NOVPUBThe dark sewage flowed slowly in the channel, dampening the big cat’s legs and fur, but it remained as indifferent as an old monk in meditation.
"Brother Qing Fan, why is it sitting in the water? Aren’t cats supposed to hate water?" Lin Wanning asked, puzzled.
Zhang Yiyi also looked at him, feeling that Xu Qingfan, with his wisdom, must have an answer.
"It probably knows it’s about to die, so it’s too lazy to move." Xu Qingfan explained.
"Ah?" The two little girls opened their mouths in surprise.
"Many small animals can sense their impending death. When they’re about to die, they find a corner to stay in, quietly waiting for death to arrive." Xu Qingfan recalled how the big yellow cat at Lianhua Courtyard had eaten rat poison, thinking it was going to die, and had hidden in a hole outside to wait for death quietly. It was later found by neighbors and taken to the veterinary hospital for treatment, where it eventually recovered.
"That’s so sad." Lin Wanning’s eyes welled up with tears as she listened to Xu Qingfan, "Brother Qing Fan, can you please save Mao Mao?"
"Brother, save, Mao Mao!" Zhang Yiyi also shook his wrist, pleading.
To be honest, if this had been in his past life, Xu Qingfan would not have gone to the rescue. There are too many stray cats in the world, and if you try to help every pitiful stray cat you see on the street, it would only mess up your own life.
Being born in spring and dying in winter was the life of too many stray cats. Those lucky enough to survive the harsh winter continued to breed, and the heartless continued to abandon kittens, creating a cycle that could never be fully resolved.
Moreover, the most crucial point was that rescuing a stray cat could be very expensive. If you were unlucky enough to deal with issues like feline panleukopenia and other diseases, you wouldn’t get out of the veterinary hospital without shelling out at least ten thousand yuan, which is why many sick breed cats were abandoned.
However, this lifetime was different. Xu Qingfan could lack anything but money. Not only did he not lack money, but the two little girls were also financially secure. "We’ll save this cat!" he declared, with a grand gesture, to the two of them.
"Yay!"
"Brother Qing Fan is the best!"
The two little ones excitedly hopped around on the spot and each planted a kiss on his cheek.
"Alright, alright, you two stay here and watch over Mao Mao. I’m going to buy a luggage bag and come right back. Remember, don’t talk to strangers, and definitely don’t go anywhere with them!" Although they were both eight-year-olds in second grade, and Xu Qingfan wasn’t too worried, he still instructed them carefully.
"I know, Brother Qing Fan. Wanning isn’t a silly goose!" Lin Wanning pouted as she spoke.
"Phone, Mom!" Zhang Yiyi also took out her own mobile phone, indicating that she would call her mom if there was any danger.
"I’ll be right back, just remember to not go anywhere!" After repeating his instructions, Xu Qingfan jogged off.
It was easy to find almost anything in the old market, and after a brief jog, Xu Qingfan quickly arrived at a shop selling backpacks and luggage bags.
"How much for this one?" He picked a black net-patterned carry bag and asked.
"50 yuan!"
"I’m in a hurry, 25 and no higher, otherwise I’m leaving." Xu Qingfan didn’t bother to haggle and stated his offer directly.
"Sold!"
After paying, Xu Qingfan grabbed the luggage bag and ran back, feeling slightly cheated because the shopkeeper had agreed so readily.
"Brother Qing Fan!"
When he ran back to the spot, both kids and the cat were still there, and Xu Qingfan heaved a sigh of relief.
"Let’s put Mao Mao into this bag and then take him to the vet."
"Okay!"
"Does Brother Qing Fan need Wanning’s help?" Lin Wanning squatted down and asked.
"No need, getting scratched by a stray cat means you’d need a rabies shot. I’ll handle it; just keep the bag open from above." Xu Qingfan stepped on a red brick on the wall, reached down, and lifted the cat.
