Ning Shu used wood ash to wash Da Mao and Tie Dan’s bowls.

There was quite a bit of dirt accumulated on the bowls, mostly dust, food residue, and their saliva, so it was quite smelly.

It took Ning Shu quite some time to clean them.

Yi Bao and Er Bao watched Da Mao and Tie Dan in the dining room.

San Bao followed Da Mao closely.

Wherever Da Mao went, he followed.

He even held onto Da Mao’s fur, but San Bao, even though he was a child, seemed conscious enough not to grip too tightly.

After inspecting the dining room and finding no suspicious items, Da Mao and Tie Dan stopped checking and just stood there, watching the three kids.

Suddenly, Er Bao had an idea.

He ran out of the dining room, into his parents’ room, and found a hair comb. Then, he bounced back into the dining room. “Bro, let’s comb Da Mao and Tie Dan’s fur.”

“Okay,” Yi Bao agreed. “Da Mao is bigger than Tie Dan, and it has more fur, so let’s start with Tie Dan.”

“Okay,” Er Bao approached Tie Dan. “Tie Dan, I’m going to comb your fur, don’t move.” With that, Er Bao extended his hand holding the comb toward Tie Dan.

As a military dog, Tie Dan was highly sensitive to danger.

However, it didn’t sense any danger from Er Bao. Moreover, when they left, the soldiers’ task for them was to protect the people in this home.

Therefore, Tie Dan obediently stood still.

When it carried out its tasks, it never disobeyed the soldiers’ commands.

However, when Er Bao started combing Tie Dan’s back, Tie Dan’s whole body stiffened.

It wasn’t accustomed to the touch of strangers, even if they were its task subjects.

Moreover, its back was an area it couldn’t see, so if someone were to attack, it might not be able to retaliate.

So, even though Tie Dan didn’t move, its entire body went into a defensive mode.

It was its instinct.

Unfortunately, Er Bao was unaware that Tie Dan might retaliate at any moment.

He continued to ask with a silly smile, “Tie Dan, does it feel good? Tie Dan, your fur is all tangled up. Tie Dan, you smell really bad. Tie Dan, have you not had a bath in a long time? Tie Dan, let’s give you a bath later. Tie Dan…”

Tie Dan: silence This kid is so chatty. Its defense is crumbling. What should it do?

Gradually, Tie Dan’s tense body began to relax. What was once standing straight now lay down.

Although it was a unfamiliar place, there were no unfamiliar scents here.

The comfort it felt from its surroundings made Tie Dan surrender.

“Tie Dan, roll over. We need to comb the fur on your belly,” Er Bao said as he reached for Tie Dan’s belly.

Tie Dan rolled over, lifting its paws, revealing its soft belly.

This was one of its most vulnerable spots. If it weren’t for the kid, if it weren’t in the army, if it weren’t familiar soldiers, it would never expose it.

Yi Bao watched carefully, feeling a stirring in his heart. Compared to him, San Bao was even more straightforward. He bounced out, calling, “Mom… Mom…”

“What’s wrong?” Ning Shu didn’t stop washing the dishes, watching San Bao run over.

“Mom… comb… need comb…” San Bao said.

Seeing Er Bao combing Tie Dan, San Bao couldn’t resist; he wanted to comb Da Mao too.

“Why do you need a comb? Your little hair doesn’t need combing,” Ning Shu chuckled.

Did San Bao also care about appearance? Was he going for a stylish hairstyle?

San Bao pointed to the dining room and said, “Er Bao… comb… comb hair… comb… hair?” he stammered. “I… I also want.”

Ning Shu’s eyes lit up.

San Bao could actually say quite a few words at once, albeit intermittently, but he could express himself clearly.

But what did Er Bao combing hair with a comb mean?

Ning Shu got up, walked to the dining room door, and saw…

“Er Bao, where did you get that comb?” Was she seeing things? Wasn’t that the comb she used for her hair?

Er Bao said, “I got it from the table, Mom. Tie Dan’s fur is all tangled, and it smells. Can we give Tie Dan a bath?”

Ning Shu: “…”

The problem was, this little rascal knew Tie Dan smelled bad, yet he used her hair comb to groom Tie Dan?

“Fine,” Ning Shu gritted her teeth.

“I’ll boil some water later. They’ll need warm water for the bath. But since you’re the ones who said you want to bathe Da Mao and Tie Dan, you’ll have to do it yourselves later.”

Tomorrow she’d have to buy another comb for Da Mao and one for herself. She’d give this one to Tie Dan. No, they might need brushes more than combs.

“I got it, Mom. Can we use soap for Da Mao and Tie Dan’s bath?” Yi Bao asked.

