Animal Detective

Chapter 17 Finding a Cat Through a Cat
On the courtyard wall, the black and white cat must have just been passing by, merely glancing at Shen Xin before jumping off the wall.

Shen Xin hurriedly went out of the courtyard to chase after him.

It was discovered that it had jumped into the gap between the five-story building next door.

The gap is at most 30 centimeters wide; there's no way to get in.

Seeing it heading deeper into the workshop, Shen Xin quickly slipped through the narrow gap at the back of the workshop.

Behind it is wasteland with abandoned wall foundations.

Shen Xin stepped onto a pile of broken bricks and looked around.

I actually saw the cat by the light from the building next door.

It nimbly weaved through the ruins and weeds, moving forward until it finally jumped onto the courtyard wall, then jumped down and disappeared from sight.

That wall is the wall of the planned wholesale market area.

Shen Xin pondered the past and found the road ahead difficult to travel.

And by the time I get there, the cat will probably be long gone.

But the discovery of the cat still excited Shen Xin.

Back in the courtyard, Wu Zhicun was still sitting, muttering something incoherently.

"Grandpa, do you know if there's a stray cat around here, black and white?" Shen Xin asked, then wanted to slap himself. He was blind, how could he know if a cat was black or white? He added, "It's a cat that often wanders around your yard. I saw it just now."

"cat?"

Wu Zhicun was taken aback, pondered for a brief two seconds, and then shook his head, saying, "No, I don't know."

But Shen Xin keenly noticed that he looked somewhat nervous.

Shen Xin said "Oh" and didn't ask any more questions.

But then his mind started racing, and Wu Zhicun's reaction seemed a little off.

They may have known that the suspect fed the stray cat.

After thinking it over, Shen Xin decided to find the cat.

Although the final outcome is uncertain, the fact that I'm stuck here with Wu Zhicun means I have time.

It's definitely not available now.

That's a cat; even if you find it, you can't catch it.

But when Shen Xin was on rotation in the community, he learned about the methods used by those cat lovers, which involved buying cages and using them to trap cats.

I might be able to get two cages and put them nearby.

However, the success rate of such ambushes is too low.

While lost in thought, Shen Xin didn't forget his mission and started to talk to Wu Zhicun.

We explained the law to him and how serious the consequences of the suspect's actions were.

“He’s just a young man with little education, his family is poor, and his parents are sick. He can only deliver food, working 15 hours a day. He finally saved up enough money to buy an electric scooter, hoping that it would have a longer range so he could earn more money.”

"And guess what? The car was stolen just a week after I bought it. He's a big, strong man, a real tough guy, and he actually cried because he felt wronged. Tell me, isn't that a bad guy?"

Shen Xin gave an example.

Wu Zhicun snorted coldly and shouted, "He's miserable, but what about me? I'm just a blind old man with only one grandson. He's been murdered, who can I complain to?"

He became more and more agitated as he spoke, and grabbed a small stool from the side and threw it at us.

Shen Xin quickly dodged and then shouted, "Sir, this is assaulting a police officer."

"Then arrest me! Put me in jail!"

Wu Zhicun repeated the same sentence, which made him tremble with anger. He got up and walked into the inner room.

Shen Xin rolled her eyes in frustration and quickly went to help him up.

He flung the door away, grumbling as he went back into the inner room, closing the door behind him.

Shen Xin was in a terrible pain.

Wu Zhicun is truly impervious to reason.

Shen Xin called Zhang Jian to ask about the progress of the investigation, then told him about Wu Zhicun's situation, and finally asked if he wanted to go and help.

Zhang Jian sighed on the phone and said, "Forget it, go home and get some rest. Get your sleep schedule back on track, and then keep at it with him tomorrow."

Shen Xin reluctantly agreed.

Upon arriving at the village entrance, Shen Xin called his older sister and asked her to bring over their old Camry.

My dad used to drive a Camry, but he later bought an Audi, so he rarely drives it anymore and it's often left idle.

Xianghong Village is not far from Shen Xin's home in Xinbei District. If it weren't for Da Mei, Shen Xin could have gone straight home to live.

Twenty minutes later, the eldest sister, Shen Shuang, arrived by car.

She was tall and pretty, with wavy hair and fashionable clothes. She greeted Shen Xin with a confident air and immediately asked him if he had a girlfriend.

