Early in the morning, Gao Xuan put a lead and muzzle on the German Shepherd before taking it out with her.
As they walked, she earnestly lectured the dog.
“When we get to the hospital, don’t cause any trouble, understand? It wasn’t easy for me to persuade the owner to let me bring you along, so don’t make things difficult for her.”
The German Shepherd walked quietly beside her, neither too quickly nor too slowly. It looked exceptionally well behaved.
Gao Xuan was still somewhat uneasy. She did not know whether bringing the dog to work had been the right decision.
However, if she left it behind, the dog would have to stay home alone and go hungry at lunchtime.
In truth, Gao Xuan lived alone and worked during the day, so she was not suited to keeping a dog.
Unfortunately, she had no other choice.
The German Shepherd’s previous owner had died from an illness. The owner’s relatives had not wanted to keep it, so when they moved away, they deliberately abandoned the dog at the old house.
Had Gao Xuan not brought it home, there was no telling when something terrible might have happened to it.
Strictly speaking, the world was not particularly peaceful these days, and there were many bad people outside.
Some would abduct dogs and sell them to slaughterhouses. Others would pretend to be kind and feed strays while secretly lacing the food with poison.
This German Shepherd was a retired police dog that had once served the police force.
Gao Xuan truly could not bear to watch it wander pitifully outside without even a full meal to eat.
“I know things have been a little difficult lately, but bear with it for a few more days. I’ll do my best to find you a good home.”
“You served in the police force, after all. There should be plenty of people willing to adopt you.”
As she spoke, Jinjiang Pet Hospital appeared ahead of them.
Gao Xuan unlocked the door, removed the dog’s muzzle, and secured its lead around a pillar.
Perhaps they had already reached an agreement beforehand, because the German Shepherd obediently curled up on the floor without making any noise or causing trouble.
Gao Xuan rolled up her sleeves and fed the cats and dogs in their cages one by one. Afterwards, she began cleaning the hospital.
Jinjiang Pet Hospital had only been open for a little over a year and was not particularly large.
There were only two employees in the entire shop: Gao Xuan and the female owner.
When the hospital first opened, the owner had agonised over its name. Nothing she came up with sounded impressive enough.
After thinking so hard that she nearly went bald, she simply named the hospital after the river near her home.
That was how the name was finally decided.
Gao Xuan knew the story so clearly because the owner had been both her university classmate and roommate.
Annie was a wealthy young woman from a well-off family.
After graduating, she had not wanted to find a conventional job. Instead, she hoped to start a business doing something she enjoyed, and her family was willing to provide the financial support.
Gao Xuan, meanwhile, had been the top student in their class. She possessed extensive theoretical knowledge and had spent several months interning at a proper animal hospital during her final year.
When Annie decided to start her business, she had solemnly asked her roommate whether she would be willing to come and help.
After considering the salary, working hours, workplace atmosphere, commuting distance, and various other factors, Gao Xuan agreed.
Now that the hospital had been open for more than a year, business was steadily improving, and everything was moving in a positive direction.
Privately, the two of them often felt immensely relieved.
Thank goodness they had not managed to run the shop into bankruptcy!
In the blink of an eye, the clock reached nine.
Annie stepped through the door precisely on time, her voice bright and cheerful.
“Is this the dog you brought home? It’s so cute! Since this is our first meeting, I’ll give it a bag of dog food as a present.”
Gao Xuan refused to accept it.
“Letting me bring it here is already more than enough. You don’t need to give it anything. The shop only sells premium dog food, so keep it to sell.”
Annie deliberately adopted the manner of a nouveau riche.
“So you’re allowed to kindly take in an abandoned police dog, but I’m not allowed to donate a bag of food to a hero?”
“The shop makes quite a bit of money every year. We’re not going to miss the cost of one bag of dog food.”
After hearing that, Gao Xuan could no longer refuse.
She accepted the bag, both amused and helpless, and teased, “On behalf of our hero, I thank you, oh mighty tycoon.”
“Woo…”
As though it knew the two women were discussing it, the German Shepherd tilted its head and let out a series of soft whines.
“You’re getting something delicious to eat.” Gao Xuan rubbed the fur around its neck.
“What’s its name?” Annie craned her neck and examined the dog curiously.
“I don’t know.” Gao Xuan continued brushing its fur.
“Give it a new name,” Annie urged.
Gao Xuan refused.
“I’ll send it away once I find it a good home in a few days. If I give it a name, won’t that make saying goodbye even more painful?”
“Then keep it yourself.”
Annie thought that if she were not slightly afraid of large dogs, she would have adopted it herself immediately.
It was a retired police dog. After working so hard for so many years, it deserved to enjoy its old age.
“I’m not suited to raising a dog.” Gao Xuan smiled helplessly. “Taking it in temporarily was unavoidable, but I still need to find it a proper home eventually.”
Hearing this, Annie stopped trying to persuade her and turned her attention to work.
A pet hospital handled a wide variety of services, ranging from treating illnesses, performing surgery, and administering vaccines to laboratory testing and deworming.
They did practically everything.
The owner also kept up with current trends by adding pet bathing, grooming, pet-supply sales, boarding, and several other services.
Because all the employees were women, worked carefully and conscientiously, and charged reasonable prices, they had accumulated quite a few returning customers.
However, having an entirely female staff also came with certain disadvantages.
For example, bathing large dogs.
Gao Xuan rolled up her sleeves and used every ounce of her strength to force an adult husky back into the bathtub.
With a dark expression, she ordered, “Behave! Stop moving around!”
The husky howled and struggled desperately, as though the two villains beside it were not trying to give it a bath but planning to cook it in a stew.
Annie held the dog down with one hand while rinsing it with the showerhead in the other. She felt utterly exhausted, both physically and mentally.
