Chapter 6 — My First Time as a Kept Pet, All I Want Is a Yadea

I bowed my head, my entire body trembling uncontrollably. The stinging retort that had been trapped inside me for years—rehearsed in the silence of countless sleepless nights—finally surged forward. In this very moment, I summoned the courage to cast it at him.

"Yu Zhi Qi," I said, my voice steadying. "Tell me, what exactly did I ever spend of yours?"

I looked up. The tears welling in my eyes were merely a physiological response, not a sign of defeat. They were the burning evidence of my resistance.

"When we were together, what did I ever take from you?" I pressed, my tone sharp and clear. "On graduation day, my father went to see you and your mother to demand money without my consent. That was his fault, his greed. But in the end, you didn’t give him a single cent. You lost nothing. I have never owed you a debt of conscience."

I stepped closer, my gaze locking onto his. "On what grounds do you stand? How dare you label me a gold digger? How dare you say I was only ever after your money? For years after we broke up, I always believed that at least we had once truly shared genuine feelings—that we had been sincere in a love that simply wasn't meant to last. But now, your words make me feel that I need to re-examine that entire chapter of my life."

There are certain words that, when held in the heart for too long, fester like an infection. Speaking them aloud felt like the shedding of a heavy, suffocating stone. As I stood firm, the indignity shifted; it was no longer mine, but his. Yu Zhi Qi seemed caught off guard, unable to formulate a rebuttal. After a long silence, he merely frowned and muttered that I had changed.

Just as the atmosphere turned unbearably stifling, Lu Yan leaned in close, his lips brushing against my ear. His voice was low, intimate, and perfectly audible. "Not spending money on such a miser is a wise choice, darling. Spend mine instead. My money is endless; spend as much as your heart desires."

That evening, the donation I made alongside Lu Yan came to exactly two million and one yuan.

12

On the drive home, I asked Lu Yan why the amount had to be exactly two million. He didn't answer. He simply stared out the window, his hand gently intertwined with mine. When the car pulled to a stop at a red light, he spoke softly.

"To vent the anger of the twenty-two-year-old Xu Zhao Zhao, and to buy a single moment of happiness for the twenty-six-year-old Xu Zhao Zhao."

Ding. The traffic light flickered and turned green. My pulse quickened, and a lightness washed over my spirit. I lowered my head, hiding a smile I hadn't realized was there, and instinctively tightened my grip on Lu Yan’s hand.

"Shall I make basil pesto pasta for you when we get home?"

He raised an eyebrow. "Giving up on the seafood hotpot, then?"

"If you keep on with the sarcasm, I’ll go buy enough seafood to drown us both."

Lu Yan chuckled. "Understood."

The dynamic between us seemed to undergo a subtle shift at that intersection. He no longer acted with the brash recklessness of the past; his gentleness felt almost surreal. Every day at work, he would report his activities to me every thirty minutes. If I didn't reply within a minute, his calls would flood my phone. Once he was off work, it was even more intense; he insisted on being physically tethered to me in some way. I often forgot I was supposed to be his kept canary, not a kindergarten teacher.

One day, I stumbled across an internet post: "Does no longer relying on your older brother mean you've finally grown up?"

I jokingly forwarded it to Lu Yan. Within three seconds, a video call popped up. He was in the middle of a board meeting, sitting before his executives with a frigid expression, yet his eyes were pleading. "You want to watch me wither away to death here, don't you?"

I rushed to his company to appease him, reflecting deeply on who in this house was truly the one incapable of growing up.

Some mornings later, I heard faint, pathetic meows coming from the backyard. A tiny calico kitten was huddled in the corner, trembling. It was so small I doubted it could survive. Fortunately, the kitten was a fighter. Lu Yan and I held a formal discussion and decided to name the kitten Lu Yong Jun, officially welcoming him into the family. That day, I used Lu Yan’s secondary card to spend five thousand yuan, buying Yong Jun a luxury climbing tree and a cat house. Upon receiving the notification, Lu Yan wept. He left work early, rushed home, and hugged me tightly.

"Well spent, my love. You're finally learning how to spend more."

I didn't share his penchant for extravagance. I believe in spending on what is necessary and saving where possible. Back in college, I had used scraps of leftover fabric to sew winter coats for stray animals. I still had many pieces left stored away, which I now retrieved to fit Yong Jun.

13

Returning to my old home, the thought felt strange and distant. Ever since my father brought me to the Lu residence, he had cut all ties. Habits die hard, though; he was likely still squandering his life in some gambling den. Fortunately, I still carried my key. That afternoon, I rode my electric bike over. My father was indeed out. A thin layer of dust coated the entrance. Inside, anything of value had long been sold off. But the bin containing the cat clothes remained untouched. I found the box, lingering for less than a minute before rushing back to the villa. Yong Jun heard me approaching and trotted over, meowing a greeting as I arrived.