Bewitching Kitty
Snatching the Magazine Photoshoot
Lin Sifei was once again woken by the piercing morning sunlight. She raised a hand to block her face and saw it was already 9:30.
She’d been sleeping this late recently.
She rolled over and saw Luo Ke, who was still asleep beside her. She covered her mouth to stifle a giggle, lifted a corner of the blanket, and peeked inside.
She had just gotten a glimpse when a sharp pain shot through her ear.
“Ah! Ouch, ouch, ouch.” Lin Sifei rescued her cat ear, rubbing it aggrievedly. “I was just looking, it’s not like I haven’t seen it before.”
Luo Ke glanced at her and grabbed her by the waist.
Lin Sifei’s waist was full of ticklish spots. Her shoulders immediately scrunched up, and she fell back onto the bed, unable to stop herself from bursting into laughter.
“I was wrong, I was wrong! I’ll never do it again, really!”
She rolled around on the bed while Luo Ke lay on top of her, not letting her go for quite a while.
Lin Sifei was panting heavily, lying limp and exhausted.
Luo Ke looked at her and couldn’t help but lean closer to her lips. Lin Sifei looked back at her and slowly closed her eyes. Luo Ke followed suit, their soft lips meeting.
“Poof!”
Luo Ke only felt a gust of wind rush towards her face. She raised a hand to shield herself. When she opened her eyes again, the beautiful woman on the bed was gone, replaced by an American Shorthair staring at her in a daze.
“Meow?”
That morning, the two of them sat facing each other, both lost in thought.
Lin Sifei tapped on her tablet. “What do we do now?”
“This time, you turned human during your heat cycle. So it’s possible you’ll be able to turn human again during your next heat cycle.”
“That’s just too miserable!” Lin Sifei was dejected.
Luo Ke rubbed her head. “What does it matter? Whether you’re a human or a cat, I’ll still take care of you. It’s just that the pile of snacks you bought will have to wait until next time.”
Lin Sifei collapsed onto the chair. How can I bring myself to say that I’m worried about our relationship? Who would want to be in a relationship with a cat?
Once her heat cycle ended, Luo Ke went back to taking the cat to work. But Lin Sifei clearly noticed something was different. Before, Luo Ke would rub her belly at the drop of a hat, but now she deliberately avoided those sensitive spots.
Lin Sifei lay on the desk, playing a game.
“President Luo.” Zhao Min pushed the door open and came in. Lin Sifei quickly exited the game interface.
Zhao Min took out a document. “President Luo, this is the collaboration proposal with Charming Woman, along with some sample issues. They’re hoping Luo Corporation’s jewelry can be an advertiser.”
Luo Ke flipped through a sample issue, picking up the contract proposal with her other hand.
Lin Sifei, bored with nothing to do, also pawed through the magazines. She used to do magazine photoshoots often, but this was the first time she was looking at them from an advertiser’s perspective.
After pawing through a few, her paw suddenly froze. She pressed closer to look at the woman in the sample issue.
Although the stylist had done the woman up so she was completely unrecognizable, based on her years of experience, Lin Sifei knew it was Yan Yafei.
“Meeeoowr!” Lin Sifei slammed her paw on the desk in anger.
Luo Ke glanced at her, then nodded at Zhao Min. “You may leave for now.”
With no one else in the office, Lin Sifei immediately pawed the sample issue over to Luo Ke and furiously typed, “It’s actually Yan Yafei! No way, I want to be the cover model for this issue.”
Only then did Luo Ke notice that this issue hadn’t been released yet.
“You want to replace her?”
Lin Sifei nodded seriously and continued typing, “Otherwise, it will be hard to resolve the hatred in my heart1. She actually fed me chocolate.”
Luo Ke stroked her chin. “If you want to, then I’ll contact the magazine.”
She picked up her phone and dialed the contact number on the document. The person on the other end was ecstatic to hear she wanted to partner with them, but then they heard she wanted to change the model.
“Well… President Luo, our magazine’s production costs are very high, and there isn’t much time. How are we supposed to find a model on such short notice?”
“I’ll cover all the costs. The model——I’ll bring her.”
The person on the other end understood immediately. This was about promoting someone. “Okay, okay, President Luo. Then… let’s schedule a time for the shoot. I’ll have my people get everything ready.”
“One moment.” Luo Ke moved the phone away from her mouth and looked at Lin Sifei. “When do you want to do the shoot?”
