Chapter 19 Mad Dog Hotel
"The hospital and the individual each bear half of the cost, so the training fee for these two days and one night is 600."
When Lu Qi arrived at the hospital, he saw Huang Zhenyi and Tian Miaoying hunched over a table in the break room, planning something.
Huang Zhenyi did the math on paper, "It's a bit expensive."
"We're staying at a five-star hotel with a fantastic sea view, and there's even an indoor swimming pool," Tian Miaoying said expectantly. "I checked their website, and the cheapest standard room is 580 yuan a night. Considering meals, lecturer fees, and meeting room fees, of course it's worth the price."
"But they won't pick you up or drop you off. It's such a remote place, there's no direct bus."
“We’ll take the subway first, then take a taxi after we get off. You, me, and Sister Lu definitely have to go. If we can get one more person, it’ll only cost 25 yuan per person, which is the price of a cup of milk tea.”
Huang Zhenyi muttered, "Your milk tea is way too expensive."
"You don't want to go?" Tian Miaoying straightened up, no longer lying down with him.
“I’ll go, of course I’ll go. I’ve never even met Professor Meng,” Huang Zhenyi said. “I wonder if Brother Lü will go. If he does, we can just hitch a ride with him.”
Just as Tian Miaoying was about to reply, she heard footsteps behind her.
She turned around, her ponytail swinging in a half-circle, "Sister Lu, you're here."
"Good morning." Lu Qi put down her bag. "Are you all going to training?"
"Yes, we're both test takers."
Lu Qi nodded, adding before leaving, "Xiao Lu said he's going too."
"Okay." Tian Miaoying waved to her.
After she turned around, Huang Zhenyi threw down his pen, his heart filled with despair. "It's over."
"What's done?"
"I can't hitch a ride with Brother Lü anymore."
Tian Miaoying raised an eyebrow. "What's wrong?"
"What else?" Huang Zhenyi lowered his voice, "In the whole hospital, everyone knows that Xiao Lu likes Sister Lu."
Tian Miaoying was startled. Although she had witnessed the two suspicious scenes, she had absolutely not told anyone. It wasn't her who leaked it!
She coughed lightly, trying to find out the source of the gossip for Lu Qi: "I have no idea! Who started spreading it outside?"
"Does this need to be spread?" Huang Zhenyi was about to discuss this in detail when Lulu passed by outside the door.
He walked to the door and beckoned furtively, "Come here, take a look."
Tian Miaoying went over, puzzled. "What?"
Huang Zhenyi straightened his clothes, leaned half his body out, and called to Lulu who was walking over, "Hey, Lulu!"
Lulu stopped and turned to look at him.
Huang Zhenyi flashed a bright and enthusiastic smile, "Good morning!"
The young man gave a faint "hmm," then looked away and walked forward.
Huang Zhenyi winked at Tian Miaoying, then called out to the clinic across the way, "Sister Lu!"
The two saw Lulu stop walking, her ears perking up like a dog hearing keywords like "go out to play" or "eat".
The door to the examination room across the hall opened, and Lu Qi pulled it open. "What's wrong?"
Huang Zhenyi chuckled sheepishly: "Nothing, just wanted to say good morning."
Lu Qi responded blankly, then smiled and said, "Okay, good morning."
As she was about to close the door, she saw Lulu at the end of the corridor and nodded to her, "Good morning, Lulu."
A gentle breeze swept past Huang Zhenyi and Tian Miaoying. The young man quickly turned back, stood in front of Lu Qi, blocking Huang Zhenyi and Tian Miaoying from the opposite door, and gazed intently at her.
"Good morning," he smiled. "It's a wonderful day to see you."
Huang Zhenyi gestured towards Tian Miaoying with his lip, and Tian Miaoying covered her aching teeth and hissed in pain.
I can't stand it.
Tian Miaoying didn't even get to exchange more than two words with Lu Qi all day.
Since Lulu came along, she has had fewer opportunities to assist Lu Qi. In the last two days, it's even more outrageous that she, Lu Qi's assistant, hasn't seen Lu Qi even once.
Tian Miaoying was idly scrolling through her phone at the front desk, counting down the days until she could leave work.
When the countdown reached ten minutes, the door was pushed open.
A middle-aged man with a beer belly walked in carrying a suitcase, scrutinizing the hospital environment with a critical eye.
Tian Miaoying glanced at his watch and shoes, inwardly exclaimed "Oh!", and greeted him with a smile, "Hello, how can I help you?"
The man placed the crate aside. "I recently moved to this area and heard that your canines are quite famous."
Tian Miaoying explained, "Yes, we have several doctors who are very skilled in canine diseases."
"That's good." The man looked at the crate. "My dog is due to give birth, take a look."
