 Chapter 18: The Final Deadline
Ning Yunyi seemed oblivious to the intense gaze from the big cat, smiling as he tossed another strawberry into his mouth.
His space couldnât store living things, but it could preserve them in perfect condition.
Whatever he put into the space remained exactly as it was, and when he took it out, it was as fresh as the moment it went in.
A basket of strawberries, as fresh as if just picked, was at its best. As it burst in his mouth, it felt like he was enveloped in a strawberry field.
His gaze shifted from the big catâs increasingly focused beast-like eyes to its perked-up ears, which were standing attentively. Yesterday, he had given those ears a rub, and the sensation had been so satisfying that he still hadnât gotten enough.
âWant some?â Ning Yunyi teased step by step.
Forcing himself to rub wasnât enough; the thrill was in the hunt. He imagined the big cat lying down, allowing him to pet it at will, and the thought made his heart tingle even more.
He wasnât in a rush, nor was he greedy. Today, he’d start with the big head, and in the futureâŚ
Thinking of that scene, Ning Yunyi felt even more cheerful and patient. He pinched a strawberry by the stem and held it out in front of the cage.
The big catâs wet nose moved closer, the vibrant color of the strawberry reflecting in its gray eyes, making them shine even brighter.
Without permission, the big cat didnât snatch it away. It restrained itself, lowering its head just slightly, while its tail swished behind it, betraying the calm façade it tried to maintain.
Ning Yunyi proceeded logically, step-by-step: “Thereâs only me and Miao Miao in the house. Now youâve joined us. Iâm responsible for earning money and cooking. Miao Miao is my child; itâs only natural that I take care of him. But what about you, big cat? Donât you think you should contribute something?”
The big cat reluctantly shifted its gaze, looking at Ning Yunyi with confusion: *Wasnât its job to protect the little cub?*
Ning Yunyiâs smile grew even warmer. âBut youâre still recovering from your injuries, arenât you? You havenât started working yet.â
The big cat understood. Its large tail lightly patted the cage. Then, recalling what had happened yesterday, it paused, tilted its head, and extended an ear out of the cage: *So?*
Ning Yunyiâs eyes tingled as he stared at the soft fur on the ear tips. âI want to pet your head,â he said, pushing the basket of strawberries forward as an offering.
The big cat hadnât expected it to be so simple. It had thought the man would have more outrageous demands.
*Didnât he already pet my head yesterday? Wasnât that enough?*
But after thinking about it, the big cat didnât find it unpleasant. More importantly⌠the food in front of it smelled too good, exuding an irresistible temptation.
By now, the big cat had realized that the food contained something that could suppress its mental turmoil.
Unlike the dishes it had eaten before, these fruits, no matter the kind, were filled with that calming substance in a much purer, more concentrated form.
Relieved, the big cat opened the small window for its food bowl with its paw, stuck its head out, and took the entire basket in its mouth.
At the same time, it leaned its big head toward the cage as it started to eat the âsacrificeâ it had earned.
Ning Yunyi wasted no time. With the big ears right in front of him, he reached out and grabbed one in each hand.
The texture was incomparable to any stuffed toy. The only regret was that the fur was a bit rough, but that was fine. With some care, it would become smooth and shiny, and then the sensationâŚ
Ning Yunyi contentedly stroked the big head from the tips of the ears down to the neck. After half an hour, he finally let out a long breath and released his hands.
The big cat, having finished eating, had been lying there the entire time. Now, with its disheveled fur, it silently sighed. Its complex beast eyes followed Ning Yunyiâs cheerful figure as he headed to the kitchen to make dinner.
The big cat, now numb from the long petting session, shifted slightly, and a few gray-white strands of fur fell to the ground.
It froze, finally realizing⌠*Had it been rubbed so much that its fur fell out?*
Ning Yunyi was completely unaware of this. In an exceptionally good mood, he took out two large bowls of crayfish.
Before heâd put them into his space, they had been freshly cleaned and prepared. Now, they were as fresh as when they were first stored.
Since he wasnât doing a live stream, Ning Yunyi didnât grind the cinnamon, Sichuan peppercorns, and other spices into powder. He left them whole on the side.
For dinner, he planned to have crayfish with noodles.
Little Miao Miao couldnât handle spicy food, so Ning Yunyi decided to make two flavors.
One would be spicy crayfish, and the other garlic butter crayfish.
Once the ingredients were ready, Ning Yunyi first fried some potato strips, then lightly fried the crayfish to make the meat firmer.
After that, he sautĂŠed onions, ginger, garlic, and onion until fragrant, added Douban sauce, hotpot base, chili, Sichuan peppercorns, cinnamon, and other spices to create a red oil. The aroma filled the kitchen as he added the fried crayfish, stirred it for flavor, and poured in beer to let it simmer.
When that was done, he started on the garlic butter version, which was simpler, relying mainly on a large amount of minced garlic for seasoning.
As the garlic butter crayfish simmered, he added the fried potato strips and sliced cucumber to the spicy crayfish pot to simmer together.
Finally, both dishes were ready, and the scent filled the entire kitchen.
At some point, Ning Xiao Miao had come downstairs. He stood there obediently, holding two large bowls, tiptoeing to set them properly.
