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"Woof~"

The puppy, looking like a little white dandelion, let out a milky yelp that made one's heart melt instantly.

What was even more eye-catching was the massive pink bow tied to the puppy's forehead, clearly marking it as a gift.

Yu Qing looked at the puppy, then at the bow, and finally at the butler, who stood there with a serious, expressionless face.

"...You, me, it..."

Yu Qing didn't know what to say.

She wanted to say that this bow surely couldn't have been provided by the person selling the dog.

Besides a pet shop, who else would go out of their way to buy a bow and tie it to a puppy's head? It wasn't hard to guess.

"..."

Even though it was obvious at a glance that the dog was intended as a gift, did they really have to buy one that was so big and so pink?

Yu Qing also wanted to say that she didn't want a puppy; Xiang Changge had said she was buying the dog to eat her leftovers, and she didn't want a puppy eating her food.

Although she had mentally prepared herself for the possibility that Xiang Changge might suddenly appear before her with a puppy, she had only prepared herself internally and hadn't actually told Xiang Changge yet.

If Xiang Changge brought her a dog so suddenly and she accepted it happily, wouldn't that make her look hypocritical and lose face?

But, but, the puppy was so cute, and its yelps made her heart feel soft; even if she only wanted to refuse on the surface, it was very hard to actually say the words.

Yu Qing tried to struggle a bit more. She looked away, attempting to refuse: "I..."

Before the words could leave her mouth, she glanced at the puppy again, thought of something, and tried to refuse again: "I don't..."

"Do you not like it?"

Xiang Changge asked suddenly.

Her voice was calm and indifferent, seemingly devoid of emotion, yet to Yu Qing's ears, it inexplicably carried a hint of disappointment.

Do you not like it?

Does she not like the puppy, or does she not like the gift she gave?

Yu Qing tugged at her bathrobe, lowered her eyes, and asked: "Then, can it not eat my leftovers?"

The puppy was so cute, how could it eat human leftovers? Couldn't she just eat a little more and feed it fresh food instead?

Was the only purpose of the puppy's existence to eat her leftovers?

The system, which was just paddling along and dying to be held by Yu Qing, thought: "..."

It also looked back at Xiang Changge, shouting in her mind: "Of course not! I, Tongtong, am perfectly happy to eat Yu Qing baby's leftovers!"

Xiang Changge: "..."

Xiang Changge looked at the system-dog, then at Yu Qing, and finally chose a compromise: "...You can set some aside for it before you eat."

That way, it wouldn't be called leftovers.

"But, aren't puppies not supposed to eat salty food? They'll lose their fur." Before taking the puppy into her arms, Yu Qing tried hard to negotiate the "price" with Xiang Changge.

Xiang Changge, however, appeared quite cold: "It's fine. It's a local breed, easy to raise. It can even eat mice."

A system-dog, what could it not eat?

Yu Qing: "..."

The system, which was getting tired of just paddling along: "..." Can you two stop talking? What are you chattering about? Just throw me, Tongtong, into Yu Qing baby's arms already! What are you waiting for?

Yu Qing looked at the puppy again, her conflicted and awkward feelings on full display.

She clearly liked it, yet she wanted to act as if she didn't.

Just as she made up her mind and reached out to take the puppy from Xiang Changge's hands, and even the system-dog was grinning in anticipation, Xiang Changge suddenly pulled her hand back, bringing the dog closer to her own chest.

Yu Qing: "?"

The system: "?"

Meeting Yu Qing's puzzled gaze, Xiang Changge's light eyes were bright as she looked at her and asked earnestly: "Do you like it?"

If you like it, say you like it; if you don't, say you don't. Being stubborn will only make you lose things.

Yu Qing: "..."

Hadn't she been telling her she didn't like it the whole time?

She had said she didn't like it, and she had still brought the dog back. If she said she didn't like it now, would she actually take the dog away?

What did she mean? Did she think that every time she said she didn't like something, she was actually saying she did?

With the same answer as before stuck in her throat, Yu Qing couldn't bring herself to say it immediately.

She wasn't sure if, should she say she didn't like it this time, Xiang Changge would really not give her the dog.

"Isn't this... my gift?"

Yu Qing looked at Xiang Changge, answering with a question of her own.

The rain was still falling, as if it wanted to drown the world, while inside, a cool breeze drifted through. One sat and one stood, with a caterpillar-like puppy caught between them.

