74 The Dog She Asked For

The sun was already up and its annoying rays are already irritating Hou Wei Yan's delicate skin. Her eyes were still closed and she was still in dreamland, but she can already feel its soft poke and warmth. It was a nice sensation but she was bewildered by something.

There was something wet on her face. She was feeling ticklish because of it.

[ Am I still dreaming? ]

"Urghh, what are you doing?" she grumbled thinking that she was purposely getting disturbed by someone and she was hoping it would stop.

But it didn't.

As the sensation continued on, Hou Wei Yan can't help but get annoyed with it. [ Who the heck is licking me in the morning?! ]

Slowly, she opened her eyes and was surprised to be tackled by fluff and the fluff was barking at her enthusiastically.

"What in the world?!" Wei Yan immediately sat up and her eyes budge big at the scene in front of her. There was a huge white and fluffy dog in her bed, licking her hands while wagging its tail.

"Big Sister! Big Sister!" a shout suddenly erupted followed by her bedroom door opening. Soon after, Cao Yingjie popped out of it with a huge smile on his face.

"Yingjie?"

Upon entering, Yingjie saw the fluffy dog and couldn't help but run towards it. He had always wanted a dog but his mother was more like a cat person. She owns a huge cat and she hates the sight of a dog.

"It's a dog!" he exclaimed as he hugged the creature. The fluffy white dog didn't hold back and pounced at him as well then immediately tackled him with her licks and tickles.

After a good few seconds, Wei Yan finally digested what was happening. There's a cute large dog in her bedroom and it seems well trained.

She slowly got out of her bed and approached the dog. It immediately turned towards her and barked while wagging its tail. Like a woman shot by cupid's arrow, Wei Yan felt her heartthrob by its irresistible cuteness. "What a cutie! Who brought you here?"

Yingjie smiled widely at this. Wei Yan was quite down after yesterday's event with Xie Na's pregnancy. He feels relieved that she at least started smiling today.

A few minutes later, a soft knock erupted from outside her room. Wei Yan and Yingjie looked at one another.

"Young Lady" Gu Man called out from outside. Wei Yan usually comes down at such time but she didn't do it today. He immediately became worried so he came to check if she was sick or not.

"Come in, Uncle" Wei Yan instructed with a smile on her face.

Once the knob was turned and Gu Man's face came into view, the dog broke away from Hou Wei Yan's hug and ran towards Gu Man.

Gu Man flinched in surprise because the dog had an obvious intention of pouncing on him. But he won't allow that, not today, and especially not in front of their young lady.

"Sit" he ordered which the dog obeyed without delay. This time, Wei Yan was the one surprised by this. So the dog is already professionally trained. "I see, Young Lady already met the dog"

"What's her name?" Wei Yan asked as she stood up and dusted some fur that got stuck in her clothes.

"You should be the one to give it a name, Young Lady" Gu Man smiled as he said this. "After all, it's the dog you asked for"

Wei Yan tilted her head in bewilderment. "The Dog I asked for?"

"When?" she added when she can't recall anything. She never asked her husband for a dog. In fact, she had never asked him anything whenever they talk.

"Didn't you tell Fang, you want a dog?" Gu Man said with bewilderment as well. Fang reported that Wei Yan wanted a dog.

No wait, he used a different phrase that time during his report. "If I remember correctly, you said the garden would be fun if someone ran around it"

"Do you not like it? Would you prefer a man to run around the garden? I can arrange for Laurens to do the job"

"Laurens?" Wei Yan asked. [ Laurens is a man right? He's human, right? ]

With this thought, Hou Wei Yan can't help but chuckle. [ Am I that sadistic in their eyes or their thinking is just weird? ]

"Why do you have the same thought as Fang, Uncle? I don't want a man to run around, I'm not a sadist"

"Did my husband arrange this?" she said after a few seconds of silence.

"Yes. The master arranged this for you" he honestly stated before crouching down and patting the dog's head. "I was told this one is the brightest among them, I didn't expect him to come and enter the room by herself"

Wei Yan raised her head with his words. Wait, are there more dogs than this one? "Among them?"

"Would you like to meet the other dogs?" Gu Man asked with a smile decorating his face. For their Madame, they wouldn't settle for less.

"There are more?" Yingjie inquired, his eyes sparkling before she sprinted downstairs. After a few seconds, his excited shout could be heard. "Big Sister!"

Hou Wei Yan shook her head before wearing her robe and striding downstairs, the white dog following her while wagging his tail. Upon arrival, she was greeted by three other dogs and each of them is unique from one other.

"Oh My God!" she exclaimed before joining Yingjie in patting and rubbing the dogs. Her heartwarming smile and laughter filled the living room and everyone who witnessed it can't help but melt along with her. "They are so cute!"

