Chapter 17: He Couldn’t Do It

“Aofeng, from today on, this is your new home. I brought all the things you’re used to. Want to go in and take a look?”

The graduation ceremony for the adult dogs had just ended, which meant they were leaving the Training Base. In less than three days, this batch of police dogs would be flown or taken by high-speed rail to their new posts, leaving behind the home they’d known since they were pups. It was moving day for Aofeng and the others too.

Yesterday, Dezi and the other trainers had thoroughly cleaned the new kennels. Not a single hair was left behind. They even sprayed disinfectant to eliminate any scent left by previous occupants. Dogs are very territorial, and behaviors that humans might find unsanitary, like peeing or pooping around, are actually how they mark their territory. It’s their way of warning other dogs not to trespass.

Normally, when a dog smells another’s scent, it can tell the gender, age, and health of the one who left it. Based on that, it decides whether it can take the other dog in a fight.

If the puppies were moved in directly, some of them might feel anxious after sniffing the lingering scent of adult dogs, constantly on edge as if they were intruding on someone else’s turf.

Aofeng walked into the kennel and did a lap. He noticed this new kennel was quite a bit bigger than his old one, about six square meters, and it had a good orientation too. The setup was pretty much the same, with an automatic water dispenser, waste drainage system, and a ventilated grid on the ceiling. Staff would adjust the heating or cooling based on the season and weather. All in all, it was better than the apartments some office workers lived in.

He’d heard that once assigned to a post, the kennels in the police department could be up to fifteen square meters. Besides a bedroom and living area, there was even a little garden outside for sunbathing. Thinking about it that way, Aofeng felt being a pet wasn’t so bad. At least when he was a corporate drone, his company never gave him a place to live.

After checking out his new digs, Aofeng walked out, quite satisfied. Suddenly, his ears perked up and his head shot forward. When he saw who was approaching, his face darkened. He grabbed his dog bed and started dragging it out.

Dezi was stunned. Wasn’t he just happy with it? Why the sudden change of heart? What he didn’t know was that Aofeng had just spotted Hei Dashuai¹ next door and Saihu across the way. That ruined everything.

These two troublemakers used to live next to him, and they argued nonstop. It had driven him to the brink of a nervous breakdown. If he had to live near them again, it would seriously jeopardize his dream of becoming King of the Dogs. So, he had to request a different room.

Dezi had no choice but to pick up Aofeng’s little bed and follow behind, curious to see which kennel he’d choose. After carefully analyzing the personalities and habits of each potential neighbor, Aofeng finally picked the one at the far end. His new neighbors were a Rottweiler and a Labrador, both of whom were pretty quiet. Looked like life here would be more peaceful.

On the first night in his new home, most of the dogs were still adjusting. But Aofeng lay in his cozy bed, sleeping soundly. Not even the usual blood-soaked nightmares came to disturb him.

…

“Attention! At ease! Right face!” Trainer Zhang Meng’s sharp eyes scanned the trainers and police dogs. When he saw them all following the commands to the letter, he finally shouted, “Dismissed!”

Aofeng was panting with his tongue out, which was rare for him. Today’s training felt more exhausting than usual. The running was still five laps, but since the new training field was larger, those five laps were about the same as eight laps before. And the obedience command training that usually followed the run had been shortened, with the extra time turned into a ball-fetching game.

Something else felt off too. Morning training used to last half an hour, but today it felt like it went way over.

When they got to the Police Dog Canteen, Aofeng looked up at the clock above the serving window. They were nearly thirty minutes later than usual.

If the extra walking time was about ten minutes, that meant training had been extended by twenty. That finally answered a question that had puzzled Aofeng for a long time: no wonder he’d never seen the adult dogs during breakfast before.

Just as he was thinking about it, Dezi came over carrying two food bowls and placed them in front of Aofeng and Shan Dian. Both dogs sat still, not moving a muscle. Without the command to eat, neither of them would break the rules. Well, except for Aofeng when he was in one of his lazy moods.

After a minute or two, Dezi gave them a pleased nod and called out the command to eat. Shan Dian immediately lunged forward, front paws scraping the ground, head buried in the bowl as he chomped down enthusiastically. Aofeng sighed, feeling like Shan Dian’s IQ was dragging down the whole group. Just as he lowered his head to eat, he noticed something was off with his meal too.