As he predicted, the cat did not resist at all, and remained passive, until he placed it in the luggage bag and zipped it up. The cat had not shown the slightest reaction.
This sensation was like, like in a Japanese movie, where a wife threatened by her husband’s boss lies on the bed like a corpse, helpless to any manipulation.
The trio resumed their journey with the big cat in tow. In the early 2000s, Li City had no pet hospitals, but there were plenty of veterinary clinics helping cattle, dogs, and others with their ailments.
Xu Qingfan walked for about seven or eight minutes according to the address he remembered and indeed found the Licheng Veterinary Hospital.
"Uncle, this cat is sick, can you take a look at it for us?" Xu Qingfan set the luggage bag down on the ground, unzipped it, and exposed the cat’s head for the doctor to see.
"It’s probably got feline distemper, kid. Did you guys find this cat? There’s no saving it, just throw it out." The doctor glanced at the cat’s sullen eyes and knew what was going on. He’d seen many students bringing in stray cats and dogs, but these people often had no money, and he wasn’t running a charity.
"Uncle, we’ve brought money. Please take a look. This is a Linqing Lion Cat, very rare, my mom really likes it!" Xu Qingfan took out some red banknotes from his pocket to show him.
If there was money involved, treatment could be considered. After putting down the newspaper, the doctor told the trio, "Wait here, I’ll go find some test strips to see if it’s something like feline distemper."
Lin Wanning and Zhang Yiyi looked at Xu Qingfan with concerned expressions.
He patted their shoulders, "Don’t worry, we will definitely get it treated."
"Okay!"
The owner soon came out from the room with a few cotton swabs and test papers, "These are all imported, you know, testing costs twenty bucks each, are you sure you want to do this? Once opened, no taking back." the owner warned, worried they might back out.
"No problem, boss, go ahead, we’ve just had the New Year, we aren’t short of money!"
"Haha, okay!"
The doctor ripped open the test strip package, took out the matching cotton swab, and prodded it inside the cat’s anus.
"Meow~" the white cat finally reacted, emitting a pitiful cry.
The three outsiders could only stand and watch the doctor work.
Shortly after, the doctor had taken the sample, threw the cotton swab into a little rubber tube filled with an unknown solution, and finally dripped the liquid from inside onto the test paper.
[It was exactly like a Covid test.] Xu Qingfan thought to himself.
The three of them didn’t speak, quietly waiting for the doctor’s results.
A bit later, the doctor seemed both surprised and annoyed as he spoke to the three, "It’s all negative, no serious illness, I guess the cat has gastroenteritis. Testing fees 60, leave the cat here for three days at a hundred a day, and I guarantee to return a healthy white cat to you in three days!"
The two girls breathed a sigh of relief and high-fived to celebrate.
"Yay!"
"Thank you, doctor, here’s a total of 360 dollars, and we’ll come to pick up the cat in three days." Xu Qingfan had never considered bargaining over pet treatment costs and took out three hundred sixty dollars to give to the doctor.
"Haha, no trouble at all!" The shop owner happily took the money, clearing at least three hundred and forty from this deal.
Treating gastroenteritis in cats was easy, just a few dollars for some human anti-inflammatory medicine, diluted and fed with a syringe; if it wouldn’t eat, then just feed it glucose solution. Altogether, it probably wouldn’t cost two dollars over the three days.
After paying, the trio left hand in hand, satisfied with the outcome.
...
Three days later.
The three little ones along with Xia Xiaoxiao returned to the vet to pick up the big white cat, which had regained its vigor and had been groomed clean by the owner.
It turned out the owner felt a bit guilty for making so much off this deal, so he washed the cat for free.
The freshly bathed big white cat looked strikingly elegant, a spitting image of a runaway Disney princess cat.
Xu Qingfan then got another rabies shot and some unknown protein shots from the owner, and the four happily left with the big white cat.
With that, a new member was added to Yao Jinping’s convenience store.
