The White Cat tilted its head and meowed a few more times. Although Zhao Yuan couldn't understand what it was saying, he could tell from the way it refused to leave him that it was dead set on going to Jinling with him.
Zhao Yuan took the White Cat off his shoulder, cupped it in his hands, and asked, "Little one, tell me, is something unexpected going to happen on this trip to Jinling?"
The White Cat just kept meowing. Zhao Yuan cursed his inability to understand the language of animals, which left him unable to communicate with it.
After a moment of hesitation, he finally decided to bring the White Cat along. His past experiences had shown him its miraculous abilities. If something unexpected really did happen on the trip to Jinling, bringing it could turn disaster into good fortune.
Liu Zhu, Wang Rongfeng, and Wu Yan didn't know about the White Cat's abilities, so they were quite puzzled to see Zhao Yuan planning to take it with him.
Wang Rongfeng asked, "Third Brother, you're going to Jinling to compete in medical arts, not to enter a pet competition. Why bring the White Cat?"
Liu Zhu said, "Are you worried that no one will be around to look after the White Cat once we're gone? We can take it to Guo Shun's dorm and ask him and the others to watch it for a few days. Guo Shun and his friends adore the White Cat. There won't be any issues, so you don't have to worry."
Wu Yan nodded in agreement. "That's a good idea, Third Brother. Why don't you just let Guo Shun and the others look after the White Cat for a couple of days?"
Zhao Yuan shook his head, politely declining his friends' suggestion. He didn't want to worry them, so he didn't tell them the truth. "I'm bringing the White Cat to help me relax," he said. "Having a pet around before the big showdown will help me get in the right mindset."
Hearing this, Liu Zhu, Wang Rongfeng, and Wu Yan didn't press the issue. After going downstairs, the four of them first went to the Nursing Department's dormitory, picked up Lin Xue, Yang Zi, and two other female students, and then headed to the south gate of campus together.
When they reached the south gate, Zhao Yuan was surprised to find that not only were Principal Ma, Elder Qiu, and other administrators and professors already waiting, but a huge crowd of students had gathered as well.
Seeing Zhao Yuan approach, the students immediately erupted into a deafening, tsunami-like roar.
"Look, it's Zhao Yuan! He's here!"
"Wow, he's so handsome! He really is a muscular god!"
"He's not just muscular, he's a real man! Daring to challenge a medical Noble Family all by himself. That courage alone is unrivaled! Zhao Yuan, you have to give it your all in Jinling!"
"Wipe the floor with the Jinling Zhao Family! Show them what West Hua Medical University is made of!"
"Zhao Yuan, you'll always be the pride of our Class Three of Integrated Chinese and Western Medicine! Go for it! Win this medical competition! Let the name of Class Three of Integrated Chinese and Western Medicine be known across the world!"
Although the cheers were for Zhao Yuan, Liu Zhu and the others were thrilled as well, their hearts swelling with a sense of shared pride.
Liu Zhu grabbed Zhao Yuan and shouted excitedly, "Third Brother, did you hear them? Everyone came to cheer you on!"
"I hear them!"
Zhao Yuan nodded vigorously. He truly hadn't expected so many of his fellow students to come see him off and cheer him on. He was deeply moved, and at the same time, his fighting spirit blazed, burning hotter and brighter.
He saw Pan Mei in the crowd, and Ma Hanqing, and his classmates from Class Three of Integrated Chinese and Western Medicine.
Besides these familiar faces, he also saw countless unfamiliar ones in the crowd.
People he knew and people he didn'tβat this moment, they were all cheering him on!
"I will not let any of you down!" Zhao Yuan said, each word spoken with deliberation. It sounded like both a promise and an oath.
Ma Guotao came forward and said, "Zhao Yuan, you'll ride in my car. The other students can get on the minibus with Elder Qiu and Director Yang."
No one had any objections to this arrangement, of course.
Ma Guotao noticed the White Cat on Zhao Yuan's shoulder and blinked in surprise. "What's with the cat? Zhao Yuan, you're not planning to take it to Jinling with you, are you?"
Before Zhao Yuan could even speak, Liu Zhu answered for him, "Principal Ma, Zhao Yuan is planning to bring the cat to help him relax before the big competition."
Ma Guotao nodded. "Oh, I see. Alright, bring it along then. I'll have someone arrange the paperwork for its air transport."
After waving goodbye to the students who had gathered, Zhao Yuan got into Ma Guotao's Audi sedan. Liu Zhu, Lin Xue, and the others followed behind renowned professors like Qiu Haogu and Yang Jingbo, boarding the minibus that was waiting.
Once everyone was on board, the Audi sedan started up and headed for the airport, with the minibus following close behind.
As the vehicles drove off into the distance, the students and teachers who had come to the south gate to see them off began to disperse.
But one person in the crowd hadn't come to cheer Zhao Yuan on.
'I really don't get what's so great about that poor bastard, attracting so many people to see him off and cheer him on! But that's fine. The more people who show up, the more he'll be ridiculed when he fails!'
Ye Feng watched the departing cars, grinding his teeth in hatred.
He'd been thrilled when the Jinling Zhao Family started a smear campaign against Zhao Yuan on the forums, even spending a hefty sum to hire an online mob to fan the flames. He never imagined the university would stand so firmly behind Zhao Yuan, or that even the Great God of Witch Doctor would be stirred into action to defend him. Who knew how this poor kid from the mountains had earned the favor of the Great God of Witch Doctor?
Seeing Zhao Yuan dodge that bullet made Ye Feng furious. But then, right in front of a pack of media reporters, Zhao Yuan had challenged the Jinling Zhao Family!
Talk about a death wish. This was it!
Ye Feng refused to believe Zhao Yuan could win against the Jinling Zhao Family. He was already prepared to kick the man while he was down after he lost!
'Enjoy your last day of glory, Zhao,' Ye Feng swore to himself, clenching his fists. 'After tomorrow's competition, I'll make sure you won't even have the tears to cry!'
Ten-odd minutes later, the car entered the city's ring-road expressway.
Inside the Audi, Ma Guotao wanted to ask Zhao Yuan how his preparations were going, but he worried it might add to his pressure. He hesitated, unsure if he should speak. As a result, the atmosphere in the car grew somewhat strange and stifling.
Another twenty minutes or so passed. The car exited the expressway and continued toward the airport.
Just as the Audi was passing through an intersection, the White Cat, which had been perfectly quiet until then, suddenly became frantic. It let out a screech and lunged at the driver, as if trying to stop him from driving.
The driver jumped in fright and instinctively slammed on the brakes.
At almost the exact same moment, a large truck ran a red light from the right side of the intersection. It came barreling through at high speed, slamming into the front of the Audi sedan!
Thankfully, the White Cat had startled the driver into braking. Otherwise, the truck wouldn't have hit the front of the car, but the main cabin!