Story 63: Reza Shadey and the Shanghai Dumpling Caper
Reza Shadey, a Persian cat who, by his own lofty estimation, was the world's most important, had a magnificent new ambition. As Mrs Higgins packed her big suitcase, he saw his chance. "Forget being King of the Garden", he purred, sneaking between a pair of fluffy slippers. "I shall become Reza, the International Cat Burglar! My first mission: conquer a new land and its most valuable treasure!" With a wiggle and a squish, he vanished into the suitcase just before it snapped shut. CLICK!
A very important message from Mrs Higgins: Suitcases are for packing clothes and toys, not for cheeky cats or children! It's very dangerous to climb inside things, so please don't copy Reza's silly ideas. Now, back to the story!
Hours later, the suitcase opened. Reza peered out, his whiskers twitching. The air smelled of a million wonderful things: noodles, sweet blossoms and something like clouds filled with fish and gravy. Outside the window, neon dragons danced on towers so tall they looked like giant, glowing scratching posts that reached the moon-biscuit in the sky. This was Shanghai! And the most mysterious thing of all was the scent of what the humans called "xiao long bao" — wobbly, steamy soup dumplings!
"Ni hao, dumplings!" Reza whispered in his best, most important-sounding Chinese purr. "I will conquer you!" He puffed out his fur to look like a master thief's shadow, but with the suitcase wrinkles, he looked more like a disgruntled, fluffy dandelion.
The next day, in the busy Yuyuan Bazaar, Reza spied steam rising from bamboo baskets like dragon's breath. A crowd of street cats watched him. "Those", he announced grandly, pointing a regal paw, "are hollow furballs filled with warm tuna rain. A delicacy only for superior cats like myself. You may applaud." The street cats just blinked, completely unimpressed.
It was time for the Great Heist! Reza's plan was genius (in his head). First, he tried to use a pair of chopsticks as a pole vault. TWANG! He flew sideways and landed in a pile of silk scarves. WHOOSH! Next, he mistook a man practicing calligraphy for someone making muddy paw-print art. "An amateur", Reza sniffed, before nearly getting a splat of black ink on his tail.
Then, disaster! While hiding from a grumpy-looking Pekinese dog named Bao Bao, he accidentally dipped his magnificent tail in a bowl of ginger vinegar. "YEEEOOOWW! FIRE-TAIL DISASTER! MY FLUFF IS COMPROMISED!" he yowled, zipping away with a very smelly, very angry tail.
Watching all this from a rooftop, with one wise, knowing eye, was a sleek Shanghainese cat. Her name was Mao Li. She hopped down gracefully. "Little cloud", she purred, her voice calm and smooth. "A wise cat knows that a stolen dumpling brings only a sour taste and a wet tail."
Reza scoffed, trying to fluff up his vinegary tail. "Wisdom is for cats who cannot jump!" he sniffed haughtily. And with that, he saw his chance! A fresh basket of dumplings sat unguarded. He pounced!
He grabbed a hot, wobbly dumpling and ran for his life! But Bao Bao, the vendor's loyal guard-dog, yapped furiously and gave chase! YAP! YAP! YAP! Chaos! Reza dodged through crowds, knocked over a display of teacups (CRASH!) and scrambled over a little bridge. With a final, desperate leap, he tumbled head over paws into a koi pond! SPLOOOOSH!
The dumpling floated away as Reza spluttered, covered in water weeds and shame. Suddenly, a paw reached down and helped him out. It was Mao Li. "I see you went for a swim", she said, a twinkle in her one eye. Bao Bao trotted up and licked her paw. "He's my friend", Mao Li explained. "He helps guard the dumplings from silly, fluffy clouds who think with their tummies."
Reza's ears drooped. He had been outsmarted. Feeling very small and very soggy, he helped the vendor pick up the broken teacups, nudging them with his nose. The vendor, seeing his sad, droopy face, laughed and gave him a broken shrimp cracker.
Later, as the sun began to rise, Reza sat with Mao Li. The vendor brought them a special treat: a basket of slightly broken, but still delicious, soup dumplings to share. As Reza took a careful bite, the warm soup bursting in his mouth, he looked at his new friend. "This is much better than tuna rain", he admitted to himself. "And it required far less running."
Reza realised something very important that morning. Adventure was good, but sharing it with a friend was even better. "Besides", he concluded with a flicker of his old self, "making friends is a clever strategy. They might just give you dumplings for free. Much more efficient!"
Night night. Sleep tight.