What Are Your Tastes? chapter 20

Sabrina’s Owner Contacted Me

After handing Sabrina over to Zhou Yanchuan, Lu Yunchu’s studio began implementing new plans.

The second-floor platform had been vacant for a long time. Last month, on a whim, he decided to turn it into a part-time sculpture classroom, offering some courses for teenagers on weekends.

The first step was enclosing the balcony. The conservatory he had ordered earlier was ready for installation. For two weeks after returning from Wen County, Lu Yunchu was at the studio from early morning to late evening, even on weekends, overseeing the project.

When he next saw Zhou Yanchuan and Sabrina, the National Day holiday was almost over, and he was taking out the trash. Zhou Yanchuan was holding a leash, ready to walk the dog, and invited him to join them since they rarely met.

“Have you been busy lately?” Zhou Yanchuan noticed he wasn’t home much. “I haven’t seen you around.”

“Enclosing the balcony at the studio.” It wasn’t a secret, so Lu Yunchu explained his plans briefly.

“Teaching kids?” Zhou Yanchuan was amused. “Did you get the idea after enjoying the speech last time?”

“Not really. I had the idea first, then went to Wen County with you.” The sequence was actually the opposite.

“I see,” Zhou Yanchuan said, being pulled along by the dog. “That’s great. I knew you’d be good at teaching.”

Sabrina still preferred the main road to the courtyard. Lu Yunchu suspected she might be trying to find her previous home, a distant place she couldn’t reach on her own.

He didn’t tell Zhou Yanchuan about the deduction. Whatever the reason, the possibility of Sabrina returning to her original owner was very slim. Talking too much was useless; it was better to let Zhou Yanchuan focus on keeping Sabrina company.

Sabrina looked cleaner than the last time they met. Zhou Yanchuan said he had been taking her to the pet store for baths, and her fur was neatly trimmed.

The two walked to the park where Lu Yunchu had originally found the puppy, then turned back. They took turns holding the leash. By the time they got home, the glow of the sunset had completely faded, a crescent moon had climbed up the treetops, and the sky was just darkening.

“Do you want to come over for dinner?” Zhou Yanchuan untied the leash from Sabrina but didn’t go inside immediately. He turned to look at Lu Yunchu across the way.

“Your place?”

“Yeah,” he recalled having freeloaded two meals of tamagoyaki at Lu Yunchu’s place and felt a bit embarrassed. He wanted to invite him over as a guest in return. “I’m not a worse cook than you. You’ll see.”

Understanding his intent, Lu Yunchu didn’t decline. Sabrina was unusually excited, running back and forth in the living room. Just as Lu Yunchu was about to call her over, Zhou Yanchuan shouted, “Spring Onion, dinner time!”

The echo hadn’t faded when both of them froze, looking awkwardly at each other. Only the little white dog, oblivious, hopped and skipped to its food bowl.

“You… you changed her name?” Lu Yunchu had only just realized that “Sabrina” had somehow turned into “Spring Onion” as he hadn’t heard Zhou Yanchuan call her by name on the way.

“…Yeah,” Zhou Yanchuan felt guilty for a few seconds before regaining his confidence. “I’m her dad now, so what’s wrong with changing her name?”

“I’m also her dad!” Isn’t a second dad still a dad?

“Well, see who she listens to!” Zhou Yanchuan said confidently and called out again, “Spring Onion!”

The puppy lifted her head and barked back, “Woof!”

“Sabrina!”

“Woof!”

“Spring Onion!”

“Sabrina!”

…

The two of them kept calling her name back and forth, but the little dog ignored them as if two idiots were standing beside her.

After another round of this name battle, Zhou Yanchuan paused and then called out loudly, “Sabrina!”

“Spring Onion!” Lu Yunchu cursed inwardly for falling into the trap, while Zhou Yanchuan laughed so hard his neck turned red.

“Hahaha… You see, you also think Spring Onion sounds good, don’t you?”

“You tricked me!”

“But you said it smoothly too!” Zhou Yanchuan suddenly softened his tone. “You’ve already given her to me, so let me change her name, okay?”

The coquettish tone made Lu Yunchu choke up inside. He had never imagined Zhou Yanchuan could talk like this.

Seeing no reaction from him for a long time, Zhou Yanchuan was pleased. “I’ll take that as a yes.”

“I…”

“How about I make mouse noodles for you tonight?” Zhou Yanchuan immediately changed the topic. “Do you like them in soup or porridge?”

“Mouse noodles?”

“They’re like noodle lumps,” he explained. “I learned from my mom. It’s definitely good. I think I’ll make them in porridge so it can be the main dish… if it’s not enough, we still have small steamed buns.”

“I don’t mind.” Since he was dining at Zhou Yanchuan’s house, Lu Yunchu wasn’t picky.

“Okay, then you play with Spring Onion for a bit.”

Zhou Yanchuan went to the kitchen, and Lu Yunchu stopped trying to correct the rustic name. He just squatted down and patted the little dog’s head. “Are you silly? Your name got changed…”

“Woof woof.” The little dog, possibly hungry after running a circle, munched eagerly on her dog food.

Zhou Yanchuan’s cooking skills were basic, but his actions were swift, so preparing dinner for the two of them didn’t take long at all.

When they sat at the table to eat, the renamed “Spring Onion” lay nearby. Smelling something, she stood up on all fours, tongue hanging out and panting.

“You want some of this?” Zhou Yanchuan immediately understood, taking a piece of sausage from the celery and sausage stir-fry and putting it in her food bowl.

Lu Yunchu didn’t stop him in time. “You’re giving her sausage?”

“It’s fine to have a little occasionally.” Zhou Yanchuan was about to give her a second piece but stopped when he saw the other’s displeased face. He whispered to the dog, “Your second dad is unhappy. We’ll eat more when he’s gone.”

“Zhou Yanchuan!” Lu Yunchu, hearing his “whisper,” was both angry and amused. “It’s really not good for her to eat that stuff.”

Zhou Yanchuan had a premonition that he was about to get lectured again, so he quickly preempted it with a compliment. “Lu Yunchu, how do you know so much?”

“About what?”

“About raising dogs,” he said. “You gave me a long lecture that day. Have you had dogs before?”

“I have.” Even if it was for less than a month.

“Really? Then—” He was about to ask where that dog was now, but seeing Lu Yunchu’s expression, he realized it obviously wasn’t around anymore. Of course, if it were still here, he would have seen it by now.

“I did a lot of research at the time,” Lu Yunchu said and then fell silent. He didn’t even know if that Chihuahua was still alive. If it was, it would be a very old dog by now.

“Okay, I’ll try to be more careful,” Zhou Yanchuan said to lighten the mood. “Here, have more meat.”

Lu Yunchu’s phone was on the dining table. Halfway through the meal, a Weibo notification popped up. He guessed it was another message praising Sabrina and glanced at it lightly. He froze, showing no expression or movement.

Zhou Yanchuan asked with concern, “What’s wrong?”

After a long time, Lu Yunchu looked up at him, and with great difficulty, he said, “Sabrina’s owner contacted me.”