“No, just use warm water,” Ning Shu replied.

Actually, she wasn’t sure if it was okay to use soap. She hadn’t raised pets before and hadn’t paid attention to what was needed.

But she knew dogs licked their fur, so if there were soap residue, it could harm them if ingested.

She wasn’t sure if there were any veterinarians in this era either, so it was better not to risk harming the dogs.

But speaking of giving Da Mao and Tie Dan a bath, she needed to boil water immediately.

It was still afternoon, and the sun was still out. If she waited too long and the sun went down, it would be harder for their fur to dry. It wouldn’t be good if Da Mao and Tie Dan caught a cold.

So, Ning Shu decided to put aside the enamel bowls of Da Mao and Tie Dan and go boil water first.

“Mom, comb… comb…” San Bao chased after his mother.

“I don’t have a comb anymore. Go get your dad’s comb,” Ning Shu replied.

Lin Guodong used to live alone, so naturally, he had his own comb.

Now that her comb had been requisitioned by Tie Dan, would it be fine for San Bao to use his dad’s comb for Da Mao?

“I’ll go get it,” Yi Bao heard and quickly ran into the house to get his dad’s comb.

Yi Bao came out with the comb and handed it to San Bao.

San Bao took the comb and extended his little devil claws towards Da Mao. “Mao, comb, comb hair… Mao…” He said as he sat down next to Da Mao.

Since Tie Dan was lying down, Da Mao followed suit.

So San Bao sat down next to it, his little butt on the ground, and started combing Da Mao’s fur.

San Bao was different from Er Bao.

Er Bao was already six years old and could distinguish between light and heavy pressure, so when he combed Tie Dan, his movements were gentle.

But San Bao was still young and didn’t know the difference, so when he combed Da Mao, there was no method to his actions.

When he encountered tangled fur, he would exert force.

Yi Bao frowned as he watched.

He was afraid San Bao might hurt Da Mao, but Da Mao remained lying still.

Initially, it would turn its head to look at San Bao due to the pain, but after a few times, it just closed its eyes.

“How’s the grooming going?” Ning Shu asked as she came over after heating water on the stove and washing Da Mao and Tie Dan’s enamel bowls.

“Mom, I’m almost done combing Tie Dan,” Er Bao said.

“Combing, combing Da Mao,” San Bao raised his head, glanced at his mother, and continued combing Da Mao diligently.

Ning Shu watched, and soon, like Yi Bao, she frowned.

She crouched down. “San Bao, you can’t do it like this. Da Mao will feel pain.”

“Pain?” San Bao understood what pain meant, but he said, “Combing, Da Mao doesn’t hurt.”

Ning Shu patiently explained, “When you comb and encounter knots in the fur, it hurts Da Mao. Look, it’s like this… When you encounter this problem, you should find Mom. Understand?”

San Bao seemed to understand. “Da Mao hurts?”

“Yes, Da Mao hurts, so you should find Mom. Mom will cut off the knots, and then you can continue combing Da Mao. Now Mom will go get scissors to deal with Da Mao’s knots. Can you wait?”

San Bao nodded. “Wait for Mom.”

“Good boy, San Bao. Yi Bao, keep an eye on San Bao,” Ning Shu said.

“Okay, Mom, I’ll watch San Bao,” Yi Bao replied.

Er Bao had been listening to his mother.

He recalled encountering knots when combing Tie Dan’s fur earlier, just like his mother described.

He couldn’t untangle them, so he stopped. Did he hurt Tie Dan just now? Er Bao touched Tie Dan’s back. “Tie Dan, I’m sorry. Did I hurt you just now? I apologize. Please don’t be mad.”

Tie Dan whimpered.

Er Bao quickly added, “I know, I know. I’ll be more careful next time. Tie Dan, you’re really good.”

Yi Bao looked at Er Bao and asked curiously, “Er Bao, how do you know what Tie Dan means?”

Er Bao replied, “Tie Dan responded to me. If it were angry, it wouldn’t have responded to me.”

Yi Bao asked again, “How do you know that its response means it’s not angry?”

Er Bao said confidently, “Because if I were angry, I definitely wouldn’t talk to others. Tie Dan must be the same.”

Yi Bao was a little confused.

Is that so?

When Ning Shu came over with scissors, she also heard the conversation between Yi Bao and Er Bao.

Although she didn’t know if what Er Bao said was correct, it sounded reasonable.

“Mom, Moma..” San Bao didn’t listen to his brothers and was eagerly waiting for his mother.

“I’m here, I’m here…”

Ning Shu squatted down beside Da Mao.

In that instant, Da Mao turned its head and looked sharply at Ning Shu with its eyes.