I was approached by a cat-eared girl.

........

As dusk fell, the two walked side by side out of the residential area. Suddenly, Chen Shuo's expression changed as he saw a small electric scooter slowly driving towards them.

Bai Xiaoqi was happily swinging her long sleeves when Chen Shuo told her to put on a light jacket before she left. The jacket he wore was clearly ill-fitting, and the sleeves were too long.

She was shaking her head when she looked up and saw Chen Shuo's expression. She couldn't help but ask, "What's wrong with you?"

"It's nothing. Just relax for a bit, don't be nervous, and don't talk," Chen Shuo said in a low voice, before the electric scooter came to a steady stop in front of them.

This time, Du Bin wasn't wearing his usual old man's three-piece outfit of shorts, vest, and slippers; he was dressed in a neat and proper police uniform.

The person's entire demeanor instantly changed.

He tilted his peaked cap up slightly, glanced at Chen Shuo, then at Bai Xiaoqi, and asked with interest, "Hey, who's this girl? I've never seen her before. Is she your girlfriend?"

"Friend, friend."

Chen Shuo casually agreed, but looking at his police uniform, he felt a little guilty. "Did you just get off work?"

"Yeah, just got off work."

As he spoke, Du Bin glanced at Bai Xiaoqi again, his gaze lingering on her long white hair. Suddenly remembering something, he said:

"I heard someone say that someone in our neighborhood got into some kind of romantic entanglement. Early this morning, a white-haired girl was banging on the door. I thought it was someone else, but it turned out to be you, kid?"

Hearing this, Chen Shuo immediately felt offended. "What nonsense about romantic entanglements! Those people in the neighborhood are obviously spreading rumors. How can you believe them?"

Seeing him act like someone had stepped on his tail, Du Bin chuckled and didn't continue the topic. Although it was quite intriguing that someone who spent all his time writing at home would have connections with girls in the cosplay community.

But it's not convenient to comment on this kind of thing, since they haven't broken the law.

Then he asked, "Are you going out to eat?"

"Yeah, let's go out for some barbecue."

"Barbecue? I heard from a colleague that there's a good new restaurant that's currently offering a 20% discount."

"Okay, we'll go take a look then."

After exchanging a few more casual words, Chen Shuo left with Bai Xiaoqi. Only after they had walked a short distance away did he feel relaxed.

Bai Xiaoqi turned around and asked, "Was that policeman your friend?"

"Yeah, we met at an internet cafe and often played games together."

"Then what is a girlfriend?"

"Uh... well, didn't you already know?"

"I think I'm wrong about what I know."

Bai Xiaoqi frowned slightly. She used to think that "girlfriend" meant female friend, but now she felt that "girlfriend" didn't mean that.

“…”

Chen Shuo hesitated for a moment, then gave a conservative explanation: "A girlfriend is a close female friend."

How close are they?

"It means very close. Yeah, boyfriend and girlfriend are also called lovers. As for lovers, you can think of them as husband and wife, but they are the kind of couple who are not married yet. Anyway, it means a very intimate relationship."

"......"

Upon hearing this, Bai Xiaoqi hesitated for a moment, but ultimately said nothing, her head hanging low as if lost in thought.

Seeing her reaction, Chen Shuo opened his mouth as if to say something, but in the end, he chose to remain silent.

To be honest, he had a strange sense of anticipation just now.

But he couldn't say exactly what he was expecting.

However, his inner voice told him that his expectations had been dashed.

.........

Summer is definitely the peak season for barbecue restaurants. When we arrived at the barbecue restaurant that Du Bin mentioned, it was bustling with noise and people. But luckily it was Monday, and there were still some seats available.

The two entered the room, found a corner seat, and began ordering food.

Some beef and lamb skewers, along with some grilled eggplant, grilled enoki mushrooms, and other vegetables, and you're all set.

Setting down the menu, Chen Shuo looked up and asked, "What would you like to drink?"

"Milk tea, yogurt..."

"We don't have any of those things here. How about I make you some watermelon juice? It's quite delicious."

"Ah."

Seeing her nod, Chen Shuo handed the selected menu to the waiter beside him: "Excuse me, could you please bring a pitcher of watermelon juice and three bottles of beer, all ice cold?"

He doesn't really like drinking; he's the kind of person who can drink or not drink, but he feels like something's missing when he's eating skewers without drinking.

The food at the barbecue restaurant was served faster; in just over ten minutes, three bottles of beer, watermelon juice, and several plates of meat skewers were brought out.

Chen Shuo picked up a glass of watermelon juice and poured it for Bai Xiaoqi. He wanted to say something, but then he pursed his lips. He felt that the atmosphere between the two of them had become very subtle after the topic of his girlfriend ended, and it seemed that even talking was a little awkward.

He opened a bottle of beer, took a big gulp, and then said slowly, "I think that although others have misunderstood us as being boyfriend and girlfriend, what others think is their business. The key is what we think. The innocent will be proven innocent, and as long as we have a clear conscience, that's enough."

