A Cat or a Dog

Dogs are often hailed as humanity’s finest companions, lauded for their unwavering loyalty and their inherent inability to betray their masters.

Though Mu Yaochen had always envisioned training Luo Yao like a dog, his reactions today made her feel as if he were increasingly resembling a cat.

He was aloof, almost uncommunicative.

Even when Mu Yaochen employed forceful tactics to make him do her bidding, he would invariably display an air of reluctant unwillingness.

Unless his compliance was truly voluntary, Mu Yaochen found herself deeply unsettled.

Pushing aside the recent vexations concerning Su Mengqi, Mu Yaochen descended to the first-floor dining room.

As she had anticipated, Luo Yao sat quietly in his accustomed seat.

Tonight’s dinner was a modest affair, a simple spread of home-cooked dishes.

Yet, despite their humble designation, the presentation of each dish was remarkably enticing.

“Eat,” Mu Yaochen uttered, her voice laced with a weariness that belied her usual demeanor as she settled into the chair opposite Luo Yao.

She found herself utterly devoid of the desire to toy with him tonight.

Furthermore, responsibilities from her company awaited.

After a hurried meal, she lingered for a brief moment, her gaze resting silently upon Luo Yao, before quietly excusing herself.

Though Luo Yao felt a twinge of discomfort under Mu Yaochen’s prolonged scrutiny, he had, by now, grown accustomed to it.

He found solace in the fact that she had made no further demands of him during dinner; a few extra glances were hardly a burden.

Once Mu Yaochen had ascended to the second floor, Luo Yao no longer caught sight of her on the ground floor.

Seizing the opportunity of her absence, he retrieved the mobile phone from its box.

As he gazed at the pristine device, a subtle unease gnawed at him.

Frost, after all, had already laid her cards on the table, explicitly stating the phone had been tampered with.

Upon powering it on, Luo Yao discovered the phone boasted a full suite of functionalities.

To the naked eye, there appeared to be absolutely nothing amiss with the device.

After connecting to the internet, he systematically downloaded the applications he typically used.

However, for communication platforms like WeChat, he would require new accounts, as his previous phone and SIM card were lost somewhere unknown.

These social accounts necessitated receiving SMS verification on the original phone for login, and without his identification card on hand, reapplying for new ones would prove exceedingly difficult.

A wave of frustration washed over Luo Yao, realizing that all his previously remembered contacts and phone numbers were now inaccessible; essentially, he was starting his digital life from scratch.

Concurrently, Luo Yao remained uncertain of Mu Yaochen’s next directive.

He had also been surprised by her decision to provide him with money, a meager sum though it was, yet sufficient to sustain his precarious existence.

Despite the daunting task of earning three hundred thousand within three months, Luo Yao harbored a quiet confidence in his ability to achieve it.

Should all else fail, his only recourse would be to seek assistance from Su Mengqi.

A memory stirred within him then, compelling Luo Yao to recall the scene outside Longda Shopping Mall earlier that morning.

Witnessing Su Mengqi, that foolish woman, bravely confront Frost, a woman of such imposing height and build, had been both remarkably foolish and yet, inexplicably endearing.

However, Su Mengqi was also prone to excessive fantasizing, though it hardly mattered now, considering his own dire circumstances.

Luo Yao now felt like a ghost haunting his own body, neither truly human nor fully alive.

While Mu Yaochen’s methods of ‘training’ him were undeniably humiliating, they had yet to shatter the core of his dignity.

He had often contemplated the potential repercussions had he fallen into the hands of other women at that critical juncture.

****

‘Would I have been beaten into unconsciousness?’

‘Perhaps I would have perished that very night, for I recall being gravely ill that day.’

At this very moment, Luo Yao found himself entertaining the bizarre notion that Mu Yaochen’s actions might, perhaps, stem from a peculiar form of pity for him.

Through their interactions over this period, Luo Yao had observed that if Mu Yaochen genuinely desired to compel him into an action he resisted, she would not, in fact, force him.

Yet, the inescapable truth of the shock collar she had placed upon him was something Luo Yao found utterly unforgivable.

Her constant weaponization of the device to threaten him served as undeniable proof of her truly vile character.

Just as Luo Yao’s thoughts began to wander, Frost materialized behind him, her presence as silent and unexpected as ever.

“This is the SIM card I prepared for you,” Frost stated, her voice as devoid of emotion as usual.

“Oh… alright, thank you,” Luo Yao replied, unsurprised by Frost’s stoic demeanor.

He had long grown accustomed to her unvarying personality; as long as she harbored no ill will toward him, he found it tolerable.

“If there’s nothing else, you may rest. Should you wish to shower, there’s a private bathroom within the guest room,” Frost announced, her gaze briefly sweeping over Luo Yao before she lifted her head.

“Understood,” Luo Yao murmured, offering a slight nod.

The previous night, before retiring, he had indeed noted the presence of a private shower and toilet in his assigned guest room, a convenience he appreciated.

‘But the time…’

Luo Yao instinctively glanced at the wall clock; it was already eight o’clock.

He recalled Mu Yaochen ascending to the second floor around six.

Frost, however, did not linger by Luo Yao’s side, for she had her own duties to attend to.

As for Luo Yao, he proceeded to insert the SIM card into his new phone, then meticulously began the process of re-registering all his social media accounts.

Once finished, Luo Yao retreated to his room with the phone, ensuring the door was securely locked behind him.

“Mother, you truly just handed my brother over to that woman?”

****

Meanwhile, at the Luo family residence.

The house felt exceptionally desolate that day.

Though the dining table was adorned with several appetizing dishes and a bottle of expensive baijiu (TL Note: A strong Chinese liquor, often distilled from sorghum), half of the bottle was already consumed.

The woman seated at the head of the table glowed with a distinct flush, clearly under the influence of alcohol.

Adding to the atmosphere, the faint luminescence from the ceiling lamp cast an unsettling sense of bleakness throughout the room.

At the dinner table, Luo Tingting glared resentfully at the woman across from her.

Just that afternoon, Luo Tingting’s mother had finalized an agreement with Mu Yaochen.

Luo Tingting was unaware of the precise terms of the agreement, but she had gleaned enough to understand it concerned her brother.

“So what if I did?” Luo’s Mother slurred, her voice trembling slightly as she swayed with the effects of the alcohol.

“He… he’s your own son! He… he’s my brother!” Luo Tingting exclaimed, watching her mother’s befuddled state.

She yearned to approach and shake her, but lacked the courage to rise from her seat.

“I know, I know,” Luo’s Mother mumbled incoherently in response to Luo Tingting.

Luo’s Father, not being the head of the household, deferred to Luo’s Mother’s decisions on such matters.

Gazing at her inebriated mother, Luo Tingting felt no resentment.

She understood all too well the arduous struggle of survival within Fanhai City.

Their family’s financial situation was already dire, with all their former savings having been squandered.

The outstanding mortgage and car loans loomed as significant burdens.

Had Mu Yaochen not intervened today, the very future of their family would have been cast into profound uncertainty.

Thus, Luo Tingting could only remain silent in her seat.

Concurrently, maintaining a profound silence, was Su Mengqi, lying in a hospital bed.

At this moment, Su Mengqi gazed at the moon in the night sky, her mind consumed by the image of Luo Yao’s expression outside the shopping mall that morning.

That pleading look, seared into her memory, refused to dissipate.

‘Wait for me, Luo Yao.’