Lin Sifei thought for a moment. To prevent any long nights giving rise to many dreams2, she typed: “Tomorrow.”
Luo Ke nodded and brought the phone back to her mouth. “We’ll shoot tomorrow.”
“Okay, okay, okay.” The person on the other end said “okay” three times, and they happily reached an agreement before hanging up.
Luo Ke gave Lin Sifei an “OK” sign. Lin Sifei happily held out her paw, and they high-fived.
On the other end, the boss of Charming Woman magazine shook his head with a smile and chatted with the person next to him. “I wonder which beauty has captivated the Luo Corporation’s president. President Luo even asked her about the shooting time.”
The person beside him also laughed. “I’ve never heard any gossip about this Luo Ke. So she’s into women, huh.”
“Who cares who she likes, as long as she gives us money.” The boss leaned back in his chair. “Go contact Yan Yafei’s people. She’s not going to be in this issue anymore.”
“Okay.”
Yan Yafei’s agent was stunned when he received the call. He glanced at Yan Yafei, who was touching up her makeup beside him, and lowered his voice. “Do you know who’s backing us? President Yuan wants to promote her!”
“This… but the Luo Corporation is putting a lot of pressure on us. How about this, we’ll just move this issue’s cover to a later date.”
“It’s the holidays right now. This is the best time for publicity.”
“Alright, alright, there’s nothing that can be done about it.” The person from the magazine was getting impatient. He said a few more words and hung up.
The agent flung his hand down in anger.
Yan Yafei noticed him and put down her lipstick. “What’s wrong?”
The agent thought for a moment, then said tactfully, “There’s a small problem with the magazine. This issue’s cover photo has to be postponed.”
Yan Yafei understood instantly: she had been pushed out by someone else. She fiercely clenched the lipstick in her hand, but on the surface, she maintained an innocent expression.
“As long as I can be on it, who cares which issue it is. Chen-ge3, don’t you be angry either. It’s fine.”
Chen-ge sighed. Fearing it would affect her mood, he didn’t explain the difference between the magazine issues.
Yan Yafei turned her head back, her lips pressed tightly together. I have Yuan Mo backing me. Who would dare to snatch my spot? This is too audacious.
She took a deep breath, suppressing the anger in her heart. I can’t act out yet. Tomorrow night, Yuan Mo is taking me to dinner. I can pretend to mention it unintentionally. Snatch my spot? Just wait until you can’t make it in this industry anymore.
The next morning, Luo Ke personally drove Lin Sifei to the photoshoot location, followed by a security vehicle. Inside were several of the Luo Corporation’s treasures that guard the shop4, any one of which was worth over a hundred million.
When they arrived at the location, the security personnel got out first, then escorted Luo Ke inside as she carried the cat. Several people followed behind them, carrying a safe.
Lin Sifei lay comfortably in Luo Ke’s arms. Although she’d had bodyguards before and worn jewelry lent by sponsors, this was different.
Now, all this jewelry belonged to the person holding her. By rounding up5, it was basically hers!
Such a grand spectacle naturally alarmed the magazine’s boss. He quickly came downstairs and shook Luo Ke’s hand excitedly.
“I didn’t expect President Luo to come in person. Please forgive me for not coming out to greet you.”
“No need for formalities.” Luo Ke was as cold as ever, letting go after a brief handshake.
The boss’s enthusiasm didn’t wane. “I was wondering, where is the model?”
“Right here.” Luo Ke lifted her arm slightly.
The boss’s expression froze instantly. “A cat?”
Luo Ke nodded. “Cats are very popular, with both men and women. And I’ve already brought the jewelry needed for this magazine shoot. You just need to take the photos.”
The boss nodded with a smile, wiping the sweat from his forehead. “Our photographer has never shot a cat before. They might not be very cooperative.”
“It’s fine. My cat is very good at having her picture taken and is very cooperative. I’ll handle the communication.”
With things having reached this point, the boss couldn’t refuse. He waved at the people gathered around, signaling for them to get to work.
Jewelry shoots involve valuable items, so to prevent any mishaps from having too many hands around, only essential personnel remained on set. Only the boss insisted on sticking around, trying his best to get friendly with Luo Ke.
Luo Ke didn’t pay him much mind, her attention revolving around the cat.
The security guard, wearing gloves, opened the safe and placed the contents on the table. The overhead lights shone on the jewelry, making it glitter brilliantly.
