Chapter 4: Plastic Bag
When everything was finished, it was nearing afternoon. As Luo Jing returned to the car with the dog, he saw several missed calls and unread messages on his phone.
His sister asked if he had gone abroad to buy seasonings.
Luo Jing replied, yeah, how did you know, my brother and I just arrived at the airport.
After paying the fees at the front desk and buying some necessities for the puppy, they got back in the car, loaded with bags.
Luo Jing sat in the back seat, holding the dog, feeling a little drowsy.
The puppy’s hind leg was wrapped in gauze. Perhaps knowing its leg had been treated, it had perked up and become active again.
This made its new owner’s drowsiness somewhat difficult to maintain.
Huai Dan concentrated on driving. In the rearview mirror, the child was being pestered by the puppy, his expression becoming increasingly weary. Finally, completely awake, he sat up straight.
Luo Jing planned to chat with Brother Huai to build rapport.
Before he could figure out what to talk about, Huai Dan spoke first: “Have you thought of a name for it?”
Luo Jing looked at the dog in his arms, pondering, and stared at it for a moment.
The puppy returned his gaze with innocent, round, black eyes, then barked after a while.
Luo Jing thought for a moment, then blurted out: “Plastic Bag.”
Huai Dan: “…”
“Not bad,” he commented after a moment of silence.
“It is good, right? I think so too.” Luo Jing was delighted that his naming sense was recognized.
Plastic Bag seemed to like its new name, or perhaps it just saw its new owner happy and felt happy too.
Feeling happy, it couldn’t help but frolic, and once it started frolicking, it couldn’t contain its movements.
Luo Jing’s joy instantly turned to worry. He couldn’t understand how a puppy with a broken leg could be so energetic.
“I think Plastic Bag might be a little silly,” Luo Jing said, looking at the puppy with concern, giving it a couple of pats. “We just met today, what if I were a bad person?”
“We’ll have its brain checked at the next checkup…”
Huai Dan didn’t respond, only curving his lips slightly.
Perhaps when encountering its own kind, it couldn’t help but feel close.
When they arrived home, Luo Feng was sitting on the sofa watching TV—or rather, the TV was on, but she seemed to be just listening to the sound.
She sat with her legs crossed, her eyes glued to her phone screen, seemingly engrossed in a conversation with someone.
Luo Jing realized something and carefully glanced at Huai Dan beside him, but he was expressionless, as if he had no thoughts about this scene and no intention of talking to his sister.
Luo Jing: “?”
“Back from the airport?” Luo Feng, hearing the noise, tilted her head towards them, but her eyes were still on her phone.
A “woof” answered her.
Luo Feng’s typing fingers paused, then she turned to look at Luo Jing, a rare look of confusion on her face: “What’s that?”
After seeing the dog in Luo Jing’s arms, she fell silent.
After a while, she slowly said, “Don’t tell me you were gone for so long just to buy a dog.”
“I found it,” Luo Jing said innocently.
“You found it and brought it back?”
“Is that not allowed?” Luo Jing held Plastic Bag up to his sister: “Isn’t it cute?”
Luo Feng was speechless for a moment, then reached out to take the dog and examine it.
Plastic Bag was very obedient throughout, understanding the principle of “when under someone’s roof, one must bow one’s head.” It allowed itself to be touched and held without any resistance.
“What’s wrong with its leg? Is it injured?” Luo Feng poked the puppy’s bandaged right hind leg.
“It’s fractured, we just came back from the vet,” Luo Jing replied.
The doctor had used a large piece of red floral fabric for the bandage, which matched the New Year atmosphere.
Although the puppy’s fracture was unfortunate, the look was strangely comical.
“You just have too much pocket money,” she returned the dog to Luo Jing.
“What’s its name?” she asked.
“Plastic Bag,” Luo Jing replied happily, taking the dog back.
“Woof!” Plastic Bag readily accepted its new name and responded happily.
Luo Feng: “?”
“What’s it called?” She suspected she had misheard or misunderstood.
“Plastic Bag,” Luo Jing said matter-of-factly. “Because it runs like a plastic bag.”
Luo Feng: “…”
Lin Xue and the housekeeper were in the kitchen preparing the New Year’s Eve dinner. Hearing the noise outside, they came to the living room: “Why are you back so late?”
“Luo Jing brought back a plastic bag,” Luo Feng said.
Lin Xue looked over in confusion and saw a small white dog in her son’s arms.
Luo Jing excitedly held Plastic Bag up to her: “Just found it, isn’t it cute?”
Plastic Bag obligingly barked, as if greeting her.
Lin Xue reached out and patted the puppy’s head: “Why is it called Plastic Bag… Oh, I’m still cooking, I need to wash my hands.”
“You can keep a puppy, but you have to be responsible for it. You can’t just keep it for a few days and then not want it anymore, understand?”
“I understand, I’ve thought about it carefully.” Luo Jing always knew how to please his mother.
