Early the next morning, after the doctor finished rounds, Cheng Lele was approved for discharge. Because she was a VIP, the discharge procedures were handled quickly and smoothly.

At the entrance to the apartment building, a stray dog was wagging its tail at them in front of the fence.

“Why are you here again?” Cheng Lele looked at it helplessly.

Chen An followed her gaze. It was a still very young mangy mutt, extremely ugly in appearance, with a tail that was shorter than other puppies’ by a segment.

He asked: “You know this dog?”

Cheng Lele said: “I fed it once or twice, and now it keeps coming to find me.”

Cheng Lele didn’t feed it much, because it looked remarkably like Huang Tiangou, making it difficult for her to like it.

The two walked around the dog and entered the first-floor home. Cheng Lele packed up her clothes, while Chen An took off his jacket, rolled up his sleeves, and prepared to go into the kitchen to make breakfast.

Chen An’s skin was also very fair. On the exposed section of his skin, several moles could be seen at a glance.

“What do you want to eat? I bought some toast yesterday. Want buttered bread?”

Cheng Lele nodded, and Chen An went in.

Having only stayed in the hospital for a few days, there weren’t many clothes. It didn’t take long to pack everything up. Cheng Lele heard the stray dog whimpering outside.

She opened the refrigerator, pulled out a sausage, opened the door, and went to feed the dog.

Chen An looked out from the kitchen window and saw Cheng Lele squatting on the ground, stretching out her slender, fair neck, watching the stray dog eat breakfast with full concentration.

Chen An remembered that when she was little, Cheng Lele had made a fuss about wanting to raise a dog, but her godmother, believing she would give up halfway, firmly refused to let her keep one. In the end, she never got to raise one.

Chen An placed the fried bread on the dining table, heated two cups of milk, and encouraged Cheng Lele, whom he had just called back into the house: “If you like it, let’s adopt it.”

Cheng Lele was washing her hands in the bathroom and said from far away: “If we adopt it, we’ll have to be responsible for it. If something happens to us and we have to transfer it to someone else, it would be very troublesome.”

The speaker had no particular intention, but the listener took it to heart. Chen An’s hand holding the cup paused, his expression darkened slightly, then he said very firmly: “Nothing will happen.”

Cheng Lele dried her hands, and when she came out, she was already smiling: “That makes sense. Then let’s keep it.”

After making the decision, Cheng Lele ate very quickly. Chen An had just started eating when she finished and went out to find the dog.

Chen An ate breakfast in a leisurely manner and went to wash the dishes. The rushing sound of water didn’t cover the happy barking of the dog outside.

Chen An craned his neck to look. Cheng Lele was building a shelter in the yard. He didn’t know where she had picked up the discarded planks from, but with astonishing hand speed, she was nailing together something crooked and askew, though the prototype of a doghouse could be made out.

That dog that resembled her former supervisor seemed to understand her intention and was affectionately circling around her feet.

While nailing, Cheng Lele said with disgust: “Is there cosmetic surgery in the dog world? I want to give you a makeover. Your dad and mom are relatively easy on the eyes, but you’re so ugly—you really don’t look like part of the family.”

Chen An finished washing the dishes and entered the yard, his eyes full of unconcealed amusement: “Dog mom, give it a name.”

Cheng Lele gazed at the sky in deep thought for a moment and said: “How about calling it Ah Chou? A lowly name is easier to raise, and besides, it’s quite fitting.”

Chen An took the small hammer from Cheng Lele’s hand and kissed the corner of her mouth: “Ah Chou’s mom, good morning.”

Cheng Lele frowned: “When you call it that, it makes the name sound really ugly.” But she was incompetent at naming things. Even her own English name was plagiarized, let alone a dog’s name.

She sighed amid Chen An’s hammering sounds and said to Ah Chou: “When you become a bit prettier, I’ll change your name.”

After the doghouse was nailed together, Cheng Lele assigned tasks to Chen An: “Little brother, take it to the pet hospital later for a bath, get it examined and vaccinated there. After all the shots are done, implant a microchip, then go to our neighborhood police station to register for a dog-keeping license. Before it’s all done, you must, must keep it on a leash.”

“You’ve raised one before?”

Cheng Lele answered very naturally: “I have. When I first went to Beijing, Mom gave me a Samoyed named Meimei.”

Chen An drove the last nail into the plank and casually asked: “Where is Meimei now?”

Cheng Lele touched Ah Chou’s bony spine and said lightly: “Gave it away.”

Chen An suddenly understood why Cheng Lele had said what she did earlier. He pulled her hand: “Ah Chou won’t be like that.”

Cheng Lele nodded in agreement: “With you here, it won’t.”