SLLBTT Chapter 59
Translated by Q the Panda (ko-fi)
⋇⊶⊰Chapter 59⊱⊷⋇
Arriving swiftly outside Viscount Bai's manor, the Snow Wolf King and Liu Jiao found the gates tightly closed. It was already midnight, and at this hour, the manor enforced strict security measures. Generally, entrance after midnight was prohibited unless explicitly authorized by Lord Bai.
Liu Jiao only asked the Snow Wolf King, "Did you inform your brother in advance that you're coming?"
"I am the Great King. Do I need to send a message before patrolling my territory?" the Snow Wolf King arrogantly spoke and then stealthily climbed over the wall.
Liu Jiao also followed the Snow Wolf King, agilely scaling the wall to enter Viscount Bai's manor.
Unfortunately, as soon as the two entered, they were discovered by Viscount Bai manor's guards.
That was the Owl Guard hovering along the wall of Viscount Bai's manor. Quite alert, it immediately spotted suspicious individuals climbing over the wall. It swooped down to the ground and loudly exclaimed, "Bold thieves! How dare you trespass into Viscount Bai's manor!"
Seeing the fierce demeanor of the owl, Liu Jiao was about to explain, "No, we are not thieves..."
Before Liu Jiao could finish speaking, the Snow Wolf King punched the owl, rendering it unconscious.
"Hey, Your Highness?" Liu Jiao was somewhat surprised. "Isn't this... not the best approach?"
"He was making a loud commotion, likely to attract other guards. If more people come, our identities could be exposed," calmly explained the Snow Wolf King. "The owl mentioned there are several bird guards in Viscount Bai's manor. Let's proceed cautiously."
The Snow Wolf King and Liu Jiao proceeded with utmost caution, only alerting approximately seven or eight bird guards along the way. Before the Snow Wolf King could speak, Liu Jiao swiftly incapacitated each one with a resounding slap.
The Snow Wolf King was somewhat surprised. "I thought you might hesitate."
"Not at all," Liu Jiao replied. "I enjoy playing with birds the most."
It seems that, whether big or small, felines share similar little hobbies. Perhaps there was no cat in the world that doesn't enjoy playing with birds!
Liu Jiao and the Snow Wolf King reached Viscount Bai's room, leaving a trail of incapacitated bird guards in their wake.
Bai Lingling, being the gifted divine snow wolf, quickly sensed the arrival of these unexpected guests. Before Liu Jiao could knock, Bai Lingling had already opened the door with a question, "It's quite late. What brings you here?"
Liu Jiao couldn't recall the purpose of their visit. He glanced at the scattered feathers and said, "It seems... we came to play with the birds."
"?" Bai Lingling furrowed his brows, a hint of confusion in his expression.
Liu Jiao, also puzzled, shook his head. "Oh, I remember now. We came specifically to inquire about Lord Bai's eye ailment."
"Eye ailment?" Bai Lingling was taken aback. "What eye ailment?"
After scrutinizing Bai Lingling for a moment, Liu Jiao also felt puzzled. He turned to the Snow Wolf King and asked, "Didn't you say your brother is blind? He doesn't seem blind. His eyes are shiny and lively."
Bai Lingling thought to himself, "My useless older brother is playing tricks on me again."
However, the Snow Wolf King slowly explained to Bai Lingling, "Xiao Jiao and I are currently undercover on the side of Poisonous Me..."
Bai Lingling was surprised. "Undercover? Why?"
"To uncover the truth behind the assassination case," replied the Snow Wolf King.
"Isn't that something the police should handle?"
"You're right, but I want to be personally involved."
"I bet you're just bored," Bai Lingling said.
Ignoring that remark, the Snow Wolf King continued, "Xiao Jiao and I are assisting the Ragdoll Fairy there."
"Ragdoll Fairy?" Bai Lingling raised an eyebrow. "What does that have to do with him?"
"His boss is the boss of Poisonous Me. Didn't you know?"