The room was filled with the sweet scent of milk, drifting into the nose and bringing a sense of warmth.

The puppy lay soft and round in the palm of Xiang Changge's hand. Aside from its tan-colored ears, its entire body was as white as snow. Its little bean-like eyes were dark and shiny, and its four short legs were chubby and soft, looking like four little pillars.

It was a high-quality white Chow Chow.

It was looking at Yu Qing with a pitiful expression, as if asking her, "Do you really not like puppies?"

"So, do you like this gift?"

Xiang Changge's voice softened, carrying a subtle hook that tugged at the eardrums of anyone who heard it.

The flush on Yu Qing's face deepened, and the faint red at the corners of her eyes became even more pronounced.

Was the air conditioning set too high? Why did it feel so hot?

Yu Qing tugged at the fabric of her bathrobe, trying to let herself breathe.

When she looked up, both the black bean eyes and the gray-brown eyes were watching her, waiting for her answer.

Yu Qing felt the awkwardness of being forced to face her own heart. She felt her entire body burning—it was embarrassment, discomfort, and a hint of unease.

Why did it feel like if she said she liked it, it didn't just represent the puppy, but also the person who gave the gift, all wrapped up together?

Xiang Changge had great patience. She waited for the snail carrying its heavy shell to carefully sense if there was danger outside, waiting for her to slowly poke her soft antennae out from within.

Finally, the person lowered her gaze and whispered her true feelings: "I like it... thank you for the gift."

Xiang Changge curled her lips in satisfaction and plopped the eager, soft little ball into Yu Qing's arms.

"You're welcome, Miss."

"Woof woof woof!"

The puppy, which looked as sweet as it acted, fully utilized its traits. As soon as it reached Yu Qing's arms, it began to burrow around.

It rubbed its forehead here and there, finally reaching Yu Qing's chin, where it began to stick out its little pink tongue and lick her happily.

"Ah, Baby Yu Qing, it's Baby Yu Qing! Tongtong has finally touched a living, warm Baby Yu Qing! Mmm, so fragrant, so fragrant! It's the scent of milk. I'm sniffing, I'm sniffing, I'm licking, I'm licking!"

Xiang Changge looked away, unable to bear watching the data-dog's sycophantic behavior.

Yu Qing, on the other hand, was so amused by the enthusiastic puppy that she forgot her earlier embarrassment, holding it and stroking its fur.

It felt so soft, and the puppy was so clean. Before Xiang Changge brought it back, did she take it for a bath and grooming? Why was its fur so smooth, and why did it have a fresh, sweet—watermelon scent?

"Little puppy, little puppy..."

Thinking of something, Yu Qing awkwardly pinched the puppy's tan ears. After being nudged by the puppy, she smiled and asked Xiang Changge, "What is its name?"

Xiang Changge answered without hesitation: "Lick-dog."

Yu Qing: "?"

System: "Woof?"

Sweet-dog? That works too; Tongtong is indeed very sweet.

Author's Note: [Yellow Heart][Orange Heart] Mini-theater [Orange Heart][Yellow Heart]

Miss: "Oh."

Steward Xiang: "Oh? Oh? Fine, 'Lick' it is."

Chapter 26: The Master's Pampered Pet

This "sweet" was not that "lick," and this "lick" was not that "sweet." The system, already dizzy with joy, couldn't hear the double meaning in Xiang Changge's words, but Yu Qing understood.

She lowered her eyes to look at the enthusiastic puppy that wasn't afraid of strangers at all, curled her lips slightly, and rubbed its head with her palm.

"How can you call a puppy that?"

Xiang Changge raised an eyebrow but didn't speak, though she still agreed with herself in her heart—her choice of words had been perfectly appropriate.

Speaking of names, Yu Qing pondered for a moment: "How about we call it Watermelon?"

It was sweet, fresh, and it had come to her side in the summer. Watermelon was also the first thing that came to mind when thinking of summer.

It was a very fitting name for the puppy.

"Watermelon?" Xiang Changge smacked her lips, looking thoughtful. "It tastes better when it's frozen."

Yu Qing: "...?"

The system-dog, which had overdrawn 390 of Xiang Changge's points to become this Chow Chow, officially received its new name—a name that sounded fresh, sweet, and juicy: Watermelon.