Today is Cangtong Kai's tenth birthday.
His father didn't come home; he was busy in London, mingling with a group of financial giants.
On the spacious lawn in front of the house, the city's most famous circus was performing under the open sky. Joyful music echoed through the air, and colorful food was piled high like mountains. Clowns grinning from ear to ear distributed beautiful balloons to everyone, each one neatly printed with "Happy Birthday Kai!"
All of Cangtong Kai's classmates were invited as guests, and laughter and cheers filled the air.
No one noticed that the main character, Cangtong Kai, had disappeared shortly after this grand birthday party began.
Cangtong Kai walked on the beach with a gloomy expression, leaving a trail of footprints in the fine sand.
It was a weekend but the weather wasn't too great, so not many people were at the beach to amuse themselves.
In the evening, behind an ice cream shop near the beach, a few children gathered in a circle, excitedly pointing and talking.
"Just now, I was eating an ice cream cone by the sea, and it actually jumped out of the water and bit off half of it!"
"This fish is so strange! It's white all over!"
"Is it very valuable? In my dad's seafood shop, fish like this can sell for several dozens of yuan per half kg!"
"Really?"
Cangtong Kai approached. In the bucket surrounded by the children, there was a white fish with fins and tail swaying like lace. Some scales were missing from its back, revealing reddish flesh. A mischievous child playfully poked the fish with a slender twig. It quickly dodged, its round eyes spinning around as it looked at Cangtong Kai.
"Save me!"
Cangtong Kai suddenly heard a faint cry for help.
He looked at the white fish in surprise.
"I'm talking to you! If you don't take me away, I'll be sold and eaten!"
The fish splashed in the water, constantly blowing bubbles.
When the mischievous child was about to poke the fish's eye with the twig, Cangtong Kai pushed him away.
When it came to a real fight, Cangtong Kai was as fierce as a little leopard.
The children fled after being defeated.
The white fish in the bucket looked at the child who had fought for it with some astonishment.
The evening weather was surprisingly better than during the day. The gently swaying sea reflected the sunset’s colorful glow.
Cangtong Kai crouched by the shore, and the incoming tide washed over his feet. The wooden bucket was placed in front of him.
"How can you talk?" he asked the fish.
"I've been able to talk since I was born!" The fish innocently blew a bubble.
"Then why can't those kids hear you?"
"Because they are humans."
"I'm a human too!"
"Perhaps fate brought us together..."
Cangtong Kai smiled; this fish was really interesting.
"Do you have a name?"
"I'm called Tutu."
"I'm called Cangtong Kai!"
Cangtong Kai scooped the fish out of the bucket and put it into the sea.
"Today is my birthday, and I'm very happy to meet you!" He made a funny face at Tutu. "You should go now; your dad and mom must be worried."
"I don't have a dad and mom," Tutu replied seriously and then suddenly giggled. "It's your birthday today?"
Cangtong Kai nodded.
Tutu wagged her tail and disappeared into the seawater. On the horizon, the last ray of light vanished.
She must have left. Cangtong Kai stood up and gazed at the silent sea, feeling a bit of disappointment. After standing still for a while, he turned to walk back. Suddenly, there was a crisp voice calling his name from behind.
Turning around, a girl around fifteen or sixteen years old, dressed in a white dress and holding a beautiful piece of red coral, looked at him with a playful smile.
"You are..." Cangtong Kai was stunned.
"I'm Tutu!" She walked up to Cangtong Kai, handed him the coral, and smiled sweetly. "I picked this coral after much deliberation; it's the most beautiful one. For you. Happy birthday!"
"Th... Thank you." Cangtong Kai looked at the coral in his hand somewhat dazed, and after a while, he asked, "Is it a gift you specially picked from the sea?"
"Yes!" Tutu nodded. "Birthday gifts should always be chosen with care; that's what makes them meaningful."
"Thank you." Cangtong Kai suddenly hugged her. "I haven't received a real birthday gift in a long time."
Cangtong Kai didn't know what came over him. He was clearly smiling, but tears fell onto Tutu's shoulder.
Tutu patted his back with a smile.
"Tutu, your shoulder..." Cangtong Kai suddenly noticed a faint red mark on Tutu's shoulder. As his tears touched it, a white wisp of smoke appeared, and then the red mark disappeared.
"Oh, it's just a little injury from those kids earlier," Tutu looked at her shoulder and said in surprise, "Huh, how did the wound suddenly heal?"
"Is it because of my tears?" Cangtong Kai asked innocently, wiping away his tears.
"Maybe." Tutu nodded seriously, then laughed and held his hand, saying cheerfully, "Kai, you’re so awesome!!"
In the face of such a sincere smile, no one's heart could remain untouched. And so, on the beach that night, there was a joyful conversation and play between a boy and a girl. Apt to the occasion, even the pitch-black sky was adorned with twinkling stars, casting beautiful reflections on the sea.
"Tutu, can you stay until morning?" Cangtong Kai suddenly stopped his joyful dancing and hung his head. "I always celebrate my birthday alone."
Tutu thought for a moment and said, "I won't leave. From now on, I'll stay with you to play. That way, neither of us will be alone. Is that okay?"
"Okay!!" Cangtong Kai jumped for joy.
The next evening, Xuan looked worriedly at Tutu in the fish tank. "Kai, we can't keep it. It's a fish. Sir won't allow it either."
"She's my friend!" Cangtong Kai corrected him. "Xuan, please keep this secret for me. I'll keep her in the secret room, and no one will know. As for my dad, he comes home only once every few years, and even when he does, he won't stay for more than an hour. He won't find out." He tugged on Xuan's sleeve, "I just want one more friend."
In a difficult situation, Xuan remained silent but eventually nodded. He rarely went against Cangtong Kai's wishes.
He was a few years older than Cangtong Kai. At the age of two, he was just a frail stray cat, spending his days rummaging through garbage heaps for food and dodging the noose of cat catchers. It was on a rainy night when he was close to death from illness that Cangtong Kai's father saved him and brought him home. He taught him the ways of cultivation, transforming him from an ordinary black cat into a cat demon capable of protecting himself and others.
Cangtong Kai's father had only one requirement for him—protect and accompany Cangtong Kai.
Xuan firmly remembered his promise to the Cangtong family.
One vow, seventeen years.
For Cangtong Kai, he was willing to sacrifice anything, even his own life.
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