Seeing that Wei Xunzhou was still willing to respond, Di Yao breathed a sigh of relief.
She raised the lantern closer to his hand and saw that his hand wasn't injured. "Husband, your cloak is really effective. It must have been expensive... How much did it cost? I'll pay you back later."
On the side Di Yao couldn't see, Wei Xunzhou's fingers curled slightly. "It wasn't bought. No need to repay."
Just as he finished speaking, he remembered something and spoke before Di Yao could. "Do you have money?"
"Not yet, but I will soon." Di Yao raised an eyebrow smugly. "Don't worry, husband, I won't let you lose out."
Since Wei Xunzhou rarely took the initiative to ask her anything, Di Yao told him more—about her plan to work for Meng Po and how Cui Jue had refused to let her exchange grain for money.
But unexpectedly, Wei Xunzhou wasn't really interested. He only left her with: "A waste of effort."
Di Yao knew it was a waste, but considering how much he had helped her tonight, she just pursed her lips.
"You read books to pass the time, and I help Granny Meng to pass the time—what's the difference?"
Besides, Meng Po treated her well and offered decent wages.
Back home, Wei Xunzhou placed the dog on the floor of the side room and returned to his own room. Worried that he might catch a chill, Di Yao didn't bother him further.
She found a clean thick towel and a small mattress. Lifting the cloak from the dog, she saw that aside from the few patches of fur on its back, blood beaded at the slightest touch. Wincing and sucking in cold air, Di Yao gently dabbed the Wangchuan water off the dog's body with the towel.
Fortunately, the little creature cooperated.
After drying it off, Di Yao was about to remove the cloak and replace it with the new mattress when the dog, which had been resting quietly, suddenly barked again, glaring at Di Yao as if facing a formidable enemy.
Afraid the dog might bite, Di Yao raised her hands helplessly to soothe it.
"Alright, alright, I won't move, okay?" Di Yao touched the cloak on the dog and then the mattress. "Not to criticize, but you're throwing away such a soft mattress for no reason, you silly thing."
As soon as she spoke, the dog struggled to its feet, barked at Di Yao a few more times, and nudged the mattress aside.
"Oh, so you can understand me?" Di Yao finally took a good look at the dog and realized it was different from others.
The dog had two bumps on its head, like a pair of severed horns.
The Underworld wasn't like the mortal world; it was full of ghosts, deities, and spirits. A dog with horns wasn't that strange.
Di Yao crouched down, made a clicking sound with her lips, and when the dog showed no signs of aggression, she sat down and talked to it: "Little dog, do you have an owner? Where does your owner live? I don't have any medicine here. How about I take you to find your owner tomorrow?"
The dog's eyes rolled, and it lay down on Wei Xunzhou's cloak, whimpering softly.
"I can't understand what you're saying. I'll make inquiries for you tomorrow. But if I can't find your owner, you can stay here for now." Di Yao stood up to head back to her room, then added, "But you must get better and not die here. This is the new room for me and my husband. I don't mind, but if he gets angry and doesn't like you anymore, that would be bad. I don't want him to be angry."
Whether it was Di Yao's warning that frightened the dog or the memory of Wei Xunzhou's rough handling, the few sparse hairs on its back suddenly bristled again.
Di Yao returned to the room, where Wei Xunzhou was already asleep. She quietly blew out the lantern, climbed onto the bed, and pulled the pillow beside her to fall asleep.