Chapter Five: The Dog Basks in Its Master's Power

Zhu Chang spoke with absolute certainty, leaving no room for argument.

“But…” Liu Mei glanced at Zhang Congwen. She wanted to shift the blame onto him, but since Zhang Congwen had neither spoken to Tuan Tuan nor touched it since entering the house, she really couldn’t fault him. Liu Mei was reasonable enough not to force the issue, so the rest of her words died on her lips.

“No buts. Like I said, either we train it properly, or this dog can’t stay in our home,” Zhu Chang declared firmly.

It turned out Zhu Chang was the backbone of the family.

Previously, Zhu Chang hadn’t realized the gravity of the situation, so he’d been rather indifferent about training the dog. Now that the bichon had revealed its true nature, it was like having a ticking time bomb in the house—one that could go off at any moment. To protect his wife and daughter, Zhu Chang could no longer tolerate a biting dog living among them.

Liu Mei shot Zhu Chang another glare, as if blaming him for speaking to her that way in front of Zhang Congwen.

Zhu Chang, however, was unphased. “Glaring won’t help.”

He then turned to Zhang Congwen. “Xiao Zhang, do you think this dog can still be trained? If you need to discipline it, don’t hold back. Just don’t be too harsh.”

The dog still held a certain place in Zhu Chang’s heart. Despite his harsh words, he couldn’t help but feel a twinge of reluctance.

Zhang Congwen smiled. “It’s not as serious as you think, Uncle. Tuan Tuan doesn’t have any major issues.”

“Biting isn’t a major issue?” Zhu Chang assumed Zhang Congwen was worried about taking responsibility. “If you’re afraid you can’t control your strength, I’ll do it. I won’t blame you if something goes wrong.”

Zhang Congwen replied, “Tuan Tuan’s problem isn’t that serious. It’s just a common issue with small dogs.”

“A common issue?”

The whole family looked puzzled.

Zhang Congwen nodded. “Compared to medium or large breeds, small dogs are usually more prone to jealousy.”

This was actually easy to understand. Because of their size, small dogs are less capable in many ways compared to their larger counterparts, and this applies to independence as well.

So, for a small dog to survive, the best way is to rely on a stronger individual—in a pet-owner relationship, that means the owner.

Because of this, most small dogs are experts at pleasing their owners to win attention. But there’s a downside: in order to secure their place, small dogs often reject anyone outside the owner, wanting to be number one in their owner’s heart. So when they see their owner being good to someone else, they tend to get jealous.

And when a dog feels jealous, the most direct way to express it is with its mouth—by biting.

“So it’s a personality flaw. Is it curable?” Zhu Chang asked.

Zhang Congwen answered, “I told you, it’s a minor issue and very easy to correct. But I’ll need your cooperation, Uncle and Auntie.”

“All right.” This time Zhu Chang agreed without any hesitation. “How can we help?”

Zhang Congwen took the leash from Liu Mei and led Tuan Tuan to the center of the living room before speaking. “Now, Uncle and Auntie, please go into the bedroom and close the door.”

Zhu Chang and Liu Mei did as they were told. Zhang Congwen watched the bichon’s reaction and frowned.

By all rights, the bichon should have been at a loss, maybe a little anxious, but instead it seemed perfectly at ease, as if it had nothing to fear.

How strange. Had he misjudged?

Then he noticed the bichon glancing repeatedly toward the bedroom. Following the dog’s gaze, Zhang Congwen couldn’t help but laugh.

He realized that the bedroom door had been left ajar, just a small crack, and Zhu Chang was peeking out.

Zhu Qingyan noticed this too and immediately called out, “Dad! Are you worried your daughter’s going to run off with your precious dog?”

Zhu Chang, embarrassed, pretended to cough and closed the door properly.

As expected, the moment the bedroom door was firmly shut, the bichon immediately showed signs of unease, becoming lost and uncertain.

“Qingyan, try petting Tuan Tuan. Don’t be afraid—and even if you are, don’t let it show,” Zhang Congwen instructed.

Having just recovered from her earlier scare, Zhu Qingyan hesitated, but did as Zhang Congwen said and reached out to pet Tuan Tuan.

Zhang Congwen was also tense, gripping the leash tightly. At the first sign of aggression, he would pull the bichon away from Zhu Qingyan.

Fortunately, though the bichon displayed some anxiety and shied away instinctively, it ultimately didn’t act out and let Zhu Qingyan pet it.

Meanwhile, in the bedroom, the couple started to talk.

Liu Mei, annoyed, said, “You were guarding that dog like a bone. Our daughter’s grown up—she’s old enough to bring a boy home, and you acted like that. Is that how a parent should behave?”

Zhu Chang had no rebuttal. Still, seeing his daughter bring a boy home left a sour taste in his heart, as if his precious cabbage was about to be snatched away by a pig. He knew it was irrational, but he simply couldn’t help it.

Liu Mei understood what was on his mind and reassured him. “From what I can see, Xiao Zhang doesn’t have any intentions toward our daughter right now. If something develops in the future and Qingyan likes him, don’t stand in their way. Let them handle their own affairs.”

While Liu Mei lectured Zhu Chang in the bedroom, outside, Zhu Qingyan was all smiles.

Ever since Tuan Tuan had grown up, it hadn’t let her pet it for this long. If she tried, she’d only get a few seconds before it barked or whined, refusing her touch.

But now, after all this time, the bichon didn’t even dare make a sound.

“So soft, just like cotton candy,” Zhu Qingyan said, her eyes squinting with delight as she stroked the fluffy, snow-white bichon. No girl could resist such cuteness.

But Zhu Qingyan knew when to stop and withdrew her hand after a while.

“Uncle, Auntie, you can come out now,” Zhang Congwen called once she’d had enough.

The bedroom door opened. The bichon, which had been lying on its back in submission, suddenly got up and ran toward Liu Mei. Midway, the leash pulled it back, allowing only as much distance as possible between itself and Zhang Congwen and Zhu Qingyan, at whom it began to bark.

“Huh? Xiao Zhang, what’s going on? When we were in the bedroom, Tuan Tuan didn’t make a sound, but now that it sees us, it’s barking again,” Zhu Chang asked, puzzled by the stark change.

Before Zhang Congwen could answer, Liu Mei retorted, “What else could it be? Just like Old Wang at your office.”

Zhu Chang instantly understood.

Of course—it was just the classic case of a dog bullying others on the strength of its master.

Then Zhu Chang asked, “So how do we fix this? We can’t just hide in the bedroom every time Qingyan comes over.”

“Of course not. That was just to identify the problem. Now we’ll begin the real training,” Zhang Congwen replied.