Chapter 116: Inviting little Erhei
"Why are more people here?" Zhu Dazhuang muttered.
"Don’t tell me it’s the police again," Cheng Xiaohai said, exasperated.
"Fucking hell. If I find out who’s behind this, I swear I won’t let them get away with it." Fury flashed in Wu Qiang’s eyes. He was genuinely furious that their training sessions were constantly being interrupted.
"Alright, stop complaining. It might be nothing important. I’ll go take a look." As he spoke, Ye Xing headed for the main gate of the ancestral home.
As he neared the main gate, he heard a clamor from outside. It was incredibly noisy and bustling.
"It’s really Director Zhang Yilin! Holy shit, a celebrity of his caliber is actually here in our Bilin Village!"
"A celebrity visiting a backwater place like ours... Quick, take pictures! I can brag about these photos for ages!"
"Director Yilin has to be in the top ten in the country, right? So many of the shows he’s directed have been amazing!"
"Isn’t this Ye Xing’s place? What’s he doing here?"
The gate was surrounded by a hubbub of voices; there seemed to be a huge crowd.
’Director Zhang Yilin? What’s going on?’ Ye Xing frowned, unlatched the bolt, and opened the gate.
"CREAK!" "CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!"
The heavy gate swung open slowly, revealing the figures standing outside. At the very front was a group of a dozen or so people who looked like a film crew. One of them, a middle-aged man, was incredibly familiar; Ye Xing had seen him on television all the time. It was Director Zhang Yilin. A few of the actors with him were also minor celebrities. Security guards and bodyguards were on-site, maintaining order. Beyond them, a massive crowd was packed in concentric circles, including people who had rushed over from Luoxian County upon hearing the news. The inner circle was mostly composed of excited young men and women. The outer circle was filled with the village’s gray-haired elders, who had no idea what was going on and were simply there for the spectacle. With such a commotion, it seemed like nearly half of Bilin Village had turned out.
"Can I help you?" Ye Xing asked calmly, his gaze landing on Director Zhang Yilin. Honestly, he wasn’t a fan of such boisterous scenes; they were too high-profile. Ye Xing preferred a quiet, low-key life.
"Hello. You must be the owner of the Divine Dog," Director Zhang Yilin said very politely. "I’m Zhang Yilin, a director, and I was hoping to have a word with you."
’Divine Dog? He wants to talk to me?’ A flicker of understanding crossed Ye Xing’s eyes. He suddenly remembered the phone call from Sister Chen and Xu Qing the day before. They had told him the video of little Erhei fighting the tiger had been posted online and had gone viral, with hundreds of thousands of shares and tens of millions, maybe even over a hundred million, views.
"Here’s the thing," Director Zhang Yilin explained. "I’m about to shoot a film called *Divine Dog*, and I’ve been searching for a particularly clever and capable canine. The other day, I happened to see a video online of a small puppy fighting a tiger. I think your little dog is incredibly brave and impressive. That, combined with his immense online popularity, makes him a perfect fit to star in my movie, *Divine Dog*."
"Er, sorry about that, but my dog, little Erhei, is... well, he’s a bit of a goofball. He’s not suited for acting," Ye Xing said.
The crew members were stunned to hear Ye Xing refuse so directly. They clearly hadn’t expected such a blunt rejection. After all, an opportunity like this was something most people would have jumped at.
Director Zhang Yilin recovered and smiled. "Don’t be so quick to refuse. Aren’t you going to invite me in to sit for a bit?"
"Ah! My apologies, that was rude of me. You’ve all come a long way. Please, come in for some tea."
Although he had his reasons for not wanting little Erhei to be in a movie, leaving a film crew standing at his gate was just bad manners. So, he led Director Zhang Yilin and his team into the ancestral home and toward the living room.
In the living room, little Erhei was currently wiping down the tables and chairs with a rag in his mouth. When Zhang Yilin and his crew walked in and saw this, they were utterly flabbergasted.
"Is... is that your little black dog? Is he... is he wiping the tables?" Zhang Yilin stammered.
"That’s right. Little Erhei is in charge of cleaning this old house," Ye Xing said. "Please, have a seat. I’ll go to the kitchen and get some tea."
With that, Ye Xing left the living room and headed for the kitchen.
In the living room, the dozen or so members of the film crew gathered around the little black dog, their curiosity piqued. As they sized him up, they couldn’t help but feel that this puppy was adorable and truly one-of-a-kind.
"WOOF!"
Suddenly finding himself the center of attention, little Erhei felt quite uncomfortable. He dropped the rag from his mouth and let out a bark of protest at the crowd.
But his bark was high-pitched and puppy-like, which only made the onlookers find him even more adorable.
"Haha, he’s so cute! What an adorable puppy!" one of the young actors exclaimed, unable to resist reaching out to pat little Erhei’s head.
But just as he did—
"BARK!" "BARK! BARK! BARK!"
"BARK! BARK! BARK!"
Little Erhei suddenly began to bark ferociously. A startling aura erupted from his small body and surged toward the actor.
"AH!"
The actor’s pupils contracted. He let out a terrified scream as his legs gave out, and he collapsed onto the floor.
"Xie Xuebing, what’s gotten into you?"
"Xie Xuebing, I thought you were supposed to be brave. What’s wrong? You let a little puppy scare you like that?"
"He just barked a few times. Why are you on the floor?"
The rest of the crew looked on, completely baffled. Little Erhei’s menacing aura had been aimed solely at Xie Xuebing, so none of them had felt a thing.
"Terrifying... that little black dog is terrifying!" Xie Xuebing shot a frightened glance at the puppy, scrambled up from the floor, and hastily backed away several steps. He wouldn’t dare get near the little dog again, let alone try to pet its head. Not even if his life depended on it. That aura had been too horrifying; it felt like staring death in the face.
Just then, Ye Xing returned to the living room with the tea leaves. He took in the unusual scene and instantly guessed what had happened. "Little Erhei can be quite temperamental sometimes," he said. "It’s best not to tease him."
After Ye Xing’s training, Erhei would almost never harm anyone. However, when he was displeased, he would still use the unique, menacing aura of a Demon Beast to frighten people. For instance, when the actor Xie Xuebing had reached for his head, he’d crossed a line. Erhei’s head wasn’t for just anyone to touch. Anyone besides those he was close to was practically asking for trouble.
"So terrifying... I... I... I finally understand why that tiger ran away! It’s just terrifying!" the actor, Xie Xuebing, stammered, his voice trembling.
"Are you exaggerating? There must have been some other reason the tiger ran off!"
"Exactly. Not even a Tibetan Mastiff could do that, so how could a tiny puppy scare away a tiger? I bet someone nearby set off firecrackers or something, and that’s what scared it."
The other crew members murmured among themselves.