After dinner, people like Zhang Jian who had worked all day went home to rest.
Shen Xin had rested during the day, so he definitely had to work the night shift.
Chen Chao left too, and he might not come back tomorrow.
The criminal investigation division was just as busy.
This case felt like it had fizzled out, stuck in limbo and making everyone miserable.
However, as the night got busy, Shen Xin didn't have time to think about the case.
He worked through the night in a daze and only headed home at dawn.
Mindful of Da Mei's favorability level, Shen Xin made a special detour to a pet store to buy some canned food.
He also got some of that freeze-dried fish.
This way, he wouldn't be going home empty-handed.
It was like going out to hunt and returning with delicious food.
'Da Mei's eyes will be filled with adoration when she sees me!'
After leaving the pet store, Shen Xin walked all the way home. It was only when he was standing at his front door that he suddenly remembered something.
Back at the pet store, he'd had the nagging feeling he'd forgotten something important.
Now he remembered.
'When I left yesterday, I forgot to set up a litter box for Da Mei!'
'I'm so screwed!'
Shen Xin hurriedly fumbled for his keys and opened the door.
Although it had only been a day, given the amount Da Mei pooped, he figured she'd probably gone everywhere.
His biggest fear was that she had done it in some nook or cranny.
She was a stray cat, after all, so she would choose a hidden spot to do her business.
The door opened, and Shen Xin, bracing himself for the smell of piss and shit, was surprised to find no strange odor inside.
Da Mei was curled up asleep on the sofa. Hearing the noise, she looked up at him, yawned, hopped off the sofa, stretched lazily, and then came over to rub against Shen Xin's leg.
"Da Mei, did you poop? Where'd you do it?" Shen Xin asked, crouching down.
He didn't feel it was unreasonable to ask her directly. He just felt that Da Mei was exceptionally smart, as if she could understand everything.
Da Mei meowed twice, as if remembering something, and turned to walk into the bathroom.
Then, to Shen Xin's utter disbelief, she hopped onto the toilet, lowered her rear, followed by the sound of a SPLASH.
Shen Xin almost cried out.
'This cat's a genius!'
He walked over and saw a string of round pellets floating in the toilet bowl.
When he hadn't prepared a litter box, Da Mei had actually found the toilet and used it.
'She must have seen me use the toilet yesterday.'
"You're just too smart."
Shen Xin ruffled the fur on her head and quickly opened a can of food for her.
'In that case, I don't even need to get a litter box.'
'With a litter box, I'd have to scoop poop. It's so much more convenient for her to go straight into the toilet.'
'No, wait. She still has her three little ones. She'll have to teach the kittens to use litter.'
Thinking of the three little ones, Shen Xin's expression changed, and he rushed up to the second floor.
'Da Mei might be a genius, but those three little ones certainly don't know how to use the toilet.'
The three kittens were fast asleep on the summer quilt.
Shen Xin leaned in for a closer look and grimaced.
A few pale yellow stains.
'No doubt about it, they'd peed on it.'
'One of the puddles was particularly yellow. Someone's a little dehydrated, huh?'
Luckily there was no poop. At this stage, the mother cat eats the kittens' feces.
'But I definitely need to get them a proper bed.'
Shen Xin immediately went online and ordered a large, deluxe cat bed.
When he went back downstairs, Da Mei had already devoured her canned food. She glanced at him, her eyes seeming to say, 'Not bad. I'm satisfied.'
The icon above her head had indeed risen back to 8 bars.
'Looks like nothing beats a good meal.'
After showering, he lay down in bed and searched for ways to get closer to his cat. He didn't read for long before he was overcome with exhaustion and fell asleep.
Drifting off to sleep, Shen Xin felt like he had thought of something, but before he could figure out what it was, he was dead asleep.
Then, in his hazy state, he seemed to have a dream. He dreamed of the middle-aged woman named He Cuimei, who kept telling him, "No."
