Chapter 113: Serves You Right

“This guy is a damn scoundrel!”

After watching the video, Song Jiawei slammed the table, his indignation evident.

Zhang Congwen rubbed his forehead, choosing first to calm Song Jiawei’s temper.

“You work in sales; haven’t you seen plenty of scoundrels before?”

Then Zhang Congwen continued, “The dog’s problem isn’t exactly huge, but it’s not small either. The bigger issue lies with the owner. Even you noticed that.”

“What do you mean, even I noticed that?” Song Jiawei retorted in displeasure. “Even a blind person could see it! This guy has raised his dog to be recklessly indifferent to others and himself.”

Zhang Congwen avoided further debate on the matter. Instead, he said, “You go contact the dog’s owner first, then come with me. This time, I need your cooperation.”

——

At the dog owner’s house, Zhang Congwen knocked on the door.

At the moment it opened, the poodle was the first to stick its body out.

Zhang Congwen spoke directly, “Please take your dog back inside first.”

What surprised Zhang Congwen was that such a simple request left the woman looking completely at a loss.

Before the owner could react, the dog slipped out through the crack in the door.

Immediately, the owner chased after it.

Zhang Congwen merely watched silently, unsure of what to say.

From the owner running after the dog to circling back to the doorstep, the pair seemed to be playing hide-and-seek around Zhang Congwen. Throughout, he had no clue what the woman’s intention was.

Finally, Zhang Congwen, growing tired of standing, said, “Just keep doing whatever you normally do.”

The woman was taken aback, then noticed that Zhang Congwen’s expression was far less friendly than she had assumed.

She quickly scooped up the dog, rushed into the living room, and, as if discarding a thorny object, set the dog down and folded her arms behind her back.

But without hesitation, the poodle dashed straight toward Zhang Congwen as soon as its paws touched the floor.

The owner made no attempt to stop it; instead, she muttered, “What can I do? It ran out again.”

Zhang Congwen took a deep breath and asked bluntly, “Do you know your dog bites people?”

The woman was startled, not expecting such a straightforward question and unclear why he would say that, but she nodded.

Zhang Congwen pressed on, “Then why don’t you control your dog?”

What infuriated Zhang Congwen even more was her response: “I’m used to it. Besides, it doesn’t listen to me. It’s a hassle and exhausting to deal with.”

Woof! Woof! Woof!

Just as she was making excuses, the poodle barked at Zhang Congwen.

But then the dog let out a series of frightened yelps and quickly retreated to a corner inside the room.

The woman’s face showed shock; she never imagined Zhang Congwen would kick her beloved dog.

Before she could lash out, Zhang Congwen asked, “Since you know your dog bites, do you know why it got hit today?”

Caught off guard by his direct question, the woman was at a loss for words. In her mind, no matter the reason, Zhang Congwen had no right to hit her dog.

She had hired him to train the dog, not to punish it physically.

Her expression grew colder, and her tone carried a hint of accusation, “Because it barked at you?”

Actually, she had barely uttered “because it” when Zhang Congwen interrupted, “Because of you. You’re the one who made me hit it.”

“When did I ever tell you to hit it?” The woman was stunned, then raised her voice. “I paid you to train the dog.”

Zhang Congwen replied, “This isn’t about training. Even if I weren’t a trainer, it would have gotten hit today.”

Before she could respond, Zhang Congwen continued, “Because you don’t control it. I was about to get bitten, and you did nothing to stop it. If you refuse to manage your dog, someone else will do it for you—only in a way you won’t like. Frankly, if you can’t handle your dog, no matter how others treat it, it’s your own fault.”

This time, Zhang Congwen had no intention of being polite. Given her attitude, gentle words wouldn’t work; only a harsh approach might make her realize her mistakes.

They sat down in the living room, and Zhang Congwen got straight to the point.

“When I came, the files said you wanted me to address the biting issue. Yes, this dog bites, but before it bit, it showed many threatening behaviors which you didn’t stop. You watched as it escalated to biting. Why did you allow that?”

“What exactly counts as threatening behavior?”

No one expected the woman to ask that.

Zhang Congwen imitated a dog’s growl, “Growling, baring teeth, lunging at others—these are all threats.”

She nodded, wearing an expression that said she understood.

Whether she truly grasped it or was feigning comprehension, or had always known but pretended ignorance, Zhang Congwen couldn’t tell.

He didn’t bother to find out and simply asked her to leash the poodle and bring it over.

But the moment the dog entered the living room and saw Zhang Congwen, it froze, not daring to move.

Apparently, Zhang Congwen’s earlier kick had left a strong impression.

Even when the woman forcibly brought the dog forward, it kept its head low, avoiding eye contact and clearly frightened.

Zhang Congwen said, “Do you like it this way—watching people’s moods—or the way it was before, where it controlled you? Think carefully. Without you, this dog might have been a stray or even put down. You gave it shelter and food. Why does a dog that depends on you for its life get to boss you around?”

Seeing the woman genuinely ponder this, Zhang Congwen added, “If you want it to stay like this, you have to stand tall and look down on the dog. This dog’s personality is very clear: a classic bully who fears the strong and pushes the weak. It dares nothing before those stronger than it but will torment those it senses as weak.

Dealing with such a dog is simple: never give in, and occasionally remind it who’s in charge so it knows it’s not to be messed with.”

Of course, these reminders aren’t necessarily physical punishments but rather a firm attitude.

Looking at the poodle, Zhang Congwen explained, “Right now, as it lies there watching me, it’s thinking two things: whether to bite me to threaten me, or to avoid direct confrontation because that might be more advantageous. So when it looks at me like this, what we need to do is show it it needs to behave.”

With that, Zhang Congwen downed the water from the disposable cup the woman had offered earlier.

Then—smack!

He slammed the cup hard onto the floor.