Everyone present stared with wide eyes. The boss was even stuttering. “Th-these must be the Luo Corporation’s most valuable pieces, right? I remember that ring is the most perfect work of master designer Metasha.”
Luo Ke smiled slightly and looked at the photographer and stylist. “You two can choose what you think is suitable.”
The stylist and photographer both put on gloves. Looking at the jewelry, then at the cat, they had a burst of inspiration and quickly designed a plan for the magazine shoot.
Luo Ke showed the plan to Lin Sifei. Seeing Lin Sifei tap her paw twice, she knew she was satisfied and nodded. “Let’s go with this.”
“Um, actually, this plan is for a whole set of magazine photos. We think it would be better to do a special feature.” The stylist’s eyes were shining.
When the boss heard this, his eyes lit up too, and he looked at Luo Ke expectantly.
Lin Sifei raised her paw and tapped Luo Ke’s leg twice again. Luo Ke nodded. “You can.”
The boss was so excited he fiercely gripped the stylist’s hand beside him, telling her with his eyes, Raise, you’re getting a raise!
Lin Sifei got ready, flicked her tail, and jumped onto the shooting platform.
The stylist and photographer, wearing gloves, selected a piece of jewelry and placed it on her head.
“This one’s good, this one’s good.” This one’s expensive! The boss couldn’t help but offer his guidance.
Luo Ke shot him a cool glance, and he immediately shut his mouth.
The first photo was of a ring. Lin Sifei balanced the ring on the tip of her nose as if playing, looking both cute and playful.
The photographer used hand signals to tell his assistant to adjust the lighting. The flash went off continuously.
“Kitty, move a little. Lift your paw. Left paw, left paw.”
Lin Sifei glanced at Luo Ke. Luo Ke immediately walked over, petted Lin Sifei a couple of times, and lowered her head as if saying something.
After putting on a show, Lin Sifei lifted her left paw.
After one set of photos was done, Lin Sifei rested on Luo Ke’s lap.
The photographer looked at the photos on the side. “Every single one is beautiful.”
Luo Ke beamed as if she were the one being praised, her eyes curving into happy crescents. Lin Sifei, on her lap, however, was frowning. This set of photos was good, but none of them were outstanding enough to be a magazine cover.
Sure enough, the photographer pursed his lips. “As a cover photo, it’s still lacking a little something. I’ll talk it over with the stylist again.”
Lin Sifei thought for a moment. She felt the two of them were trapped by the inherent impression of cats—that they’re just cute. These photos were cute enough, but her round eyes couldn’t capture a domineering style.
She thought for a moment, then burrowed into Luo Ke’s bag, stretched out a paw to type on her phone, and then showed it to her.
【A more bewitching cat】
Luo Ke frowned slightly, but still turned to the two of them. “What if the styling was designed to be more bewitching?”
The stylist gave an awkward laugh. “Actually, we did consider that, but it’s very difficult to capture that kind of feeling with a cat. It’s usually something you see in candid videos. It’s very hard with photos because you can’t change their expression with the aid of makeup.”6
Lin Sifei leaped down, ran to a piece of dark red cloth, and sat on it.
Luo Ke understood her meaning. “Use that red cloth.”
As she spoke, a hint of disdain appeared in her eyes. The red cloth looked a lot like the kind you’d see lining a basket in a baby photo studio. With a cat squatting on it now, all it needed was a basket underneath to perfectly match the cliché of a tacky pet photo.
She pressed her forehead helplessly. A cat demon’s taste… is different from a human’s, I guess.
Even though she thought this, she would support it whether it looked good or not.
The stylist picked up the red cloth, held it mid-air, and let it go, allowing it to fall naturally and pile up in folds.
Lin Sifei took two steps back, then leaped onto it forcefully.
The stylist’s eyes lit up. He picked up a crown and placed it on her head.
“Head down, eyes lowered. This gives it a kind of bewitching, decadent beauty.” The photographer snapped photos excitedly.
The flash went off a few times. Suddenly, Lin Sifei moved a paw and turned her head to look over. Her vertical pupils glanced languidly into the distance. The folds of the red cloth looked like a red cape draping to the ground, and the glittering crown couldn’t suppress the aura emanating from her entire being in the slightest.
Both powerful and bewitching.
Luo Ke stood just off the set, her gaze meeting the cat’s eyes directly. Her heart skipped a beat. The image of Lin Sifei’s human face appeared before her—those same eyes, when they glanced over sideways, were soul-stirring.7
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