Wang Xu, who had fled in panic, had no idea how distressed the strong-willed Xu Jiazhen was over the Silver Dollars he had left behind.
At this moment, having just climbed over the wall, his pant leg was being bitten by Da Huang, who was pulling him backward with all its might.
"Let go, you stupid dog, let go now!" Da Huang bit his pant leg; although it didn't bite down hard, it still scared Wang Xu half to death.
Dogs these days didn't have vaccinations; who knew if the dog carried any diseases? Not to mention that although Da Huang was thin, it was a full-grown dog, nearly half a person's height when standing on its hind legs. Getting bitten was no laughing matter.
Fortunately, Da Huang wasn't actually trying to bite him; it just pulled hard on his pant leg and let go once he was far enough from the courtyard wall.
Having finished its task, Da Huang tucked its tail and lay down in the corner, motionless, its eyes staring straight at Wang Xu.
Wang Xu looked at the dog, then at the courtyard wall; the spot where he had climbed over was exactly where Da Huang was now lying.
"This dog is amazing!" Who says mutts aren't smart? From Da Huang's actions, Wang Xu could clearly see that the reason it lay in the corner was to protect its mistress and prevent Wang Xu from climbing over the wall again.
Sure enough, as he tried to take a few steps forward, Da Huang immediately pricked up its ears and let out a low, threatening growl.
When he took a few steps back, the growling stopped, and Da Huang lowered its head to lie on the ground again, motionless and unresponsive.
"Hey!" While Wang Xu was teasing the dog, Xu Jiazhen's voice came from behind the wall: "Your money... consider it a loan from me..."
Her voice was soft, becoming almost imperceptible toward the end, and her tone was laced with resentment.
Wang Xu looked at Da Huang and saw that the listless dog, upon hearing its mistress's voice, began wagging its tail like a windmill.
Then, noticing Wang Xu watching it, Da Huang's movements stopped, and it once again pricked up its ears and let out a threatening growl, as if warning him.
By now, Wang Xu realized that dogs really are only loyal to their own masters.
Xu Jiazhen's home was destitute, yet the dog didn't mind at all; instead, it stared at him, its new owner, as if he were a thief.
"Sister-in-law, I don't know what you're talking about. What money? You must have the wrong person!" Wang Xu hadn't just left money; he had also seen things he shouldn't have. He absolutely could not admit to it.
Xu Jiazhen hadn't expected such an answer. She peeked her head over the courtyard wall, her tearful eyes showing she had just been crying. She cursed quietly, "Pah! A fox in clothes can hide its body, but it can't hide its tail."
The wall separating the two courtyards wasn't high, about 1.5 meters, just enough to reveal a face like a pear blossom bathed in rain.
Looking at it this way, although Xu Jiazhen hadn't noticed Shopkeeper Qiu and his group recovering in the room, she did see the pig's head meat Wang Xu had thrown to Da Huang earlier that evening.
"Da Huang, go eat." The busty goddess looked ashamed and angry as she pointed at the meat and added, "Eat your fill and guard this place well. Don't let that fox come to our house again."
"Woof, woof..." Da Huang wouldn't eat the meat when Wang Xu gave it, but since its mistress gave the order, it accepted it without hesitation.
Da Huang was just a dog, after all. With its mistress's command, it devoured the meat in no time and then trotted back to the corner of the wall.
"Da Huang, did you remember?"
"Woof, woof..."
Xu Jiazhen gave another instruction and left amidst Da Huang's barking. Before long, the sound of a door opening and closing came from next door.
Hearing the sound, Wang Xu guessed that Xu Jiazhen must have taken Qiu Xia to see a doctor.
After all, the reason she hadn't taken Qiu Xia to the hospital before was because she had no money. Now that she had some, she couldn't just watch her daughter suffer from a serious illness.
Wang Xu stood at his own door, a slight smile involuntarily appearing on his face.
The Buddha said that saving a life is better than building a seven-story pagoda.
Xie Ruolin was so wicked; if there were merit and karma in this world, this should balance it out, right?
"Hehe, it's not like I believe in Buddhism!" Wang Xu muttered to himself. In high spirits, he lifted the door curtain and walked inside.
The house Wang Xu bought had two main rooms, a courtyard, and two side wings.
In the middle of the two main rooms was a living room, called a 'Guotang' at the time. As soon as Wang Xu entered, he found that Shopkeeper Qiu hadn't gone into a bedroom at all but was lying on a chair in the living room.
"It's fine for us to lie on these Grandmaster Chairs, but how can Shopkeeper Qiu endure his injuries like this?" Seeing Shopkeeper Qiu covered in blood, with only simple bandages, placed on the chair by Yu Zecheng, Wang Xu's eyes were full of astonishment.
Before Yu Zecheng could speak, the reclining Shopkeeper Qiu struggled to sit up, shaking his head. "This is fine. Having a place to rest is enough. My injury is no problem."
Shopkeeper Qiu's injury was in his right shoulder. Although his long robe was stained with blood, it wasn't fatal.
Wang Xu shook his head slightly. He knew the principle of 'if you're going to help someone, do it thoroughly.'
Since they had brought Shopkeeper Qiu inside, leaving him in the living room instead of taking him to a bedroom... who knew what the polite Shopkeeper Qiu was actually thinking?
"This won't do. Old Yu, hurry and carry Shopkeeper Qiu inside. It's not right to stay out here!" As soon as Wang Xu spoke, Yu Zecheng nodded repeatedly.
He also felt that it wasn't right for the injured Shopkeeper Qiu to lie on such a hard chair.
Unfortunately, Shopkeeper Qiu was his contact and superior; he couldn't disobey him. Additionally, the house belonged to Wang Xu. Though Yu Zecheng wanted to move him, he lacked the authority and was waiting for Wang Xu to speak up.
"Your injury is more important. Let me help you inside," Yu Zecheng said, winking at Ga Zi as he prepared to support Shopkeeper Qiu.
Shopkeeper Qiu was an old Party member and a cadre who had participated in uprisings. He didn't think this minor injury was an issue and refused, "Comrade Yu Zecheng, we have discipline. We absolutely cannot trouble the common people. A chair is enough."
"It's no trouble; this is what I should do," Wang Xu quickly interjected upon hearing Shopkeeper Qiu's words.
He had seen Shopkeeper Qiu's character in the TV show; he was a hero with unyielding integrity. After being captured, to protect Yu Zecheng, he would rather bite off his tongue and commit suicide than cooperate with the Bureau of Investigation and Statistics.
When such a man said these things, he wasn't just being formal; he truly didn't want to cause trouble.
But the more he acted this way, the more Wang Xu felt for him.
Wang Xu hadn't placed this Grandmaster Chair in the living room just for show.
An authentic Red Sandalwood Grandmaster Chair would be worth at least a million in modern times. It was a treasure Wang Xu had accidentally discovered at the furniture market today.
"Shopkeeper Qiu, you'd better go inside. This chair is worth more than this entire house," Wang Xu replied in a low voice after a moment's hesitation.
Upon hearing this, Shopkeeper Qiu immediately became anxious. What? The chair was worth more than the house?
This time, without waiting for Yu Zecheng's help, Shopkeeper Qiu stood up as if he had sat on a nail, grimacing in pain. He said repeatedly, "Then I won't sit on it, I won't sit on it. I'll go inside; the room is more comfortable."
Pfft!!
Yu Zecheng couldn't help but chuckle secretly.
Wang Xu saw this and realized the injury really wasn't that severe; he could still move around quite energetically after being shot.