This Taoist priest is so unprofessional!

Wang Xiaoer stood in front of the stall, watching the sizzling meat skewers on the charcoal fire, his Adam's apple bobbing involuntarily.

Lamb skewers, grilled chicken wings, grilled gluten...

He had only smelled these things when he passed by before, but had never actually spent money to buy them and taste them.

He touched his pocket, which contained a few coins that Zhang Chen had asked him to take out, saying they were for backup activity funds.

After much hesitation, he still couldn't resist the overpowering fragrance.

"Boss, five skewers of squid, five skewers of grilled gluten, ten meat skewers, ten lamb skewers, and... three grilled sausages and three chicken wings, extra spicy!"

I'm going all in.

Since it's all for "solving a case," the expenses should be spent.

Soon, a large handful of steaming hot barbecue was in my hands.

Ignoring the heat, Wang Xiaoer grabbed a skewer of grilled squid and stuffed it into his mouth. The aroma of the sauce and charcoal exploded in his mouth, instantly dispelling all his gloom.

"Hmm~ Not bad!"

He hummed contentedly and slowly walked back while eating.

But after taking only a few steps, he suddenly felt as if something was trailing behind him.

The thing followed at a distance that was neither too close nor too far, its footsteps so light they were almost inaudible.

Wang Xiaoer's heart skipped a beat, he stopped in his tracks, and suddenly turned around.

There was nothing behind him.

Only one willow tree swayed its branches in the wind.

He frowned, thinking he was overthinking things, and turned around to continue walking forward.

But after taking only a couple of steps, the feeling of being followed returned.

This time he was smarter. He didn't turn back immediately, but pretended to be nonchalant and continued walking, while quietly lowering the barbecue in his other hand.

He glanced down and behind him out of the corner of his eye.

A fluffy orange head peeked out from behind the willow tree.

It was an orange cat so fat you could hardly see its neck, with glossy orange and white fur and a round body like a gas cylinder.

It was wagging its little legs and following behind Wang Xiaoer.

Two round eyes stared unblinkingly at the large bunch of barbecue dangling in Wang Xiao's hand, their gaze filled with undisguised longing, and saliva was almost dripping from the corners of their mouths.

Looking at it, and then recalling the "wealth and honor" in the photo, Wang Xiaoer was both amused and exasperated.

After all that fuss, it turned out that Zhang Chen's nonsensical ramblings about water, wood, and fire...

The water is this river.

The tree is this row of willow trees.

And that so-called fire... it turns out to be the charcoal fire at this barbecue stand!

How could you guess right?

Wang Xiaoer was completely convinced.

Looking at the greedy cat in front of him, a plan instantly took shape in his mind.

He deliberately lowered the skewers in his hand and swung them in the air.

The fat orange cat's nose immediately twitched, it made a purring sound in its throat, and it quickened its pace.

"Want some?"

Wang Xiaoer squatted down and teased it in a low voice.

"Meow..."

The chubby orange cat responded with a soft meow and cautiously took two more steps forward.

Wang Xiaoer grinned mischievously, tore off a small piece of squid tentacles, and tossed it a short distance in front of him.

The fat orange cat's eyes lit up, and it immediately rushed over like an orange cannonball, swallowing the squid tentacles in a few bites. Then, it looked at Wang Xiaoer with its big, watery eyes.

"If you want to eat, follow me."

Wang Xiaoer stood up, stopped, and walked straight toward the firm.

Every ten meters or so he walked, he would tear off a small piece from the squid skewer and throw it behind him.

The gluttonous cat named "Fugui" was as if under a spell, completely captivated by the food, following him closely and devouring every last bit of the "bait" he dropped.

In this way, Wang Xiaoer almost effortlessly used a few skewers of grilled squid to coax the lost "Fugui" all the way from the old street back to the entrance of the firm.

He pushed open the glass door and threw in the last large piece of squid.

Fugui rushed in without hesitation, grabbed a squid, and began to devour it.

Wang Xiaoer quickly followed up and decisively slammed the glass door shut with a "whoosh".

That's it.

He let out a long sigh, looking at the chubby orange cat who was enjoying its meal inside the house, his face full of helplessness and amusement.

Just then, the glass door of the firm was suddenly pushed open again.

The girl who had been searching for the cat returned, but this time, she was accompanied by a tall, unfriendly young man.

The man was dressed in trendy clothes and had a tattoo on his arm; he seemed to be the girl's friend.

As soon as he entered, he saw Zhang Chen sitting in front of the computer wearing headphones, completely unaware of what was happening, and Wang Xiaoer standing to the side holding half a skewer of grilled sausage.

A surge of anger, feeling betrayed, welled up inside me.

"It's you two charlatans! You cheated my little sister out of her money, didn't you?!"

The man roared and pointed at Zhang Chen, about to start cursing.

"What do you mean '300 meters south'? There's water, wood, and fire! We've been searching that damn riverbank for almost an hour and haven't seen a single cat hair! I think you guys are just..."

His cursing stopped abruptly.

Because out of the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of a round, orange-and-white figure under the desk.

The chubby orange cat was lying on the ground, its two front paws clutching a bamboo skewer that Wang Xiaoer had just thrown into the trash can. It was now chewing on the remaining bits of meat on it with great gusto.

The words that were on the tip of his tongue were swallowed back down.

His outstretched finger froze in mid-air, his mouth gaped open wide enough to fit an egg, and his expression shifted from anger to astonishment, then to disbelief, and finally to a somewhat embarrassed look—it was quite a spectacle.

"Wealth...wealth?"

The girl next to him followed his gaze, and when she saw that familiar figure, she burst into a surprised scream.

"Wealth! My wealth!"

She rushed over in one stride, completely ignoring the greasy bamboo skewers on the ground, and hugged the fat cat tightly in her arms, tears streaming down her face.

"Meow?"

Fugui was interrupted while eating his delicious food and let out a slightly disgruntled cry, but he still obediently let his owner hold him, rubbing his head against her chest.

The scene was very quiet for a time.

Wang Xiaoer silently hid the other skewers in his hands behind his back, then slowly took a few steps back.

Only then did Zhang Chen belatedly take off his headphones, as if he had just woken up from a meditative state.

He glanced at the girl and the cat in her arms, then at the dumbfounded man. The bewilderment on his face vanished instantly, replaced by a calm expression that said, "Everything is under control."

He stood up, walked over to the girl, and promptly smoothed things over.

"Girl, you've come back just in time."

His voice wasn't loud, but it carried a convincing calmness.

"I just cast another divination and it says that your family is destined for wealth and prosperity, but today there is a clash of inauspicious energies, so it is not advisable for the owner to search for it personally. I was afraid that by the time you arrived, it would have run away again, so I had my junior brother go and bring it back."

He pointed to Wang Xiaoer, who looked completely innocent, standing to the side.

"After all, this is our firm's first case. Even if it takes a little extra effort, we have to make sure the client leaves satisfied, right?"