She began seriously considering whether she should change the hospital’s services.
For example, perhaps they should only bathe small and medium-sized dogs in the future?
The husky fought with all its strength, attempting to break through their encirclement.
At the same time, it howled incessantly, trying to send a message to its owner outside.
*Someone is trying to murder this dog! Hurry in and save me!*
After struggling for what felt like an eternity, Gao Xuan felt as though she were about to collapse.
With an exceptionally tragic expression, she accused, “My clothes are completely soaked, and the dog still isn’t wet!”
Annie had already begun seriously considering the possibility of perishing together with the husky.
Just then, the German Shepherd outside suddenly barked ferociously, as though it might charge inside and start a fight at any moment.
“Awoo…”
The husky immediately tucked its tail between its legs and became obedient.
Overjoyed, Annie hurriedly urged, “Quick, quick, quick! Scrub it clean while we still can!”
Gao Xuan reacted swiftly and immediately squeezed out some pet shampoo.
Throughout the rest of the bath, the husky remained quiet and obedient, terrified that it would be beaten if it refused to cooperate.
Once the husky had been washed, dried, and happily led away by its owner, Annie collapsed into a chair.
“Don’t give the German Shepherd away,” she murmured. “Let’s keep it at the shop. I think we desperately need it.”
She never wanted to face another lively, energetic husky again.
“Keep it here…” Gao Xuan stroked the dog’s fur, looking slightly conflicted.
“How about we consider it an employee?” Annie grew increasingly enthusiastic as she spoke. “We’ll cover all its meals and snacks, while you take care of it.”
“We can treat it as rehiring a retired employee.”
Gao Xuan truly did not feel comfortable handing the dog over to a stranger.
After considering it for a long time, she finally agreed.
“Then we’ll keep it.”
“Let’s give it a name too. How about Cola?” Annie generously offered a suggestion.
The corner of Gao Xuan’s mouth twitched.
Where had this woman found the confidence to name a dog when she had not even been capable of naming her own hospital?
Curious, Gao Xuan asked, “Why that name?”
Annie spoke in a world-weary tone.
“Because right now, I desperately want an ice-cold Coke to calm my nerves.”
Gao Xuan was speechless.
Was that not far too casual?
Gao Xuan racked her brain, trying hard to think of a more imposing name.
However, Annie had already run over to tease the dog.
With a serious expression, she told it, “Cola is such a good dog. I’ll buy you a chicken drumstick at lunchtime.”
The German Shepherd sprang to its feet and barked repeatedly, clearly accepting Cola as its new name.
Gao Xuan covered her forehead and sighed tragically.
What kind of police dog sold itself for a single chicken drumstick?
It had no principles whatsoever!
After lunch, a VIP customer arrived at the hospital with her pet cat.
Deworming, claw trimming, fur cutting, styling…
By the time they finished everything, it was already late afternoon.
Annie flipped through the bill and repeatedly sighed.
“That cat is practically living the life of a wealthy noblewoman! What it spent in a single afternoon is almost half an ordinary person’s monthly salary.”
“It was born fortunate and ended up with a good family,” Gao Xuan said.
After thinking about it, Annie realised she was right.
Being born into the right circumstances really was a skill.
However, since Annie herself was one of those fortunate people, it would be inappropriate for her to say too much. Otherwise, others might easily think she was showing off.
She was just about to change the subject when a female university student hurriedly pushed open the door.
The moment she entered, she shouted, “Is there a doctor here? Someone, please come quickly!”
“What happened?” Gao Xuan immediately approached her.
The student anxiously explained, “A blue-grey cat was hit by a car! Please take a look at it!”
It was a blue-grey kitten only three or four months old.
At that moment, its body was curled into a ball, its paws slightly bent and stained with traces of blood. It looked exceptionally pitiful.
Gao Xuan hurriedly began examining it.
The student spoke indignantly, anger visible on her face.
“This cat belonged to a child in my residential community.”
“They said blue-grey cats had good temperaments, were especially gentle, and loved being close to people. The child kicked up a huge fuss and insisted on getting one.”
“But only a few days after bringing it home, they claimed the cat’s personality wasn’t what they had imagined. They didn’t want it anymore, so they casually threw it outside. It’s outrageous!”
“The kitten is so young that it doesn’t know how to survive outside. It didn’t even know to move out of the way when a car came, so it was struck.”
“The driver was irresponsible too. They drove away immediately after hitting it. I couldn’t stop them at all.”
Annie grew furious as she listened.
It was true that most blue-grey cats were affectionate towards people, but that description generally applied to adults.
The cat before them was still a baby.
If a kitten was not patiently taught and guided while young, it was entirely possible for its personality to develop differently.
They wanted a gentle, sensible, and considerate cat but did not want to teach it anything.
In that case, why had they not adopted an adult cat?
Why buy a kitten?
The more Annie thought about it, the angrier she became. She wished she could drag the owner over and give them a beating.
However, after working in the industry for so long, she understood that to certain people, throwing away an unwanted cat was as simple as throwing away an unwanted piece of clothing.
After carefully completing the examination, Gao Xuan breathed a sigh of relief.
“It has a localised fracture, but it isn’t anything too serious. Once the bone is set, it should recover after several weeks of rest.”
Only then did the university student relax.
“Please come over here and settle the bill,” Annie reminded her.
When the student received the bill and saw the final total at the bottom, her eyes suddenly widened.
She remained speechless for a long time.
Annie immediately understood and took the initiative to explain.
“I know you rescued the animal out of kindness, so the medication and equipment have only been charged at cost price. We haven’t included the doctor’s labour fee either.”
*But it’s still so expensive!*
Only then did the university student realise that rescuing a cat required more than a kind heart.
It also required a certain amount of financial strength.
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