The ID photo on the booklet immediately reminded Kong Fanyang of the little blackboard outside a cat café that invites cats. The feeling of these two things was almost identical!
Although the ID photo was taken seriously, it did not clash with the overall atmosphere of the cat café. The booklet's cover was made of thin, carved wood, delicately bordered on all sides, and the cover depicted a cat pouncing on a butterfly. The overall color scheme was very dreamy.
When you open the inner pages, the employee cats' appearances were stunning, and they wore other accessories that completely broke the solemnity of the ID photos. Instead, under the blue background, they appeared to be cutely pretending to be serious.
Pei Shiyi said very seriously, "This is our cat café's employee introduction."
The more serious he was, the more Kong Fanyang wanted to laugh. Hugging Fondant, he burst into a crazed goose-like laughter: "...I, I'm not mocking, I just think it's too cute, hahaha."
Fondant didn't understand human humor and looked at him blankly: "Meow?" Did I look ugly in the photo?
Pei Shiyi turned to another page of the album, different from the few centimeter-long "ID photos" before. This page only had one large-sized photo, which was of Fondant.
The snow-white little fairy was wearing a pink lace collar, with a sweet sleeping face. Various dessert decorations were scattered on the beige blanket underneath her, and a plush paw pressed on a macaron toy, revealing a bit of pink paw pad. The serene beauty of the moment was unrestrainedly emanating from the corners of the photo.
Kong Fanyang's laughter came to an abrupt halt.
What kind of absolute little fairy is this, too sweet!
Still laughing? Laughing my ass!
Kong Fanyang, in a daze, hugged the fairy cat tightly: "Boss, forgive my ignorance as a mere mortal."
Kong Fanyang took many photos in the cat café and said, "By the way, boss, I have a designer competition with a theme that matches this cat café style. I thought I was going to miss the competition this time, but I didn’t expect to be able to create this style. So, can I use the cat café as my material to sign up? Don't worry, I will definitely put your name on it, and if I win, we'll split the prize money fifty-fifty."
Kong Fanyang asked nervously, "Is that okay?"
Pei Shiyi replied, "Of course, you can take photos directly if you need materials."
Kong Fanyang was extremely grateful and pulled out the camera he had prepared in advance, climbing high and low to get the best shots.
He spent the entire morning just taking photos. Seeing how hard he was working, Pei Shiyi invited him to have some breakfast and even gave him some sweets from the cat café when he left.
"You came here so early, it must have been hard. Have something sweet to recharge," Pei Shiyi said, tying a ribbon around the packaging box and adding a small acrylic cat decoration.
Kong Fanyang accepted it with gratitude. He had received expensive desserts from others before, but for some reason, anything this boss casually gave him made him feel honored.
Besides, he was quite hungry after taking so many photos.
Pei Shiyi smiled and saw Kong Fanyang off. Just after 9:30, Long Que arrived, following behind Bo Jin.
She had news about the recruitment Pei Shiyi had asked her to handle.
As soon as Long Que walked in, before she could discuss the business, she was stunned by the freshly renovated store: "Did I walk into the wrong place..." The environment was so sweet and fairy-like!
She thought her senior would decorate it in a traditional Chinese style, but it turned out like this!
Bright and warm, just like the impression her senior gave.
Pei Shiyi said, "Of course, you didn't go to the wrong place. Come in, it's sunny outside."
Long Que responded, "Huh?" It was only May, and today was overcast. The temperature was quite pleasant even for humans.
Bo Jin had already walked in familiarly. During the renovation of the cat café, he came every day. The daily changes in the café were all in his eyes, so he wasn't surprised at the completed look now.
Pei Shiyi was annoyed by Bo Jin's familiarity as if he were entering his own home, but considering there was a lady present, he decided to ignore it. His attention was caught by the fluffy ball in Bo Jin's arms as he glanced at him.
"Hold on."
Pei Shiyi reached out to stop Bo Jin, leisurely moving in front of him.
Bo Jin's eyes lowered. Given Pei Shiyi's stature, he was a bit too thin, with a narrow chest and a frame that seemed not fully grown. His wrist bones were sharply defined, with a noticeable red mark around his left ring finger, making his pale skin appear even colder and whiter.
Based on appearance alone, Pei Shiyi was the type to easily evoke compassion.
His gaze was so direct, it could bring the dead to life.
Pei Shiyi suddenly lifted his eyelids and glanced at him, half-smiling, "What, is the Director suddenly infatuated with my beauty today?"
As soon as he spoke, the "pitiful and cute" impression his appearance created was shattered, becoming lively and prickly.
Bo Jin replied, "After all, you are quite cute when you don't speak."
Pei Shiyi straightened up with a blank expression, "Same to you."
However, when facing the little furball in Bo Jin's arms, Pei Shiyi's expression immediately softened into a gentle smile.
