148: Chapter 148 Lin Feng's Guess

Lin Feng said he guessed the cat would be in the pit tomorrow. The next day, the cat was indeed there. It was curled up on the red cloth, eyes closed, tail covering its nose, sleeping soundly. Lin Feng squatted by the edge of the pit without waking it. He watched the cat's belly rise and fall, its breathing slow and steady. A breeze blew by, and the cat's whiskers twitched gently, as if smelling something in a dream. Lin Feng squatted for the whole morning, and the cat slept for the whole morning. At noon, the cat opened its eyes, saw Lin Feng, paused for a moment, then stretched, jumped out of the pit, rubbed its head against his foot, and ran off along the alley. Lin Feng watched its back without chasing it. He stood up, patted his pants, and left.

In the afternoon, he went to the Coffee Shop. Molly was brewing coffee, Chen Xiaoyuan was wiping cups, and the cat was squatting on the counter, its tail tip swaying gently. Lin Feng walked to the counter and squatted down. Molly placed a cup of Americano on the counter; he couldn't reach it, so he stood up to take it, then squatted back down to drink. The cat jumped off the counter and squatted beside him. Lin Feng took a sip of coffee, put the cup down, and looked at the cat. "You slept very well in the pit this morning." The cat didn't answer, but it used its paw to flick his shoelace. The lace came loose; he put down the cup and tied it. The cat flicked it again, and the other one came loose too; he tied it again. When the cat flicked it a third time, he tied the shoelace in a double knot. The cat couldn't flick it anymore, so it squatted beside him, tilting its head to look at him. Lin Feng stroked the cat's head. "You are even more annoying than the system." He had said this sentence before, and the cat had heard it too. But it didn't leave, and a purring sound came from its throat.

Chen Xiaoyuan walked over and squatted beside Lin Feng. "Lin Feng, you squat every day. Aren't you tired?" Lin Feng said, "Tired. But I'm used to it." Chen Xiaoyuan asked, "Have you tried sitting?" Lin Feng thought for a moment. "Tried it. Sitting isn't comfortable." Chen Xiaoyuan laughed. "Then have you tried lying down?" Lin Feng said, "Haven't tried it. If I lie down, I won't be able to see." Chen Xiaoyuan paused for a moment. "See what?" Lin Feng pointed outside the window. "See them." Chen Xiaoyuan followed his finger and looked over. Outside the window was that big tree. Under the tree, some people were cooling off, some were drinking coffee, and some were dazing off. He watched for a while, then turned his head to look at Lin Feng. "You squat just to watch them?" Lin Feng nodded. "Mm." Chen Xiaoyuan asked, "Why watch them?" Lin Feng said, "To watch them move." Chen Xiaoyuan didn't understand, but he didn't ask again.

Lin Feng finished his coffee, stood up, and walked out of the Coffee Shop. He walked to the base of that big tree and squatted by the edge of the pit. The cat didn't follow; it was still squatting on the counter. The red cloth in the pit had been wrinkled by the cat's sleeping. He reached out, smoothed the red cloth, and then squatted by the pit, watching the tree. The tree crown was huge, the leaves were shiny green, and the sunlight leaked through the gaps, falling on his face, bit by bit, like stars. He closed his eyes, heard the wind passing through the leaves, heard the distant church door open with a creak, and heard the tinkling sound of Old Zhou's chain. He opened his eyes and saw a leaf drift down from the tree, landing on his knee. He picked it up and placed it in his palm. The leaf was green, the veins were very clear, and there was a small patch of yellow on the edge. He placed the leaf into the pit and pressed it under the red cloth. A breeze blew by, and the leaf curled up; he pressed it with his hand to flatten it.

Margaret came out of the restaurant, saw Lin Feng squatting by the pit, and walked over. "What are you doing?" Lin Feng said, "Watching the tree." Margaret squatted beside him. "What's so good about watching a tree?" Lin Feng pointed to the trunk. "It has bark, leaves, and roots. The bark is old and cracked. The leaves are green and yellow. The roots are buried in the soil, invisible." Margaret looked at that tree. "You observe very closely." Lin Feng said, "When I squat with nothing to do, I look closely." Margaret laughed. "Then what have you seen?" Lin Feng thought for a moment. "The tree is growing. When you can't see it, it's growing. When you can see it, it's also growing." Margaret looked at the trunk, feeling as if it were a bit thicker than yesterday, but also as if it weren't. She wasn't sure. "Did you guess that?" Lin Feng said, "Mm. Guessed it." Margaret asked, "Did you guess right?" Lin Feng said, "I don't know. But it grows slowly. If it grows slowly, you can't tell. By the time you can tell, it has already been growing for a long time." Margaret didn't speak and also squatted down. The two of them squatted by the pit, watching the tree.

