Chapter 148: Taking the Dog’s Bed
Xu Youyou glanced inside from the doorway. The room was a complete mess, mostly filled with stacked cardboard boxes, and she couldn’t immediately see anything worth salvaging.
Meanwhile, the middle-aged couple continued to make a fuss. Seeing that Xu Youyou was young, well-dressed, and clearly wealthy, they seized the opportunity to extort money from her.
Feeling annoyed, Xu Youyou said coldly, “If you insist on playing these tricks, I’ll call my lawyer over right now and let her argue with you.”
At the same time, Xu Youyou’s four bodyguards took a few steps forward, standing protectively in front of her.
The tall and imposing bodyguards exuded an intimidating aura. Just two steps closer, and the couple instinctively shrank back in fear.
The middle-aged man hadn’t expected Xu Youyou to be so firm. Seeing that he couldn’t swindle any money outright, he quickly changed tactics and said, “Since you came here with my dad’s dog, you’re considered a family friend. Now that my dad has passed, shouldn’t you show some respect?”
Both the police officers and the community worker, Aunt Wang, were so angered by his words that they laughed.
Aunt Wang frowned and said, “Are you asking for condolence money or committing extortion? Your father worked hard for you all his life. If you had even a shred of conscience, you wouldn’t be doing this!”
“Aunt Wang, be careful what you say in front of the police. I’m not extorting anyone! It’s just common courtesy—maybe this lady is willing to pay for peace of mind.” The middle-aged man refused to admit to extortion.
Aunt Wang turned to Xu Youyou and said, “Don’t listen to his nonsense. He’s just a scoundrel.”
“That poor old man gave his house to his grandson for his wedding, then got kicked out to live in this tiny shack. He lay in bed for days, and his son, who lives just nearby, never even thought to check on him. Now he comes running to act like a devoted son? Disgusting!”
The middle-aged man showed no shame at being called unfilial. Instead, he put on a sorrowful face and said,
“I have my own struggles. My dad had a hard life—he was labeled a bad element in the past. He barely survived, but then he lost his mind and spent all day studying useless junk. If he had been just a little smarter, he could have stayed at the university as a professor.”
“If he had been a professor like my uncles, would I be struggling like this? Now I want to give him a proper funeral, but you’re all bullying me instead!”
Aunt Wang was utterly unimpressed by his sob story. She pulled at Xu Youyou’s sleeve and said, “Listen to me, young lady. Don’t fall for his tricks. You don’t even know these people. Why would you give them money? Just take your people and leave.”
The middle-aged man grew anxious, knowing he was about to lose his chance to get money. He wanted to stop her but had no reason to.
But to everyone’s surprise, Xu Youyou suddenly said, “Since my dog and his dog are friends, I’ll consider this an expense to avoid trouble.”
The police and Aunt Wang were stunned.
The middle-aged man, however, acted quickly. He whipped out his phone, opened a payment QR code, and held it out with practiced ease.
“WeChat payment received: 400 yuan.”
Hearing the notification, the middle-aged man grinned shamelessly. “Actually, condolence money around here is usually at least a thousand yuan.”
Aunt Wang couldn’t stand it anymore. “I’m telling you to stop while you’re ahead!”
Even the police frowned and said, “Enough is enough.”
Reluctantly, the middle-aged man put his phone away.
Suddenly, the little black dog barked and let out a low growl at him, as if warning him or expressing its anger: “Woof woof! Bad man! You didn’t even feed my master!”
The middle-aged man raised his foot, intending to kick the dog. “That stupid old man barely had food for himself, and he still insisted on keeping you? Just looking at you makes me mad. I should cook you into dog meat soup!”
But before his foot could make contact, one of Xu Youyou’s bodyguards blocked him. Even so, the little black dog was frightened and quickly hid behind Xu Youyou.
Considering how heartless this couple was, Xu Youyou couldn’t bear to leave the little black dog with them.
“I’m taking this dog with me.”
The middle-aged man immediately changed his expression. “This was my dad’s favorite dog! He treasured it like his life. I won’t sell it for less than 10,000 yuan!”
Seeing that Xu Youyou was willing to pay condolence money for a stranger, he assumed she was soft-hearted and easy to exploit. That’s why he dared to ask for such an outrageous price.
But Xu Youyou wasn’t willing to indulge him. “1,000 yuan.”
Aunt Wang nearly jumped in frustration. “Young lady, don’t let him scam you! This kind of stray dog wouldn’t even sell for 100 yuan! Maybe not even 50!”
Afraid of losing the deal, the middle-aged man quickly said, “Aunt Wang, don’t talk nonsense! I wouldn’t sell it for just 100 yuan! At least 10,000! This is my dad’s most precious legacy!”
Xu Youyou frowned slightly. She didn’t want to humor him anymore and said, “If 1,000 is too low, forget it.”
Seeing his chance to make money slipping away, the middle-aged man gave in immediately. “Fine! Deal! 1,000 yuan! But no take-backs!”
Although he regretted not being able to squeeze more money out of her, he knew that selling the dog for 1,000 yuan was already lucky. He immediately pulled out his phone again and eagerly held up the payment QR code.
But Xu Youyou didn’t rush to pay. Instead, she crouched down and gently patted the little black dog’s head. “Little black dog, do you want to go inside and say goodbye to your master?”
The little black dog’s dark eyes shimmered with unshed tears. It let out a soft whimper. “Woof woof… thank you.”
Xu Youyou led the little black dog into the cramped and cluttered shack.
The little black dog pressed itself against the old man’s bed and let out a series of sorrowful barks.
“Woof woof! Master, they say you’re dead. Is that true? Aren’t you just sleeping? The master of Blade King is taking me away. They say if I stay, I’ll be turned into dog meat… Master, what about all your books? Will your children sell them? These were your most treasured things…”
Hearing this, Xu Youyou felt a pang of sorrow.
Although the old man had been a little eccentric, his love for the little black dog was real.
Perhaps he had sensed that his time was coming to an end, which is why he locked the little black dog outside.
There was no food left in the house. By keeping the dog outside, he ensured it had a chance to survive—even if that meant scavenging from garbage bins.
Xu Youyou scanned the room. Most of the cardboard boxes contained newspapers and old books.
Then her gaze landed on something—a wooden box.
It was the same spot the system’s golden indicator had pointed to.
She finally noticed it. It was a wooden crate, placed flat on the floor, lined with a small quilt that looked warm and cozy. Someone had even drawn a simple chalk sketch of a dog on the lid.
Xu Youyou guessed it was the little black dog’s bed.
The middle-aged man followed her inside, shoving his phone at her, desperate to receive payment.
Acting nonchalant, Xu Youyou said, “I’m taking the dog’s bed too.”
