Chapter 70: The Sale of Experimental Dogs

Jiang Xiaoyu immediately called back, but the line was dead.

He grew a bit anxious inside, worried that the old lady and the dog had run into some trouble. He went back inside to say hello to Ye Qingxu and the others, then prepared to leave.

Ye Qingxu stood up apologetically. “Then we won’t disturb your family dinner anymore. Next time, I’ll treat you all to a gathering.”

Ye Lian gestured for him not to worry, his gaze landing on the visibly anxious Jiang Xiaoyu. “Just grab a car from the underground garage. Otherwise, you’ll have to walk down the mountain to get your car from home before heading back. Or I can have Fei Lang give you a ride.”

Ye Qingxu looked at Jiang Xiaoyu, who was raring to go beside him, and nodded. “Then we’ll have to trouble you.”

Yan Feilang drove the two toward the scene. Jiang Xiaoyu knew where Zhou Xu’s house was but wasn’t familiar with the vegetable market where Zhou Xu’s grandmother was, so they circled around asking for directions.

Luckily, it was an old neighborhood, and there was only one small vegetable market that the neighbors frequented. While Yan Feilang was looking for a parking spot, Jiang Xiaoyu couldn’t wait and jumped out of the car to ask around.

He didn’t need to search far. As soon as he entered the market, he heard a few vendors gossiping.

“Aiya, no matter how anxious that meat shop owner was, he shouldn’t have pushed someone. That granny’s not all there in the head, and she’s so old—why get physical with her?”

“He was probably just heated up. The guy’s running a business, and she’s dragging a dog back and forth in front of his door, with the dog barking nonstop at the customers.”

“Yeah, probably the dog smelled the dog meat he’s selling. Dogs are pretty perceptive animals like that.”

Jiang Xiaoyu stepped forward and interrupted their chatter. “Excuse me, which way is the meat shop?” After getting directions, he hadn’t even walked up yet when he spotted Granny Zhou clutching her arm, sitting on a small stool. Yellow-White Patch bared its teeth beside her, and next to the woman and the dog sat a girl in a wheelchair, looking furious as she stayed with them.

“Officer, it was this boss who struck first,” the girl in the wheelchair said. She’d already called the police and was recounting the incident to the officers who’d just arrived.

The meat shop owner was short and stocky. Knowing he’d impulsively gotten himself in trouble, he pressed his hands together, his face full of a placating smile as he tried to smooth things over. “Officer, look, it wasn’t on purpose. She was blocking my doorway with that dog of hers—ain’t that deliberately sabotaging my business? I got anxious and gave her a little push. Who knew she’d go down like that?”

His words carried an insinuation, making it sound like Zhou Xu’s grandmother was deliberately staging an accident.

The police officer had handled plenty of these kinds of disputes. Seeing the old lady didn’t look seriously hurt, he wanted to make a big fuss into a small one, and a small one into nothing. “Regardless, you can’t go pushing people. How about this—you take the old lady to get an X-ray. If it’s not serious, just compensate her privately and call it even.”

“Sure, sure.” The meat shop owner looked grateful to the officer. But when he turned to Granny Zhou, his tone turned sarcastic. “Granny, not to nag, but what you did would be unwelcome at any shop. Lucky for you I’m a nice guy. Intentional or not, I won’t hold it against you. Come on, I’ll take you to the hospital for a check-up.”

With that, he called over his shop assistant to keep working, took off his bloodstained apron, and reached to pull Granny Zhou up. The girl in the wheelchair watched, her eyebrows shooting up as she leaned forward to try to block him. But she couldn’t move freely and couldn’t reach, her expression turning frantic.

“Stop!” By the time Jiang Xiaoyu shouted, the meat shop owner’s hand was already gripping Granny Zhou’s clearly scraped arm. He irritably turned back and snapped, “Who the hell are you?”

The nearby police officer glanced over too. Jiang Xiaoyu handed over his badge. “I’m Jiang Xiaoyu from the Case Handling Office. I’d like to get some more details on the situation.”

The police officer eyed the special insignia from the Case Handling Office and inwardly grumbled—after all, that office was way too special in Pine City’s public security system. Unsure what to do, he chuckled awkwardly. “Yo, colleague! Alright, alright, I’ll stick around while you get the details.”

Jiang Xiaoyu gripped the meat shop owner’s wrist—not too hard. But he was good-looking, with green pupils, and when his face was calmly impassive, he had a chilling, cold-jade vibe that was a bit intimidating.

The owner awkwardly let go and released Granny Zhou.

Jiang Xiaoyu crouched down to carefully check on the old lady. “Are you alright? Did you hit anything when you fell?”

Granny Zhou nodded, then shook her head. “It’s nothing, just a scrape. It hurts a bit. My phone fell into the drain when I was pushed over—I couldn’t pick up your call.”

