Chapter 46
eight treasures
The next day, Hao Jingshi got up early to draw flyers. When Lu Qin got up, she found a stack of drawn papers already on the table.
He always kept his promises to her, as he always had. Seeing how hard he was working, Lu Qin tried to help, but she only made things worse.
For her, drawing only works on her face; on paper... she's still slightly less skilled.
Most importantly, as Hao Jingshi painted, his mind would wander away from the painting, and he couldn't help but cuddle with her.
He would grab her legs and hug her, then press her against the table and kiss her. And so, the whole morning passed, and the two of them made zero progress. In fact, when Hao Jingshi was distracted, the ink from his pen bleeds through the paper, leaving it black and damaging several sheets.
Lu Qin made a few sarcastic remarks, saying that he was neglecting his duties.
Hao Jingshi immediately turned hostile, claiming that her presence was too distracting and unceremoniously kicked her out.
With a "bang," the door slammed shut. Lu Qin stood outside the door, both amused and exasperated, and knocked, but Hao Jingshi wouldn't open it no matter how hard she knocked.
She shouted, "Fine, you're so heartless, huh? Then I'm running away from home!"
After saying that, he turned around and took Ling'er to the street.
After Lu Qin and Ling'er had been walking for a while, Hao Jingshi noticed that there was no more movement outside, so he asked Xuan Lan to follow them.
Xuan Lan quickly climbed the tree and, gazing into the distance, saw Lu Qin and Ling'er strolling around nearby. He then kept an eye on them from the tree.
Xuan Lan knew that Lu Qin wouldn't really run away from home, so he calmly squatted on a tree branch to practice his light-footed skills. Sure enough, after a while, the two of them returned, with Lu Qin carrying a fluffy little dog in her arms.
Xuan Lan immediately jumped down from the tree and reported to Hao Jingshi, "Young Master, the Young Madam has returned with the Young Master."
Hao Jingshi was confused and kicked him, saying, "Don't cause trouble for me."
Xuan Lan cried out his innocence, just then Lu Qin came running back, skipping and jumping into the house, saying happily, "Husband, I've run away from home and come back, and I've brought you a baby!"
baby?
Hao Jingshi was taken aback, then realized that he had misunderstood Xuan Lan. He looked up and stared at the tiny puppy.
The quiet puppy suddenly whimpered a few times at him, its ears twitching, as if trying to awaken his fatherly love.
Lu Qin gestured for Hao Jingshi to touch it, and asked expectantly, "Let's give the child a name?"
Hao Jingshi touched the child a couple of times and casually said, "This child... looks like an egg, let's call him Hao Egg."
"..."
His words silenced everyone. The puppy whimpered, clearly unhappy with its father's strong grip, and huddled even closer to Lu Qin.
...
Lu Qin named the puppy Babao, which has a simple meaning: several treasures combined into one, even more precious than a treasure. It sounds much better than Hao Dan.
Babao was still a puppy with smooth brown fur. When it curled up, it looked like a ball of fur, and when it lay in your hand, it looked like a soft lump of mud.
It was completely unfamiliar with its environment, trembled when it saw people, and refused to sleep at night, just staring wide-eyed, extremely vigilant.
After Lu Qin's persistent reassurance, Ba Bao finally became close to her and was willing to eat and sleep, but she was still very afraid of Hao Jingshi.
Lu Qin was worried about it, so she took it with her and brought it with her when she was running the clothing shop. As time went by, Babao grew up and became less afraid of people. It also became more human-like and could even fetch the account book for Lu Qin.
After discovering that Babao was clever, Luqin was overjoyed and began to guide it to do small tasks within its capabilities, which it did very well, no less than the servants.
Soon after, the signboard for Little Deer Clothing Shop was hung up. Lu Qin asked Xuan Lan to take people to distribute flyers on the street. When Ba Bao saw it, it kept pawing at Xuan Lan's trouser leg, making whimpering noises.
Xuan Lan saw that Babao was holding onto her trouser leg and wouldn't let go, so she gave it a few flyers. Unexpectedly, it actually carried them away in its mouth. When it met someone, it would raise its head and wag its tail, as if it were showing them the flyers.
