Chapter 13: Can’t You Be Considerate of Us?
The sun, with its radiant beams, climbed over the mountaintop, instantly wiping away the light, veil-like mist in the mountains and leaving behind only a scorching heat.
Chi Xiasheng splashed some water in the yard and went back inside. He looked at the little dog, which was still pitch black even after being washed, and couldn’t help but feel a little worried.
Last night, Chi Xiasheng had determined that the little animal he had rescued was likely a fluffy black puppy. It had been struck quite badly by the lightning; the fur on its abdomen was gone, revealing raw, bleeding flesh underneath. Chi Xiasheng was no professional veterinarian, so he could only simply clean the wound and wrap it with a clean cloth strip.
The little black dog’s condition was not optimistic. Chi Xiasheng felt a sense of fate between them and decided to take it to a hospital in the city for treatment. But before that, he still needed to find Xiao Ze.
In the water tank in the backyard, the fish were terrified out of their wits. Several of them had been killed instantly by the energy from last night’s lightning strike. Xiao Ze’s mind was also buzzing from the shock. Although his heart was still pounding, he had at least managed to remain conscious. Moreover, he had absorbed a considerable amount of the energy that had been released yesterday and was barely able to take human form again.
In the time it took Chi Xiasheng to turn around, Xiao Ze leaped out of the water tank, transformed into a human, and walked into the house.
“Hey? You’re back? Where were you last night?”
Chi Xiasheng, holding a pot of freshly made soup, was taken aback. But seeing that Xiao Ze was unharmed, he breathed a sigh of relief.
“I went to Grandpa Li’s house. Are you leaving?”
Chi Xiasheng had told Xiao Ze yesterday that he would be leaving after he finished filming. Xiao Ze was very reluctant to see him go, but all good things must come to an end.
Chi Xiasheng nodded. “My agent should be here soon. Thank you for your care these past few days.”
Xiao Ze shook his head sadly and looked down, not saying a word.
As the two of them fell silent, a few weak whimpers came from a corner of the room.
Xiao Ze’s expression changed instantly. He hastily said he was going to find Grandpa Li and then ran off in a hurry.
Chi Xiasheng had just been pleasantly surprised that the puppy was awake. He turned his head only to find that Xiao Ze had vanished, leaving him completely bewildered.
What was so urgent?
Walking over, he gently picked up the puppy. A rare smile appeared on Chi Xiasheng’s usually cold face.
“You’re really lucky to have survived a lightning strike.”
The puppy just whimpered. It half-opened its eyes and saw Chi Xiasheng’s face. Sensing his presence, its cries slowly quieted down.
“Are you hungry? But I don’t think there’s any puppy formula here…”
Chi Xiasheng could only find some rice porridge for it. The puppy was clearly starving, and its will to live was strong. It didn’t care that it was in someone’s arms and lowered its little head to lap up the porridge.
The bowl of porridge was quickly finished. As the puppy licked the bowl, its head drooped, and it fell asleep again.
Chi Xiasheng carefully lifted the puppy’s head out of the bowl, wiped it clean, and then left a note for Xiao Ze before closing the door and heading out.
When he returned to the farmhouse where the production team was staying, carrying the little black dog, he found the place in an uproar.
The director had woken up to find that his world had collapsed. He stared at the online video of his confession, sitting numbly in his chair with a look of utter despair, as if he had seen a ghost, waiting for the police to arrive. This director had forced many young women into relationships with him and had even indirectly caused one girl to fall into depression and take her own life. Now that everything was exposed, he would likely spend the rest of his life behind bars.
The other guests’ agents had also arrived to pick up their artists. This show could no longer continue, so everyone left without a second thought, not giving the director any face at all. In this situation, not kicking him while he was down was already considered a kindness. All the artists kept their distance from the director, afraid of being implicated.
Chi Xiasheng walked into the yard and his eyes met with someone who was fussing over Su Chimian. Both of them froze when they saw each other.
Mother Su was wearing a light purple long dress, the hem embroidered with her favorite orchids. Her hair was coiled up with a hairpin, giving her an elegant and serene temperament. She looked at Chi Xiasheng with a kind and benevolent smile.
Chi Xiasheng looked at the person in front of him, and the hand holding the little black dog couldn’t help but tremble. The little black dog, in a daze, seemed to sense something. It lifted its eyelids and glanced at Chi Xiasheng with its dark eyes.
This gentle woman was once the mother Chi Xiasheng had longed for and looked forward to the most. Her etiquette seemed to be ingrained in her bones—quiet and graceful. Anyone who saw her would praise her as a model of a well-bred lady. But it was this very gentle person who had said the words that had chilled Chi Xiasheng’s heart to the core: “Chi Xiasheng has a strong personality. What’s the big deal if he gives in to Mianmian a little?”
“Xiaosheng, you’re back. Pack up, let’s go home.”
Mother Su walked over and gently patted Chi Xiasheng’s hand. But in the next moment, he dodged her comforting gesture.
Mother Su’s hand stopped in mid-air. There was a hint of surprise in her eyes, but it quickly returned to calm.
“Xiaosheng, are you still throwing a tantrum at us? We were indeed wrong about that matter, but we had our difficulties. Can’t you be considerate of your father and me?”