"Okay." Tian Miaoying helped the man register and then notified Lu Qi via communicator, "Dr. Lu, a dog that is close to its due date is here for a checkup."
She gestured to the man, indicating the location: "The doctor is inside. You can just go in."
Tian Miaoying's registered customer information was synchronized with Lu Qi. She had just opened the system, and before it had even loaded, the door was pushed open.
The man who came in looked her up and down, and said, "So young?"
Lu Qi often hears this kind of questioning.
Young doctors are always a cause for concern, so she always smiled and said to others, "I'm still young, I'm almost thirty."
The man raised an eyebrow, re-evaluating Lu Qi.
The gaze felt like oil rubbing against her skin, sticky and uncomfortable.
Lu Qi turned her head and was enveloped by a familiar scent. Lulu stepped forward, took the airline case from the man's hand, placed it on the examination table, and used her body to separate Lu Qi and the man.
The young woman's appearance and demeanor were so striking that she was hard to ignore even when she was wearing an assistant's uniform, and the men's attention was drawn to Lulu.
Lu Qi secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
"Is the dog about to give birth?"
She gestured for Lulu to lay out a diaper pad on the table, put on a smile like she would with a small animal, and reached into the cage, "A little shy? Let your big sister take a look."
When she reached out to hug the dog, she already sensed something was wrong.
Unlike cats, a healthy dog will not stay in its carrier and refuse to come out.
Lu Qi's expression changed as he took the dog out of its cage.
She thought it was a long-haired poodle, but under the light, the dog's soft curly fur, brown and white color, droopy ears larger than its head, and cat-like appearance made Lu Qi's blood freeze.
She looked at the man, "King Charlie?"
"Yes. Four years old."
Lulu glanced at the female dog with a round belly.
This is a dog that embodies elegance and beauty in the eyes of humans, and it is also the breed of his mother.
Lu Qi lowered his eyelids and raised his paw to look.
Unlike the rough paw pads of ordinary dogs, this Cavalier King Charles Spaniel has smooth and delicate paw pads.
"Playing in a competition?" she asked while checking.
The man said with a hint of pride, "This is the third place in this year's regional competition. It cost a lot of money to get it."
Lu Qi took the stethoscope and listened to the puppy's heart, then quickly frowned.
"How much did you pay?"
"How can I say?" "It should be lower than the market price."
The man asked in surprise, "How did you know?"
Lu Qi removed his stethoscope and massaged the Cavalier King Charles Spaniel's head with both thumbs.
"Ouch!" A sharp cry of pain pierced the clinic. The puppy jerked back, but Lu Qi hugged it and gently coaxed it, "Oh, okay, okay, baby, it doesn't hurt anymore."
She gently coaxed him twice, then looked up at the man, "Did you know its condition when you bought it?"
The man, with his hands in his pockets, said, "Yes, its owner told me it has a genetic disease."
Do you know what genetic disease it is?
"It's called spinal cord, anyway, they say it causes headaches."
“Symplocytosis.” Lu Qi released the puppy. It hesitantly sniffed its surroundings and tentatively walked on the examination table.
After taking two steps, its body tilted to the left and its head tilted to the back, like a spinning top about to fall over.
“King Charles Spaniels with syringomyelia typically develop the condition around the age of 5. The one you bought is 4 years old, and preliminary examinations show that it also has symptoms of syringomyelia,” Lu Qi said. “In this situation, it is unlikely that its puppies will be healthy.”
Her tone was a bit sharp, and the man frowned. "You don't need to say anything. I knew all of this before I bought it. Now I just want to know how the puppies inside look and when is the earliest I can have a C-section."
Lu Qi suppressed his turbulent emotions and tried his best to calm himself down.
"I just checked, and it's about time." She sat down at the computer, focusing her gaze on the monitor and not letting it wander.
"You're planning to have a C-section, right?"
"Yes, I'm worried about complications during natural childbirth, so I feel more at ease with a C-section."
“It’s not recommended to breed dogs that carry genetic diseases like this,” Lu Qi said, registering the file. “It’s best to have them spayed or neutered at the same time as the cesarean section. It’s easier for them, and it’s easier for you too.”
The man did not speak.
She turned her head and glanced at him.
“Why not spay or neuter it?” he said. “Am I bored? Why would I spend so much money to buy a sick dog and give it medicine, just so it can have puppies?”
Lu Qi pursed her lips, paused for a moment, and nodded. "Then I think I understand."
She shut down the system, stood up, and said to the man, "Excuse me, please wait a moment. I'll go and see if another doctor can take the job."
Seeing that she was about to leave, the man stepped aside and blocked the door.
