One day, a very cute golden cat was playing by a small river. As it was getting dark, it felt a bit tired from playing, so it drank some water, found a dry grass nest under the shade of a willow tree on the riverbank, and lay down to sleep.
In the river, a large group of ducks was happily swimming around. Suddenly, a red-billed mother duck felt her stomach swell and ache; it was really painful. She hurriedly said to her friends, “You guys go ahead and play; I…my stomach hurts so much…” The group of ducks burst into laughter.
The red-billed duck couldn’t care less about their teasing because her stomach pain had worsened, and she could feel the egg moving inside. She quickly ran ashore, glanced around, and immediately spotted the grass nest under the willow tree. Without looking closely, she lay down. Soon, she laid a shiny white egg, caressed it for a while, and gently covered it with dry grass. She said, “Dear baby, Mommy will come to see you tomorrow!” and left.
At this moment, the golden cat was sleeping soundly behind the red-billed duck. In its dream, it had a strange dream: it felt a terrible stomach ache, as if it needed to go to the bathroom badly. It hurriedly found a spot of land, squatted down, and with a grunt, laid a round egg. “Oh my!” the golden cat exclaimed as it looked back, shocked.
This exclamation woke it up from the dream. “Thank goodness it was just a dream, otherwise, what would I do!” Just as it was about to stand up, it felt something behind it. Looking back, it saw an egg the size of a duck egg, still warm. “What’s going on? Did I really lay an egg? This is so embarrassing; what will others say about me?” But then it thought, “I’ve never been a mother; I dream of being a mother.
No matter what kind of egg it is, since I laid it, I must love it well and try not to let others know!” Thinking this, the golden cat caressed the egg for a while, covered it with dry grass, and then went home.
That night, the golden cat didn’t sleep well, always thinking about the egg baby it had just laid. In the morning, it quickly ate something and went back to the riverbank. Soon, it found the egg under the willow tree, picked it up, and kissed it repeatedly, saying, “Baby, Mommy is here to see you; Mommy missed you so much…”
“What are you doing? Put my egg down!” The red-billed duck happened to come to see her egg and saw the old cat holding it. Thinking the cat was going to eat her egg, she shouted loudly. “Help! The golden cat is stealing my egg!” This shout brought nearby ducks, geese, and goats to gather around, trapping the golden cat in the middle.
“I…I didn’t steal your egg; I was loving it…” the golden cat said very aggrievedly. “Besides, it’s not your egg!”
“This is my egg; I laid it yesterday evening!” the red-billed duck said confidently. “If it isn’t mine, is it yours?”
“It really is mine,” the golden cat said in a low voice, blushing.
“Wow,” the animals exclaimed.
“How is that possible?”
“That’s ridiculous.”
“A cat laying an egg, never heard of it.”
“I knew you wouldn’t believe it; it really is mine. I can swear.” The golden cat was almost crying. The red-billed duck pressed harder, and the golden cat felt that even if it had a hundred mouths, it couldn’t explain.
At this moment, Grandpa Goat came over, stroking his long beard. Everyone gathered around, asking Grandpa Goat to judge the situation.
Grandpa Goat smiled and said, “Children, don’t worry; this is easy to solve. Put the egg back in the nest, and no one touches it. I’ll ask Aunt Goose to guard it, and we’ll know the result in twenty days!” Everyone agreed.
On the morning of the twentieth day, everyone gathered around the nest, staring at the egg.
The red-billed duck was very proud, certain that a lively duckling would emerge. The golden cat was very anxious; although it believed the egg was hers, it worried that it might hatch a creature that was neither a duck nor a cat. The two stood on either side, ears pressed against the egg, listening.
At this moment, Grandpa Goat raised his hand, and everyone quieted down. Soon, a rustling sound came from the egg, growing louder and louder. Everyone’s excitement grew. Grandpa Goat raised his hand silently, starting the countdown, and everyone joined in a hushed voice: “Five, four, three, two, one…”
With a “crack,” a flat beak broke through the shell, and soon a whole duckling emerged, lively and jumping! Everyone cheered.
The golden cat blushed, holding the duck mother’s hand and repeatedly apologizing, admitting its mistake. Grandpa Goat laughed, patting her back, saying, “I think you really want a child. You would be a loving and responsible mother who wouldn’t reject any child. Since you love children so much, why not be the godmother of this little duckling?”
“Great!” The golden cat was thrilled. She hugged the duckling, kissing it repeatedly. The duck mother also held her hand, congratulating her. Amidst the warm applause of everyone, the little duckling gained a loving cat godmother!
Thank you for reading! ” Sitestorys “