The little furball had fluffy fur, resembling a freshly baked little cake from afar, with a honey-golden color and deep green round eyes. Its big face looked very pinchable, yet its expression was quite serious. Although it looked young, its sitting posture was very proper, exuding a sense of seriousness.
It looked very much like a British Shorthair Golden Chinchilla, a beautiful little boy.
Long Que quickly explained, "He's a Bi'an, his nickname is Songgao, and his formal name is Lu Zhang. Senior, you can just call him Songgao with us."
Bi'an, one of the nine sons of the dragon, resembles a fierce tiger, capable of distinguishing between loyalty and treachery, and inherently hates evil. In today's world, where spiritual energy is sparse, such divine creatures are extremely rare. How could one be casually carried around like this? Moreover, with Pei Shiyi's discerning eye, he could tell at a glance that this little Bi'an named Songgao had pure blood, but was a bit weak and not in great health.
Shouldn't it be more carefully protected?
Pei Shiyi gave Long Que a puzzled look.
Long Que quickly explained, "This little one is the last of his family. Although he's still young, he is a Bi'an, and he was weak from birth. He needs dragon energy to nourish him in the short term, but..."
She looked troubled, "Senior, you know that divine beasts like dragons and phoenixes are rare nowadays. Most of the ones we can find are single and can't even take care of themselves, let alone a child. We couldn't find a suitable dragon in time, so we had to entrust the child to the Director... And since the Director is coming to you... so..."
While Long Que spoke, Pei Shiyi had already bent down and shaken hands with Songgao. The little Bi'an was still young, and his fur retained the unique softness of a cub. Once he grew up, his beautiful fur would no longer be soft but tougher and more prickly, and the black stripes would become fully visible. By then, Songgao would be a big tiger.
"So you want me to take care of him for two months?" Bo Jin was going to stay with him for two more months, and after those two months, his mutual torment with Bo Jin would come to an end.
“No, no,” Long Que quickly shook her head. “Songgao’s situation is special. Before his body stabilizes, he’s not suitable for attending kindergarten. But we also can’t have him completely isolated from other beings, so we thought, if Songgao can adapt, he could attend the full-day care class here.”
Even if Bo Jin doesn’t stay at the cat café all day, Pei Shiyi will be here, and he’s a real mythical beast, a phoenix, who brings blessings. Having Songgao spend time with Pei Shiyi might even be better than being carried around by the bureau chief all day.
Pei Shiyi said, “Hello Songgao, I’m Pei Shiyi, the owner of the cat café. There are also some other big brothers and sisters here. Would you like to meet them?”
Pei Shiyi was well aware of Long Que’s thoughts—after all, even though Songgao is a young Bi'an, no matter how mature and serious he may be, he still needs friends. Otherwise, when he grows up, he’ll face social issues if he wants to integrate into human society. Besides, what if this adorable little cat ends up with a personality like Bo Jin’s?
Long Que looked at Songgao with great expectation and whispered, “Baby, go for it! Don’t be afraid.”
With a serious little furry face, Songgao responded to Long Que’s encouragement with polite but distanced words: “...Thank you, Auntie, I’m not afraid.”
Pei Shiyi waved at the few big cats who had been hiding on the stairs, peeking secretly, “A new little friend is here. Come down and say hello.”
Unexpectedly discovered, Tongqian slipped and fell down the stairs, sprawling in an undignified manner before quickly getting up and walking off as if nothing had happened.
The commotion caught Songgao’s attention, and he glanced at Tongqian with a faint hint of disdain: Why does this big brother seem a bit dumb...
Yun Chao then slowly descended the stairs, her long cloud-like fur catching Long Que’s eyes, which lit up in amazement.
Following closely behind Yun Chao was the store manager, Yolk, who was still in his dad mode, carrying two little tortoiseshell kittens on his back.
Fondant, who had been sleeping on the bar, rubbed against Pei Shiyi’s sleeve without even opening her eyes.
Long Que was surprised to see so many cats gathered around to watch the little Bi'an, only now realizing how many cats there were in the café: “There are already so many cats... Is your cat café about to open?”
Pei Shiyi, sitting on a high stool with one hand propping up his face, smiled and replied, “Yes, the pastry chef and waitstaff were interviewed yesterday, and we’ll open next week.”
He had created an official account for the cat café on a social platform, posted some photos, and even did a bit of promotion. His main target was the university town next door, where many young students with time and money liked to follow trends. For them, coming to a cat café would definitely be a good way to pass the time.
Long Que was dumbfounded, not expecting Pei Shiyi to be so well-prepared so quickly.
But upon closer inspection, she realized that the cat café was indeed in a pre-opening state.
The sign had been replaced. The four characters "Xián Chán Mǎo Kāfēi" were in a mint green color, and with the contrasting background, a fresh and leisurely vibe naturally spread out, causing passersby to stop and take pictures.
