Chapter Thirteen: Man and Dog Indistinguishable

"How can you be so rude? Andy is my son, how can you call him 'this dog'?" Chen Na was visibly displeased by Zhang Congwen referring to her beloved dog as just a dog, and she spoke with a touch of anger. "It was just last night that Andy bit my daughter."

Zhang Congwen felt his head ache. "If I may ask, are you referring to your daughter as in a human, or as in a dog?"

"What is wrong with you? Can’t you speak properly? Of course my daughter is a person! What kind of people has Wang Duoxian found?" Chen Na was now thoroughly enraged. She hadn’t liked Zhang Congwen from the start, and had even cursed at her, saying her precious son would bite her family. She hadn’t taken it to heart then, but it had come true that very night. Ever since, she’d suspected Zhang Congwen of doing something to her beloved Alaskan. Now, when Zhang Congwen asked whether her daughter was human or canine, she naturally assumed she was being insulted.

Although Zhang Congwen had no fondness for Chen Na, he had absolutely no intention of taking the opportunity to insult her. The matter of whether the daughter in question was human or canine needed to be clarified before he could analyze the situation. Since she refused to allow him to refer to her Alaskan as a dog, he had no way of knowing whether the daughter she spoke of was a person or a dog.

This was one of the reasons Zhang Congwen was reluctant to work in sales with Song Jiawei. The world simply had too many oddities.

Off to the side, Zhu Qingyan’s brow was tightly furrowed. She thought to herself that she really needed to manage her father’s circle of friends—how could his circle include such people? Though she too was a woman and a dog owner, she could muster no goodwill toward the woman before her. In fact, she felt that the Alaskan biting her daughter was well deserved. But then, remembering that the little girl was innocent in all this, she felt a bit sorry for her.

Noticing that Chen Na seemed to want to drive them out, Song Jiawei immediately stepped forward to smooth things over.

"Please don’t get upset, that’s not what we meant. We just want to clarify the situation so we can properly address the problem."

Though Song Jiawei also disapproved of Chen Na’s behavior, as someone from a sales background he had encountered all manner of peculiar people, and was used to dealing with such things. He also knew that Zhang Congwen wasn’t good at handling these scenarios, so he stepped in right away.

"And who are you?" Chen Na glared at Song Jiawei, still fuming, her tone unkind.

"I’m his boss. My name is Song Jiawei. These two are Zhang Congwen and Zhu Qingyan," Song Jiawei said, casually assigning himself a role, smiling as he spoke. "Perhaps we could have a word in private?"

Upon hearing that Song Jiawei was the boss, Chen Na’s tone softened noticeably. "Fine."

Song Jiawei seized the opportunity and began chatting quietly with Chen Na.

No one knew exactly what Song Jiawei said, but Chen Na’s demeanor changed considerably—she even offered them seats.

"What did you say to her?" Zhu Qingyan asked curiously as she sat on the sofa. Although she wasn’t as awkward as Zhang Congwen in social situations, she had no better way of handling someone with Chen Na’s temperament.

With Zhu Qingyan’s question, Song Jiawei’s face filled with pride. "That woman only knows how to deal with dogs, but I’m better at dealing with people. People like Chen Na just want to feel superior and look down on people like us. When I said I was Zhang Congwen’s boss, in her eyes that gave me status, so she was willing to talk with me. Then I flattered her, said we valued her very much, that I was here to personally supervise my staff—stuff like that. By confirming her sense of superiority, she’s happy to grant us a little mercy from her lofty perch."

Zhu Qingyan curled her lip in disdain at Chen Na’s type, but she nevertheless gave Song Jiawei a discreet thumbs-up. "To endure someone like that—to this extent—is impressive."

Song Jiawei grinned slyly. "It’s just a matter of perspective. Some people like to see people like her get their comeuppance, but I prefer to watch them be elevated—only to fall from a great height."

"Sly," Zhu Qingyan commented approvingly.

"You flatter me," Song Jiawei replied, his grin even more roguish.

Zhang Congwen didn’t join in their banter, instead turning to Chen Na with a question. "Could you tell me in detail what happened when Andy bit your daughter?"

Although Chen Na’s attitude was now more polite, her tone still grated. "I’m not clear on the details. Last night, after I got back from the police station, I had my family bring Andy home while I went to the hospital to deal with the little girl Andy had bitten."

She sounded indignant. Even now she refused to believe her dog had done anything wrong.

"I went to the hospital, threw a few thousand yuan at that family, and came back home. That’s when I learned Andy had bitten my daughter." As she spoke, Chen Na forcibly pressed her Alaskan down onto the floor. The dog tried to shift position, but she immediately stopped it and put it back.

Zhang Congwen watched all this carefully. "Did any of your family members see exactly what happened?"

A flicker of impatience crossed Chen Na’s eyes and she glanced at Song Jiawei before answering with forced patience, "No one saw it. My daughter was playing with Andy in a room, and then she was bitten."

Zhang Congwen thought for a moment, then asked, "How old is your daughter? Did she tell you what happened?"

Chen Na’s irritation grew. She’d never imagined that dog training would involve so many questions—it felt more like a police interrogation, and she felt offended. She was about to lose her temper when Song Jiawei, seeing the signs, quickly interjected, "We’re asking these things to serve you better. As you can see, our training approach isn’t just superficial."

"My daughter is six. She said she was just playing with Andy, and suddenly she got bitten." Chen Na suppressed her impatience and continued. During this, she pulled the Alaskan forcibly into her lap, so that its legs dangled and its whole body sprawled across her thighs.

Zhang Congwen nodded. Although he hadn’t learned much from Chen Na, he could make a general judgment. Overall, this Alaskan had no major issues—in fact, it was nearly a model dog. The real problems almost all stemmed from its owner, just as he had surmised back at Ping’an Wetlands Park.

Zhang Congwen said, "From now on, do not let your daughter be alone with Andy. If she wants to play with Andy, it must be under your supervision."

Chen Na accepted this advice readily, nodding. "You don’t need to say it, I won’t let them be alone again."

"Do your parents also live here?" Zhang Congwen asked suddenly, having noticed signs of elderly residents in the living room.

Chen Na nodded.

"The same applies to them. Don’t let Andy be alone with the elderly," Zhang Congwen said only after receiving confirmation.

"What? Why?" Chen Na immediately bristled again.