Beibei fell ill. When Gu Wenxi went to the backyard, he found Beibei  vomiting. He hurried to the kitchen to find Du Yunyan.

Du Yunyan, who was busy making sauce with the exhaust hood on, didn’t notice the dog’s condition outside at all. When he heard the news, he immediately put down his tools and came out to check. The dog was limp, unable to stand up, and soon began to show symptoms of diarrhea.

The environment in the village was suitable, and both Yangyang and Beibei were in excellent health, having been raised for several years without any illnesses. Du Yunyan was anxious, “Did they eat bad chicken?”

“Don’t speculate blindly. We’re all fine. How could dogs get stomach problems from meat?” Gu Wenxi speculated, “It might be because they caught a cold. Do we have any medicine here?”

“No,” Du Yunyan’s brows furrowed, “The village chief’s house should have some. Their dog was sick a while ago, and they said medication helped.”

“Should I go borrow it for you?”

“You’re not familiar with the way, I’ll go.” Du Hong and Du Yi weren’t very good at riding motorcycles, so Du Yunyan was the fastest option.

“Alright, I’ll stay here.” Before he left, Gu Wenxi stopped him, “Take it slow on the road. If things don’t improve, you can go to the veterinary station. Beibei will get better.”

“Mm.” Du Yunyan didn’t delay any longer, hopping onto the motorcycle.

It only took a few minutes on the road.

The village chief didn’t expect Du Yunyan to come all the way to ask for medicine for the sick dog.

In the countryside, dogs were not regarded as pets like in the city, and few people cared about sick dogs. The village head’s dog had been vomiting and having diarrhea a few days ago, and they initially didn’t pay much attention. It was only when they passed by the veterinary station in town that they incidentally got some medicine. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have any now.

However, Du Yunyan had never treated the two dogs he raised as ordinary watchdogs. Originally, he brought two puppies from someone else’s house to please his sick mom, Du Yaning. Du Yaning did indeed like them. Even though she couldn’t move much, she loved playing with the puppies. Of course, the daily feeding tasks were handled by Du Yunyan. Gradually, he developed affection for them, watching them grow day by day as if they were his own children. After Du Yaning passed away, he was once very depressed. Apart from the comfort from villagers like Yun Han and Aunt Liu, he was also grateful for the companionship of the two dogs.

“Alright,” the village chief saw his anxiety and said straightforwardly, “Take all the remaining medicine with you.”

Du Yunyan didn’t immediately accept it, but the village chief directly stuffed it into his hands, “Taking some medicine will definitely help. The dogs we raise here aren’t as delicate as those in the city. Hurry back; you still have to take care of business.”

“Mm,” Du Yunyan nodded, “Thank you.”

That day, three standard rooms left the guesthouse, and only one couple arrived in the evening.

“Are you Mr. Qin who booked two days ago?” Gu Wenxi politely asked when they parked the car and got down.

“Yes.”

“Alright, is the third floor okay?”

“It’s fine, thank you.”

The couple had booked a double bed room. The room on the second floor was already occupied, so Gu Wenxi arranged them on the third floor.

While registering them, he was worried about when Du Yunyan would return, fearing he might ride too fast on the road. Du Yunyan clearly cared more than anyone else but didn’t show it on his face.

After a while, he vaguely heard the sound of a motorcycle rushing up the village road. Du Yunyan indeed returned earlier than he had imagined. With the medicine in hand, Gu Wenxi felt relieved, and the next step was to take care of Beibei. The sick dog couldn’t eat anything at all, so the two of them had to cooperate to administer the medicine.

There weren’t many guests staying overnight that night, so Du Yunyan had relatively ample time to accompany Beibei. The soft orange light from the lamps on the outer walls illuminated it as Beibei lay beneath the lonely light bulb, barely breathing.

Among the guests staying overnight was a seven or eight-year-old girl who seemed interested in small animals and always ran over to take a look.

“Is the dog sick?” the little girl asked Du Yunyan, who was sitting on a small stool nearby.

“Yes.”

“Has it taken medicine?”

“Yes, it has.”

“My neighbor’s dog got really sick last year, but it got better after taking medicine for two days,” the little girl seemed to be comforting him, “It will get better soon.”

Du Yunyan forced a smile, “Thank you.”

“Yuanyuan,” the girl’s mother called her from a short distance away, “It’s time to go to bed!”

The little girl looked back a couple of times reluctantly before she ran off.

