Chapter 347: Chapter 347: Dabai is Still Alive
Butler Ling went downstairs to get Xu Chaomu a bowl of pork rib soup noodles, a dish she had specially prepared for Chaomu, having started to simmer it since last night; now, its fragrance was overwhelming, the bone broth thick and hearty.

She had added corn and red dates, making it even sweeter to smell.

“Chaomu, come, have some noodles.”

Butler Ling helped Xu Chaomu sit up, leaning her against a giant panda pillow.

Feeling the aroma, Xu Chaomu got hungry and smiled, “Butler Ling’s cooking skills are truly amazing.”

“Does it still have that familiar scent? Just like five years ago?”

Five years ago, Butler Ling would often make pork rib soup for Xu Chaomu because the young master often said that if she didn’t eat more, how could she improve her grades from last to second last.

At the mention of five years ago, her eyes fluttered a few times, and a wave of sourness washed over her heart.

“Come on, I’ll feed you, so you don’t starve the baby.”

Butler Ling picked up some noodles with chopsticks, trying to feed Xu Chaomu.

“No need, I can do it myself. I’m a grown-up now; there’s no need for Butler Ling to feed me,” Xu Chaomu laughed.

She took the bowl from Butler Ling’s hand, refusing to be fed.

“In my eyes, you’re still that naughty little girl,” Butler Ling laughed as well.

“Butler Ling, was I really annoying back then?”

“Not at all, you were kind-hearted and innocent. It’s okay to be a bit mischievous, which child isn’t at that age?”

“Kind-hearted…” Xu Chaomu mulled over these words in silence, thinking that to be kind-hearted probably just meant being easy to deceive.

“Of course, the young master is an exception. You and him are exact opposites; one active, one quiet. To me, you two couldn’t be more compatible.”

“A man like him should marry a gentle and elegant wife. One day, he will meet such a woman. Then, he’ll realize that she’s the one who’s truly suited for him; it’s just that fate arrived a little late,” Xu Chaomu said lightly.

“Fate has already come; what more fate do you want? Chaomu, you are the young master’s greatest destiny,” Butler Ling said.

Xu Chaomu continued to eat her noodles, remaining silent.

She and Shen Chi weren’t suitable for each other.

One was as dazzling as the stars; the other was as insignificant as dust.

Heaven and earth apart, even if she stretched her arms, she couldn’t reach him. Moreover, between them lay a gulf they couldn’t cross.

In his presence, she couldn’t forget his deception, the fire from thirteen years ago, or be at ease.

Even if she took a step back, a thousand or ten thousand steps, she had no family background, no relatives to speak of. She couldn’t help him in any business, she would only be a burden.

Xu Chaomu slowly ate the noodles, her stomach gradually filling up.

“Chaomu, get up and walk around; it’s not good for the baby to always lie in bed. Let me help you,” Butler Ling suggested, taking the bowl from her hands, supporting her arm.

“Alright… let’s walk in the garden. I want to see Dabai too,” Xu Chaomu suggested, her lips curving slightly. She hadn’t seen Dabai for five years; he also lingered in her thoughts.

“Sure, Chaomu, Dabai has missed you. After you left, it stopped eating and drinking for a while and just stared at the doghouse door all day long, waiting for you,” Butler Ling said.

“How’s its health?”

“After you left, it fell ill. Since then it hasn’t been very well. The young master has rarely taken care of it; it just stays in the doghouse looking gloomy all day.”

“Dabai is so attached to him, and yet he doesn’t care for it. It would be better to give Dabai away.”

“In these five years, the young master could barely take care of himself, let alone Dabai. You don’t know, after you left, he drank every day until his stomach was bleeding and he was hospitalized; only then did he stop,” Butler Ling said.

“Oh,” Xu Chaomu responded expressionlessly.

Uh… Butler Ling choked. What did “oh” mean?

Butler Ling helped Xu Chaomu down the stairs and toward Dabai’s kennel.

The familiar path, the familiar doghouse, everything was familiar.

Xu Chaomu’s eyes immediately welled up with tears, scenes from the past flashing before her eyes.

Five years ago, it was here that she had bid Dabai a reluctant farewell. She remembered she didn’t want to leave, really didn’t want to, because she thought she would never see Dabai again in her lifetime…

When she said goodbye to everything at the Shen family’s, she thought it was forever.

She never imagined that there would be a day of reunion.

She remembered that when she left the kennel, Dabai’s howls were particularly heart-wrenching.

And just like that, five years had passed…

Fortunately, Dabai was still alive.

Xu Chaomu herself pushed open the gate to the doghouse, and as soon as she did, she saw Dabai lying inside!

Perhaps it was too hot, Dabai lay listlessly, eyes closed, not moving an inch.

“Chaomu, Dabai’s asleep,” Butler Ling whispered.

“Shh, Butler Ling, don’t wake it. I’ll just take a quick look,” Xu Chaomu said.

“Alright, Chaomu, be careful. You’re still carrying a baby,” Butler Ling cautioned.

“Okay.”

Xu Chaomu walked over to Dabai, gently as if the scorching sun overhead bothered her not at all.

When Xu Chaomu was still a good distance away from Dabai, to her surprise, Dabai suddenly opened its eyes!

Dabai fixed its gaze on Xu Chaomu, its eyes bright with life!

“Woof, woof…,” Dabai barked and started to run toward her, full of joy.

But alas, its neck was chained, and it couldn’t run.

Thus, it kept barking, “Woof, woof, woof… Woof, woof, woof…”

Xu Chaomu laughed too: “Dabai, Dabai, do you recognize me?”

Dabai let out two more “woofs” as if in response.

Xu Chaomu saw that aside from being a bit thinner, Dabai hadn’t changed much from before.

Xu Chaomu ran over, squatted in front of him, and stroked his fur.

“Why have you lost weight? Are you on a diet too?” Xu Chaomu joked.

Dabai allowed her to pet him, behaving and enjoying it.

“I thought I would never see you again in this lifetime,” Xu Chaomu said, “It’s been five years; did you miss me a lot?”

“You big naughty dog, you always ignored me in the past in the Shen family, and now you know how to be nice to me? Huh?”

Dabai stuck out its tongue to lick Xu Chaomu’s hand and appeasingly wagged its tail.

Butler Ling walked over and laughed, “This dog knows people. When several young servants from the Shen family came to play with it, it didn’t care at all, sometimes even scaring them away.”

“It used to ignore me too; Dabai was very bad,” Xu Chaomu lightly slapped Dabai’s back, “Dabai, tell me, weren’t you always bullying me before?”

“Woof, woof…” Dabai barked twice, seemingly in protest.

Butler Ling added, “Dabai was closest to the young master, and probably to you next, Chaomu. This dog has a fierce temper; no one dares to touch it. Look at you and the young master; not only does it let you touch him, but he also actively licks you.”

“I think, in a few more days, it’ll ignore me again.”

“It won’t, why don’t you stay, Chaomu, and see?” Butler Ling suggested.