"What do you mean?" he asked, leaning to the side. "What, you can't do a dissection?"
Up close, Lu Qi smelled a mixture of dog odor and alcohol on the man's body.
Her breathing quickened slightly, and her tone became serious: "According to regulations, pet breeders must ensure that their pets do not have genetic problems before they can engage in crossbreeding. If a veterinarian discovers that an animal has a genetic problem that may be passed on to its offspring, they can refuse to sign the consent form."
"I can't deliver your dog's babies."
"You can't even deliver a baby, what kind of lousy doctor are you?"
Lu Qi said coldly, "Please show some respect."
"I respect you, but have you fucking respected me?" The man pointed at her. "Your attitude was terrible. You acted like you'd been shot the moment you walked in. Did I not pay or what?"
"Let me tell you, this dog is more expensive than you. If you don't get it cesarean now, and it gives birth or something happens on the way to another hospital, can you fucking afford to pay for it?!"
He grabbed a chair and barred it against the doorway. "You drove twenty kilometers to get here, and now you're telling me I can't answer and you want me to drive twenty kilometers back? Are you kidding me?"
Fine white saliva sprayed onto Lu Qi's face. The man's mouth opened and closed, and an even stronger stench of alcohol rose from his throat.
Rough curses, the tilted head of the King Charles Spaniel, and the stench of alcohol surrounded Lu Qi. Her body trembled uncontrollably, and her thoughts were suddenly pulled back to that winter night eight years ago.
She took deep breaths, trying to stay calm and not get caught up in the emotions she was feeling.
"I'm talking to you, are you mute?" Lu Qi's silence only fueled the man's anger. He took out his phone and turned on the camera. "With that long face, do you think I don't know what you're thinking?"
"You're just worried that if you perform surgery on a sick dog and something goes wrong, you'll be held responsible. What regulations are you talking about? I've been breeding for eight years, how come other doctors can do it, but you're so high and mighty that you can't?"
The faint sound of police sirens drifted into my ears.
Lu Qi was breathing heavily, a faint, sweet, metallic taste rising to his nose and mouth, his breath carrying the lingering scent of blood.
No, we can't go on... Let's go, let's go...
We must leave here immediately, we must leave, we must get out...
She walked towards the door in a panic.
"Where are you going? Come here, face the camera—" The man blocked Lu Qi's way and pressed his phone against her face. "Come here and say what you just said again. I guarantee I'll let the whole internet know that your hospital is engaging in false advertising and deceiving customers. You can't even perform a C-section. What kind of hospital are you!"
She wanted to leave, to go to the hospital… She couldn't stay here!
She needs to go to the hospital! To the hospital!
Lu Qi anxiously searched for a way out. Seeing her flustered expression and avoidance of the camera, the man became even more arrogant, "Say something! Weren't you so talkative just now? Say a few words to the camera, you angel in white."
Hospital, let's go to the hospital!
Snap!
Lu Qi suddenly flung his hand away.
The phone fell to the ground, slid half a meter, and the screen cracked in two places.
The man was stunned for a moment, then flew into a rage, grabbing Lu Qi's arm and yelling, "What kind of doctor are you! You can't even argue with me, so you throw my phone?"
The pungent smell of alcohol assaulted Lu Qi's nostrils, causing his pupils to shrink and his body to struggle before his mind could process it.
Her arm, which the man was holding, burned with pain. Her consciousness was hazy and blurred. She frantically tried to pry it away, desperate to escape.
"What are you hiding for! I'll teach you..." The man's tone was increasingly thick with the smell of smoke and alcohol, and Lu Qi could no longer suppress her scream.
The moment she cried out, her body suddenly felt light.
The hand that had been restraining her disappeared, replaced by a man's heavy breathing: "What...what are you doing..."
Lu Qi looked up blankly.
The young man stood in front of her. She couldn't see his expression, but she could see that he was gripping the middle-aged man's neck and lifting him up with one arm.
In just a moment, the man's round face turned red, and his legs kicked wildly in the air, trying to curse, but his throat was tightly gripped.
The young man lifted the 200-pound man with one hand, his posture tense yet effortless, as if he were lifting a chicken.
The ferocity on the middle-aged man's face quickly turned into terror.
"What's wrong!" The door to the consultation room was pulled open from the outside. The assistant, who had rushed over after hearing the argument, opened the door, and Lulu grabbed the man and slammed him onto the corridor floor.
With a loud thud, he straddled the man, his round eyes dark and cold, reflecting the man's grotesque and terrified expression.
"stop!"
Several male assistants rushed forward to pull Lulu away. Huang Zhenyi ran in front and grabbed Lulu's arm tightly, but he couldn't stop her and was pulled down and fell to the ground.
