Chapter 60: Taking Your Cat

“This is my first time making it, so try it and see how it tastes.”
Lin Lu You didn’t stand on ceremony. She leaned forward, took the straw hidden in the middle of the orange peel, and took a deep sip.

Mm, delicious!

She couldn’t quite describe what ingredients had been blended together. There was a faint tang of lime, and it seemed like there were flavors of peach and grape as well.

Seeing Lin Lu You silent for so long, Qin Shi Shen, who had been quite confident in his own skills, began to worry.

“Is it not good? I’ll make you another one.”

As he spoke, Qin Shi Shen reached out to remove this questionable creation.

“No, don’t! It really tastes great! It’s just that for a moment, I was so surprised I couldn’t find the words to describe it.”

After carefully observing Lin Lu You’s expression for a while, Qin Shi Shen believed she was telling the truth.

“To be honest, drinking your beverages here is truly a pleasure.” Lin Lu You took another sip, swinging her feet as she spoke. “Boss, do you add something special to your drinks? There’s always this magical feeling—after I finish, all my worries seem to vanish.”

“Oh? It’s that miraculous?” Qin Shi Shen pulled a tall stool out from under the bar and sat facing Lin Lu You.

“Yes, not just this time, but last time too—the one you made with grape juice, crushed ice, and honey or something…”

As she spoke, Lin Lu You suddenly forgot the name of the drink. Feeling a bit embarrassed, she could only try to recall its ingredients to describe it.

“You mean ‘Meteor Shower,’ don’t you?”
Qin Shi Shen guessed immediately from the ingredients what Lin Lu You was trying to say.

“Yes, yes, that’s the one!”

Looking at Lin Lu You’s enthusiasm, Qin Shi Shen lowered his head and smiled slightly:

There’s no magic at all; it’s just a few tricks derived from a blend of psychology and medical science.

Although, upon returning to the country, the association’s evaluation determined he could no longer practice psychological counseling or therapy, this was his passion and vocation. To give it up completely and sever ties with his past—he simply couldn’t do it.

At first, he followed his psychiatrist’s advice, recording his life and thoughts through drawing during his leisure time, rediscovering himself and rebuilding his sense of self.

But after a while, his hands grew restless. He could sense his own emotions and attempt to control them, but he wanted to do more. So he conceived the idea of expressing his inner feelings with self-created drinks instead of pictures.

Before he mentioned it to Lin Lu You, it was just a concept in his mind; he’d never considered actually making it.

To use beverages to represent moods and relieve emotions, he had to ensure each drink had the right color, aroma, and taste. Otherwise, a beautiful appearance might set the mood, but if it tasted bad, it would all fall apart.

Just when he thought this plan might be abandoned, he met Lin Lu You. He still didn’t know what possessed him to share this idea with someone else.

Even more unexpectedly, this first attempt seemed to have worked out quite well.

“If you’d like, whenever you’re feeling down, come here and I’ll mix another drink for you.”

“Will it be different every time?”

“Yes, every time will be unique.”

“Then it’s settled!”
Afraid Qin Shi Shen might change his mind, Lin Lu You agreed crisply:

A delicious, beautiful drink and cats to play with—how could she not come out ahead?

She lingered for a while in Qin Shi Shen’s shop, chatting idly with him. The more they talked, the more Lin Lu You felt the shop owner possessed a rare wisdom.

Whenever she struggled with something, he would always approach it from another angle, and with a casual wave of the hand, sweep away her bad moods effortlessly.

As it grew late, Lin Lu You slung her small bag over one shoulder, said goodbye to Qin Shi Shen, and left his café.

But on the way to the bus stop, Lin Lu You felt something was off. When she looked down, she discovered she had somehow brought the shop’s cat with her.

At that moment, human and feline stood in the middle of the road, staring at each other, wide-eyed.