So there's no need to worry about these things, right?

"......"

Bai Xiaoqi was taken aback by his words, not understanding why he suddenly wanted to say these things, but after thinking about it carefully, she felt that what he said made a lot of sense.

Although others misunderstood it as a very close relationship, we didn't do anything wrong, so it's their problem if they misunderstand.

As long as you have a clear conscience, that's enough.

Thinking of this, she suddenly asked, "Then can you say you have a clear conscience?"

"I..."

Chen Shuo was taken aback, then turned his gaze away somewhat guiltily, and said calmly, "Of course I have a clear conscience."

Chapter Thirty-Three: I'm Not Human Anymore!

The meal went uneventfully. As they left the barbecue restaurant, a cool summer night breeze blew by, and Chen Shuo looked up at the night sky, then turned to Bai Xiaoqi beside him and asked habitually, "Shall we walk around some more?"

"I'm not going shopping anymore, I feel a bit tired."

"tired?"

Chen Shuo couldn't help but glance at her. In his memory, this girl had always been lively and energetic, and seemed to never have ever been tired.

"Yeah, I'm a little tired, and my stomach feels a bit uncomfortable." Bai Xiaoqi frowned slightly. She couldn't quite describe the feeling, but she just felt listless all over and her stomach was uncomfortable.

She suspected the skewers might be poisonous, but the idea that something so delicious could be poisonous was instinctively unacceptable to her.

"You've eaten too much, haven't you?" Chen Shuo looked at her round belly with some suspicion.

Bai Xiaoqi carefully examined her stomach, but it didn't feel like she was overeating. She couldn't quite explain it, so she could only nod, "Possibly."

Upon hearing this, Chen Shuo stopped and looked around, then pointed to a large pharmacy in front of him and said, "How about we go to that pharmacy and buy you some digestive tablets?"

What are digestive tablets?

"It's a medicine used to aid digestion; it helps with digestion after you take it."

medicine?

Upon hearing this word, Bai Xiaoqi's first reaction was bitterness, and she subconsciously shook her head, "I don't want to."

"Alright then, let's go home."

"Hmm." Bai Xiaoqi hummed in response. She had only taken two steps when she suddenly remembered something and reached out to tug at Chen Shuo's sleeve.

"What's wrong?" Chen Shuo turned his head.

"I saw in a video that yogurt contains something called probiotics, which can also help with digestion..."

......

......

It was past nine o'clock when Chen Shuo got home. He changed into slippers, turned around and looked at the cat girl who was already sitting on the sofa, sipping her yogurt. He couldn't help but say, "Next time, you can just say what you want."

Bai Xiaoqi moved her head upon hearing this, and a pair of cat ears popped out from the top of her head. She looked up at him with a somewhat bewildered expression: "What are you talking about?"

Seeing her bewildered expression, Chen Shuo was speechless for a moment. Little brat, she's putting on quite a convincing act.

If you want yogurt, just say so. It's not like I won't buy it for you. Don't try to play games with me.

The most outrageous thing is that I actually fell into your trap.

Drinking really does lead to trouble. I only drank three bottles, but my brain's processing speed was already lagging behind hers.

"It's nothing. Remember to get some rest after you finish your yogurt." Chen Shuo sighed inwardly at the harmful effects of alcohol. He wanted to go to the bathroom to take a shower, but then remembered that he shouldn't shower right after drinking, so he simply went back to his bedroom to sleep.

Seeing the bedroom door close, Bai Xiaoqi's cat ears twitched twice, her expression still a little confused, and she took another sip of yogurt.

It tastes so good.

But why is it that the more I drink...?

Thinking of this, she reached out and touched her stomach, wondering why the more she drank, the more uncomfortable she felt in her stomach.

.........

Silent all night.

The next morning around 10 a.m., Chen Shuo came out of the bedroom yawning, scratched his messy hair, and was about to go to the bathroom to wash up when he suddenly stopped and turned to look at the sofa.

At this moment, Bai Xiaoqi, who was lying on the bed, was curled up in a small ball, her small body wrapped in a blanket was still trembling slightly.

This scene made Chen Shuo instinctively feel that something was wrong. He quickly walked over, and when he got closer, he saw that her face was pale, her usually rosy lips were now bloodless, and her eyes were tightly closed. She was practically a useless cat.

Upon seeing this, Chen Shuo panicked immediately and quickly reached out to touch her forehead, then breathed a slight sigh of relief.

My forehead isn't hot.

Many serious illnesses present with a fever symptom; the absence of a fever may indicate that the illness is not serious.

But the next second, he thought of Bai Xiaoqi's special identity, and his heart, which had just calmed down, suddenly jumped up again. Can a cat-eared girl be the same as a human?

At this moment, Bai Xiaoqi opened her eyes, but Chen Shuo could clearly see that her usually bright eyes had become somewhat dim, and he couldn't help but ask, "What's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?"