Chapter 41: Neutering Surgery
It was another bright and pleasant Sunday.
Five days had passed since [The Girls] released their new album.
Although people were still discussing online who the new lead singer, Li Nuo, really was, the topic was gradually losing attention.
After all, there was a new trending topic almost every day on the internet. Aside from The Girls' loyal fans, most gossip-loving netizens had already moved on to discussing other hot topics.
………………
The person everyone was talking about, Li Nuo himself, was currently sitting in front of his computer with his chin resting on one hand.
His eyes were fixed on the laptop screen while his right hand continuously clicked the mouse, refreshing the webpage for the annual Top Songs chart over and over again.
However, no matter how many times he refreshed the page, he still could not find any song from The Girls' new album in the top ten.
Someone once said that the greater the hope, the greater the disappointment.
Back during his chuunibyou phase, he had been an overly confident teenager. At that time, he truly believed that any song he wrote would become a sensation as soon as it was released.
Even now, a small part of him still held onto that belief.
But reality was different. Five days after being released under The Girls' name, his songs had only achieved moderate success, not massive popularity.
Maybe they were missing the right opportunity. Maybe his talent was not enough. In any case, even he did not know what was lacking.
"The annual Top Songs top ten... that's way too hard to reach."
Li Nuo stared at the screen and muttered to himself.
"Carousel" — Rank 95
"Ferris Wheel" — Rank 246
"Puppet" — Rank 351
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Out of the ten songs in the new album, only one song called Carousel had made it into the top 100, reaching rank 95. The rest were all ranked well below that.
As for the song titles, Yu Haoshen and Lin Tian had discussed them and renamed the songs. The titles Li Nuo originally came up with had been far too embarrassing and overly dramatic.
Knock knock knock...
While he was recalling that embarrassing period of his life, a series of urgent knocks on the door pulled him back to reality.
He got up and opened the door.
Standing outside was An Ran'er, looking furious, with a fat black-and-white cat hanging from her hand.
"Uh, Classmate An... what's wrong?"
Li Nuo looked at the girl and the cat in confusion.
"Come with me and you'll find out!"
An Ran'er gritted her teeth before turning around and heading downstairs.
After following her to the first-floor living room, Li Nuo immediately understood what had happened.
The sofa was covered in claw marks, and pieces of cotton stuffing were scattered everywhere.
"This... was Roubao's doing?"
"What else could it be?" An Ran'er replied angrily.
Li Nuo looked at Roubao and found the cat staring at him pitifully from An Ran'er's hand.
Helplessly rubbing his forehead, he admitted defeat.
"Alright. It's my fault for not keeping an eye on him. What do you want me to do, Classmate An?"
Seeing him admit his mistake so quickly, An Ran'er did not know how to respond.
After a brief pause, she coughed awkwardly.
"W-Well... just make sure you watch him better next time."
After saying that, she put Roubao down.
Once released, Roubao did not run away. Instead, he stayed beside An Ran'er's feet and kept rubbing against her legs as if apologizing.
After a while, he ran over and started rubbing against Li Nuo as well, making the scene look rather strange.
Li Nuo simply assumed the cat was trying to apologize.
An Ran'er, however, seemed to think differently.
She watched Roubao thoughtfully before asking:
"Has your cat been neutered?"
"Neutered?"
"From what I can see, your cat looks like he's in heat."
"In heat?"
Li Nuo looked at Roubao in surprise. He had never owned a cat before, so he knew very little about such things.
Thinking back, when he used to live alone, Roubao would run outside every night and only come back at dawn.
But ever since moving into An Ran'er's apartment, he could no longer get out. Every entrance was securely locked, and unlike the old dormitory on the second floor, this apartment was on the fourth floor.
Realizing this, Li Nuo looked at Roubao strangely.
So this guy had been sneaking out every night to chase after female cats?
Seeing how clueless he looked, An Ran'er asked,
"Wait... this is your first time raising a cat, isn't it?"
"Uh... yes."
"In that case, I strongly suggest taking him to get neutered. Otherwise, when he starts yowling at night, forget about whether we can tolerate it, the neighbors will definitely complain."
Li Nuo still looked hesitant.
Seeing this, An Ran'er continued,
"You don't need to think about it anymore. Neutering is also good for him. Cats suffer a lot when they're in heat."
"Well... if that's the case... alright."
After thinking it over, Li Nuo finally accepted her suggestion and decided to take Roubao for the surgery.
At that moment, Roubao had no idea what fate awaited him.
He was still leisurely licking his paw.
After helping An Ran'er clean up all the cotton stuffing scattered around the living room, they took Roubao and headed to a pet hospital.
As for why it was they instead of just Li Nuo, it was because An Ran'er said she wanted to visit her older sister as well.
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Inside the pet hospital.
As soon as An Ran'er entered, she ran to the reception desk and asked where Doctor An was.
Since the hospital belonged to her sister, all the staff knew who An Ran'er was.
After learning that Doctor An was currently performing surgery on another pet, she and Li Nuo obediently sat down in the waiting area.
About ten minutes later, Doctor An finally came out of the operating room wearing a mask and gloves.
After speaking briefly with the receptionist, she headed toward the waiting area.
Seeing her sister approach, An Ran'er immediately stood up happily.
"Big Sis!"
Doctor An removed her mask and smiled.
"What brings you here, Ran?"
"Uh... I brought a friend."
"A friend?"
Doctor An looked toward the person sitting beside An Ran'er and seemed surprised.
"Oh? It's you, the cute little boy from before."
Although Li Nuo was not wearing makeup, a wig, or women's clothing today, his ordinary winter outfit, nearly ear-length brown hair, and slightly red cheeks from the cold still made him look more like a girl than a boy.
"H-Hello."
The moment he saw Doctor An, Li Nuo remembered how she had grabbed his chest during their first meeting, causing his face to turn red.
Doctor An looked at An Ran'er, then at Li Nuo.
As if she had thought of something, she narrowed her eyes and smiled mischievously.
"You two aren't dating, are you?"
The moment those words came out, both Li Nuo and An Ran'er froze. Then they immediately turned to look at each other before hurriedly denying it.
"Big Sis! D-Don't say nonsense! We're just... just ordinary friends."
An Ran'er looked away and puffed up her cheeks in annoyance.
"T-That's right. An and I are really just ordinary friends."
Li Nuo waved his hands nervously.
Seeing their reactions, Doctor An burst into laughter.
"Sorry, sorry. I was just teasing you."
After calming herself down, she asked:
"So, what did you come here for?"
"He wants to get his cat neutered," An Ran'er answered.
"Neutered?"
"Y-Yes. It's him... huh?"
Only then did Li Nuo realize that Roubao had already slipped free from the leash in his hand.
At that moment, Roubao was lying on top of a transparent cat carrier, staring hungrily at the female cat inside.
From time to time, he even scratched at the carrier.
No matter how hard Li Nuo pulled, Roubao refused to move.
In the end, Doctor An had to lure him away with a cat treat.
After being tricked, coaxed, and tempted into the operating room, Roubao finally came back out wearing a collar.
The sparkle in his eyes was gone. His gaze was dull and lifeless. His entire body radiated an overwhelming sense of defeat and depression.