"I'm glad you like them, Young Lady" Gu Man said before motioning for some maids to prepare the table for Wei Yan and Yingjie.

"Can I name one?" Yingjie suddenly said which made Wei Yan chuckle.

[ Why name one when he can name them all? ]

"Why don't we name them together?" Wei Yan suggested after ruffling his hair. Cao Yingjie's hazelnut eyes twinkled while nodding his head.

"There's four of them" Yingjie stated while momentarily tilting his head to think of a suitable name. "Can we name them according to foods?

"You're thinking of food till now, Baozi?" Wei Yan mused with a chuckle. This kid really.

"The fluffy white malamute" Yingjie pointed towards the white fluff that was accompanying them earlier.

Hou Wei Yan glanced at it and smiled. The dog isn't a malamute. She's sure of it.

Rather than a Malamute, it's a Samoyed. The Samoyed tail is one of the breed's distinguishing features. Like the Alaskan Malamute, the tail is carried curled over the back; however, unlike the Malamute, the Samoyed tail is held actually touching the back.

"That's a Samoyed, Baozi and it's a female" Wei Yan cleared before patting the dog's head.

"All of them are female, Young Lady" Gu Man said to add information.

The dog barked as though understanding that her lineage is cleared. Her eyes are blue in color and almond in shape. Her ears are thick and covered with fur, triangular in shape, and erect.

As Wei Yan ruffled the dog's fur, she felt energized by its fluffiness. Samoyeds are known to have a dense, double-layer coat. The topcoat contains long, coarse, and straight guard hairs, which appear white but have a hint of silver coloring.

"Ohhh, a samoyed" Yingjie mused before grinning. "Let's name it Vanilla!"

"That's odd, Baozi" Wei Yan chuckled while the dog barked repeatedly as though happy for her name. "But she likes it"

Yingjie patted the dog's head before calling her name lovingly. "Vanilla!"

After a few seconds, the dog beside Vanilla barked as though asking to be named next. "The golden retriever looks like a caramel"

"Caramel it is then" Wei Yan stated before hugging the dog.

The next dog was quite small compared to Vanilla and Caramel. Hou Wei Yan snuck out her hand and opened her palm for a shake. The dog immediately placed her paw in Wei Yan's hands making her smile. Looks like everyone was trained.

"The beagle has three colors, like coffee. Let's name him Cafe!" Yingjie exclaimed when he saw their interaction.

Wei Yan nodded her head before turning to the smiling bulldog. Her fur was chocolate brown in color and her face relatively calming because of the shape of her mouth. She was always smiling in her eyes even though she was barking repeatedly and excitedly. "Then the bulldog will be Chocolat"

When Yingjie nodded his head in agreement, she turned to Gu Man to inquire about something that was bugging her since earlier. "Why did you get 4 though?"

"Well, we didn't know your exact preference. So we decided to get 2 big ones and 2 smaller ones" Gu Man answered sheepishly. Ji Li Zhao wanted to pamper Hou Wei Yan but since this was a surprise to her, he can't ask her what she wants.

He initially wanted to buy all the breeds but thankfully Gu Man managed to stop him and convinced him to buy four. They were bought after Wei Yan stated such a thing but Ji Li Zhao wanted them well trained for fear of them harming Hou Wei Yan. If it weren't for Xie Na's sudden pregnancy and Wei Yan feeling down, they would still be under training for two months.

That's how strict he is when it comes to Hou Wei Yan.

"That's too much, Uncle" Wei Yan said while chuckling at the thought of her husband picking the dogs for her.

"But thank you" she added before patting Chocolat. "I've always wanted a pet"

She had always wanted one and now her husband gave her more than what she wished for. Truly, her yearning for him is growing stronger the more he treats her like a princess.

"Why don't you play with them outside, Yingjie?" Wei Yan suggested before turning around, ready to head upstairs again.

Yingjie frowned when he saw her sudden change of mood. She looked quite melancholic today. "What about Big Sister?"

"I'm going to check out Xie Na first" she answered, her voice now strained and quite shaky.

She still feels awful even though she tried to hypnotize herself into calming down and accepting everything. But she still can't do it, not when she knew she was the start of it all.

"Ah, Lady Xie already left" Gu Man blurted out taking Wei Yan by surprise.

"Left?"

"Yes" he answered truthfully. "She left early with Fang"

"With Fang?"

Gu Man nodded his head, fully understanding her concern. "Fang offered to take her home since he woke up early"

[ Fang seldomly wakes up early though ] Gu Man thought. He kept this information a secret to not worry Hou Wei Yan anymore.

Even if Fang got heartbroken, he was sure he would do his job properly and not make unnecessary decisions that may harm him or his job. He believes Fang can put his feelings aside.

"I see" Wei Yan mumbled before slowly walking towards the garden.

