Chapter Fifty-Four: Disturbing the Peace

The person knocking at the door was a middle-aged woman, around fifty years old. When Sun Zimu's mother opened the door, her first words were, "Can your family please stop being so noisy all the time? It's late at night—don’t you realize you’re disturbing the neighbors? Have you no sense of civic responsibility?"

Sun Zimu's mother was a gentle woman; even in the face of such aggression, she did not get angry. She apologized immediately, saying, "I’m truly sorry. Our dogs got into another fight. I apologize for the disturbance and hope you can forgive us."

Hearing the barking coming from inside, the woman naturally believed Sun Zimu’s mother—she had already guessed what was happening before she knocked. The fights between Sun Zimu's dogs were notorious in the building. At first, most neighbors were understanding; after all, it was a dog-owning household, and occasional noise was inevitable. But the frequency of the fights was too much, and even the most patient residents eventually lost tolerance.

As a result, the Sun family was often complained about for disturbing the peace.

"Hmph! As if I didn’t know your dogs were fighting. How many times have I told you—if you can’t manage them, give them away, or just kill them and eat the meat. Have you ever listened? You want my understanding? Who’s going to understand me? It’s not just once or twice, it’s been so many times—have you solved the problem?"

The middle-aged woman was fierce, clearly an expert in neighborhood quarrels, her reputation well established from her younger days.

Sun Zimu’s father had always felt guilty about the disturbances, but faced with such relentless hostility—and having just been bitten by his own dog—he couldn’t help but retort, "We all keep dogs, so why must you be so unforgiving? I admit our dogs disturb the peace, and I’ll apologize. But what do you mean by saying all this? Are you here to start a fight?"

The woman’s anger flared, but seeing Sun Zimu’s father’s bleeding hand, she showed a hint of satisfaction, and with a sneer said, "We all keep dogs? My dog doesn’t bite, nor does it disturb the neighbors like yours. If you can’t control your dogs and get bitten, you deserve it."

Sun Zimu’s father scoffed, "Doesn’t disturb? How can you say that with a straight face? Every time your family’s out, your dog howls as if someone’s torturing it, and it goes on for over an hour. How can you claim your dog isn’t a nuisance?"

"That’s nonsense!" The woman’s expression hardened. "If you say my dog disturbs the neighbors, why hasn’t anyone complained? Don’t slander my dog just because yours is a nuisance. And you have the nerve to compare your dog with mine?"

"Nonsense, you say? Ask the neighbors if you don’t believe me. Or next time you go out, linger downstairs and listen to your dog’s screeching. Don’t think your dog is anything special. You say I can’t manage my dogs, as if you’re so much better. The only reason no one complains about yours is that you’re never home when they come knocking. Who knows if you’re really out or just pretending?"

Seeing her husband about to argue further, Sun Zimu’s mother quickly intervened, "Sister Wang, please calm down. It’s true our dogs have disturbed everyone, and that’s our fault, but we’ve already hired a dog trainer. Give us some time, and we’ll get our dogs under control."

The woman had been ready to keep arguing, but Sun Zimu’s father’s pointed words made her uncertain. When she saw Sun Zimu’s mother apologizing, she held back and glanced around the room. She noticed that besides the family, there was Xie Caizhe. He was too young to be the trainer they mentioned, so her gaze quickly settled on Zhang Congwen.

"You’re the dog trainer?" she asked.

Zhang Congwen nodded.

"If you’re the trainer, why didn’t you intervene when their dogs fought just now?" she said disdainfully, clearly doubting his credentials.

Zhang Congwen felt helpless. The reason he hadn’t stepped in immediately was to observe how the three dogs interacted with the family, but explaining this would be complicated, and he doubted she would believe him anyway. So he simply said, "It’s not the right time to train them yet."

The woman muttered, "Training a dog has to be timed?"

She looked at Zhang Congwen suspiciously and said directly, "Are you a fraud?"

Before Zhang Congwen could reply, Xie Caizhe jumped in, "Brother Zhang isn’t a fraud. He’s amazing at training dogs. Not only did he train my family’s Big Tiger, he also helped my classmate’s dog. Auntie, if your dog has any issues, Brother Zhang can help with that too."

As soon as Xie Caizhe finished, Sun Zimu chimed in. Though he had never seen Zhang Congwen train a dog himself, everything he knew was hearsay, so his descriptions were exaggerated—how a single word made a dog obedient, or how one look calmed a vicious dog.

Zhang Congwen listened, feeling awkward, but couldn’t say anything.

Sun Zimu’s remarks only made the woman more suspicious. She didn’t know much about dog training, but she was sure it couldn’t be as miraculous as Sun Zimu claimed.

"Fine, I want to see how you train dogs. Whenever you’re training, let me know, I’d like to observe and learn," she said.

It was clear she wasn’t interested in learning from Zhang Congwen; she was certain he was a fraud and wanted to watch the Sun family make fools of themselves.

"Alright, Sister Wang. If we’re training, we’ll definitely let you know," Sun Zimu’s mother replied at once.

After seeing the woman off, Sun Zimu’s parents exchanged uneasy glances. They had thought Zhang Congwen was a legitimate trainer, but after their son’s magical praise, doubts crept in. Could Zhang Congwen be deceiving children and trying to swindle them?

Sun Zimu, eager to prove himself, dragged Xie Caizhe over to vouch for him. Xie Caizhe, embarrassed, realized his bragging had been taken seriously by his naive friend and quickly tried to clarify.

Despite Xie Caizhe’s explanation, Sun Zimu’s parents remained skeptical. Sun Zimu, in particular, was annoyed at Xie Caizhe for misleading him.

But the family didn’t dwell on the issue for long. The dogs’ fight had ended at some point. Xiao Huang and Da Bai had minor injuries, but Mud Snow, usually the fiercest, was hurt the worst—a tear in its ear from the scuffle.

Sun Zimu’s father went to the hospital to treat his wound, while his mother tended to the other two dogs and took Mud Snow, the most seriously injured, to the animal hospital.

Before leaving, she arranged with Zhang Congwen that, since they would be busy with work, they could only invite him to train the dogs on the weekend.

Zhang Congwen had no objections. After agreeing on the training fee and exchanging contact information, he finally returned to his own home.