I blanked out for a second, and I repeated with disbelief, “Cat hair?”

The old man nodded with certainty. “Yes, cat hair – long white hair. It must be cat hair! Our son Yingcai grew long cat hair all over his body. His mental state is unstable now, and sometimes he makes cat sounds.”

“Well, then where is the girl?” I asked.

“That’s the problem.” The old lady replied sadly. “That woman disappeared after Yingcai went insane. My husband and I have searched everywhere, but we can’t find her. A living woman simply vanished, it’s strange, isn’t?”

I nodded hesitantly.

“Have you seen a doctor?”

“Of course we have. However, all the doctors were confused, they didn’t know the cause. They just said it was a strange disease, and that they had no clue about the treatment, and they asked us to leave.” The old man sighed, shaking his head. “Afterwards, we found a Taoist priest. That Taoist priest examined the cat hair on Yingcai’s body and told us that Yincai had encountered a Jinhua cat!”

“A Jinhua cat?” I asked, full of curiosity. Was it a breed mainly found in Zhejiang Province?

“That’s right,” The old lady said. “That Taoist priest told us that a demonized Jinhua cat did this! That Jinhua cat can absorb the spirit of the sun and moon. Over time, it possessed human shape so as to seduce people. If it meets a woman, the cat will turn into a handsome man; if it is a man, the cat will turn into a beauty. The girl our Yingcai brought home, must be a Jinhua cat!”

“That’s right,” The old man added. “The Taoist priest also told us, what Jinhua cat did was to pee in the drinking water. If a man drank the water, he would grow cat hair and lose his sanity. The problem is that the man will never recover.”

Her eyes became watery. “Now Yingcai locks himself in his room and doesn’t let anybody enter. And he doesn’t eat at all. If this situation continues.. he will starve himself to death! Mr. Wen, please, you must save Yingcai!”

After saying that, the old couple knelt down on their knees and kowtowed to Wen Jiubo.

Wen Jiubo drew his hands back into the long sleeves of his robe. He looked at the couple and said slowly, “Why didn’t you ask the Taoist priest for help?”

The old lady shook her head. “At first, we asked him to help. But the Taoist priest said his skills were not sufficient to catch the demonized cat and then he told us to come here to find Mr. Wen.”

“That’s right, that’s why we are here,” The old man added immediately. “If you can save Yingcai, the remuneration is a small matter! Please help us!”

“Well, I see.” Wen Jiubo straightened his back and adjusted his sitting position. When I thought he was about to accept their request, he said something shocking.

“But I’m sorry, I can’t help.”

The couple thought that they had misheard him. They looked at the man in front of him in disbelief. “Ex..Excuse me?”

“I said, I decline your request.” Wen Jiubo raised up his chin slightly and repeated, slowly stressing each word, “I decline your request.”

“But..but,” The old man said anxiously. “We said the remuneration isn’t a problem..”

“It’s not about the money,” Wen Jiubo replied coldly.

“But this concerns our son’s life!” The old lady did not believe the man in front of her was so cold-blooded. “You will let our son die?”

“Who said I would let your son die?” Wen Jiubo’s look indicated that he did not care in the least. “Didn’t you say that he simply had cat hair and insane behavior? He should live for a while, though in a mess.”

“Wen Jiubo!” I looked at him in shock, I did not expect him to say something so brutal.

“Besides, you that intruded into my house late at night and bothered me. I have already put up the closed sign, but you didn’t seem to notice.” Wen Jiubo ignored me and coldly replied.

“But, this..this..” The couple looked at Wen Jiubo helplessly and were at a loss for words.

“Bai, send our guests to the door.” Wen Jiubo did not spare a thought for their feelings and stood up.

“I understand!” Bai suddenly showed up. He jumped onto the table, picked up the teacup on the table and then took away the teacup in the old man’s hand. “Sorry, sorry, the tea service is over. It’s cold outside, please go back home earlier.”

“Wait! Please wait!” I stood up abruptly as well and stopped the couple. I stared at Wen Jiubo angrily. “Your request, if this cruel guy won’t accept it, I will.”

“Uh..” The couple looked at each other and did not know what to say.

“Gu Yu, please don’t bring me any trouble.” Wen Jiu stood up, leaning against the table. He scratched his nose and seemed to have a headache.

“You may think this is trouble, but I don’t!”

I was so angry at his coldness and insensitivity. Frankly, maybe he did not want to help anybody at all. What kind of the exorcist was he? He only lived the life he wanted. If he was happy he was willing to help; if he was unhappy, he pushed people away. He did not care at all how anxious and worried the couple felt for their son!

He was nothing but a cold-blooded animal!

At last, Wen Jiubo gave in.

“Well, you can accept it if you want,” Wen Jiubo sighed, holding out one finger to me. “However, first of all, you must complete their request on your own, and I won’t help you during the process.”

“How do you know that I will need your help?” I complained, feeling looked down upon by Wen Jiubo. “And?”

Wen Jiubo nodded and held out his second finger. “Secondly..You must never regret your decision.”

Why would I regret this? I felt aggrieved. Only people as cold-blooded as Wen Jiubo would regret it.

Afterward, I talked with the couple for a while and walked them home at about nine o’clock.

The old couple’s house was nearby, only a ten minute walking distance from here. Although they doubted an amateur like me could save their son, after I showed my sincerity and willingness, it seemed they were slightly reassured.