Ye Wanmian was startled by the suddenly rabid yellow dog. Doctor Wang quickly pulled her aside and then kicked the rabid dog away.
"Woof—Arf!"
The yellow dog rolled on the ground, dazed from the fall. Its barking stopped for a moment. But as soon as it came to its senses, it continued to bark frantically at Ye Wanmian.
"Woof! Woof! Woof! Woof! Woof! Woof!"
...
Xiao Jingcheng had been in a coma for a long time. His consciousness was always hazy, and the sounds in his ears seemed muffled, as if covered by cotton. It was not until just now that he gradually regained consciousness.
But he never expected that as soon as he opened his eyes, he would hear someone maliciously slandering his image right in front of him!
"How dare you! Bold woman! How dare you slander me so maliciously! You're simply tired of living!"
"Someone, drag this woman out and behead her!"
He angrily shouted. Then, the even louder barks came from his ears: "Woof—!"
What was going on?!
Why did his words turn into barks?
Xiao Jingcheng finally realized something was wrong. His barking suddenly stopped. He tried to stand up, but his body felt extremely strange. His limbs were weak and unresponsive, as if someone had attached prosthetics to him—
Plop!
He fell headfirst to the ground. And finally, he got a clear look at his limbs—two furry yellow front paws, almost identical to the dogs he had seen in the capital.
He tried to move, and he found that his paws opened with his movement.
No words could describe the shock that was surging in Xiao Jingcheng's heart at this moment.
What on earth was going on?!
He... How did he turn into a dog?!
The sound of footsteps came from his ears. A pair of embroidered shoes appeared in front of him. A shadow covered Xiao Jingcheng, and a woman's anxious and worried voice came.
"Don't be afraid, Dahuang. I'm here."
Xiao Jingcheng was both terrified and angry at this moment. He snapped at the girl's outstretched hand.
"Demoness! What on earth have you done to me!"
"Woof! Woof! Woof! Woof! Woof!"
...
The yellow dog, which had already calmed down a bit, went crazy again, scaring Ye Wanmian and making her jump. Doctor Wang immediately stepped forward and stood in front of her.
"This dog was poisoned just now, and the poison in its body hasn't been completely removed. It may be having some hallucinations and doesn't recognize us. You'd better not get close to it to avoid being accidentally injured."
Ye Wanmian looked at the yellow dog on the ground, barking and struggling hard but unable to control its limbs to stand up. Her face was full of distress.
Dahuang was a dog she had accidentally picked up by the roadside two years ago when she was fleeing from the pursuit of General Chen.
When she found it, it was so sick that it was on its last breath. It should be that its mother thought it couldn't survive, so she abandoned it by the roadside.
Feeling that its situation was too similar to hers, she took it away and had been relying on each other ever since.
Maybe it was destined not to die, or maybe God finally took pity on Ye Wanmian. Unexpectedly, she managed to save it. From then on, with the company of the yellow dog, Ye Wanmian was no longer alone.
For her, Dahuang was as important as a family member.
"Doctor Wang, can you think of a way?"
Doctor Wang gave Qi Wen a look. Qi Wen nodded understandingly and quietly approached the yellow dog from behind. Taking advantage of the dog's inattention, he quickly took out several silver needles and stabbed them into the dog's body.
...
Xiao Jingcheng was still trying to control his body when he suddenly felt a slight pain.
He immediately looked at the woman hiding behind Doctor Wang and angrily shouted, "Demoness, you actually sent someone to plot against me!"
"Woof! Woof! Woof! Woof! Woof! Woof!"
The needles were coated with a drug that could make people fall asleep. It was extremely effective on humans, not to mention on a dog.
Xiao Jingcheng only felt a wave of drowsiness hitting him. Before he knew it, he stopped making a sound and fell into a deep sleep.
In front, Ye Wanmian watched as the yellow dog calmed down and couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.
She didn't know if it was just her imagination, but she always felt that when the yellow dog fell asleep, its eyes were full of hostility and anger towards her.
