Chapter 161 Catching mice with a cat
As the weather gets warmer, study becomes more intense.
After the adjustment period last semester, most of the students have integrated into the study life of junior high school. With a good foundation, they can keep up with this learning pace.
The first week of school passed in the blink of an eye, and Baitan Middle School also ushered in the first weekend of the new semester.
On Saturday morning, after running, Fang Wei picked up the cat that was sleeping on the wall of the yard and put it in the basket of his bicycle.
"Meow wow?"
July was lying in the basket with his little paws resting on the edge of the basket, his big furry head tilted, with a look of confusion on his face.
You can't just take it to have its eggs harvested this weekend just because spring is coming!
"Mr. Cat, you've been idle for the whole winter. It's time for you to show your skills. Come with me to catch mice."
"Meow?"
Not to mention July was speechless, even Fangwei was a little speechless when he received this task.
The incident happened yesterday. Seeing Wen Susu looking haggard and listless, Fang Wei, as the class monitor, greeted her with concern.
Fortunately, she was not sick, but a big rat ran into her dormitory at some point in time. Not only did it bite her paintings, but it also made creepy rustling noises in the dead of night, which scared the timid Wen Susu.
She turned on the light in the middle of the night, got up, and nervously tried to catch a mouse with a broom. However, after searching for a long time, she couldn't even see the shadow of the mouse. When she was about to give up, the big black rat suddenly ran past her feet and hid in the corner under the TV cabinet, scaring her so much that she screamed.
But the more afraid she was, the more arrogant the mouse became. The man and the mouse fought a battle of wits and courage all night long. The mouse didn't eat enough and she didn't sleep well. When she woke up in the morning, she almost went crazy.
She asked a few teachers to help catch the mouse. The mouse was very smart and hid there without coming out. It only came out to cause trouble after everyone had left.
Knowing that Fang Wei's cat was very good at catching mice, Wen Susu had no choice but to ask him to bring July out to help her eliminate the rat infestation.
When Fang Wei first heard about this, he almost laughed at her. What on earth did he, the squad leader, do every day? He even had to catch mice!
There was no other way. In order to let Teacher Wen sleep well, Fang Wei had to take the job. He didn't want to force this elder sister to run back to Shanghai because of a stinky rat.
"Let's go, let's go."
"Meow."
It doesn't matter where July goes, as long as he isn't taken to have his eggs cut.
It yawned, sat lazily in the basket, rested its little paws on the edge of the basket, and looked at the scenery along the way curiously.
Fang Wei rode his bicycle and traveled along the sunny country road.
When he rode to Shayang Village, he saw Liu Zhiyi in the yard. Fang Wei stopped the bike and greeted her.
"Hey, where are you taking July?"
Liu Zhiyi reached out and touched the cat's head. Qiyue was already very familiar with her, but it was too cold during that winter, so it rarely went out and rarely came to Shayang Village.
"I'm catching mice for Teacher Wen."
"what?"
"gone."
"Meow."
The man and the cat rode away on their bikes again, leaving Liu Zhiyi standing there with a lot of question marks in his head.
We rode past Shayang Village and arrived at the pier. The wind was very strong here and the air was filled with the unique fishy smell of the fishing port. July liked the smell here very much, and this is also its main territory.
After passing the pier, we rode along the coastline for a while and arrived at Baitan Bridge, which is probably the farthest place in July's activity range.
Pineapple Island is its home. July has never left Pineapple Island since he was a child.
There were many seagulls flying up and down on the bridge. The cat looked at them with envy. It became a little restless sitting in the basket, as if it was ready to pounce at any time.
"Sit down."
"Meow……"
After Fang Wei patted the cat on the head, the cat calmed down. Its beautiful amber eyes reflected a distant place that it had never been to.
……
Soon, the man and the cat arrived in the town.
It was still very early, and because Wen Susu was urging him to come as early as possible, Fang Wei came over without even having breakfast.
The town was just as lively early in the morning, with the aroma of steamed buns filling the streets and alleys. Because it was the weekend, no one was selling steamed buns at the school gate. Thinking that Wen Susu probably hadn't had breakfast yet, Fang Wei bought an extra portion of steamed buns and brought them to her on his way over.
