I swept all the trash from the table onto the floor, planning to wash the dishes first. I sat down by the back door, grabbed the hose, and started cleaning.
A faint sound of footsteps—Old Cat walked over.
"No matter what you say, I will choose to trust John Chou."
Old Cat nodded.
"Ethan Zhang is right. You can trust Uncle John, but... you also have to be wary of him, because you are human, and Uncle John is a ghost."
I let out a cold laugh. Old Cat pulled over a small stool and sat across from me, hugging his cat-headed cane, chin tilted upward.
"This year has been the most comfortable one I've had since I was born."
For some reason, I found myself a bit interested in this old man. The Cat zodiac isn't part of the traditional twelve signs. I had briefly glimpsed Old Cat's memories before—he was born frail and weak, needing to absorb the yang energy and vitality of others to survive. This practice would eventually leave others depleted, even dead.
His parents, who once treasured him, ultimately abandoned him.
"You must have seen the miserable state of those exiled beggars in the Yin-Yang Realm, right?"