"I don't have time," Shen Xin scoffed, pointing at her feet. "Driving in high heels is illegal."

"Hey, you brat, don't think I won't beat you up just because you're wearing a police uniform." Shen Shuang grabbed Shen Xin's arm aggressively.

Shen Xin hurriedly dodged and got into the car, saying that she had assaulted a police officer.

As she was leaving, Shen Shuang stepped forward again, gesturing for the car window to roll down. Then, she pulled a wad of cash from her purse and cursed, "What can you do with such a meager salary? Get yourself together and find a girlfriend." She tossed the money onto the passenger seat and swayed away.

Shen Xin didn't stand on ceremony and happily put it away.

I drove home.

The family is at peace, with Da Mei lying in bed with her adorable baby.

The three little ones now eat and sleep all the time, changing every day.

When they returned, Shen Xin bought goat milk powder to give Da Mei an extra treat.

Watching it gracefully lick its milk, Shen Xin had an idea. Why not ask Da Mei to help him find that cow cat?

It's hard for people to find cats, but it's much easier for cats to find each other.

Moreover, this is a stunning beauty, a goddess in the cat world. If that black and white cat were a male, it would surely be completely captivated by her.

After thinking it over, Shen Xin felt that this matter was really reliable.

After thinking about it, Shen Xin went online again and bought two cat-shaped wearable cameras.

It's a card reader, the kind that lets you transfer videos anytime. It will arrive tomorrow.

When the time comes, we'll just tie it around Da Mei's neck and we'll know where it went and what it did.

The next day, Shen Xin went to the institute to report for duty.

I asked Zhang Jian and his team about the results of their investigation, but they found nothing.

The sales channels for the mobile phones and headphones have also been identified.

I bought it using Wu Zhicun's phone number, it was delivered to my door, and Wu Zhicun was the person who signed for it.

Another lead has been blocked.

Shen Xin cursed inwardly, wondering what was wrong with this suspect. Did he spend all his time watching crime movies at home? How could he have such a strong sense of counter-surveillance?

Not forgetting about Baiwan, Shen Xin ran to a nearby door and window shop, ordered a dog cage from the owner, and then went home to pick up Damei before heading to Xianghong Village.

"Officer Shen, you're here again." He Cuimei greeted him with a smile.

Shen Xin sighed inwardly and glanced into the inner room.

Wu Zhicun lay sprawled on the bed, still unconscious.

He's so comfortable, he can sleep whenever he wants, but I'm the one who's stuck here wasting my time.

Shen Xin released Da Mei, who tilted her head and looked at Shen Xin with a puzzled expression.

Shen Xin took out a piece of paper.

It has a drawing of the cow cat I saw yesterday.

"Da Mei, look closely, it's this cat, all four legs are white. Help me find it and bring it back to me."

Shen Xin gave the order directly.

Da Mei understood everything I said before, so she should understand now too.

It's said that cats have the intelligence of a four- or five-year-old child.

Da Mei stared wide-eyed at Shen Xin's masterpiece. After a while, she seemed to understand, meowed twice, and then turned and left.

It's a pity the camera I ordered hasn't arrived yet, otherwise I would have known where Da Mei went.

However, she has been homeless before, so there shouldn't be any problems.

Once Da Mei left, she disappeared without a trace.

Wu Zhicun didn't get up until after 10 a.m.

When we met, it was the same as always; his tone was extremely aggressive.

But he didn't chase him away, letting Shen Xin chat with him idly.

They talked a lot about Wu Jiawang.

He said Wu Jiawang was a bit mischievous, but a good kid.

As she spoke, she began to wipe away tears again.

Shen Xin sighed, unsure of what to say.

At noon, Shen Xin took the initiative to buy lunch.

The old man was quite stubborn and insisted on paying for it himself.

Shen Xin let him have his way, since he only earned a few cents a month.

As a result, it wasn't until after 1 p.m. that Da Mei returned.

"I go!"

Shen Xin exclaimed in surprise, realizing that Da Mei had returned injured.

It had lost a lot of clumps of fur, and there was blood on one of its legs.

She returned with a menacing look in her eyes, meowing wildly at Shen Xin.

The feeling was like losing a fight, getting desperate, and coming back for backup.

(End of this chapter)