After Transmigrating As The Mother Of The Pitiful Female Supporting Character in a Campus Novel - Chapter 54

The production crew’s attempts to stop them were useless, so they simply let them be. On the way, they ran into Sheng Liu’s group; with a few words from Xia Shibai, the cost of the meal was charged to Sheng Liu’s account.

After all that maneuvering, Yao Yao made a profit of over a thousand yuan, sitting down happily to join the eating and drinking.

During rest time, they didn’t talk business. Even if they wanted to, Xia Shibai and Sheng Liu’s minds were empty right now, and they couldn’t formulate any response. They could only open their mouths to eat, staring blankly at the others until they shut up, then continued eating.

The transaction went through a private account; Sheng Liu didn’t have much of the crew’s official money left and couldn’t use it to settle the debt. Since they were all acquaintances, the payment was deferred; it was the same if she paid once they returned.

Having eaten and drunk their fill, and with the teaching of light-related knowledge mostly complete, Xia Shibai suddenly remembered something. She packed some food in a plastic bag to take to the old lady and Old Man Qiao.

Qin Zhijin opened a carton of milk for Gu Mingyi, asked Yao Yao and the other to watch the kids, and hurried to catch up with Xia Shibai.

“Do you want me to help you carry that?”

“No need. Why aren’t you sitting there? I’m just delivering something; I’ll be back soon.” Xia Shibai looked at the high sun. Though it was nearly November, the weather was still very hot, leading her to conclude that this year’s Spring Festival wouldn’t be very cold.

“I’m… not quite used to it.” Qin Zhijin had changed into clean clothes. She raised her hand to lightly touch her slightly flushed cheek, walking slowly behind Xia Shibai.

She didn’t particularly like socializing; she had been this way since her school days. Later, when studying medicine, she struggled with the fear that she wouldn’t be able to communicate normally with patients, only to find the school had arranged standardized communication classes, which eased her worries.

Faking a public persona was already Qin Zhijin’s limit. Sitting there, being watched by cameras, she was truly worried she would show her weakness. It was better to walk with Xia Shibai; no matter how high the sun was, it couldn’t be hotter than the heat generated by her own heartbeat.

Xia Shibai and Qin Zhijin enjoyed a rare moment where they didn’t have to manage children or perform chores, simply walking slowly like this.

When they delivered the items to Old Man Qiao’s house, he had just returned from the back mountain. A large pile of dry firewood lay in the yard, waiting to be split. The puppy, which had received its final vaccine, was running around the fenced yard, barking incessantly.

Attracted by the sound, Xia Shibai lowered her eyes to look. The other puppies were barking while backing away, their short legs scrambling—both cowardly and provocative. Only one puppy rushed to the very front of the fence, wagging its tail at the two of them, barking non-stop from the moment they entered.

Old Man Qiao shushed the dog, silencing the barking. Putting down his bamboo strips, he hurried to say, “What brings you to my place?”

“We just got some things and thought of bringing you some—just cheap bread and milk.”

Old Man Qiao hurried to stop them, but his hands were dirty, and he didn’t dare touch the two women. Plus, with the large crowd of staff behind them, he stood there awkwardly. “Sigh, if you need help with anything later, just say the word. If I can help, I definitely will.”

“Wang wang!” The puppy, standing guard beside them with its body straight, barked at Xia Shibai—or more accurately, at Qin Zhijin.

Xia Shibai had a good memory; once her attention was drawn again, she recognized this maverick puppy as the one that had barked the loudest at Qin Zhijin the night before. Later, after she had shone a light on it, it had become a bit more well-behaved.

Xia Shibai walked toward the small fence and reached out to grab the puppy. It wasn’t afraid, looking up at her with bright black eyes that reflected her image.

“Quite a sharp nose. You know who we are?” Xia Shibai picked the puppy up alone. Its slightly coarse fur couldn’t hide its high spirits.

Even in Xia Shibai’s arms, it didn’t settle down completely, turning its head to bark toward Qin Zhijin. Compared to the loud, sharp barking last night, it now seemed to be acting cute, trying to catch Qin Zhijin’s attention so she would reach out and pet it.

Qin Zhijin hesitated for a moment, looking up at Xia Shibai with a slight frown of concern. “It won’t bite, will it?”

Xia Shibai held the puppy tighter. “No. As long as you don’t get too close to its head, you shouldn’t get bitten.”

