novelraw Chapter 309: Little Gray
Chapter 309: Little Gray
A few days later.
A green jeep slowly drove into the military compound once more.
The special emblem of the National Defense University on the front was like a magnet, instantly capturing the attention of all the military wives under the big banyan tree.
"Look! The car from the National Defense University is here again!"
"It must be delivering that heroic dog!"
A well-informed aunt lowered her voice, her face unable to hide her envy.
"I heard that dog is called Black Wind, a living legend! It’s bitten two criminals!"
"My goodness, how magnificent! The Gu Family is really in the limelight now, not only is their daughter-in-law as beautiful as a fairy, but even the dog they keep has a notable background!"
"Isn’t that the truth! Who would dare provoke their family now?"
As the discussion continued, the car door opened.
The trainer, Old Zhang, jumped down from the driver’s seat, but unlike last time, his expression was heavy and apologetic rather than excited.
He went around to the back seat and did not bring out a majestic dog.
Instead, he cautiously lifted down a half-used rattan box.
Gu Lan heard the sound and ran out of the house, a proud smile on her face.
"Master Zhang, you’re finally here! Where’s Black Wind? Let me see!"
Old Zhang sighed and placed the rattan box on the ground.
"Miss Gu, I’m sorry."
His voice was hoarse.
"Black Wind... it’s too badly injured, and it misses your niece terribly. It has been refusing food and is too weak to endure a long journey."
Gu Lan’s smile froze.
Even the surrounding military wives quieted down.
"Then... what should we do?"
Old Zhang forced a bitter smile and patted the rattan box at his feet.
"Mr. Gu instructed that we must keep our word."
"Since Black Wind cannot come, I brought its only offspring."
"It’s the only one left from that litter."
As soon as he said this, everyone’s eyes focused on the rattan box.
The only offspring of the heroic dog!
What kind of divine dog must it be?
Gu Lan also became excited and squatted down to open the box.
But Old Zhang stopped her and, reaching out himself, slowly lifted the lid.
The box was opened.
The expressions on the faces of all the military wives who had craned their necks stiffened at the same moment.
In the corner of the box was a small, grey lump.
It looked more like a newborn mouse that hadn’t opened its eyes than a dog.
Its fur was sparse and matted, its body was emaciated to skin and bones, and its little paws trembled uncontrollably.
It didn’t even have the strength to lift its head, only making weak "whimpering" sounds, making it seem like it might pass away at any moment.
There was a deathly silence in the yard.
A few seconds passed.
An aunt couldn’t hold back and burst into laughter with a "pfft" sound.
"Oh my, is this a dog?"
Her voice was like a match igniting a powder keg.
"Isn’t this just a field mouse! It’s creepy to look at!"
"The offspring of a heroic dog? Surely it’s the wrong one! Can this thing even survive the night?"
"Tsk, tsk, tsk, I thought the Gu Family was going to get some treasure, but it turns out they got this sickly thing, how unlucky!"
The sarcasm and chatter came unabashedly.
Gu Lan’s face turned red and then white.
She felt that her earlier pride was now a joke.
She suddenly stood up and spoke to Old Zhang.
"Master Zhang! What do you mean by this?"
Her voice was urgent and angry.
"This thing looks like it won’t make it, why did you bring it here? Do you want my nephew and niece to watch it die and be sad?"
"Take it back right now! We don’t want such an unlucky thing in our house!"
Old Zhang looked troubled, rubbing his hands.
"Miss, this is truly the only one left from the last litter. The others... have all been pre-ordered by the military leadership."
"This one, its mother wouldn’t feed it, and it was discarded. I pitied it..."
"If you pity it, keep it yourself!" Gu Lan stomped her feet in anger, "What is the point of bringing it to our house!"
Just then.
Gu Ning, who had been holding Lin Wan Yi’s hand, suddenly let go of her mother’s hand.
Taking unsteady toddler steps, she wobbled to the front of the rattan box.
All the arguing stopped.
Everyone watched the delicate little girl, wondering if she would be scared to tears by this "ugly thing" or run away disdainfully.
Gu Ning didn’t cry, nor did she run.
She only crouched down, her little body leaning over the box’s edge.
Then, she extended her chubby little hand.
Under everyone’s shocked gaze, that tiny hand gently landed on the trembling head of the little grey dog.
A miracle occurred.
The little dog, who seemed on the brink of death, stopped trembling the moment Gu Ning’s hand touched it.
It tried hard to lift its eyelids, though it couldn’t open its eyes, it nestled its little head into Gu Ning’s warm palm.
It was complete trust and dependence.
Gu Ning turned her head.
She looked at Lin Wan Yi, her big, dark eyes full of pleading.
Her little mouth moved, and she uttered two indistinct words.
"Gr...ey..."
Lin Wan Yi’s heart melted instantly.
She walked forward and picked up her daughter.
Then, she looked at the distressed Old Zhang and the neighbors waiting to see a joke.
Her voice was calm, yet carried a decisive authority.
"We’ll keep it."
...
Late at night.
Gu Lan was still sulking over the little sick dog and had gone to bed early.
The two children were already asleep.
Lin Wan Yi quietly got up and went to the living room.
The rattan box was placed in the corner, lined with soft old cotton cloths.
The little grey puppy lay inside, its breathing so faint it was almost imperceptible.
Lin Wan Yi took a small porcelain bottle from the space and dripped a drop of thick, honey-like spiritual spring water on her fingertip.
She crouched down gently, prying open the grey puppy’s little mouth.
The drop of spiritual spring water, filled with boundless vitality, trickled down her fingertip into the puppy’s throat.
It melted instantly.
Almost the very next second the spring water entered its throat.
The puppy’s eyes, which had been tightly shut, suddenly opened wide!
What kind of eyes were those?
No longer the clouded, lifeless eyes of the day.
In the dark, those pupils emitted a faint, wolf-like green glow!
Its frail body no longer trembled, its limbs even had the strength to kick twice on the cotton cloth.
It looked at Lin Wan Yi, sticking out its pink little tongue, carefully licking the finger she hadn’t yet pulled back.
Warm, moist.
Full of newfound strength.
Lin Wan Yi was relieved, put it back gently, and returned to the bedroom.
Midnight.
All was silent.
The yard was bathed in cold moonlight.
A tiny grey figure quietly slipped out from the crack of the living room door.
It was the puppy named "Little Grey."
It stood in the middle of the yard, bathed in the moonlight.
An incredible scene unfolded.
Its formerly weak body, like a balloon, began to extend and grow at a speed visible to the naked eye.
Ivy-like "crackling" sounds came from its bones.
Beneath its grey puppy fluff, silvery new fur seemed to be sprouting.
In just a few short minutes, its body size was a whole circle larger than it had been by day!
It was no longer the sickly form; its limbs stood steadily on the ground, its still youthful frame exuded an innate swiftness and pride.
It lifted its head.
At the bright full moon overhead.
It opened its mouth.
The sound was not the soft "woof" of a puppy.