Chapter 18: Wu Jin
White flour porridge has a unique fragrance of flour, and the texture is soft and comfortable to drink. You will never get tired of drinking it. Adding frangipani does not taste fishy, ​​but instead has the fragrance of cooked eggs.

This kind of cooked frangipani is not greasy, and it is very smooth when mixed with porridge, so much so that I have drunk a big bowl of it without realizing it.

Xia Mingyue thought the egg porridge was very delicious and returned the bowl again.

Go back to your own yard to rest at night.

Xia Mingyue's sleep quality has always been good, and she usually sleeps through the night. But tonight, because she drank too much porridge, she had to wake up in the middle of the night.

It was the exact hour of Chou, the moon had already set, and the sky was full of bright stars, shining brightly.

Even without turning on the lights, you can see everything in the courtyard clearly.

After Xia Mingyue finished her work, she yawned and prepared to go back to the house.

Suddenly there was a clanging sound outside the courtyard gate.

The sound is slight, but audible.

After this sound, there was another one, which was even louder than the previous one, and then there was a sound like a sigh.

Outside the door...

anyone?

Xia Mingyue shuddered, and all her sleepiness disappeared. She looked up but didn't see anyone.

The low wall of the yard is only half a person's height, so it is impossible for an adult to hide there.

Unless you squat.

If someone squats down deliberately, he is most likely a bad person.

Is she the target?
I have been selling cakes on the street, and my business is good. I live alone at home...

It is not impossible to be watched.

Xia Mingyue's heart tightened. She half bent her body, tiptoed back to the house, and tightly grasped the kitchen knife on the kang.

Because I live alone, I always keep this kitchen knife with me in case of any emergency.

She tiptoed out of the door again. In order to avoid being seen by people outside, Xia Mingyue bent down, stuck to the wall, and moved to the door little by little.

After taking a deep breath, Xia Mingyue clenched the kitchen knife in her hand and slowly leaned her head to see the scene outside.

There was a dark shadow at the door.

And just when Xia Mingyue looked at the black shadow, the black shadow seemed to have sensed her presence and raised its head to look at her.

When their eyes met, Xia Mingyue was stunned.

The black shadow paused and then spoke, "Woof!"

Then he continued to squat on the ground, tilted his head to look at Xia Mingyue, and the tail behind him swept back and forth, making a slight "swish" sound.

Then he stuck his head into the swill bucket at the door of Xia Mingyue's house, sniffed it, and licked it with his tongue. When he found that he could not lick anything out, he continued to look at Xia Mingyue expectantly, squatting there and waiting.

Xia Mingyue, "..."

Obviously, the clanging sound just now was made by the large, black local dog in front of him trying to find food in the slop bucket.

The kitchen waste in the slop bucket was eaten up clean two days ago, probably because of this dog.

Because she ate at Lu's house next door at noon and in the evening, there was no kitchen waste at home, so the black dog couldn't find food, so he was waiting here?

Xia Mingyue pursed her lips and asked tentatively, "Are you here to find food?"

I don’t know if the black dog understood what Xia Mingyue said, but it retracted its tongue and barked at her twice.

Does this mean... yes?
"Then are you a stray dog ​​without an owner?" Xia Mingyue asked again.

"Wang Wang."

Looks very human.

Xia Mingyue plucked up her courage, opened the fence gate of the yard and walked out. "You... should have a good temper, right? You don't bite people casually, right?" The black dog looked at Xia Mingyue who was slowly approaching it, but did not show any excitement. Instead, it moved closer to Xia Mingyue, sniffed the smell, and squatted at her feet.

"Wang Wang."

Xia Mingyue stretched out her hand hesitantly.

The black dog put its head under Xia Mingyue's palm.

Xia Mingyue took the opportunity to rub it a few times.

The fur is smooth and the black color sparkles in the starlight. The dog is just too thin, so its face looks long and thin, and its forehead feels a little rough to the touch.

The black dog seemed to enjoy Xia Mingyue's touch very much. It made comfortable "humming" sounds and even rubbed its head against her legs twice.

Gentle and well-behaved!

That being the case...

"Then do you want to live here and look after the house?" Xia Mingyue said, "I can build a shack for you at the foot of the wall, and provide you with food and drink, clothing and food on weekdays... Well, how about living without worries?"

"Wang Wang Wang."

Excellent.

Xia Mingyue stood up and opened the gate wider. "Then come in. Stay by the wall for the night. I'll build a shed for you during the day."

"But let me make this clear first. Once you enter my house, you will be my dog ​​from now on. You must know your responsibilities and stay at home. Don't run around."

"Wang Wang."

The black dog responded and strode into the yard. Under Xia Mingyue's guidance, it came to the apricot tree by the wall and sat down obediently.

"Go to bed early." Xia Mingyue touched the black dog's big head with great satisfaction.

"Woof." The black dog responded. After seeing Xia Mingyue was going back to the house, he followed her and barked twice.

"What's wrong?" Xia Mingyue was a little confused.

"Wang Wang Wang."

The black dog barked and walked towards the kitchen.

But he didn't go in.

Xia Mingyue immediately understood, "Are you hungry?"

"Wang."

"I'll go find you something to eat." Xia Mingyue said as she walked into the kitchen.

First, he found a clay pot that was missing a piece and was about to be thrown away. He used a whetstone to smooth the edge of the pot and used it as a food bowl for the black dog, and then went on to look for food.

Xia Mingyue made sure to cook and eat the food immediately, and generally did not stockpile too much. She ate at Lu's house all day, so there was really nothing left at home. The only thing left was half a pancake from her breakfast in the morning, which she gave to the cat.

After thinking about it, Xia Mingyue cracked another egg into the earthenware jar.

If the first meal was better, he would definitely stay at home and take good care of the house for her!
Xia Mingyue was very thoughtful and placed the earthenware jar in front of the black dog. "Eat it. It's a little bit, but it will be dawn soon. I will give you some more food then."

"Woof woof." The black dog barked happily twice and wagged its tail at Xia Mingyue again and again. When Xia Mingyue put down the earthenware jar, the black dog began to eat voraciously.

Pancakes are delicious in themselves, and the whole egg is an extremely rare delicacy for the black dog. The black dog eats it with relish, making a "woooo" sound from time to time.

"Eat slowly." Xia Mingyue saw the black dog eating happily and squatted beside him, smiling. "Since you have entered the family, it is reasonable to give you a name."

As for naming, most of the time it is based on the dog's characteristics.

The black dog is black all over, but there is a small tuft of yellow hair at the tip of its tail, which is particularly noticeable against the black color.

Xia Mingyue immediately had an idea, "How about calling him Wu Jin?"

　Modern pet dogs are generally not allowed to eat human food directly, but for the native dogs in the countryside in the past, they ate whatever people ate, and their immunity was also very strong, so there was no need to worry about dogs not being able to eat seasonings or anything like that.
　　
　
(End of this chapter)