Chi Xiasheng looked at the woman’s gentle face and was silent for a moment before speaking softly. “Su Chimian suffered a lot on the show. Did you not comfort him?”
Hearing Chi Xiasheng bring this up, a look of heartache appeared on Mother Su’s face. “Mianmian has never done farm work before. It was really too hard for him this time. And Xiaosheng, you didn’t even help him. You even had to feud with him. You really shouldn’t have.”
Listening to the woman’s soft-spoken reprimand, Chi Xiasheng’s eyes couldn’t help but fill with self-mockery.
“I wasn’t feuding with him,” Chi Xiasheng looked up at Mother Su. “I simply loathe him. I find him disgusting.”
The expression on Mother Su’s face froze instantly. She widened her eyes in disbelief. “You… how can you say that? Mianmian is your brother…”
“He’s not. I don’t have a brother.”
Chi Xiasheng’s voice was as cold as ever, and his words stabbed right into Mother Su’s heart. “Not only is he not related to me, he has no blood relation to the Su family either. It’s your business if you treat him as your biological son, but I’m not blind.”
Mother Su pressed a hand to her forehead, feeling dizzy from his words.
“I know you’re resentful. Before I came, your father wanted me to bring you back, but I think you need to cool down outside for a while first. We can talk after you’ve thought things through.”
With that, Mother Su picked up her bag and walked towards Su Chimian. The two of them then got into a car and left.
Many people around were watching the drama. After seeing Mother Su leave in a huff, they couldn’t help but feel a newfound respect for Chi Xiasheng. It seemed he had not only fallen out with his brother but also with the entire Su family. That kind of courage was truly admirable.
But, was he really not going to be a young master anymore?
As everyone was speculating, Chi Xiasheng’s agent also arrived in his car.
Chi Xiasheng didn’t linger. He picked up his luggage, got in the car, and left.
His agent, Li Ge, held the steering wheel, his brows furrowed. “This variety show probably can’t continue filming. You were there. Did you see what exactly happened to that director?”
The whole thing was strange. There were even people in the industry saying the director had been dabbling in black magic and had suffered a backlash.
“I don’t know either. He was probably drunk.”
As he spoke, Chi Xiasheng reached out and rubbed the little black dog’s fluffy chin. The little black dog had been looking around with a slightly proud tilt of its head. Suddenly being rubbed, the whole dog seemed a bit dazed. It let out a soft bark at Chi Xiasheng, but it accidentally pulled on the wound on its abdomen, and its whimper immediately became much weaker.
“Why did you get a puppy?!”
Li Ge saw the small, dark thing in Chi Xiasheng’s arms in the rearview mirror and almost lost his grip on the steering wheel.
Chi Xiasheng briefly explained the puppy’s origin, which softened Li Ge’s heart a little. “Well, you can keep it. It can be a companion for you.”
“Did you… see the Su family?” Li Ge thought for a moment and finally asked.
Chi Xiasheng’s hand, which was rubbing the puppy’s chin, paused. His eyes were half-closed as he nodded. “I saw them. But there was nothing to talk about, so we went our separate ways.”
Li Ge knew that anything he said now would just be rubbing salt in Chi Xiasheng’s wound, so he wisely shut his mouth and started talking to him about dog-raising tips instead.
The little dog, nestled on Chi Xiasheng’s lap, began to drift off to sleep again. Just before falling asleep, it heard them calling it “Little Black Dog” over and over again. It couldn’t help but lift a paw and pat Chi Xiasheng’s leg.
What little black dog? You have no taste!
But the scent on this person was quite pleasant, the little black dog thought, and then it drifted off to sleep.
After driving all day, they finally returned to Hai City.
Chi Xiasheng had nowhere to live, so he went with Li Ge to rent a one-bedroom apartment and temporarily settled down.
The little black dog was also taken to the hospital for treatment. Fortunately, besides the wound on its abdomen, there were no other major problems.
Chi Xiasheng even made a special trip to a pet store and bought a lot of toys, chew sticks, and dog food for “Little Black.”
But Little Black was very disdainful of these things. Most of the time, it didn’t move much, just lying on its soft cushion and sleeping. Only when Chi Xiasheng came to play with it would it deign to give him a reaction. But the way it rolled its eyes seemed to be full of perfunctory indifference.
Chi Xiasheng always felt that this little guy was not ordinary. It was completely different from the usual clingy dogs, very noble and aloof.
“Could it be… when the lightning struck, it scrambled its brain?” Chi Xiasheng muttered to himself worriedly as he stroked Little Black’s head.
Little Black gave him a swat with its paw, pushing his hand away, and curled up again, completely ignoring him.
“Alright, it’s my fault. I shouldn’t have said bad things about you. How about I give you some extra meat to eat today?”
Chi Xiasheng patted the dog’s head, and a smile couldn’t help but bloom on his face.
The little black dog looked at the face so close to its own and disgustedly took two steps back. He hated being so close to others. If it weren’t for…
But this person’s skin was so fair and delicate. Standing so defenselessly in front of him, one swipe of his claw would probably tear the skin open.
Forcing himself to hold back, Little Black’s paw remained still, not lifting to strike him in the face.
