Chapter 144: The Innocent Victim of War

Zhang Congwen almost swallowed a mouthful of unmentionable words, managing to force them back down just in time.

He had a fleeting feeling that suppressing such an outburst might cause him internal injury later.

His question to her was actually intended to make her acknowledge that training the dog made managing it much easier. Or at the very least, to make her realize the error of her previous behavior. Even better, it might have prompted her to express some inner remorse over training the dog this way, thereby easing the heavy frustration weighing on his mind.

Yet, despite Zhang Congwen's well-laid plans, the woman refused completely to follow his expected trajectory.

A flash of helplessness swept through his mind, convincing him that this female owner was utterly a lost cause.

The Pomeranian was indeed cute—Zhang Congwen readily admitted that much. But to still be hung up on how "cute" it was under these circumstances made Xia Lu a specimen entirely in a league of her own.

Even if this Pomeranian were stuffed, mounted, and placed right here as a taxidermy specimen, she would probably still find it adorable.

In the past, whenever Zhang Congwen encountered dog owners facing similar issues, asking such a question would invariably evoke profound guilt. They would feel guilty either for treating their beloved pets so harshly now, or for failing to manage them properly beforehand, which led to the present predicament.

At the very least, those owners understood that disciplining one's dog was the ultimate manifestation of true love for it.

By contrast, Xia Lu's mind was consumed solely by the thought of how adorable her dog was. Zhang Congwen shuddered to imagine what kind of efficacy could possibly be achieved when training a dog with such an attitude.

A person like this could hardly be considered a qualified dog owner. Furthermore, throughout the entire training process—aside from the single instance when Zhang Congwen personally stepped in to demonstrate—she had smiled in silence from start to finish, as if she didn't treat dog training as a serious matter at all.

Judging by her attitude right now, Qiu Tianshi was entirely correct. She had no business owning a dog; she should be raising a non-biting doll instead.

Zhang Congwen desperately wanted to turn around and leave without a backward glance. But realizing they had already come this far, he could not afford to abandon the effort halfway. Ultimately, he dismissed the idea.

After taking several deep breaths, feeling that if he kept holding it in any longer, he would suffer internal physical damage, and for the sake of his own physical and mental well-being, Zhang Congwen could no longer help blurting out, his voice tinged with anger: "Cute? I think it's cute too. But if your head is filled with nothing more than how cute it is, every single effort made today goes down the drain. Not just my efforts, but your boyfriend's efforts as well. With an attitude like yours, let alone me, no matter which dog trainer came here, they wouldn't be able to train your dog."

"Wrong! There is actually one kind of trainer who could handle it—a trainer whose method involves a flying kick to the chest accompanied by dragon fruit treatment. Do you know what a dragon fruit chest-kick is? Let me explain. The so-called dragon fruit refers to beating your dog until its mouth bleeds profusely, looking as though it secretly gorged on dragon fruit. The chest-kick is simply another term for a dog-beating training technique."

"You should count your blessings that I am not an advocate of this training style; otherwise, you would regret today having asked me to come here and train your dog. Your state of mind right now shouldn't be about thinking it's adorable; it should be grief. Because you raised it with such methods, its exterior grew up cute, yet the number of people who detest it grows by the day. You are the one who raised it into this creature, the one who made it universally disliked."

"You keep proclaiming to everyone how much you love it and how adorable you find it. But in my view, if it weren't cute, you wouldn't love it either. To put it bluntly, what you love is merely its cuteness; swap it for any other cute dog and it would be the exact same. You don't actually love the dog itself. Because the impression you give me is that you simply refuse to take responsibility for it."

"You are free to refute me. I am more than willing to admit if my perspective is mistaken. But the only way you can change my view of you is through your actions, by proving it to me."

Grr...

Just as Zhang Congwen was speaking, the Pomeranian suddenly began to growl at him again.

Glancing down at the dog, Zhang Congwen continued, "Tell me how much you bought this dog for. If it growls at me like this and lunges to bite any one of us present, and you fail to take any action to stop it, I am willing to compensate you triple the dog's purchase price."

