241. I Became a Grandma
After all, I’m just a cat.
After finishing breakfast, Black Bean flopped onto the bed, curled up, and began snoozing away.
Cats can sleep twelve to sixteen hours a day, and catgirls are probably no different.
Ning Chu gazed at the little catgirl sleeping soundly, her heart filled with worry, but her expression was unexpectedly gentle.
Even though this is a parallel world, technically speaking, any character from the book could be called “Mom.”
Including Wen Yang, who could practically be her own son.
Suddenly, she felt a little guilty about the ethics of her relationship with Wen Yang… it was genuinely a bit unsettling.
With Black Bean asleep, Ning Chu had no need to keep her tail hidden under her skirt. She pulled her tail out through a hole in her nightgown and wrapped it around herself, glancing down at her love-heart-shaped tail.
“Hmm, compared to Lily’s, it’s not as plump.”
“But it’s already quite… stiff…”
The heart-shaped tip of her tail was a tantalizing pink, and it looked risqué no matter how she viewed it.
Maybe she just needed to mess up the plot one more time or wait for it to develop a bit longer for the tail to fully grow.
Ning Chu gently stroked the tail. Without any emotional stir, she felt absolutely nothing.
It was just an extra appendage—kind of weird.
The rain outside was pouring harder, and she felt a bit worried about Wen Yang delivering takeout. One hand was stroking her tail while the other propped up her chin as she gazed out at the misty world beyond the window.
After nine o’clock, Ning Chu finally dialed her mother’s number.
She didn’t want to wake her up this early; she had held off until now.
“Hello?”
Sure enough, even though it was already nine, her mother’s lazy voice suggested she had just woken up.
“Mom, are you still sleeping?”
“Just got up~” Her mother yawned and teased, “What’s the rare occasion of you calling me? Need some cash?”
“Uh… pretty much.”
Her mother grumbled, “If you didn’t need money, you wouldn’t bother calling. I’ll transfer you fifteen hundred; remember to check for it.”
“Okay~”
“By the way, did you find a boyfriend?”
“……”
Who asks their child to find a boyfriend right after discovering they’ve become a daughter?
“It’s gonna be hard to hold it all in~” Her mother teased with a giggle, “Just find someone decent; it’s not like you’re going to have to marry them for life.”
Ning Chu found it hard to accept the succubus concept, merely responding with an affirmative.
Though her mother didn’t condone casual dating, she had a very nonchalant attitude toward relationships.
“If it’s too difficult…” her mother paused, “buy some toys.”
“……”
Ning Chu’s face turned a shade of crimson as she lowered her head, playing with her tail’s tip, unsure of what to say next.
“You’re not just calling me for money, are you?”
“No, Mom…” She felt anxious about broaching the topic and nervously asked, “Would you mind if I had another daughter?”
“Ah?” Her mother sounded flabbergasted, and her voice shot up in pitch, “Your brother turned into a girl?!”
Ning Chu quickly denied, “No, no, that’s not it!”
“You scared me half to d*ath!”
She relieved her mother’s misunderstanding, feeling a little better, but was suddenly startled by a sweet voice coming from behind: “Mom! Play with me!”
“!!!”
Ning Chu jumped, whipping around to see the little catgirl sitting at the end of the bed, her tail swaying listlessly behind her as she gazed at her eagerly.
“When did you wake up?!”
She lowered her voice and pulled the phone away a bit, correcting Black Bean with annoyance, “How many times must I say it?! Call me ‘Sister!’”
“Meow~”
“Wait until I finish my call.”
Ning Chu wasn’t sure if her mother had heard Black Bean, feeling even more anxious as she brought the phone back to her ear, nervously explaining, “Mom… I picked up a little homeless girl.”
“……”
Her mother seemed stunned, not responding for a while.
What was going on?
Leaving home for school at the end of August and coming back in November as a girl… in just three months, she also adopted a talkative daughter? That didn’t make sense at all!
Ning Chu didn’t hear a reply, so she steeled herself to continue, “Mom, my plan is… I’ll send her home, and you can help take care of her.”
She felt like her request was a bit overboard, considering Black Bean was a trouble she had created herself.
She shouldn’t have written that Little Emperor Wen story! Otherwise, there wouldn’t be all this mess!
Both of them fell silent for a moment. Ning Chu anxiously awaited her mother’s response, her head bowed, fidgeting as she contemplated what to do if her mother said no.
Classes had been skipped, and she’d have to carve out time for Black Bean or find a part-time job.
And she still needed to write; she had to get the opening ready and send it to the editor before Monday.
Why was she suddenly responsible for parenting?!
“You’re not hiding something from me, are you?” After a long pause, her mother finally asked, “So you were actually a girl in high school?”
She was worried her son might have already turned into a daughter before having a daughter. But even that logic didn’t quite add up.
“There’s no way that could be true…”
Black Bean snuggled up, sitting on Ning Chu’s lap, looking up with wide curious eyes.
Then her attention was drawn to Ning Chu’s tail.
Just as she was about to reach for it, Ning Chu quickly pinned Black Bean’s hand down and said to her mother, “It’s like this… I found a cat, and somehow that cat turned into a catgirl.”
She decided to lay it all bare without any pretense, except for why Black Bean turned into a catgirl; she told her everything.
“I don’t quite understand…”
“……” Ning Chu paused, throwing her hands up in surrender, “Just treat it like I suddenly have a ten-year-old daughter! You’re a grandma now! Is that clear?”
“Ohhh, I get it now! I’m a grandma, right?”
“Mom, don’t joke about it…” she sighed, “Are you coming over to pick her up, or should I take her home when I can? No wait, she can’t ride the train without an ID.”
Her mother pondered for a moment before replying, “That’s easy. I’ll drive over to get her, and I’ll register her under my name.”
Perhaps because this parallel world still retained some magical elements, her mother quickly accepted the idea of a cat turning into a catgirl after the initial shock wore off.
“I’ll come pick her up at the end of the month; you focus on taking care of her until then.”
“End of the month?”
“By then, your new ID will also be ready, and I need to go for a trip too.”
“Mom, you’re not abandoning me, are you?” Black Bean, sitting on Ning Chu’s lap, tugged at her sleeve with big teary eyes.
Looking into those watery eyes, Ning Chu’s heart softened, and she instinctively replied in a gentle tone, “No, of course not~ I’m just sending you to Grandma’s…”
“Not Grandma’s! To Sister’s house!”
Almost got derailed there.
Ning Chu patted Black Bean’s little head and continued discussing with her mother how to settle Black Bean in.
“I’ll give you another thousand for living expenses this month…”
“No need for that, right?”
“Don’t starve my precious granddaughter~”
Black Bean’s ears perked up, quickly realizing there was someone on the phone. She tugged at Ning Chu’s sleeve again, “I’m hungry! I want meat!”
“Mom, I’ll take her to eat first.”
Just one hour after breakfast, and she’s already hungry again?!
Ning Chu absentmindedly squeezed Black Bean’s hand, making her rumble contentedly with a purr.
And now she had to take care of her for a whole month!