Once Ning Yunyi had served the food, he boiled a pot of noodles. With everything ready, he led the eager little Miao Miao to the dining room.
The big cat in the cage had been waiting impatiently. From the moment Ning Yunyi appeared, its beastly eyes hadnât left him, gazing enviously at the little human clinging to Ning Yunyi.
For some reason, it felt a sudden urge to become a little accessory clinging to him as well.
The realization jolted it awake, and it shuddered. *Had it fallen this far?*
But⌠the smell of that crayfish was too enticing.
Just when the big cat thought the crayfish with noodles was the ultimate meal, Ning Yunyi returned to the kitchen and, with a quick motion, pulled out a steaming bucket of *Mò Jč* Family Bucket.
Stored just after it had been freshly made, the aroma immediately filled the room when he took it out.
The unique scent, unlike anything the big cat or Ning Xiao Miao had ever experienced, instantly captivated them.
The two stood frozen, staring in the direction of the kitchen. If one looked closely, even their postures and expressions were almost identical: round beast eyes and sparkling green eyes, fully focused.
As Ning Yunyi stepped out of the kitchen, Ning Xiao Miao ran to him, hugging his leg, looking up with a face full of curiosity.
*It smells so good, like the cluck-cluck beast we ate at lunch, but completely different.*
Ning Yunyi set the family bucket aside with a slight smile. No child could resist the temptation of fried chicken.
He placed two empty plates down, giving Ning Xiao Miao the finger-lickinâ original chicken, while he took the spicy wings. He gave the little one just a small amount of mashed potatoes to taste and put the corn and cola back into his space.
Squeezing ketchup onto the empty part of the plate, he finally went to serve the big cat its meal.
The main course was a large bowl of noodles, topped with a generous portion of spicy crayfish, potato strips, cucumber strips, and a few garlic butter crayfish.
Finally, under the big catâs expectant gaze, he placed two pieces of spicy chicken wings on top.
He poured the rich, flavorful crayfish sauce over everything, and the big cat was dazed. This meal smelled even better than the large plate of chicken it had eaten at lunch.
*How could each meal keep getting better and better?* It was starting to seriously consider the idea of being Ning Yunyiâs big cat for life.
Ning Yunyi, in high spirits, returned to find Ning Xiao Miao still sitting obediently, hands on his knees, eyes sparkling with anticipation for both his father and the food.
Ning Yunyi sat down beside him, noticing two pieces of finger-lickinâ chicken added to his plate. Smiling, he patted the little oneâs head and didnât hesitate to accept the childâs offering.
The meal was perfect, leaving the two humans and one cat completely satisfied, sprawled out with full bellies, enjoying the warmth and peace after dinner.
Meanwhile, back at the An family mansion on the main star, there was only gloom.
Antong and Old Master An returned home, both looking utterly exhausted. Once in the study, Antong still hadnât recovered from his grief.
His mind was filled with the sight of Xun Ge lying quietly in the medical pod, surrounded by a completely isolated shielded space to prevent his uncontrollable mental outbursts from causing more casualties.
Antongâs eyes were red as he hoarsely asked his father, who was deep in thought: âIs there really no other way?â
Old Master An shook his head. âWith the Xun familyâs capabilities, if there were another solution, they wouldnât have given up.â
Old Master An sighed. He was just as heartbroken. The An and Xun families had been close for generations. He had grown up with Old Man Xun, and heâd watched Xun Xun grow from a child, graduate, and join the military.
Such a promising young man, and now he was in this state.
If he hadnât gone to show off the good thing heâd just found, he wouldnât have known the Xun family was facing such a tragic situation.
The Xun family had been hiding the incident with their future heir. If word got out, the Xun family would be…
But Old Master An couldnât have imagined that Xun Xun, the most talented and powerful heir of the Xun familyâs generation, had suffered such severe mental disorder and outbursts that even the S-class healing specialists of the interstellar world couldnât alleviate it.
His only hope was to find one of the top three healers in the rankings. If one of them could treat him, there might be a slim chance of survival.
But Xun Xunâs luck was terrible. Half a month ago, those three mysterious healers had left the main star on a secret mission to treat a high-profile figure and hadnât returned.
At first, the Xun family believed Xun Xun could suppress the condition again, but within ten days of being sent back, his body had deteriorated to an irreparable state.
The Xun family had been hiding this for so long, and the pressure on Old Man Xun must have been immense.
Antong wiped his face, thinking of the diagnosis. The final judgment was basically a death sentence, leaving him speechless.
If Xun Xun couldnât survive the next mental outburst, he would either self-destruct or⌠suffer brain death, with his consciousness completely wiped out.
The An and Xun families had been close neighbors. Antong had followed Xun Ge around since he was a child, looking up to him as a hero. The last time they had met was years ago when Xun Xun graduated as an outstanding cadet from the military academy, and now he had become like this.
Thinking about tomorrow, the day of Xun Xunâs final mental outburst, Antong clenched his fists tightly.
He couldnât let Xun Ge go like this. Even if he had to leave, he should at least go with some beautiful memories.
The best thing Antong could think to give him was the taste of Mr. Zongâs cooking.
At the very least, Xun Ge should experience that taste heâd never had before.
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