It can also be seen from the rat incident that although Wen Susu lives happily on the island and gains a lot of satisfaction in her career, it does not mean that she is accustomed to living here.
After all, she is a girl from a big city, and her family conditions are extremely good. She has been spoiled since childhood, so it is definitely not as comfortable for her to stay here as it is in the city.
Perhaps the most unbearable thing is the loneliness.
After a semester of contact, Fang Wei also realized that on the island, apart from her students and colleagues, she had no social circle outside the campus. She could not find like-minded people here for her hobbies such as art and photography.
She has no family or friends around her. She came here to teach just for her dream. Her elders don't support her, and her colleagues don't understand her...
Maybe that's why she prefers to play with the students in her class.
She might not even be aware of this kind of loneliness on weekdays. After all, staying in school during work would always alleviate this kind of loneliness. But once it was the weekend or when she encountered any difficulties, it was conceivable that she would be somewhat at a loss when she was alone.
……
Carrying the cat and breakfast, Fang Wei rode his bicycle into the campus.
The campus was deserted on weekends, so he rode straight to the teachers' dormitory building without having to get off and push his bike.
Taking the cat down from the basket, Fang Wei couldn't help but complain:
"You've gained weight this winter, haven't you? You've gained so much weight! Whose tabby cat has grown so big?"
"Meow."
July doesn’t know either.
It only eats three meals a day and occasionally catches a mouse or a bird as a snack, but who knows how it gains weight!
This was not the first time Fang Wei had come to Wen Susu's dormitory. He was familiar with the place. He walked up the stairs to the third floor, came to the door of Room 303, and knocked on the door.
"Da da da--"
"Da da da--"
"Who is it?"
After a while, Wen Susu's voice came from inside, sounding a little tired. "Sister, I brought Qiyue to catch mice for you."
"..."
Faint footsteps could be heard approaching, followed by the sound of the bolt being pulled, and the green-painted iron security door opened.
Wen Susu was still wearing her thick winter pajamas. The fluffy cotton looked quite warm. Although she was already a 24-year-old girl, the style of her pajamas was very cute, with star-dot cartoon prints.
As expected, she did not sleep well. She looked listless. Her usually smooth hair now looked messy like a bird's nest. She had big dark circles under her eyes and was so sleepy that she looked like she could fall asleep while standing.
"Woo! You're finally here!"
"Sister, are you okay? I feel like you're having a nervous breakdown..."
"That's right! That damn mouse was crawling around last night, gnawing at cardboard boxes and rummaging through trash cans. I didn't sleep the whole night! When I turned on the light to look for it, I didn't know where it hid! I was so scared that it would crawl onto my bed! There are mouse stickers all around the bed! Ahhh! Now that you're here, I feel like it's hiding again. It's so sneaky!"
"..."
Looking at his sister in front of him with a face full of grievance and mumbling, Fang Wei felt both amused and distressed. He could even imagine her shivering in her bed when it was late at night and mice were making trouble outside.
"How can you not sleep? Leave the rest to July. You should go and have a rest, sister."
"I won't feel at ease until I see it caught with my own eyes!!"
Wen Susu took the cat from Fang Wei. She had never liked cats so much as she did now. "Qiyue, Qiyue, please save your sister!!"
"Meow."
The fat cat meowed calmly, broke free from her arms, jumped down, and walked into the house with its tail raised high, as if it was returning home, with a cat-like gait.
As expected of the cat overlord of Pineapple Island! This arrogant attitude is reassuring to look at!
Wen Susu felt relieved, but still asked Fang Wei uncertainly: "Can Qiyue really catch that mouse? Of course I'm not afraid that it can't catch it, I'm just afraid that it won't catch it... I also borrowed a cat from Teacher Chen yesterday, but Teacher Chen's cat doesn't catch mice at all..."
"Don't worry! Qiyue understands. People on the island often come to borrow Qiyue to catch mice. This is its signature skill. As long as it enters the house and smells the scent of a mouse, it will catch it."