Jiang Xiaoyu followed her pointing finger and saw the phone lying at the bottom of the drain, luckily on a protruding rock and not submerged. “I’ll see if I can fish it out later. But you should go to the hospital for a check-up first.” He wasn’t reassured—mainly because she was elderly and fragile. If she’d bumped somewhere she didn’t notice, it could turn serious later.

Once they were done talking, Yellow-White Patch padded over, rubbing against him. It rested its front paws on Jiang Xiaoyu’s thigh, tail dragging, and whined pitifully. “Boss, Dog saw them—others just like Dog, several of them.”

With people around, Jiang Xiaoyu couldn’t talk to it. He patted its head and handed it back to Granny Zhou’s arms before standing and asking the owner, “Does your shop sell dog meat?”

The meat shop owner felt a jolt upon seeing this new cop knew the old lady, cursing his luck inwardly. He bowed obsequiously. “Yes, yes. Occasionally if I have stock, I sell some dog meat. All legit business, officer. You know selling dog meat ain’t against the law.”

Ginkgo Country indeed had no explicit laws banning dog sales. Jiang Xiaoyu’s face stayed grim, and he didn’t refute.

Ye Qingxu arrived then too, standing behind the young man.

Jiang Xiaoyu shifted his foot slightly and said to Ye Qingxu, “Dad, help me take Granny Zhou to the hospital for a check-up first.”

Ye Qingxu nodded, patted Jiang Xiaoyu’s back reassuringly, and left with Yan Feilang and Granny Zhou.

Only then did Jiang Xiaoyu turn to the meat shop owner. “I’d like to take a look at your dog meat stock.”

The owner’s face looked bad, but he nodded. “Please do. I source everything through proper channels—no stolen pets. Not scared of an inspection.”

Jiang Xiaoyu followed him into the shop, hit by a pungent bloody stench. He covered his nose and mouth, suppressing the nausea churning in his stomach, his face paling as he scanned the place.

Various meats were on display inside. In the corner, a cage held three or four dead dogs.

Yellow-white-black coats, small in size, looking very much like Yellow-White Patch.

Jiang Xiaoyu’s expression grew even colder. “Where did you get these dogs from?”

The owner didn’t think much and answered straight. “From a regular dog trader I work with. Dog meat sales aren’t that common—you know…” His expression turned awkward. “These days, people are more and more against eating dog meat. I only stock up occasionally if the goods look right.”

Jiang Xiaoyu shot back, “What do you mean by ‘right’ goods?”

“You know, meat dogs raised for the purpose. Look, they’re all similar—same breed, specially raised at a farm for meat. That’s why I say proper channels.” He kicked lightly at the cage with the dead dogs. “I’ve got quarantine certificates too. See?”

Jiang Xiaoyu ignored the certificates and only saw a small dog on the counter that had been skinned and halved. He clenched his fists, nails digging into his palms, his whole body trembling faintly with suppressed rage.

“Farm?” His voice was ice-cold. “Do you know these are experimental dogs?”

His gaze was sharp; the owner startled back half a step and stammered, “Experimental dogs? What experimental dogs?”

The following police officer realized something was off too. “You’re sure these are experimental dogs?”

Jiang Xiaoyu shoved the owner aside from the cage, crouched down, and reached toward it. His hand hovered in the air for seconds as he steeled himself, took a deep breath, and opened the cage.

The dogs had been dead a while, bodies stiff. Jiang Xiaoyu pursed his lips tight, then flipped open their large ears.

Inside each ear was a string of characters—their numbers as experimental subjects.

Ginkgo Country lacked protections for strays and specific regs on dog meat sales, but experimental animals had clear management regulations.

Jiang Xiaoyu withdrew his hand, clenched his fist, and stood. “You’re suspected of violating the Experimental Animal Management Regulations. We’re summoning you now per the law. Cooperate with the investigation and come with the police.”

The meat shop owner’s legs went soft. He shakily grabbed for Jiang Xiaoyu’s hand, babbling incoherently. “I-I really didn’t know! The seller said they raised them themselves, and there were quarantine certificates! Look, look!”

The police officer said, “Come with me. We’ll sort out if it’s true or not.”

These cases fell under the local precinct’s jurisdiction. Jiang Xiaoyu couldn’t muscle in on their turf, so he could only watch as the officer took the meat shop owner into the police car.

Turning, he saw the girl in the wheelchair still nearby. When she saw him emerge, she quickly wheeled forward. “Hello, I fished Granny’s phone out of the drain with a tool. Please give it to her.”

Jiang Xiaoyu took it and softly thanked her.

After handing the phone back to the girl, she visibly relaxed and gripped the wheels on both sides of her wheelchair to leave. Seeing that her movements weren’t very smooth, Jiang Xiaoyu paused in his steps before catching up to her from behind and grasping the wheelchair handles.

“Which door are you heading out? Let me push you.”

The girl looked delighted, her moderately sized eyes lighting up. “Thank you, officer. I’m Huang Li. Could I have your name?”

“Jiang Xiaoyu.”

He escorted her to the designated pick-up spot and even helped load her wheelchair into the driver’s trunk. Once done, Jiang Xiaoyu stood by the roadside and called Jin Ge to explain the situation.