Huai Dan found this amusing.
Thought about it carefully? Did that refer to sitting outside the examination room, diligently watching him play games for hours?
Despite this, Huai Dan wasn’t worried that Luo Jing would abandon the puppy later.
Lin Xue was satisfied. Just as she turned to go back to the kitchen, she seemed to remember something and turned back: “Xiao Huai, the guest room was cleaned by the housekeeper this morning. It’s next to your brother’s room. You don’t have to squeeze in tonight.”
Huai Dan acknowledged her words, placed the bags he was carrying on the coffee table in the living room, then rummaged through the snacks to find the seasonings he bought from the supermarket and handed them to Lin Xue.
“Oh, thank you, Xiao Huai. It must have been tiring taking your brother out,” Lin Xue said politely, taking the bag.
“It wasn’t tiring, Luo Jing is very well-behaved,” Huai Dan replied politely.
Every parent likes to hear their child being praised. Lin Xue smiled and said, “That’s good,” then happily returned to the kitchen with the bag of seasonings to continue cooking.
Luo Jing watched his mother leave and handed Plastic Bag to Huai Dan: “Brother, hold it for a moment.”
He handed it over so naturally that Huai Dan took it almost instinctively.
After a moment of stunned silence, Huai Dan stared into Plastic Bag’s eyes.
He actually had a bit of OCD.
Because of its fracture, the puppy couldn’t be bathed, so it had only been wiped down at the clinic.
Although it looked clean, it had been running around outside for who knows how long and might not be as clean as it appeared.
Luo Jing took out the pet supplies he had bought for Plastic Bag, then opened a simple, foldable pet cage. After studying the instructions for a moment, he sat down on the floor and attempted to assemble it.
Resisting the urge to put the dog down, Huai Dan walked over to him with Plastic Bag in his arms.
Luo Jing subconsciously glanced at Huai Dan and noticed his stiffness.
“Brother, are you a little afraid… do you not like dogs?” The change in topic was a bit abrupt, but well-intentioned.
“…No,” Huai Dan replied.
Luo Jing, however, believed he had discovered the truth and considerately took the dog back, placing it on the floor: “You don’t have to hold it.”
Fortunately, compared to the other person who had found it, Plastic Bag seemed to prefer Luo Jing. As soon as it was put down, it limped over to him.
Although it was cold outside, the floor heating was on inside, making the marble floor warm. Perhaps it had been freezing outside, as Plastic Bag seemed to love it.
Because its hind leg was injured, it couldn’t sit down, so it stood beside Luo Jing, its head resting against his arm, incredibly clingy.
Luo Jing casually patted the puppy’s head and continued to study the instructions for assembling the cage.
Five minutes later, Huai Dan was the one sitting on the floor assembling it, while Luo Jing petted the dog and offered verbal encouragement.
Luo Feng sat on the sofa, watching their interaction, finding it novel.
Whether due to his status or appearance, there were countless people at the academy who had shown interest in Huai Dan, but he had mostly ignored them.
Perhaps due to his personality, he wasn’t very warm, even to his friends.
This was the first time she had seen him so close to anyone.
He seemed to get along well with her troublesome younger brother.
Plastic Bag’s bed was set up in the corner of the living room. The wooden fence had a cloth top, making it look like a small house.
Inside was a fluffy, soft cushion, and next to it was a pet sofa, brand new and beautiful.
Luo Jing put Plastic Bag inside. The puppy, realizing this was its new home, excitedly dragged its fractured leg around the bed.
Luo Jing squatted down, watching Plastic Bag frolic: “Slow down, your leg hasn’t healed yet.”
As if understanding, Plastic Bag slowed down, walked over to Luo Jing while limping, and looked incredibly well-behaved.
Huai Dan came out of the bathroom after washing his hands. Luo Jing looked at him while petting the dog, his tone casual: “Brother, let’s get it neutered at the next checkup.”
The poor puppy had no idea what its seemingly harmless owner was saying, words that would despair any dog. It was simply happy.
Huai Dan nodded, looking at this scene, and his lips curved slightly.
His phone suddenly rang. Huai Dan took it out of his coat pocket, glanced at the screen, then excused himself and went outside with the phone.
Luo Jing watched Brother Huai leave, then looked at his seemingly carefree sister sitting on the sofa, a question slowly forming in his mind.
Were they really acting like a couple?
Even if they weren’t the type to be constantly attached to each other, they shouldn’t be completely silent, right?
He felt like he had more interaction with Brother Huai than these two did with each other.
As he was pondering this, Huai Dan returned.
The moment he saw what Huai Dan was holding, all his random thoughts vanished, and all his attention was drawn to it.
He recognized the bag very well, having seen many passersby carrying it when they went to the mall this morning.
He could have had one too, but he had lost the opportunity due to his laziness and aversion to the cold.
It was the bag from the milk tea shop he had been longing to try.
“Brother, did you teleport to buy it?” Luo Jing asked happily.