In the evening, Old Zhou came back after delivering mail and parked his bike under the tree. He saw Lin Feng and Margaret squatting by the pit, walked over, and squatted beside them. "What are you watching?" Lin Feng said, "Watching the tree." Old Zhou also looked at that tree. "This tree was planted after you arrived." Lin Feng said, "I didn't plant it. The cat planted it." Old Zhou paused for a moment. "The cat planted it?" Lin Feng nodded. "The cat carried seeds out from the door and planted them by the lake. Later, the fruit was brought out, and the seeds were planted again. This one grew." Old Zhou looked at that tree for a long time. "How old is it?" Lin Feng thought for a moment. "Less than a year." Old Zhou laughed. "Less than a year, and it's grown this big." Lin Feng said, "It grows fast." Old Zhou reached out and touched the trunk; it was smooth and cool. "It will keep growing." Lin Feng said, "Mm." Old Zhou stood up and patted his pants. "I'm going back." He rode his bike away, the chain tinkling as he went. Lin Feng squatted by the pit, watching his back. Margaret watched too. "Old Zhou's bike, the sound has become quieter." Lin Feng said, "New chain, the sound is small. Old chain, the sound is loud." Margaret asked, "Which one do you like?" Lin Feng thought for a moment. "The old one. Creak, creak, like it's talking. The new one doesn't talk." Margaret laughed. "Then why did you give him money to change it?" Lin Feng said, "He's been riding for forty years, it was time to change it. If he doesn't change it, I'll help him change it. After changing it, he's happy." Margaret looked at him. "Is he happy?" Lin Feng said, "Happy. When he rides his bike, the corners of his mouth are turned up. I saw it."

At night, Lin Feng sat on the steps in front of the restaurant. Not squatting, sitting. Margaret came out with a plate of mushrooms and sat beside him. The two of them sat there, looking at the sky. Stars lit up one by one, just like yesterday. The cat crawled out of the tree pit, walked to their feet, squatted down, and looked up at the stars. It watched for a long time, then closed its eyes, curled into a ball, and started purring. Margaret looked at the cat. "It didn't chase falling leaves today." Lin Feng said, "It squatted on the counter for the whole day today." Margaret asked, "How do you know?" Lin Feng said, "I went to the Coffee Shop this afternoon and saw it squatting on the counter. Chen Xiaoyuan wiped cups, and it watched. Molly brewed coffee, and it watched. Guests came, and it also watched. It squatted for the whole day." Margaret looked at the cat. "It's also watching." Lin Feng said, "It's watching people." Margaret asked, "What has it seen?" Lin Feng thought for a moment. "It saw that Chen Xiaoyuan hums when wiping cups, Molly frowns when brewing coffee, and guests smile when they arrive. It saw it all." Margaret laughed. "You observe even more closely than it does." Lin Feng said, "When I squat with nothing to do, I look closely."

A breeze blew by, carrying the fragrance from the Coffee Shop, the rustling sound of letter paper from the church, and the fresh sweetness of mushrooms from the farm. Lin Feng closed his eyes and took a sniff. He opened his eyes, stood up, and patted his pants. "I'm going to sleep." Margaret also stood up. "Are you still watching the tree tomorrow?" Lin Feng nodded. "Watching." Margaret asked, "For how long?" Lin Feng thought for a moment. "For a whole day." Margaret laughed. "What's so good about watching a tree?" Lin Feng said, "The tree has bark, leaves, and roots. The bark is old and cracked. The leaves are green and yellow. The roots are buried in the soil, invisible. Even if you watch for a day, you won't finish watching." Margaret looked at him. "Then you continue watching tomorrow." Lin Feng nodded. "Mm." He turned and walked into the restaurant, Margaret following behind him. The door closed, and the lights went out. The cat jumped off the steps, walked back to the tree pit, curled up on the red cloth, and closed its eyes. The moon emerged from behind the clouds, casting its shadow on the ground, small and round, like a ball of yarn. The wind blew, the shadow swayed, but it didn't disperse. Lin Feng stood in the restaurant, looking out from the window. He saw the cat's shadow, the tree's shadow, and the moon's shadow. He watched for a long time, then drew the curtains and went to sleep.

[Chapter 148: End]