Du Yunyan lowered his head. That night, the moon was shrouded by clouds, and only the light from the bulb above illuminated the area. After a while, he sensed a shadow in front of him and looked up, “You haven’t gone to bed?”

“I tidied up the living room,” Gu Wenxi sat on the stone steps by the wall instead of finding another stool, “I told Du Hong and Du Yi to go home first.” They had stayed a bit later because of Beibei’s illness.

“Thank you.” Du Yunyan gently stroked the dog’s head. Beibei looked extremely tired but still raised its head, its eyes glistening as it gazed at him.

“Having raised it for years makes a difference,” Gu Wenxi noticed how the sick dog was particularly attached to Du Yunyan, “Beibei really clings to you now.”

Du Yunyan sighed, “I hope Beibei will be better tomorrow.”

Before going to bed, Beibei’s symptoms of vomiting and diarrhea hadn’t subsided. Considering their work the next day, they had to rest and let the dog recover gradually.

During the night, Gu Wenxi woke up to find the blanket tightly wrapped around himself, and Du Yunyan was not beside him. He groggily checked his phone, and it was not even three o’clock.

Did Du Yunyan go to the bathroom? But the bathroom was inside the room, and there was no sound or light, indicating that it wasn’t in use.

Struggling to shake off the heavy drowsiness, he turned on the bedside lamp and was about to get out of bed to look for him when the bedroom door opened, and Du Yunyan walked in from outside.

Gu Wenxi was startled by the sudden appearance, “Where did you go in the middle of the night?”

“I woke up and couldn’t fall back asleep,” Du Yunyan’s face looked very tired in the dim light, clearly not having slept well, “So I went downstairs to check.” It was obvious he meant checking on Beibei.

“How is Beibei?”

“Asleep, should be a bit better.” Du Yunyan breathed a sigh of relief and sat on the edge of the bed.

Thinking about Du Yaning, Gu Wenxi realized how deeply Du Yunyan must have cared for the sick dog, having taken care of his ill mother with such attention to detail for years. It made him feel a pang in his chest.

“You should sleep too,” Gu Wenxi put away his thoughts, “If Beibei  doesn’t get better by tomorrow, we’ll go to the vet.”

“Okay.”

Du Yunyan obediently lay down, and they turned off the light. Gu Wenxi sensed that he was still awake, tossing and turning, until he finally succumbed to sleep himself.

At dawn, Uncle Sheng’s rooster crowed dutifully. Gu Wenxi was used to the sound but couldn’t sleep well with worries on his mind and opened his eyes suddenly.

Du Yunyan was in a similar state. After a few rooster calls, he sat up and prepared to get out of bed.

“Hey,” Gu Wenxi pulled him back, “Where are you going?”

“I’m going to check on Beibei again.”

“No, you go back to sleep,” Gu Wenxi yawned and got up. He had managed to sleep through the night, but Du Yunyan probably hadn’t, “I’ll go.”

He got out of bed first and pressed Du Yunyan’s shoulder down, “If there’s anything, I’ll call you right away.”

Du Yunyan was too exhausted, and with Gu Wenxi’s reassurance, he relaxed and let his head sink back onto the pillow. Gu Wenxi drew the curtains more tightly and left the room. After a while, Du Yunyan heard no commotion outside, suggesting there was no immediate issue, and finally fell into a deeper sleep.

This time, he slept more soundly than during the night, and his biological clock didn’t wake him. When he woke up again, it was already past eight, and the daylight was bright. The thin curtains were only partially effective at blocking the outside light.

Du Yunyan vaguely heard Gu Wenxi talking and laughing. Rubbing his eyes, he got out of bed and gently pulled the curtain aside.

His room faced a different direction from Gu Wenxi’s old one, with windows facing the front yard. Both dogs were in the front yard. From behind the curtain, he saw a black SUV parked outside. Gu Wenxi was half-squatting and talking to Beibei. Beibei was able to stand and even jumped a little when Gu Wenxi stood up, reaching out its front paws.

“Alright, you can’t eat too much right after getting better.”

Du Yunyan heard him clearly and noticed the food bowl at his feet, indicating he had fed them something.

He forcefully drew the curtains open and slid the window. The noise caught the attention of the people below.

“Hey!” Gu Wenxi looked up and made an “OK” gesture with his hand, “I’ve heated up breakfast, come down and eat.” In the morning light, his hair seemed tinged with a golden tea color, sparkling brightly.

“Okay.” Du Yunyan smiled and said.