Gu Man followed behind the two of them. Once they reached outside, Yingjie and the dogs began playing and running around enthusiastically.

Wei Yan can't help but smile at such a scene. Yingjie often acts too maturely that she's often troubled by it. So whenever he acts his age, she treasures such precious moments, for Yingjie is like a son to her as well.

"Shall I prepare your breakfast here, Young Lady?" Gu Man asked which Wei Yan immediately answered.

"Yes, please"

Gu Man then motioned some maids to transfer her breakfast in the garden. After a few seconds, she smiled at the echoing laughter and bark all around her. "The house seems livelier"

"It's all thanks to Madame's presence" Gu Man answered without delay. Before her arrival, this was nothing but a mansion built of concrete, but now that she's here, everything is different.

Hou Wei Yan chuckled at his bizarre answer. "Uncle, it's because of the dogs"

"They were brought here with the intent of making the Madame happy and making this house even livelier" he replied earnestly. "Honestly, Madame, thank you for accepting our master"

Wei Yan gave him a heartwarming smile before gazing at the beautiful crystal clear sky. "I'm thankful as well, that I was chosen to be his wife"

"I'm able to meet you and the others and experience such happiness despite being here in China"

Gu Man who was listening intently smiled as well. After a few seconds of silence, Wei Yan decided to open up one of her many concerns. "Hey, Uncle. Did you know?"

"I cursed China in the past" she confessed with melancholy.

She hated the idea of returning to China. She wanted to take her siblings to America so she doesn't have any more reason to return. Even though she knew that was quite impossible considering her father's order, she still hoped it would happen.

"Is it because of President Hou's new wife?" Gu Man inquired, slightly bothered by her confession.

"Yes, and many more" she honestly stated, her voice no longer calm. "Every bit of misfortune happened here. Returning here was hard because I was afraid bad luck would stick to me again"

First her father and mother's divorce, then the sudden arrival of a mistress, and then her kidnapping. It was a never-ending misfortune and she only escaped it when she went to America. As much as possible, she didn't want to return in fear of more tragedies.

[ But that's not the case anymore ]

[ Somehow, I'm no longer afraid even if more tragedies happen ]

[ Because I'm no longer alone...I have a reliable husband I can always lean on ]

"But instead of attracting bad luck, I attracted a stroke of very good luck" she added with a smile adorning her face.

"I'm glad you feel that way, Madame" Gu Man stated, but his face was still showing signs of conflict.

"If ever..." he started but he took back his words, afraid that he will hear something heart-shattering for his master and for those who are loyal to him.

"Hmm?"

Gu Man sighed when he saw Wei Yan's curious eyes. "If ever you don't like his identity, would you still stay?"

"His identity?" Wei Yan asked which he immediately replied with a nod.

His identity doesn't matter, what matters to her is his dedication to this marriage and he showed her enough to believe that this marriage can possibly reach forever.

"I accepted him as my husband because he's kind, gentle, and loving. Whoever he is, I already accepted him"

[ I hope that will be the case in the future ] Gu Man thought, truly hoping that the future they will have is not filled with thorns.

"Thank you for such compliments, Madame" he said sincerely, fully knowing that his master is most probably listening.

After a good few seconds, he clapped his hands and in came a maid carrying a huge bouquet of roses. She handed it to Gu Man before leaving with a smile. "Master greets you good morning"

Hou Wei Yan chuckled, unable to suppress her amusement. She accepted the flower, her face slightly flushed in embarrassment. "He flatters me way too much"

She slowly drew the roses to her nose and she could smell the scent of exquisite rosewater perfume.

"Thank you" she stated with a huge smile on her face.

But her smile slowly turned into concern when she saw the man entering the garden.

Gu Man traced her line of sight and he too can't help but worry at Fang. He looked like a lost puppy rather than a proud wolf.

"Good morning, Madame" he greeted with a bow.

"Fang" Wei Yan called out before biting her lower lips.

[ Should I ask him about Xie Na? ]

Although she doesn't want to, she's still worried about her best friend's well-being. "How's---"

Fang immediately cut her off when he noticed where her question would lead them. "You're going to be late for work"

Wei Yan frowned at this but she knew it was time to let go. She can't force him to answer something that may end up hurting him.

"Right" she then turned towards Yingjie who was still playing with the dogs. "Baozi, let's eat"

"Awww, already?" he grumbled while sitting up. He was lying with the four dogs earlier.

Wei Yan smiled at his childishness. "You'll see them later"

"Okay" he reluctantly answered before standing up and striding towards Wei Yan.

Gu Man sighed as they sat in their chair. Ji Li Zhao brought in the dogs earlier that they should be with the intent of lighting Hou Wei Yan's mood, but it seems they need something more because it's obviously not enough to light her spirit up.

What gift should they prepare next?