Center; Xiao Guo had invited her to bolster the event.
Zheng Tan scrutinized Jin Ling with a critical eye and grudgingly gave her a score of eighty. He felt that her dress would have been better if it were a bit shorter. Unfortunately, that would be too revealing. There were many children around, and parents accompanying their children would surely complain if someone dressed too provocatively. There had been complaints about inappropriate attire at a previous cat show. Thus, even though it was summer, people working at the venue still paid attention to their image.
After getting acquainted with Jin Ling, Zheng Tan abandoned Charlie and nestled himself in Jin Ling’s embrace.
Although Jin Ling had not interacted much with Zheng Tan, she was quick-witted and knew exactly where to go with just a little guidance from him. She had heard that this cat was quite a diva with a temperament to match, and the staff at Xiao Guo’s shop all catered to his preferences. She did not want to go against the cat’s wishes, hoping it would enable better cooperation tomorrow.
Zheng Tan wasn’t very interested in watching the competitions for the prestigious cat breeds; he just glanced over and then had Jin Ling take him to the Domestic Cats section.
This time, a tabby cat from one of Xiao Guo’s Pet Center clients was participating in the Domestic Cats category. It was the tabby cat’s first time in a public contest, and it sat anxiously in its cage.
The judges had to handle every competing cat to assess bone structure, muscle condition, as well as the proportion and symmetry of the head, body, tail, and limbs, and the overall health of the cat.
As Zheng Tan looked over, a foreign judge was holding a cat, stroking its fur while evaluating it. The host, microphone in hand, translated the judge’s comments to the audience. The cat remained patient, enduring being passed around and petted without showing signs of irritation. It probably got used to the handling. Of course, these judges were surely knowledgeable about cats and knew how to soothe them better.
In Xiao Guo’s opinion, Zheng Tan would have been the best contestant for the Domestic Cats category. Unfortunately, the Jiao family disagreed, and Zheng Tan also had no desire to participate. He didn’t want to be looked at in a cage or be subjected to the judges’ prodding and poking. Most cats in that competition had good natures and did not react aggressively to such handling, something that Zheng Tan definitely could not tolerate.
Another reason was that Zheng Tan had heard that unneutered cats who won such awards were often treated as breeding cats, and right now, he had no intention of getting involved with a female cat.
There were quite a few people in the Domestic Cats section, which felt more approachable to many compared to the prestigious breeds. While purebred cats were more for admiration and not easy to maintain due to their delicate nature requiring lots of attention, Domestic Cats were the type most people encountered frequently, such as tabbies, which are quite common.
Zheng Tan looked around and noticed that, apart from the usual varieties and the popular tabbies, the Linqing Lion Cats were also attracting people’s attention.
There were two Lion Cats participating in the Domestic Cats category, one being a white Lion Cat with heterochromia and another called a “hyacinth batting a hydrangea.”
The so-called “hyacinth batting a hydrangea” looked similar to the white Lion Cat but had a black tail and a black spot on its head. The tail was long enough to reach the black mark on its head, hence the nickname.
Seeing this cat reminded Zheng Tan of the one named Gui Yuan he had encountered before, which had been accompanied by a Cat Tamer, although Gui Yuan had shorter fur and no black spot on its head.
At the Domestic Cats competition, there was a young and attractive female judge among the judging panel.
This beautiful judge drew a lot of attention from the audience. While evaluating a domestic contestant, she would also pet, tease, and converse with the cat, which became incredibly docile in her hands.
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Charlie flipped through some information and started discussing this beautiful judge with Jin Ling. Listening to their conversation, Zheng Tan learned that the judge, named Gong Qin, specialized in veterinary medicine, had competed with her own cat more than once, and had earned CFA judging credentials. However, due to work commitments and lack of time to care for a cat, she had stopped keeping cats but would sometimes be invited to judge at such events and interact with more felines.
While Charlie and Jin Ling were talking about the pretty judge, Zheng Tan looked around and suddenly paused, as though he had seen a familiar face. No, it was two familiar faces, and…
Zheng Tan jumped out of Jin Ling’s arms and walked over in that direction.
Jin Ling was startled when the cat leaped away, scared that the cat might run off, but then saw that the Black Cat hadn’t run away but instead walked toward another area, so she relaxed and followed with Charlie.
In a nearby area, several animal welfare organizations were set up, with many cat owners consulting them. There were also rows of chairs where visitors and some participating cat owners rested when they had free time.
Fang Mengmeng was flipping through a booklet from an animal welfare organization, while Fang Shaokang chatted with someone next to her. It seemed that he had run into someone he knew again and was caught up in a casual conversation.
Kneeling beside Fang Mengmeng was a cat with a mix of three colors on its fur. Moreover, within a five-meter radius around this cat, there were no other cats present. Even those brought there to rest would fluff up their fur, flatten their ears and hiss at it, demanding their owners to take them away.
Zheng Tan calculated the time; Da Mi, the fellow, was nearly a year old as well.
Sometimes Zheng Tan was quite envious of “Lord’s” excellent genetics. Looking at Huasheng Tang and Da Mi was enough to tell, even though they were third-generation, but in terms of size, they were still noticeably larger than other cats. Of course, many cats came here to compete, especially those breeds with larger body sizes, and topped with fluffy long fur, they appeared quite large. Therefore, Da Mi didn’t stand out too much. However, Da Mi’s fur wasn’t as fluffy as those long-haired breeds; without the fur, Da Mi would certainly still be bigger than those cats.