After a moment of inner conflict, Qin Zhijin cautiously reached out to stroke the puppy’s back. To her surprise, the puppy in the embrace twisted its head to rub against her palm. Its coarse fur brushed against her arm as it gently touched her with its teeth retracted.

“It was so fierce yesterday, and today it won’t stop barking when it sees us. It couldn’t really recognize my scent, could it?” Qin Zhijin gently rubbed the puppy’s head, asking curiously.

Yesterday she had been covered in the smell of fish; it should have been difficult for the dog to distinguish her by scent. Yet meeting again today, it recognized her instantly. It was clever and sharp.

Old Man Qiao stood by, smiling. “This one is the smartest in the litter—sharp and alert, very sensitive to strange scents. I originally wanted to keep this one for my daughter, but they live in an apartment complex. If a neighbor even closes a door, it barks. Fearing it would disturb others, they took another smart but quiet one instead.”

“If you want it, you can take it. The three vaccines are finished, so flying shouldn’t be a problem.”

Old Man Qiao wiped the sweat from his face with his sleeve. “Their parents are both guard dogs. The breed is our local native dog. A batch of police dog mothers was actually bred from our local stock.”

“Since you brought me gifts and the puppy has a destiny with you, just take it with you.”

Xia Shibai didn’t mind; her yard was large enough to have a place for a dog’s bed. However, many people in apartment complexes raised small dogs, and this local breed was usually medium-sized, so it might be difficult for it to make friends.

Holding the puppy, Xia Shibai looked at Qin Zhijin and smiled. “Dr. Qin, you make the decision. If you want it, we’ll take it back and raise it at my house. If you don’t, we’ll leave it here.”

Qin Zhijin was suddenly given the power of choice. Looking at the puppy nestled in Xia Shibai’s arms, it looked pitiful. Not only that, but its previously upright ears were now flattened against its head—”airplane ears”—and its deep, dark eyes stared at Qin Zhijin without wavering for a second.

It seemed that if Qin Zhijin said “no,” it would die of depression right there in the small yard.

Under significant pressure, Qin Zhijin couldn’t help but deflect the topic. “If you want to raise it, just decide for yourself. Why ask me? Zhouzhou is the one living with you. Shouldn’t you call her to ask if she likes this puppy instead of asking me?”

“Why would I ask Zhouzhou?” Xia Shibai was puzzled. “It’s just the two of us right now. The one it’s wagging its tail at is you. If you agree, then we’ll raise it. If Xiaoyi is afraid of dogs or allergic, it can stay at our house. Anyway, Zhouzhou loves these little creatures.”

“But…”

But why ask me?

Qin Zhijin’s fingers gently stroked the puppy’s fur. She had some vague suspicions in her heart but couldn’t say if they were correct.

Perhaps, in Xia Shibai’s mind, this question had nothing to do with Xia Yaozhou or Gu Mingyi, and very little to do with herself. Xia Shibai was unconsciously asking Qin Zhijin, seeking a simple and direct way to find a connection between them—a connection that could be endless and wouldn’t drift apart.

Connecting solely on the basis of Xia Yaozhou and Gu Mingyi made it hard to move forward.

But these were merely Qin Zhijin’s guesses.

She looked up at Xia Shibai holding the puppy. There was a long silence until her finger felt a wet sensation—the puppy in the arms was gently licking her with its tongue. Qin Zhijin took the opportunity to look down and meet the puppy’s eyes. “Then… who chooses the name?”

“It’s your dog, you name it.”

“Raising it at your place—will you walk it? Feed it? Take it for shots?”

“Otherwise? If you’re free, you can do those things too. Anyway, raising it is like finding a smart one for Zhouzhou…” Xia Shibai held the puppy and looked at Old Man Qiao. “Is it a boy or a girl?”

“She’s a little girl. In this breed, the tails of little boys don’t curl up; her tail tip is curled and tucked in, so it won’t easily get caught on branches outdoors. Decades ago, every household here raised this kind of dog for hunting and guarding.” Old Man Qiao thought for a bit. “By today’s breed definitions, they used to be considered small hounds.”

Xia Shibai stroked the puppy, which was still acting spoiled with its airplane ears, and said, “Think of it as finding a younger sister for Zhouzhou to keep her studying obediently at home, instead of running wild all day being the ‘boss’ of the neighborhood with a bunch of brats.”

