Chapter 119: Reconnaissance

Early in the morning, after finishing breakfast, Aofeng headed out with Song Changfeng and arrived at the Fu’an Community. At the same scooter shed they had visited the day before, Song Changfeng saw another cat besides the orange tabby. For now, they decided to call it Little Silver.

Little Silver looked completely listless, lying next to Da Ju, and didn’t react at all when it saw Aofeng.

“What’s wrong with it?” Aofeng asked.

Da Ju explained that it had been frightened and was having a stress response. Little Silver was a pet cat. Yesterday evening, its owner had taken it out for a walk. Being playful, Little Silver darted here and there, chasing this and that. By the time it realized its owner was no longer nearby, night had already fallen.

As a house cat that had never spent a night outdoors, Little Silver was scared by the unfamiliar surroundings and strangers. It meowed a few times, but when that didn’t help, it forced itself to calm down and started sniffing around like a dog, trying to find its way home by scent.

As it wandered, a man suddenly appeared ahead. He looked around, then crouched down and reached out a hand toward Little Silver, making “meow meow” sounds with his mouth. Little Silver didn’t understand what he was saying, but the behavior wasn’t unfamiliar—its human did that all the time.

Little Silver hesitated in place. The man then pulled a small handful of cat food from his bag. It smelled amazing, even better than the food at home. Hungry by now, Little Silver stared at it and unconsciously took a few steps forward. Just as it was about to reach the food, its ears suddenly perked up. It seemed to hear its owner calling.

On one side was delicious food, on the other was its beloved owner. Little Silver knew what mattered more. It turned around, ready to run toward the voice. But just as it turned, a large hand came down from above and grabbed the scruff of its neck. Alarmed, Little Silver began to struggle, letting out sharp, piercing cries.

The sound drew the attention of nearby pedestrians. The man frowned, then pulled a piece of gauze from his bag and pressed it over Little Silver’s mouth and nose. In no time, the struggling cat went limp and fell silent.

In its dazed state, Little Silver felt itself being stuffed into a dark space. It tried to open its eyes, but its eyelids felt impossibly heavy. The world swayed around it, and just before losing consciousness, it seemed to hear its owner’s anxious voice. It also clearly heard the man who had grabbed it say, “Haven’t seen it. Maybe it ran off. Try looking outside.”

Little Silver was relatively lucky. If it hadn’t run into Aofeng and Da Ju and the others, it might already have been skinned and stuffed into a black garbage bag, tossed into a dumpster. Who would’ve thought that man could be so depraved? He didn’t just harm strays—he even targeted house pets. Aofeng even suspected that the man got more excited torturing owned cats. People like that often feel a twisted thrill when destroying something others love.

Watching Aofeng and the two cats “communicate” so seriously, Song Changfeng had a strange thought. Aofeng reminded him of police officers canvassing witnesses after a crime. He chuckled and shook his head, thinking he was being ridiculous. No matter how smart Aofeng was, he couldn’t possibly be that capable.

Unaware that his intelligence was being questioned, Aofeng finished asking about Little Silver’s situation and then turned to Da Ju to learn more about the deranged cat abuser.

After seeing the man go home yesterday, Aofeng had asked Da Ju to assign a few sharp-eyed cats to keep an eye on his house. Da Ju reported that the man had left early that morning. He wore a long black trench coat, a hat, and a face mask, clearly trying not to be recognized. His hand, which had been caught in a steel trap the day before, was still stiff and awkward despite the trap being removed.

Da Ju sounded quite pleased when talking about this. Compared to the horrific torture his underlings had endured, the man’s injury was far from enough. Aofeng agreed. The man had already abandoned all reason and humanity when he brutally tortured those animals. He was nothing more than a monster in human skin.

Aofeng instructed Da Ju to keep a close watch on the man’s movements. After suffering such a setback yesterday, he didn’t believe the man would just swallow his anger and turn over a new leaf. Da Ju nodded. Even if Lao Da hadn’t said anything, he would’ve done it anyway. He was already planning to pee at the man’s doorstep every day, herd some rats into his house, and ambush him along his usual routes. He’d make sure the man learned that cats were not to be messed with.

Aofeng nodded. As long as they stayed alert, that person’s chances of doing harm again should be greatly reduced.

After his exchange with Da Ju, Aofeng left the carport. Watching the direction he was heading, Song Changfeng couldn’t help but ask, “Aofeng, not going to the empty lot today?” Weren’t they supposed to investigate a case related to that spot? How had he forgotten about it after just a few minutes of yowling with Little Orange?

Aofeng suddenly remembered. Yesterday, Song Changfeng had sat at the kennel entrance and called Comrade Old Lei to take the day off—probably so he could come investigate this area with him today. Judging by Song Changfeng’s expression, he must have assumed the murder had taken place on that empty lot. There hadn’t been a human murder, but there had definitely been several feline casualties.

Aofeng led Song Changfeng to the empty lot between Buildings Nine and Eleven. As soon as they arrived, Song Changfeng switched into investigation mode and began pacing around the clearing. After a thorough sweep, he concluded that there had been a fight here yesterday. He based this on two observations: first, a patch of grass had been flattened in an irregular pattern, and the signs were fresh—probably no more than twelve hours old. Second, he found scattered traces of blood on the grass. There wasn’t much, suggesting only minor bleeding. He’d already collected the samples in small plastic evidence bags. If something had really happened here, this blood would be the strongest proof.

In addition to that, he also found footprints and tufts of fur. The human footprints all looked consistent, but the animal prints and fur were varied. One particular clump matched Aofeng’s fur almost exactly. Song Changfeng had every reason to suspect that Aofeng, who’d come home late last night in high spirits, had definitely been here. Which meant the fight had likely involved that human and Aofeng’s group.

Faced with this “mountain of evidence,” Aofeng could only lower his head in silence. Song Changfeng asked, “You and those kittens attacked someone here yesterday?”

Attacked? Aofeng’s head snapped up. That word was completely inaccurate. They were upholding justice—how could that be called an attack?

Seeing the disapproval in his eyes, Song Changfeng raised an eyebrow.

“What did that person do?” Song Changfeng had no reason to believe Aofeng would pick a fight without cause.

Unable to describe the abuse of cats, Aofeng decided to show him instead. He led Song Changfeng to the bamboo grove in the small park. There, a small mound of earth caught Song Changfeng’s attention. The soil looked freshly turned, as if something had been buried recently. If one sniffed carefully, there was even a faint stench of decay.

What could be under there? Song Changfeng’s heart began to pound, and his palms broke out in a cold sweat.