The other two male assistants grabbed Lulu's chest from behind and hugged her waist. Even with the combined efforts of the three men, the young man couldn't be moved.
He let out a furious growl and lunged at the man relentlessly. The commotion grew louder, alerting the entire hospital. Lü Shi'an rushed over and shouted to stop him.
Chaos erupted outside the clinic until the police arrived and took both parties to the police station.
The hospital clinic was equipped with surveillance cameras, and the police quickly learned what had happened.
"Alright, stop making such a fuss over something so small."
The police officer handling the case mediated the situation, speaking first to the middle-aged man, "Was the vet wrong? Making money off sick dogs, isn't that a morally wrong thing to do? Even if your dog wasn't sick, in a fair and equal transaction, the vet has the right not to take your order. Why are you so agitated, even pressing your phone against the young woman's face? What are you trying to do?"
The man's face darkened, and his bruised lips twitched slightly. He wanted to curse, but ultimately hesitated because this was a police station.
"And you too." After addressing the customer, the police officer turned to Lulu and lectured her, "He was a bit agitated, but did he commit any actual acts of harm? If you encounter a dispute, you can call the police. People who don't know any better might think you're trying to kill someone."
Both sides were given a whack, and the police pushed the mediation agreement forward, saying, "Fortunately, there was no personal injury today. If you two agree, please sign here, and this matter will end here."
"Don't cause trouble for the doctor. And don't get so worked up. Just apologize to him properly."
"Impossible, officer." The middle-aged man clutched his neck, glaring hatefully at Lulu. "I went to take my dog to the vet, and my phone was smashed, I was choked like this, and I even hit the back of my head. If they don't pay me enough for my losses today, I'll call a lawyer and go to court, I'll expose them online! I refuse to believe there's no place in this world where justice prevails!"
"What do you mean?" The policeman tapped his notebook. "Is this a place where reason prevails?"
The man muttered sullenly, "I didn't say that."
The police officer frowned in annoyance. "Then tell me your demands."
"Twenty thousand," the man said. "I bought my phone for ten thousand and used it for less than two years; plus my neck and the back of my head, ten thousand for this isn't too much, is it?"
The police officer looked at the two people on the other side and said, "What do you think? If you don't agree, you can take legal action."
The female doctor, who had remained silent throughout, pulled over the mediation agreement on the table and signed her name.
She handed the mediation agreement to the police officer, took out her phone, and said, "Officer, I'll transfer this to you. His phone is broken, so he can't receive the money. Could you transfer it to him for me later?"
The police officer looked at Lu Qi with surprise.
Her face was pale, her eyes were red and swollen, and she sat there silently, easily overlooked.
Even the middle-aged man was somewhat surprised, not expecting her to be so decisive.
After paying the money and signing the papers, it was already dark when I left the police station.
Lu Qi walked ahead.
The night breeze ruffled her stray hairs, carrying her scent to Lulu's lips.
It has a slightly salty taste, and is even cooler than the evening breeze in January.
He followed her until they reached the building where Lu Qi lived.
She stopped at the door, turned around and glanced at Lulu.
"Why that expression?" She smiled palely, her face, which had been exposed to the wind all the way, becoming even more bloodless and almost transparent, while her eyes and nose showed a red tinge.
"No..." Lulu carefully took a step towards her, "Don't be sad, okay?"
Lu Qi was stunned. After a long while, she lowered her eyes and whispered, "You are the one who should be crying. Why do you look like you're about to cry?"
When she lowered her eyes, the redness at the corners of her eyes became even more pronounced.
Lulu held her breath and remained silent for a moment before asking, "Would you be happier if he died?"
"Maybe." She forced a smile, responding to Lulu's joke: "At least there will be a few dozen fewer suffering puppies in the world."
Lulu looked up and gazed intently at her.
"Thank you for today. I will explain the situation to the dean." Lu Qi said to him, "I'm a little tired, you should go home early too."
She knew that she had dragged Lulu down with her, and she also knew that Lulu was feeling uneasy because of her.
But Lu Qi simply didn't have the strength to comfort others, nor the energy to accept their comfort.
All she wanted was to go home, to get to a safe, deserted area as quickly as possible.
Downstairs in the apartment building, Lulu looked up at the unlit window.
He stood there until dawn, until the light from that window came on, before turning and leaving.
The young man stepped out of the residential compound and walked along the empty street with a somber expression.
Against the howling wind, he snorted, searching for the man's scent in the chaotic, cold air.
A black-backed, white-feathered swallow silently perched on the top of a streetlamp behind Lulu, its scarlet eyes taking in his movements that night, a mocking smile playing on its lips.
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A note from the author:
Golden Retriever, getting to work!
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