"Alright, it's not safe in the town now. You should take your dog home quickly." Doctor Wang said to Ye Wanmian.
The current situation was indeed not suitable for staying outside. Ye Wanmian nodded, left some silver for Doctor Wang, picked up her bamboo basket again, and picked up the yellow dog to leave.
"By the way, Mrs. Jiang."
Ye Wanmian stopped and turned to look at Doctor Wang.
After a pause, Doctor Wang still bluntly reminded her, "Remember to tie up the dog when you get home. After all, it's just an animal. If it still acts like that in the future, it may not be able to stay. You should know that a rabid dog can kill people."
Ye Wanmian subconsciously tightened her grip on the yellow dog in her arms.
She often came to the medical clinic to sell medicine and had seen a patient bitten by a rabid dog with her own eyes.
When the patient was brought in, he was crazy, his eyes bulging, and his mouth constantly drooling. He wanted to pounce on anyone he saw and bite them, as if possessed by a ghost. It was extremely terrifying.
That time, several constables were finally dispatched, and the rabid dog was shot dead with arrows before the incident was finally calmed down.
If people found out that Dahuang was crazy and aggressive, it was likely that...
"I understand. Thank you for the reminder, Doctor Wang."
When Ye Wanmian left the medical clinic with the yellow dog, it was already evening. There were many soldiers patrolling the town, so there were almost no pedestrians on the street. Even if there were, they were in a hurry. She didn't dare to stay outside for too long and quickened her pace towards home.
The house where Ye Wanmian lived was located in Qingyu Alley. She had rented it through a real - estate broker. The house was sandwiched between two other houses. It had only a small courtyard and a main room, but it had a stove and a toilet.
After entering the door, she immediately turned around and bolted the door, then breathed a sigh of relief.
Back home, Ye Wanmian first carefully put down the unconscious yellow dog in her arms.
She and Dahuang had been relying on each other. In her eyes, Dahuang was not just an animal but a family member. So Dahuang's doghouse was placed inside the house, right next to her bed.
Remembering Doctor Wang's advice, Ye Wanmian searched the house and found a rope. After hesitating for a moment, she finally tied it around Dahuang's neck and gently stroked its furry head to comfort it.
"Be a good boy, Dahuang. I'm just tying this rope on you temporarily. I'll untie it as soon as the poison in your body is gone, okay?"
The yellow dog was still unconscious, so it naturally didn't answer her. After she finished speaking, she got up and walked out of the yard, took off her bamboo basket, and poured out the herbs she had collected on the mountain today.
There were several wooden racks in the yard, on which the herbs collected by Ye Wanmian were drying. She usually made a living by selling these herbs, and that's why she was very familiar with several medical clinics and pharmacies in the town.
She had come to Dongli Town in Cangzhou half a year ago. She told people that she had married from the capital to Shuocheng in the north. But unfortunately, there was a war in Shuocheng, and her husband and children had all died in the war. So she had to become a refugee.
People felt sorry for this young widow and always took good care of her. The herbs she sold would always fetch a few more copper coins than others. Although her life was poor, it was quite peaceful.
After dealing with the herbs at hand, she roughly counted them and found that a batch of herbs could be sold for copper coins in two days. A smile appeared on her face.
Ye Wanmian lived alone, so her meals were very simple. She lit a fire and made herself a bowl of noodles to fill her stomach.
She didn't forget the yellow dog in the house. There was also a portion of noodles for it. She put it in its usual dog bowl and placed it next to the doghouse so that it could eat as soon as it woke up.
After having a nightmare in the mountains and rushing around to save the yellow dog, Ye Wanmian was physically and mentally exhausted at this moment. She took off her clothes and planned to take a bath and rest.
But just as she had taken off half of her clothes, there was suddenly a "clang" sound behind her.
She was startled and turned around. The yellow dog, which had been sleeping just now, had woken up. It swatted the dog bowl away with one paw and barked at her.
"Woof! Woof! Woof! Woof! Woof! Woof!"
"Demoness! Demoness! Not only do you want to poison me, but you also want to undress and seduce me!"