Passersby saw a dog running around with a flyer in its mouth and found it amusing, so they stood aside to watch. Others who saw it also came over to watch.
What is this puppy doing?
Whose puppy is this?
"It's interesting that even puppies can do business."
One person watching gradually turned into a group of onlookers. Seeing Babao's small body weaving through the pedestrians, Xuanlan was a little worried that it would be stepped on, so she quickly ran over to pick it up.
Unexpectedly, Babao was very clever and turned around to lead the group of people to the deer clothing shop, leaving Xuanlan standing there dumbfounded.
Xuan Lan followed and arrived at the entrance of the clothing shop, where she saw Babao starting to spin around and jump around. When the passersby saw the sign for Little Deer Clothing Shop, they immediately realized what it was and burst into laughter.
Out of curiosity, people went inside to take a look, and soon the clothing shop was bustling with people.
Hearing the commotion, Lu Qin, without being surprised, quickly seized the opportunity to introduce the clothing store's unique styles and the opening promotions.
With its unique decor, fresh styles, enthusiastic owner, and affordable prices, Little Deer Clothing Shop made a good impression on customers as soon as it opened.
And so, the clothing shop became known to everyone in an incredible way. Lu Qin had originally made many other plans, but now all her efforts were saved, and not a single bit of her hard work was wasted.
The little dog handing out flyers has become a beautiful sight. People jokingly call it "Little Shopkeeper." After buying clothes, they always tease it. Even if they don't buy clothes, they still have to pass by to tease it and feed it some food.
Seeing how popular the Eight Treasures were, Lu Qin immediately had a new idea: to have Hao Jingshi draw the Eight Treasures in simple line drawings and design them on clothing.
As expected, the clothes with the "Eight Treasures" pattern caused a sensation. People had only ever seen clothes embroidered with dragon and phoenix patterns, but had never seen such cute line drawings. They found it novel and bought them to wear.
Suddenly, the streets and alleys were filled with "Baobao" (a brand of clothing), and the sales of clothing shops reached new heights. Looking at the figures in the ledger, Lu Qin couldn't help but pick up Baobao and spin it around.
"Babao, you are a great contributor to the clothing shop and a lucky charm for your mother!"
Babao seemed to understand, barking happily twice, and even wagged its tail at its hot-tempered father who walked in, which was unprecedented for it.
"My husband!"
Lu Qin went up to them and, taking advantage of Ba Bao's happiness, quickly got close enough for Hao Jingshi to hug her.
"Look, it recognizes you! Hug it!"
As she spoke, she lifted Babao forward a little. Babao seemed to understand what she meant, and obediently stayed still, its little eyes darting around as it looked at its hot-tempered father.
Dad paused for a moment and said, "I don't know how to hold him."
Even so, I awkwardly took it.
After being switched, Babao's little legs twitched, and Hao Jingshi was momentarily at a loss. He instinctively lifted it by the neck and supported its bottom with his other hand.
Babao whimpered sadly, and Luqin was amused by this and laughed heartily, quickly taking Babao back from Hao Jingshi.
"Baobao, don't be angry. Your father is just like that, clumsy and indecisive." She gently stroked its little head. "Once Mom gives him a good lesson, he'll understand."
Babao, with its head flat, was enjoying itself while glancing at Hao Jingshi. It barked once, as if it no longer approved of its father.
...
When she had free time, Lu Qin started teaching Hao Jingshi how to hold the baby. After eight nights of practice, the baby finally accepted his father and was able to sleep peacefully in Hao Jingshi's arms.
The man and the dog grew to love each other. After getting used to the presence of this "child," Hao Jingshi even designed a dog outfit for Babao. Wearing the beautiful clothes and carrying a flyer, Babao became even more lovable than usual.
Passersby kept coming to feed it, and some kind people even bought a small food bowl for Babao and placed it in the corner at the entrance of the clothing store.
Babao gradually realized that the food bowl belonged to it, so every mealtime it would appear in front of Luqin with the food bowl in its mouth, its eyes fixed on her and Hao Jingshi's lunchbox.
Babao's adorable antics brought a lot of joy to the clothing shop and Xuande Street. Whenever people encountered Babao, they would greet it.