Bai Lingling was somewhat surprised. "I didn't know. I thought he owned 'All Cats Entertainment Company'?"
"The boss behind 'All Cats Entertainment Company' is Big Orange Brother," the Snow Wolf King explained. "But that's not important."
"Why isn't it important?" Bai Lingling was quite concerned about the Ragdoll Fairy's involvement in shady activities.
"We saw your catnip at the Ragdoll Fairy's place."
Bai Lingling was taken aback. "What are you talking about?"
Liu Jiao chimed in, "Yeah, and also the anglerfish—"
Mentioning the "anglerfish," Bai Lingling's face unexpectedly turned a bit red. "You talk to me about grass and fish in the middle of the night? You should be at the Flower, Bird, Fish, and Insect Market."
The Snow Wolf King countered, "I'm just worried you're being deceived. The Ragdoll Fairy is not a good character."
Hearing this, Bai Lingling felt as if he'd been slapped in the face. A mix of embarrassment and anger surged inside him. "How long have you known him? How do you know he's not good?"
"And how long have you known him to be so sure he's good?"
Bai Lingling retorted, "What's that got to do with you?"
Seeing Bai Lingling seemingly troubled, the Snow Wolf King said to Liu Jiao, "It's not good for us to be out for too long. We promised Big Orange Brother to keep an eye on the Ragdoll Fairy for 24 hours. You go back to the set first, and I'll follow shortly."
Liu Jiao nodded and obediently walked away.
Once Liu Jiao left, the Snow Wolf King asked Bai Lingling, "Is it related to the incident when you went missing before?"
Bai Lingling was taken aback. "W-what are you talking about...?"
"Since you were found after going missing, you developed a fondness for cats," the Snow Wolf King said. "You even started learning the technique of growing catnip."
"I..." Bai Lingling was momentarily speechless.
Many years ago, Bai Lingling did indeed go missing once, causing great concern. If he had been smaller in his wolf form, it would have been easier to locate him. Divine snow wolves, due to their larger size, could roam freely. Unfortunately, his disappearance occurred during the vulnerable early stages of adopting humanoid forms. At that time, Bai Lingling had just transformed into a human, his demonic powers unstable and fragile. It was precisely during this period of rebellion and conflict with his family that he ran away from home. Fearing his family would quickly find him, he roamed the sparsely populated mountains, only to encounter an attack by a pack of hyenas.
The hyenas had no idea their prey was a snow wolf because, at this point, Bai Lingling emitted weak demonic energy, in a human form lacking the agility of a demon. Fleeing from the attack, Bai Lingling accidentally tumbled off a cliff.
Fortunately, being a divine snow wolf, the fall off the cliff didn't kill him. When he woke up, he discovered his vision and sense of smell were significantly impaired. Everything appeared blurry, and his nose could hardly detect any scents. The doctors explained that this was a lingering effect of the head injury he sustained.
The one who saved him seemed to be a young boy, but Bai Lingling couldn't see clearly. The boy claimed to have found him by the mountainside and brought him home. Like Bai Lingling, the boy was taciturn but possessed a unique gentleness. Bai Lingling was gradually moved by him. In the beginning, the boy would ask, "What do you want to eat?" since he noticed he had no appetite.
Bai Lingling replied, "I want to eat a whole roasted lamb."
"Baa???!!——Baa uh meow——meow meow meow…..." the boy said, "Actually, I'm a cat demon."
"You're a cat?"
"Can you smell the cat demon scent on me?"
Bai Lingling shook his head with great regret. "I can hardly smell anything now."
"Oh."
"I can't see things clearly either." Bai Lingling squinted, trying hard to discern the boy's appearance. However, all he could vaguely make out was the boy's fair, snow-like skin. Beyond that, everything was blurred. "Are you a white cat?"
After some thought, the boy replied, "Close enough."
After his vision impairment, Bai Lingling's hearing became exceptionally sharp. His ears twitched as he asked, "Are you chewing on grass?"
The boy swallowed and said, "Um... yes."