The curtains were all drawn open, and the unique décor had already drawn many passersby to peek in, with some even knocking to inquire about the opening date.
The air was filled with the aroma of baked sweets, as the chef was familiarizing himself with the menu in the kitchen. Clean plates were on the table, which had been sent out for people to taste...
“Let’s leave Songgao here for a while,” Pei Shiyi said as he accepted a matcha mille-feuille from the chef and casually handed Bo Jin a stack of flyers with a smile. “You can help me hand out flyers.”
Long Que looked horrified.
Bo Jin: “...What if I refuse?”
Pei Shiyi raised an eyebrow slowly, “Are you saying you’d resist to the death? That’s useless, your Songgao is here with me. But for the sake of employees’ families, I can be lenient. You can have others taste the food, and I’ll hand out the flyers.”
Bo Jin: “........”
Long Que was even more horrified: Are they really not going to fight?
Bo Jin lowered his eyes and thought for a moment, then, after two seconds of weighing the choice between “taking the child and leaving now and never being able to pet cats again” and “helping out for the sake of a rare animal,” he finally chose the latter.
So, a few minutes later, two particularly eye-catching young men walked out of the cat café one after the other. The one handing out flyers was all smiles, soon attracting a crowd of girls.
...
Kong Fanyang returned home with the smell of cats on him, only to be rewarded with a series of kicks from his master. He didn’t bother to coax him and dove into his studio to open his photo-editing software.
He had taken more than twenty photos in one go, and now he was having a hard time choosing the best ones to edit—he thought they were all beautiful, but he couldn’t possibly post all of them, could he?
In the end, after much painful deliberation, Kong Fanyang picked a few of the best photos and uploaded them to the website.
The remaining photos, he also edited and posted on his work account.
As a somewhat well-known interior designer, Kong Fanyang had always worked with modern minimalist styles. But over time, he grew tired of it, so he took a vacation to seek inspiration, never expecting to stumble upon the cat café’s décor online.
Kong Fanyang, a seasoned cat lover, and eager to try new styles, immediately agreed to the cat café owner’s request after seeing it.
He himself didn’t expect the results to be so good.
After uploading the photos, Kong Fanyang contentedly hugged his still angry cat and fell into a deep sleep.
Kong Fanyang slept until the afternoon, waking up with a rumbling stomach. Just as he picked up his phone to order takeout, he was startled by the flood of messages on his screen.
What happened while he was sleeping?
Kong Fanyang didn’t bother brushing his teeth or washing his face and quickly grabbed his phone to check the replies.
His parents didn’t send any messages, but his master bombarded him with over a dozen texts, asking if he had been possessed or reincarnated, wondering why his style had changed so drastically. The rest of the messages were from classmates and former colleagues, all asking about the place he had decorated.
So, Kong Fanyang calmly replied to his master first: Nope (sweat emoji), it’s just a cat café. If I had used my old style, the owner would probably have killed me.
Master: A cat café! Where is it? I have to go see it just for the environment!
After enduring a few more minutes of his master’s bombardment, Kong Fanyang quickly gave the address and opening time of the cat café, even sending along the cat photos he had taken.
Master: Wow, that big white cat is so beautiful! What breed is it? A Chinchilla?
Kong Fanyang quickly replied: No, it’s a Lion Cat, a Chinese breed, though it seems purebreds are hard to find now. This one has exceptional features; it’s even more beautiful in person than in the photos.
Master: It’s stunning. I never realized cats could be so gorgeous. I have to visit next week to see the cats and the décor!
Kong Fanyang eagerly replied: I’ll accompany you, Master.
Having appeased his master, Kong Fanyang shuffled to the fridge in his slippers, pulled out a dessert, and was pleasantly surprised by the rich, sweet creaminess—it tasted just as good as the cakes from his usual bakery. For a cat café, the quality of these desserts was quite impressive.
Kong Fanyang was now determined to advertise the cat café. With such delicious desserts and cats to pet, how could it go unnoticed?!
He picked up his phone, logged into his account, and posted the café’s address and opening details on the homepage, along with a half-eaten piece of cake and a couple of cat photos, even tagging the cat café’s official account, which had only a few followers.
His account had a high percentage of active followers, many of whom were classmates and colleagues. Shortly after posting, comments started rolling in, mostly inquiries about the décor.
The cat café’s design was so beautiful that people couldn’t tell if it was European or Chinese—it was uniquely dreamy, a stark contrast to Kong Fanyang’s usual design style.
As he scrolled through the comments, several people had already declared that they must visit the cat café just for its décor.
Kong Fanyang took a sip of his drink, a smile of satisfaction spreading across his face.
------------------------
Buy Me Ko-fi
The author has something to say: Pei Shiyi and Bo Jin—if they’re not fighting, they’re on the verge of fighting.