She was like a giant shadow, growing larger and larger, repeating "No" at him. Every time she said it, he would shrink a little.
Shen Xin instinctively tried to run, and as he did, a single-molded bowl suddenly appeared before him.
A bowl!
Shen Xin woke with a jolt and shot upright.
'That's right, the bowl!'
It was clearly a cat bowl, or maybe a dog bowl.
But it was covered in dust, not in use.
And there were no signs that He Cuimei's family owned a cat or a dog.
Her son worked at an electronics factory, was dead tired all the time, and lived like a slob. He probably didn't have the time or energy to raise a cat or dog.
There was no cat or dog food in his room.
'So who used this bowl?'
'It couldn't have been Wu Zhicun.'
Then there was only one possibility: the tenant!
MEOW.
It was Da Mei, who had at some point lain down beside him. Startled awake by his sudden movement, she lazily rolled over and went back to sleep.
Shen Xin paid her no mind, the possibility seeming more and more likely the more he thought about it.
There was no cage in the yard, so it was most likely a cat.
'If the suspect had a cat, they would've had to buy cat food and litter. They might have gone to a nearby pet store. Even if they bought it online, they'd have to receive deliveries. If I ask at the nearby delivery points, someone might remember them.'
This could be a lead.
Shen Xin got out of bed, somewhat excited, and glanced at the time. It was just past twelve noon.
'I've only been asleep for a few hours.'
Shen Xin thought about contacting Zhang Jian to tell him about this development.
But he figured Zhang Jian and Li Dongsheng were resting at this hour, and since he wasn't sure yet, he decided to go and confirm it himself first.
Hailing a taxi, Shen Xin headed straight for Xianghong Village.
To number 113 again.
The courtyard gate was still open. As he stepped inside, he happened upon He Cuimei hanging laundry.
"Officer, you're here again." She was much more polite now. Then she pointed to Wu Zhicun's room and whispered, "Are you here for him again? After you left yesterday, he was crying one moment and shouting the next, like he'd gone crazy. It was terrifying."
Shen Xin glanced at Wu Zhicun's room. There was no sound. He first asked He Cuimei if she owned a cat or a dog.
"No, we don't."
He Cuimei shook her head.
"Then whose bowl is this?" Shen Xin asked, pointing to it.
He Cuimei stared blankly for a moment before saying, "Oh, I remember now. It was that young man you're looking for, right? I think he was feeding a cat. I came home one night and saw a cat eating here. I saw it once during the day, too, lying by his door. It was a black and white cat—all black, but with four white legs."
"Oh, right. After he moved out, the cat still came by a few times. It must be a stray."
Shen Xin excitedly clenched his fists.
'I actually guessed right!'
But after the initial excitement, Shen Xin frowned again.
Knowing the suspect fed a cat didn't seem that useful, especially since it was a stray.
'What, am I supposed to find the suspect through a stray cat?'
But it was a lead, nonetheless.
After another glance at Wu Zhicun's room, Shen Xin decided to first check the nearby pet stores.
According to He Cuimei, this tuxedo cat—all black with four white legs—should be easy to recognize.
'Besides, isn't this what the ancients called "black clouds treading on snow"?'
After thanking her, Shen Xin immediately began canvassing the area.
He asked the surrounding residents, and sure enough, some people remembered the stray cat.
They said they used to see it often, but not so much recently.
Shen Xin immediately wondered if the suspect had taken the stray cat he'd been feeding for a long time with him when he moved.
However, he asked another person who said they had just seen the cat the day before yesterday.
Shen Xin asked him repeatedly if he was mistaken, if it was a different cat.
This was a fruit vendor who had a stall on the northeast side of Xianghong Village, quite a ways from Wu Zhicun's house—about two or three hundred meters away.
"It was that cat. All black with four white paws, right? It's very easy to recognize."
The vendor insisted, shaking his head.
Shen Xin frowned. 'In that case, it seems my theory was wrong.'