Aside from passersby, other merchants also recognized Babao. Upon seeing this little guy, butchers would throw him a piece of meat, and restaurant staff would take leftovers, treating it as a beloved pet.
Thanks to Babao, Luqin also made many friends. In her spare time, she traveled around to express her gratitude, promote cooperation, and find joy in her busy schedule.
But the good times didn't last long.
That day, Lu Qin returned with the custom-made clothes and found Ba Bao rolling on the ground, whimpering incessantly, as if suffering from severe abdominal pain.
She hurriedly threw the clothes to Ling'er, picked up Babao and went to find Hao Jingshi. After Hao Jingshi looked at her, he found that she seemed to have eaten something unclean and had been poisoned.
He prepared some antidote and fed it to Babao, who drooped its head and licked it weakly.
"I only know how to treat people, not dogs." Hao Jingshi studied for a long time and pulled out several medical books, but he felt powerless and could only say, "If there is no improvement, go and see a horse doctor."
Looking at Babao's listless appearance, Luqin felt extremely sorry for it and murmured, "Why would anyone pick a fight with a little dog?"
Hao Jingshi closed the book, patted her shoulder, and comforted her, saying, "That's not necessarily true. Babao is likable and can attract customers for us. Someone must be jealous."
These words made Lu Qin realize her mistake and feel even more guilty.
Holding the sleeping baby Babao with its eyes half-closed, she whispered, "Husband, it's all my fault. I was too careless and too complacent, which gave the bad guys an opportunity."
"It's my fault, don't blame yourself." Seeing her dejected, Hao Jingshi pulled her and the dog into his arms. "Too many people have fed Babao, we really can't do anything about it. Don't let it run around anymore, lest it eat something bad again."
Lu Qin closed her eyes, leaned against his chest, and nodded sadly.
From that day on, Babao became sickly. Luqin didn't want to bother it, so she left it in the mansion and had Ling'er take care of it personally.
Every time they returned home, Ling'er would tell Lu Qin that Babao had a poor appetite and couldn't eat anything. Lu Qin was very anxious and took him to see a veterinarian whenever she had a spare moment.
She looked at the horse doctor with hope, hoping he could save Babao, but the horse doctor told her that Babao had accidentally ingested arsenic and was nearing the end of his life; it was already a miracle that he had survived until today.
Lu Qin felt as if she had been doused with a bucket of cold water. When she returned to her residence, she couldn't help but burst into tears. She didn't know how long she cried, but she felt a cool and limp sensation all over her body.
Seeing that she didn't say anything and just sat on the ground sobbing while holding Babao as soon as she came back, Hao Jingshi was anxious.
Since getting married, Lu Qin has only cried twice: once when Lu Hua caused her trouble, and the other time when she learned the truth about her mother's death.
She's not usually one to cry, so the reason she's crying so much today is most likely because Babao isn't doing well.
Thinking of the lively and energetic Babao in the past, Hao Jingshi felt a lump in his throat. He squatted down to wipe away Lu Qin's tears and said carefully, "If you're tired, lean on me."
Upon hearing Hao Jingshi's voice, Lu Qin couldn't hold back any longer and buried her face in his arms.
She muttered through a thick nasal voice, "Which bastard did it? Doesn't he have any conscience? He wouldn't even spare a puppy, and Babao is still so small..."
"It'll be alright." Hao Jingshi hugged her tightly. "Madam, let's rest first. Babao needs to rest too. Maybe it will be fine by tomorrow morning."
Lu Qin shook her head, stubbornly holding onto Babao without moving. Hao Jingshi couldn't persuade her otherwise, so he stayed with her. Before long, she cried herself to sleep in his arms.
Hao Jingshi tentatively took Babao from Lu Qin's arms, only to find that Babao's body was already stiff.
His heart skipped a beat. After standing there for a long time, he put the eight treasures aside and gently carried the deer antler back to the bed.
The night grew quiet.
After hesitating for a moment, Hao Jingshi decided to bury the treasure. He asked Xuan Lan to get a shovel and dig a hole in the ground in the front yard.
After burying the eight treasures, he slowly got up. As he looked up, he suddenly caught sight of two purses tied to the tree in front of him.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com