“Okay,” Qin Zhijin replied softly. After thinking for a while, she named the puppy Doudou.

Dou means pocket.

If she could, Qin Zhijin wished she could shrink and shrink and shrink, then hide in Xia Shibai’s pocket, being carried everywhere without having to care about anything in the world.

Or perhaps, she could have met Xia Shibai much, much earlier, so that everything she experienced in her youth would have had someone to back her up—just like now. No matter what she did, Xia Shibai always understood her, knowing her better than her own parents did.

Xia Shibai was willing to bear the consequences for what Qin Zhijin did, and her only requirement for Qin Zhijin was one thing: whether she liked it or not.

Old Man Qiao was happy to have settled the debt of gratitude; that large bag was full of many things. Even if Xia Shibai said it didn’t cost much, he still felt uneasy. He also knew that Xia Shibai and Qin Zhijin were well-off; this puppy would live a blessed life following them.

The puppy was fitted with a collar and taken back. Xia Yaozhou and Gu Mingyi were playing Five-in-a-Row with Yao Yao and the other; their faces were covered with paper strips and tape from who-knows-where.

Seeing Qin Zhijin and Xia Shibai return with a puppy, they instantly threw down their pens and rushed over with their faces full of paper strips.

“A puppy! Mama, where did you find a puppy?” Xia Yaozhou stood on her tiptoes, holding Xia Shibai’s arm, wanting to get her face closer to see the puppy clearly.

Doudou was very friendly. Seeing Xia Yaozhou and Gu Mingyi, her little tail wagged vigorously, thumping against Xia Shibai—it was practically turning into an airplane propeller.

Seeing this, Xia Shibai put the puppy on the ground and brushed aside the white paper strips on Xia Yaozhou’s face. “We didn’t find it. It’s your Aunt Qin’s puppy; it’ll live at our house from now on. What game are you playing? Why are your faces covered in white paper strips?”

Xia Yaozhou’s gaze followed the puppy on the ground. Seeing it run toward Gu Mingyi and sniff her scent, she couldn’t help but want to join in. She struggled to move away, saying, “Auntie Yao Yao said she’d play Five-in-a-Row with me. The loser has to stick paper strips on their face, and then I just kept losing and losing and losing.”

“I lost so much I can’t even see the road!”

Xia Yaozhou lifted the strips on her face and ran toward the puppy—both afraid and wanting to touch it—occasionally letting out gasps of wonder with Gu Mingyi.

“She’s actually warm!”

“The fur is so stiff, but she’s quite cute.”

“Doudou, Doudou, once we finish recording the show, we can take you back to meet our friends. They’ll definitely like you!”

Xia Shibai saw the children playing happily with the dog, and then slowly turned her gaze toward the restless Yao Yao and Shao Qing sitting nearby.

As soon as the boss’s gaze came over, Shao Qing immediately cleared herself of any involvement. “It wasn’t me who suggested Five-in-a-Row, Little President Xia. This has nothing to do with me.”

If there was any connection, it was at most being a bystander watching the child’s stubborn attempts to win a single round. She had done nothing.

Xia Shibai rolled up her sleeves, grabbed the pen on the table, and shook it twice. “Come on. I happen to want to play too. Let’s have a match.”

Yao Yao: “…”

You reap what you sow.

And so, Yao Yao bit the bullet and played the childish game of Five-in-a-Row with Xia Shibai on a notebook. By the time Yao Yao left in the evening, all the paper strips from Xia Yaozhou’s face had moved to hers.

Xia Shibai saw them off slowly, waving with a smile. “You must treasure these paper strips; they have commemorative value. When you have nothing to do, take them out and look at them to keep a beautiful memory for yourself.”

A memory of how she was slaughtered by Xia Shibai in Five-in-a-Row this afternoon.

Yao Yao gritted her teeth, her body stiff as she walked away.

Shao Qing grabbed her hand. “Calm down, calm down. If you don’t, it might be more than just paper strips on your face later.”

She knew Little President Xia was protective, yet she dared to pluck hairs from a tiger’s head.

Shao Qing had watched the whole show. Holding back her laughter, she led Yao Yao away; they still had to catch a flight in the early hours of the morning.

Xia Shibai sat back at the table. Seeing the remaining paper strips, she thought of the dream she had. She wrote down the things she remembered, then prepared to think of a new way to give the paper to Xia Yaozhou so she could pass it on to the Big Yaozhou.