I simply won’t sell it to you. chapter 2

The Misunderstanding Caused by the Cat’s Meow

Although I already knew what the dog was worth, I still didn’t want to take advantage of his situation. I said, “Sell me this dog for two hundred and fifty dollars. Look, it’s so late and there won’t be any more customers.”

“No,” he answered simply.

“Hey, you’re such a strange – tempered kid. You won’t sell it to me for two hundred and fifty dollars, but you’re willing to sell it to others for one hundred and fifty dollars. Do we have a grudge?”

“I just won’t sell it to you! We don’t have a grudge. I don’t want to talk to you.”

“This is really strange! If you can give me a good reason that convinces me, I’ll pay five hundred dollars, or even eight hundred or a thousand dollars!” Snowy seemed to be puzzled too and meowed. In the quiet evening, its meow sounded especially sharp and harsh.

Tom gave me a disdainful look and pointed at Snowy: “You really want to get to the bottom of it, right? This cat’s meow is the answer.”

“Ah?” I was completely confused.

“It all started this morning,” Tom glared at me and began to tell the story. “This morning, I went to the pharmacy to buy stomach medicine for my mom. When I passed by the market, I saw someone slaughtering dogs on the street. There were more than a dozen dogs in a big cage, watching their companions being cut open alive. They were all crying so miserably. I felt so sorry for them and wanted to buy them all to save them, but I only had one hundred and fifty dollars, which was for my mom’s stomach medicine. The dog – killer said this little spotted dog was worth exactly one hundred and fifty dollars, so I gave him all my money. I bought it and then had to sell it again so that I could buy stomach medicine for my mom. I wanted to find a good owner for it so that it wouldn’t be caught and killed and eaten again.”

I nodded approvingly: “Well! I didn’t expect you to love animals so much. But what does this have to do with my cat’s meow?”

“There’s a pet clinic next to my house. I often go there to play. I could tell at a glance that your cat was neutered, so its voice is so shrill. You’re so cruel to the kitten. How can I trust you to buy the dog?”

I suddenly understood: “Oh, so that’s it! Kid, you misunderstood me. I should have told you earlier. This cat is called Snowy. It’s a poor stray cat. It was neutered before I adopted it. I want to buy a dog to be its companion. Didn’t you see how affectionate Snowy and this dog are?”

Tom looked down and saw the cat and the dog sticking together.

He smiled sheepishly: “Uncle, I’ll sell it to you for one hundred and fifty dollars.”

I nodded with a smile and told him to come to my house often to see the little spotted dog and Snowy. Then we walked towards a pharmacy not far away. Under the dim street – lamp light, the shadows of me, Tom, Snowy and the little spotted dog slowly moved forward in a staggered way…