"Do cats eat grass?"
The boy coughed twice and said, "Yes. I'm... I'm a ragdoll cat. I have a sensitive stomach, so I often chew catnip."
Bai Lingling remembered that. The boy then asked if Bai Lingling remembered his family. At the time, he was in conflict with his family and didn't want to reveal the truth, so he claimed to have gotten separated.
The boy's family also took in Bai Lingling for a while. Later, the boy's stepmother, disapproving of Bai Lingling as a disabled individual, decided not to keep him and abandoned him at the doorstep of an orphanage. Early in the morning, the staff found a person lying on the road, quickly brought him in for examination, and the discovery during the examination was astonishing—they found him to be a divine snow wolf. Startled, they promptly reported it to the authorities, and this way, Bai Lingling was able to return home.
Back in the divine snow wolf tribe, the tribe's doctors explained that Bai Lingling's temporary loss of consciousness was a normal occurrence during transformation, similar to a computer malfunction fixed by a few kicks. So, Bai Lingling's parents gave him a good kicking, and eventually, he recovered.
Once Bai Lingling was well, he harbored a deep desire to see the ragdoll boy again but had no leads. However, Bai Lingling's parents insisted that he would marry a snow wolf in the future and shouldn't think about anything else. Despite Bai Lingling secretly sending servants to find the ragdoll boy, his parents covertly obstructed every attempt.
Left with no other choice, Bai Lingling spent each day growing catnip, hoarding cat food, and watching cat videos to console himself.
"By the time my parents could no longer stop me, too many years had passed," Bai Lingling said, wearied. "I had almost given up hope."
Listening to this story, the Snow Wolf King showed no interest, even contemplating a yawn. However, he asked, "And then? How did you find this Ragdoll Fairy?"
"My servants found him," Bai Lingling replied. "He said it was him."
The Snow Wolf King frowned. "Is 'he said' conclusive evidence?"
"We have a token of our affection," Bai Lingling said, pulling out a jade pendant from his hand. "This pendant was originally a pair, a birth gift from my mother. She wanted me to give the other half to my future wife. At that time, I had nothing else left, only this pair of jade pendants. So, I gave one to the ragdoll boy. In fact, at that moment, I had already decided that he would be my future wife."
"And then?"
"Initially, the servants claimed that the Ragdoll Fairy was the person I was looking for. So, I became the consultant for 'Domineering Wolf King and Charming Cat Consort.' During my time on set, I saw the Ragdoll Fairy wearing the same jade pendant, finally confirming it," Bai Lingling explained.
"Oh," the Snow Wolf King nodded. "Did you ask him about it?"
"I did."
"How did he respond?"
"He admitted that it was him back then. He explained that two years prior, his family fell victim to the marauding bandits from the Hyena Mountains. His parents were killed, leaving him destitute. He had to resort to livestreaming for a living. Luckily, he gained popularity later, signed with a company, and is now a celebrity," Bai Lingling paused before continuing, "That's roughly the story."
The Snow Wolf King furrowed his brow. "Raided by bandits and then became an internet sensation?"
"I'm not clear on the specific details. This incident had a profound impact on him. Every time I pressed for details, he would start crying," Bai Lingling said helplessly. "I don't dare to inquire further. You know, ragdolls are very timid and fragile."
However, the Snow Wolf King said, "It sounds very..."
"It sounds like a tragic tale, doesn't it?" Bai Lingling was quite moved by it.
"It sounds like a scam," the Snow Wolf King said indifferently. "I'm concerned you might be deceived for money or affection."
Bai Lingling, feeling offended, retorted, "Are you serious? What about that snow leopard jinx you found? Isn't he much worse? He cheats on exams, so he probably won't be faithful in love either!"
Talking about others was one thing, but the Snow Wolf King particularly disliked hearing negative comments about his snow leopard. However, Bai Lingling also had no tolerance for others speaking ill of his dream lover.
Unsurprisingly, the two snow wolves began to fight.