It seemed Zhang Congwen was truly furious this time.

Although he hadn't spelled it out explicitly, anyone could catch the underlying meaning of his words.

"If you don't want me to have to pay you back, you had better use the method I taught you to drive it back to its kennel and make it quiet down."

Xia Lu caught the heavy implication in Zhang Congwen's words. Seeing his expression, she realized he was not joking and immediately sprang into action.

This time, Xia Lu's performance was much closer to normal.

After several attempts at suppression, she successfully drove the Pomeranian back into its kennel.

Yet everyone present inwardly shook their heads and sighed.

They all felt that if Qiu Tianshi had been raising the dog alone, things wouldn't be too difficult. But with Xia Lu meddling in the middle, it would be extremely difficult for the two owners to properly educate this dog. Without someone standing by to supervise and guide them, success was virtually impossible—especially with Xia Lu around.

Ever since he began his career as a dog trainer, this was the first time Zhang Congwen had spoken so many words and invested so much psychological counseling into a pet owner.

He had practically worn his tongue raw, yet she had only changed by the tiniest fraction.

It was not hard to imagine that the moment Zhang Congwen and his team left, she would likely revert to her old habits instantly.

Everyone present could see that the dog's issues weren't actually severe; the real, intractable problem lay entirely with Xia Lu.

If Zhang Congwen failed in his training this time, the fault could not be pinned on him. It was a failure beyond the call of duty—not because Zhang Congwen lacked the capability as a trainer, but rather because of the dog owner...

At this thought, the staff members of Xingrong Residential Community suddenly felt a wave of sympathy for Zhang Congwen.

Although none of the onlookers felt it would be Zhang Congwen's fault if the dog couldn't be trained, they knew very well what the higher-ups were like.

Those people wouldn't care about such nuances. A failure to train was simply a failure, and regardless of the reason, the blame would ultimately fall squarely on Zhang Congwen's shoulders.

Zhang Congwen internally let out a continuous stream of sighs. When he watched the pre-recorded video earlier, he had thought the eccentricities of this final household were still within his acceptable range. But now, it was clear that Xia Lu's absurdity was a match for the previous owner, if not even more formidable.

He originally intended to offer Xia Lu a few more words of persuasion, but Song Jiaweit stopped him with a sharp look.

Song Jiaweit pointed at his own wrist, signaling Zhang Congwen to mind the time. Ultimately, Zhang Congwen had no choice but to swallow the words hovering on the tip of his tongue and prepare for the next phase of training.

At that moment, the Pomeranian tried once more to sneak out of its kennel.

Zhang Congwen stated flatly, "Drive it back using the same method."

Xia Lu immediately complied. She merely took a few steps toward the kennel, and the Pomeranian wisely retreated back inside.

Having forced the dog back into its shelter, Xia Lu returned to the sofa and asked, "When can we let the dog back out?"

Zhang Congwen replied, "Only when the time is right. A dog that violates its owner's commands cannot be pampered; it must be treated sternly and made to face the wall in contemplation. Only after receiving the owner's permission may it be released. But this permission isn't granted based on the owner's mood—it depends entirely on the dog's state. There is no fixed time limit for this process."

He then glanced over at the Pomeranian.

Seeing it lying alone in the kennel looking thoroughly bored, blinking its eyes as it contemplated the meaning of its canine existence, Zhang Congwen continued: "Take right now, for instance. This state of complete submission is the optimal moment to let it out."

However, before Zhang Congwen could finish what he was saying, Xia Lu suddenly called out to the Pomeranian in the kennel, "Doll, come here!"

Hearing its owner's call, the Pomeranian instantly perurred up, trotting eagerly over to Xia Lu on scampering feet. As it had countless times before, it placed its front paws onto Xia Lu's lap, striking a pose that begged for affection.

Right at that second, Zhang Congwen's brow furrowed tightly as he snapped, "Stop right there!"