“Got it. I’ll have someone keep an eye on it,” Jin Ge said. He sounded like he was eating with others, taking a sip of alcohol before continuing, “Don’t overthink it. I’ll let you know if there’s any news.”

Jiang Xiaoyu hung up, his brows slightly furrowed with a hint of irritation. Even when Ye Qingxu picked him up, he still pressed his lips together in silence.

Ye Qingxu wrapped one arm around him and rubbed the kid’s arm a few times before asking softly, “You okay?”

Jiang Xiaoyu looked up at Ye Qingxu’s face, unable to hide his concern, then snapped back and forced a smile. “I’m fine.”

The Yellow-White Patch lying at his feet wasn’t in a great mood either. Jiang Xiaoyu bent down to stroke its ears, flipping one back to compare with the numbers on the dead dogs from the photos earlier. They seemed to be from the same batch.

He glanced at the passenger seat, where Zhou Xu and Granny Apo looked exhausted, leaning back asleep. Then he lowered his head and quietly asked the Yellow-White Patch, “How did you end up falling into that ditch back then?”

The Yellow-White Patch lifted its head, its eyes with scant whites gazing purely and innocently. “Dog has always lived in a white room, with many companions just like Dog, all locked in separate cages. Dog got injections every day and ate strange things that made its body feel awful. Dog doesn’t know how much time passed, but that day, Dog was taken outside—that was the first time Dog saw the sky… Dog was loaded onto a big truck. Dog hated the smell of that truck; it was thick with blood, even worse than the stinging disinfectant smell in the room. Dog jumped off when those people opened the cage. They chased Dog, and then Dog fell into the ditch.”

Yan Feilang, driving the car, glanced at Granny Zhou beside him, who was sleeping peacefully with steady breaths. He said in a low voice, “It’s an hour’s drive from Ink Orchid Mansion. There’s an Experimental Dog Breeding Center there—it’s probably from that place.”

Jiang Xiaoyu lowered his gaze and softly comforted the Yellow-White Patch. “Live well with Granny Apo from now on. If you run into something like this again, stay far away, and don’t leave home on your own, okay?”

The Yellow-White Patch nodded, its brown-black eyes growing misty, looking utterly dejected.

After the Mid-Autumn short holiday, on his first day back at work, Jiang Xiaoyu checked the status of yesterday’s incident. As expected, the Meat Shop Owner had only been fined.

This was normal, really. Although Ginkgo Country had the Experimental Animal Management Regulations, cases like this were hard to prosecute criminally. Besides, the Meat Shop Owner was technically just a buyer; the real issue lay upstream.

The case records noted they would continue tracing it, which eased his mind a bit. But after several days with no follow-up, he grew restless.

“Master, are we just dropping this?” Jiang Xiaoyu asked.

Jin Ge had several cases on his plate and was so busy he let his cigarette dangle without smoking it until the fire neared his lips, making him hiss in pain before speaking. “It’s not our jurisdiction. We can’t interfere without cause, but I’ll ask around for updates.”

He wasn’t like Jiang Xiaoyu; he saw much further ahead.

The case seemed ordinary—barely even a case, since the victims were just dogs. But the Meat Shop Owner’s quarantine certificates were legitimate and compliant, which raised a question: Who issued those certificates? Who authorized the sale of this batch of experimental dogs?

Out in the open, utterly brazen.

Jin Ge stubbed out his cigarette, his lowered eyelids hiding the cold glint in his eyes. When he spoke, he reverted to his usual demeanor, earnestly advising, “Don’t overthink it. What did your master tell you? Having empathy is good, but you’re a cop—you have to uphold fairness and justice. You can’t obsess over this just because it’s about dogs. There’s a pile of work waiting; don’t forget your duties.”

Seeing Jiang Xiaoyu deflate, he chuckled to change the subject. “Where’d your dad get those mooncakes? They were pretty good. I want to buy some too.”

Jiang Xiaoyu wasn’t sure, so he said he’d ask Ye Qingxu when he got home that evening. He took the stack of case files from Jin Ge and headed out.

After he left, Jin Ge flipped through a few pages before slamming the folder onto the desk. He closed his eyes, leaning back in his chair with an irritated expression. “Always these disgusting, filthy things.”

He thought of Jiang Xiaoyu’s earnest, pure eyes and wondered how to explain the tangled web involved. They were just dogs—how do you fight for justice for creatures the law barely recognized?

He kicked the corner of the desk and cursed under his breath.

As Jiang Xiaoyu sorted through the miscellaneous files, he wasn’t as naive as Jin Ge thought. He knew why Jin Ge was being somewhat evasive.

Everyone said there was no way around it because there really wasn’t.

But just as Jiang Xiaoyu figured this matter would likely be shelved, a murder case broke.

The Meat Shop Owner who sold experimental dog meat had been skinned alive and split in half. Along with the dog meat he peddled, he was hung right in the center of his shop.