Next came the questioning, cooperating with the investigation, getting yelled at by her boss... By the time all these tedious tasks were finally over, the sun was already high in the sky. According to the fire department's preliminary estimate, the most likely cause was aging gas lines leading to a leak, which eventually met an open flame, causing an explosion and fire. As for the definitive conclusion, that wouldn't be announced until after a scientific analysis.
Xin Huohuo, however, had a different thought: 'That's not what happened at all!'
But the scientific analysis and whatnot would take time, and so would renovating the restaurant. As a result, Xin Huohuo was given at least a month off. But she didn't want a vacation. It was unpaid leave, with only a basic living stipend: ten yuan a day, three hundred a month. That wasn't even enough to cover her utilities and internet bill.
Everyone on Earth knew how high internet fees were in the country, and on top of that, she'd lost her free dinners... She had to figure something out, find another short-term job, because she'd rather die than touch her meager savings again.
Exhausted, she returned home to find the two furry masters, one black and one white, already awake and "chatting" with a series of WOOF WOOF WOOFs and MEOW MEOW MEOWs... Er, it sounded more like an argument. When they saw her walk in, they fell silent in unison and turned their heads to stare at her. Adding to that, the two were no longer in the shoebox but had somehow jumped onto the dining table. The meaning was self-evident: 'We're hungry, poop-scooper. Hurry and serve us our meal!'
Xin Huohuo's heart ached as if pierced by a knife—an ache for her money.
She could go hungry, but there were two other mouths at home waiting to be fed. They didn't eat much, but their tastes were refined; they had to be fed milk and egg yolks every day. She could survive on steamed buns dipped in soy sauce, but what about them? Was she supposed to just let them starve to death? It seemed they were quite willing to gamble with their own lives, banking on her soft heart.
"I get it. I've brought home two living ancestors," Xin Huohuo said with a self-deprecating smile, resignedly turning to get them some food. As she did, she wondered to herself: 'They're so tiny, not much bigger than the palm of my hand. My so-called dining table is just the small coffee table in front of the loveseat. It should have been hard for them to jump up there, right? How did they do it?'
But when she heard the MEOWs and WOOFs behind her, she immediately felt a sense of relief, a warm current spreading through her heart. It was all so strange, and she didn't want to admit it, but it felt pretty good.
'By bringing them back, we've become a family, right? Does that mean I'm not alone anymore? When I come home now, there are living beings waiting for me, happy and excited just because I'm here. Or maybe... there could even be a little bit of love...'
She had no idea that the two furry masters behind her were not sharing her sentimental thoughts. Instead, they were facing each other with furrowed brows—if, that is, a kitten and a puppy could even have such an expression.
"Just as I thought. As soon as dawn broke, we were back here, back in the bodies of these two little creatures," Bai Qi said with a firm nod. "I tried to possess something else, but it was impossible. It's like an unseen hand is forcibly pulling us back."
"It's already a fact. You don't need to repeat yourself," Mr. Hei said coldly.
"But I need to know what to do next!"
"Wait for nightfall."
"Wait for nightfall again? This old master is too impatient to wait!"
"What can we do in these forms? Besides eating and drinking..." Mr. Hei trailed off, leaving the less-than-glamorous part unsaid.
"We can also act cute."
"Hmph. Just to get a bite to eat, you're really going all out. You've even abandoned your Divine Status."
"Divine Status can't fill my stomach," Bai Qi said, twitching his shiny, wet black nose. "This old master is a realist, flexible and pragmatic. Speaking of which, living creatures are truly pitiful, always scrambling for three meals a day and a place to sleep. No wonder they say life is suffering."
"Why eat so much? After you eat, you have to poop!" Mr. Hei finally lost his composure, exasperated by Bai Qi's rambling.
"Is pooping so shameful?" Bai Qi retorted righteously. "All things are born and all things die. Living beings have their own natural cycles. Brother Monkey once mentioned a term for it: the 'cycle of grains.' This is a law of nature! As proper deities, we should strive to follow it, you know?"
"You ate so much yesterday. Where was your 'cycle' then?" Mr. Hei mocked, his jade-green eyes curving into an almost imperceptible smile.
However, before Bai Qi could answer, Xin Huohuo's shriek echoed through the room. "Who? Who did this?! You two little monsters, confess and you'll be treated with leniency! Who was it?!"
She was holding up a small, boxy, shell-pink jelly purse. While it wasn't a designer brand, it was one of the few slightly valuable things she owned. And being a jelly purse, everyone knew it was semi-transparent. So, right there inside the bag she treated with such care, a fresh turd was clearly visible from the outside.
And it was a sticky, runny one!
So it's true that you're not supposed to give milk to kittens and puppies!
The weirdest part was, just like she couldn't figure out how they'd jumped onto the coffee table, how had one of them managed to poop *inside* the purse? And so neatly, too! It hadn't even smeared the sides. That must have been a difficult feat, right?
"Answer me! Which one of you little monsters did it? Tell me, and I promise I won't beat you to death!" Xin Huohuo glared, her eyebrows shooting up.
Mr. Hei lazily flopped down, an air of disdain radiating from his very bones. As for Bai Qi, his eyes were bright and focused.
'It goes without saying. It was this stupid puppy!'
"You! You really know how to pick your spots, don't you!" Xin Huohuo was so angry she raised her hand, but she couldn't bring herself to strike him. Instead, her hand swerved to the side and slapped the table.
She hit it too hard. The turd inside the jelly purse bounced, releasing a fresh wave of that... distinctively sour stench.
"Just wait until I get back! I'll kill you!" Xin Huohuo pinched her nose and ran outside to dump the waste and give the purse a thorough cleaning.
Back inside, on the coffee table, Bai Qi threatened, "You are not to speak of this to anyone!"
Mr. Hei snorted. "Weren't you being all righteous just now? What are you so guilty about?"
"It's not guilt, it's embarrassment. This old master is a proper deity. Even when partaking in the 'cycle of grains,' I can't just pick any random spot. In this whole Xin family residence, that pink thing was the only object that looked remotely high-class. It's a perfectly normal act, but now that we're discussing it formally, it suddenly feels a bit... inappropriate..."
"So the thickness of your skin does have a limit?" Mr. Hei's poker face was starting to crack.
"That's why I'm telling you not to say anything."
"How difficult it must be for you."
"Can you blame me? She doesn't even have a wardrobe. All her clothes and things are on a shelf with just a cloth thrown over it. It was just convenient," Bai Qi said, raising a hand—no, a front paw—to wipe his face. "If you're so high and mighty, then you can just hold it in forever."
The little black kitten's expression froze, and his body visibly stiffened. This was indeed a vexing problem...
"Being a living creature is so troublesome. Being a living human is even more troublesome!" he grumbled in frustration. "I really don't understand why humans insist on clinging to life so desperately. And even when they finally die, they cry and refuse to move on."
'How wonderful it would be to just be a wisp of air in the universe, a bit of energy, following the flow of nature, free and unrestrained, without ties or worries, just drifting along... You'd never have to consider such a foolish problem as whether or not to poop!'
Just as he was lost in these thoughts, Xin Huohuo came rushing in like a gust of wind, carrying a stack of newspapers. She reached her demonic claws toward the coffee table.