As Zheng Tan weaved through the crowd towards the other side, he also observed Da Mi sitting quietly. In Zheng Tan’s heart, he always considered himself to be of the same generation as Li Yuanba and Lord. By that account, Huasheng Tang would be a nephew’s generation, and Da Mi and Xiao Mi would be grandnephews.
Da Mi had inherited the aura of Lord and Li Yuanba well, as the reactions of the surrounding cats showed. Moreover, when Da Mi had a stern face, it directly reminded Zheng Tan of Li Yuanba.
Da Mi was squatting there, eyes partly closed, seemingly indifferent to everything around until Zheng Tan walked over, at which point it lifted its head to look at Zheng Tan.
Zheng Tan wondered if the little guy still remembered him, after all, Da Mi was such a small bundle when he was taken away. Also, if the kid had inherited his dad’s penchant for starting trouble, would he end up fighting on the spot?
Just as Zheng Tan was pondering whether to get closer, Da Mi had already approached, sniffing around, the initial wariness in its eyes diminished, replaced with a sense of closeness.
When Fang Mengmeng’s gaze shifted from the booklet to Da Mi, she happened to see Da Mi, who usually acted indifferent toward other cats and would directly slap them if not annoyingly persistent, now rubbing its head against the Black Cat.
Fang Mengmeng stared at Zheng Tan for a while then suddenly exclaimed, “Are you Heitan?!”
Fang Shaokang, who was chatting with someone, heard her and looked over, his eyes landing on Zheng Tan, “Yo, Heitan, what brings you here?”
Because his daughter wanted to come to Linzhou City to attend this event, Fang Shaokang had specifically cleared his weekend, accompanying his daughter on the flight here. His wife didn’t come along, just so that Fang Shaokang could spend more quality time with his daughter. Fang Shaokang had also taken care of various documents needed to bring Da Mi over.
Charlie and Jin Ling came over at this time, and Fang Shaokang chatted with them for a bit.
“There’s a competition tomorrow? Great, we’ll be there to support!” Fang Shaokang said with an expectant look while Fang Mengmeng nodded beside him.
“Mr. Fang, is this your cat? Which competition did it enter?” Charlie asked.
Jin Ling was also curious; the cat in front of her felt subtly different from the others, yet she couldn’t quite place why—was it a breed she was unaware of?
“It’s my daughter’s cat, but it didn’t enter any competitions,” Fang Shaokang said, not revealing much. Since he knew Charlie was from the Pet Center, he was guarded, Ermao had told him that Da Mi’s dad was at the Pet Center.
Fang Shaokang had a special pass within the event venue, and Da Mi didn’t participate in any competition; it was brought in just for a walk, giving Fang Mengmeng the chance to interact more with fellow cat-enthusiasts and consult on matters related to cat-raising, enjoying much greater freedom than those cat owners whose cats were competing. Anyway, knowing the right people made getting such a pass quite simple.
Charlie and Jin Ling, curious about Da Mi and wanting to get a closer look, even considering reaching out to touch it, recoiled when Da Mi looked up at them with a glance. Inside, Charlie and Jin Ling shuddered: This cat had a cold gaze, and it seemed not to be trifled with.
“Ahem… This cat must be a handful to raise, right?” Charlie withdrew his hand, commenting.
“Not at all, Da Mi is very well-behaved,” Fang Mengmeng beamed, her eyes narrowing into slits as she reached out her soft, pale hand to pet Da Mi’s head.
Many cats when keeping a stern face and when acting spoiled or cute, give people entirely different impressions—for instance, Da Mi’s demeanor towards Charlie and Jin Ling was cold, but its behavior around Zheng Tan and Fang Mengmeng was gentle; one was hard to approach, the other actively sought closeness.
When Da Mi looked up at people, because of the lighting in that area of the venue, its pupils contracted slightly, adding to the resemblance to Li Yuanba when it put on a serious face, appearing much sharper. But when the pupils dilated with excitement and paired with its coquettish behavior, it became evident to people that this cat could be friendly, showing an even more adorable side.
Watching this stark contrast, Charlie chuckled nervously and then uttered, “Mr. Fang, your Da Mi reminds me of two cats at our Pet Center. I’m telling you the truth, no fooling. One cat is named Li Yuanba and the other is his son named Huasheng Tang…”
Fang Shaokang was already thinking about leaving, but as soon as Charlie began speaking, he mentioned two names Tabby had described as “taboo”; anyway, his daughter had played enough here, so it was time to leave.
As Fang Shaokang led Fang Mengmeng away, Da Mi followed with its tail held high, not looking around aimlessly, keeping close to Fang Shaokang and Fang Mengmeng and showing an air of indifference to everyone and every cat around them.
Charlie and Jin Ling continued to discuss what breed Da Mi could be, while Zheng Tan was reflecting, damn, the grandnephew generation is even stronger than himself. (To be continued. If you like this work, please visit Qidian (qidian.com) to cast your recommendation vote or monthly ticket, your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please go to m.qidian.com to read.)