"Uh-huh!"
After hearing what Fang Wei said, Wen Susu felt relieved.
The two also walked into the house, and Wen Susu poured him a glass of water.
Fang Wei handed her the breakfast in his hand:
"Sister, eat a bun first to fill your stomach. After you catch all the mice, you can have a good sleep."
"Eat it, eat it."
"I'm eating now. I thought you must have missed breakfast, so I bought an extra portion for you!"
Although it was a small gesture, Wen Susu still felt warm inside when she heard it.
She has no relatives or friends here. From the moment Fang Wei called her sister, he became the closest person to her.
The two sat down on the sofa together to eat breakfast and watch July's performance while eating.
Wen Susu couldn't tell whether July was in working condition or not. She just saw the fat cat strolling slowly in the house, sniffing left and right with its little nose, and scratching here and there with its little paws.
She didn't know if it was an auditory hallucination caused by her neurasthenia, but she felt that since July entered the house, the faint noise of mice rustling had disappeared.
The atmosphere seemed calm, but undercurrents were surging.
At a certain moment, July, who was walking, suddenly stopped walking, as if she was frozen in place, and could not move.
Seeing July's behavior, Wen Susu subconsciously held her breath and even forgot to chew her bun. She ate with her mouth bulging and stared at July with wide eyes.
She lowered her voice and asked vaguely, "July is not moving... Did you hear the movement of the mouse?"
"Shh... maybe." Fang Wei made a gesture to silence.
Just a few seconds after the two of them fell silent, July suddenly moved!
It suddenly jumped into the old cardboard boxes piled up in the corner of the living room!
Its claws scratched the cardboard box, making a creaking sound. It jumped left and right to adjust its posture, and its tail, which was originally held high, was lowered down, as if it was in a hunting posture!
Finally, it found a gap to squeeze into. Its breathing became heavier and it smelled a stronger scent of prey in the air!
As half of its body was buried in the pile of cardboard boxes, the big black rat hiding inside was frightened to death!
A sharp squeak was heard!
Then, a black shadow flashed out from the other side of the gap between the cardboard boxes and began to escape along the crack in the corner of the wall!
“Ah! Rat! Rat!!”
Wen Susu was startled. The big black rat fled to the gap between the refrigerator and the wall next door. It was clearly far away from her, but she was so scared that she climbed onto the sofa and started breakdancing...
July didn't care about the big sister who was frightened. The only thing in its eyes was the big black rat.
Seeing the mouse escape from the pile of cardboard boxes, it immediately ran away from the pile of cardboard boxes and chased after the fleeing black shadow.
For a while, the living room was filled with screams, the sound of objects colliding as cats and mice chased each other, and the sound of clanging and tinkling...
Fang Wei felt a little embarrassed. He didn't know if July was here to cause trouble. He even knocked over two easels...
The mouse had nowhere to hide in the living room, so it fled for its life towards the balcony. There was a drainage pipe opening against the wall, which was where it came in and was also its last means of survival.
Just now, the mouse was running through a narrow gap, and July couldn't do anything to it. But when he saw it was briefly exposed in an open area, the cat's speed and agility came into play with great advantage, and it closed the distance in the blink of an eye!
In addition, July really wanted to complain about the tile floor in the house. If it weren’t so slippery, this cunning guy would have been caught long ago!
The rat was about to crawl into the sewer pipe. Just a little bit meant the difference between life and death!
Unfortunately, with a series of squeaking screams, the battle came to an end...
There was silence inside and outside the house for a while.
Wen Susu stood on the sofa, eating a bun with a puffy mouth, holding a life-saving pillow in her arms, looking frightened, her eyes fixed on the balcony.
"Did you catch it?"
"I think he's been caught. I'll go check it out."
Before Fang Wei could go out to see, July came in with his tail raised high and a huge rat in his mouth. His proud posture made him look like a victorious general.
"Meow woo woo..."
"July! Great job!"
"..."
Wen Susu finally let go of the heart that had been hanging in her throat.
She sat back on the sofa, and only then did she feel that the sunlight outside was a bit dazzling...
(End of this chapter)