He pushed the bowl toward Dezi with a front paw, clearly asking for an explanation: why had the training time increased, but the food portion shrunk?

Dezi had been expecting this and cleared his throat before explaining, “After intense exercise, you can’t eat too much. A full stomach can cause stomach cramps. You’ve still got more training later. Be good, eat up.”

Aofeng was skeptical, but there was no use arguing. If Dezi said that, then there was no chance of getting more. Besides, he’d noticed that the other police dogs also had smaller portions today.

He started eating slowly. Shan Dian, having finished his own meal, still looked unsatisfied. He glanced at Dezi and, seeing that he was chatting with someone else, sneakily stretched his head toward Aofeng’s bowl.

Aofeng gave him a disgusted shove with his right paw. What kind of wishful thinking was that? You finish your own and still want mine? Besides, the guy drooled when he ate. One bite from him and Aofeng wouldn’t want it anymore.

Shan Dian wasn’t giving up and tried to inch closer again. This time, Dezi caught him and barked a sharp reprimand. Shan Dian immediately lowered his head and sat back down, looking like he was sincerely repenting.

After breakfast, Dezi took them to a grassy field to rest. After about half an hour, the whistle blew, signaling the start of the day’s formal training.

Dezi brought Aofeng and Shan Dian to the training field. Compared to the morning session, the field now had dozens of haystacks scattered around its perimeter, placed with no discernible pattern.

“Today’s training exercise is search and retrieval. During the puppy phase, you’ve already done some basic scent training with your dogs. Today, we’re raising the bar. The puppies will need to locate objects with the same scent within a set time limit. This will help sharpen their sense of smell and investigative skills. In the first five minutes, the Assistant Trainers will hand out the items to be searched for. During this time, your job is to let the puppies fully familiarize themselves with the scent. Then, during the exercise, get your police dogs to score as many points as possible. Got it?” Instructor Zhang Meng announced the day’s training in a firm, commanding tone.

“Got it!” the trainers responded in unison.

“Good. I now declare the training officially underway!”

At Zhang Meng’s command, the Assistant Trainers began distributing the items for each police dog to sniff and memorize.

Since Dezi had brought two police dogs, one of the Assistant Trainers stayed behind to help him get the dogs familiar with the scent. As the Assistant Trainer approached Shan Dian with a small ball, Shan Dian suddenly arched his back defensively, flattening his ears and baring his teeth. When the trainer moved closer, Shan Dian let out a sharp bark in warning.

“Shan Dian, sit! Sit!” Dezi tightened the leash and shouted. Shan Dian obeyed the command reluctantly, sitting down, but his eyes stayed locked on the Assistant Trainer, not letting him come any closer.

Shan Dian’s reaction was typical for a puppy his age, especially during training hours. At this time of day, the puppies were usually only around their trainers. Any unfamiliar person could be perceived as a potential threat, especially if the person made teasing gestures. The last Courage Assessment had taken place outside of training hours, when the dogs were more relaxed.

Still, compared to Aofeng, who welcomed tourists’ pets and posed for photos, Shan Dian’s wariness stood out. During the last assessment, he had stayed glued to Dezi’s heel the entire time. While he didn’t show fear or aggression, he clearly didn’t let strangers get too close.

Dezi gave the Assistant Trainer an apologetic smile, though anxiety flickered in his eyes.

Just yesterday, Director Li had called him in and asked him to choose between Aofeng and Shan Dian. The reason was simple: as the puppies entered the second phase of training, the intensity would increase. If a trainer handled two puppies at once, over time, their stamina and focus would wear thin, and the dogs’ progress would suffer. While the other puppies got thirty minutes of training, Aofeng and Shan Dian only received fifteen minutes each.

To Dezi, this was a bolt from the blue. Not long ago, he’d been imagining the bittersweet moment of sending both dogs off to join the police force. Now, he was being told that the separation was coming early. How was he supposed to accept that?

Director Li had sighed and said, “The reason we assigned you two puppies in the first place was to fill the gap we expected after Aofeng left. His performance back then was so poor, we thought he’d be eliminated.”

Dezi said nothing. He couldn’t bring himself to choose.

Director Li hadn’t pressured him, only asked him to think it through in the coming days. Dezi desperately wanted to prove he could train both dogs well. He was willing to put in twice the effort.

But life rarely goes the way we want. And clearly, this was something he couldn’t manage.

Translator’s Notes