Chapter 20: Just Like a Blind Date¹

It was midday, the sun blazing overhead. It was already mid-June, and the weather was growing hotter by the day. The fan in the office whirred loudly, flipping through the pages of books on the desk, rustling with every gust.

After lunch, Director Li didn’t return to the dormitory for a nap. Instead, he sat behind his desk, carefully reading through a document. He had just downloaded and printed it from the WeChat group. It was the official guidelines for the Sixth National Police Dog Technical Competition².

Speaking of the National Police Dog Technical Competition, one couldn’t ignore Director Li’s past glory. He and the police dog he trained, Hei Lang³, were the champions of the very first competition. The championship trophy still sat in his office, clearly visible the moment one walked in.

This competition was held once every four years. Participants could be Trainers from Police Dog Training Bases or Dog-handling Police Officers assigned to work with police dogs.

Some might say it was unfair to let professional Trainers compete, but in reality, it wasn’t. Why not?

Because for Trainers, the time they spend with a police dog usually doesn’t exceed two years. After that, the dog is assigned to a local police department. But for Dog-handling Police Officers, as long as they stay with their dog, their partnership can last from the dog’s first day on duty until retirement. With all that time together, the bond and mutual understanding between them can far surpass that of a Trainer and their dog.

In fact, out of the five previous National Police Dog Technical Competitions, only the first and third were won by Training Base directors—Li Xiangyang from Anyang City and Wu Yong from Jinchang City, respectively. The other three champions were all Dog-handling Police Officers and their dogs.

As the head of the Police Dog Training Base, Director Li had always taken it to heart that his base hadn’t won another championship since. In his view, if he and Hei Lang could win under such tough conditions back then, there was no excuse for today’s teams, with all their advanced equipment, to perform worse year after year.

After falling out of the top ten in the last competition, Director Li began pulling strings to find dogs with excellent traits, hoping to discover a few promising candidates. He planned to pair them with the best Trainers for intensive training. Once results started to show, he would hold an elimination round at the base to select the strongest police dog. That dog would then represent the Anyang Police Dog Training Base in this November’s competition. He refused to believe they couldn’t crack the top five this year. Who knows, maybe they could even win the championship again!

Just as Director Li was daydreaming about the glory, honors, and flowers that would come with victory, a sudden knock on the door snapped him back to reality.

“Ahem, come in,” Director Li cleared his throat and called out.

The one who entered was Dezi, fresh from the kennel. After opening up to Aofeng, he had found some comfort. Since he had made up his mind, there was no reason to hesitate. The sooner they intensified their training, the better their chances of staying safe once they started working.

“Made your decision?” Director Li asked before Dezi could speak. He had noticed Dezi’s hesitation yesterday, but some things simply had to be done, even if it made him seem heartless.

Dezi nodded. “Yeah, I’ve made up my mind. I’ll take Shan Dian.”

“Hm?” Director Li was a bit surprised. If it had been the old, lazy Aofeng, Director Li wouldn’t have let Dezi keep him, even if Dezi insisted. In fact, he had long wanted to dismiss Aofeng, believing he wasn’t cut out to be a police dog. If not for Aofeng’s superior bloodline among that litter, and the sliver of hope that gave him, Aofeng would’ve been rehomed as a pet long ago.

As it turned out, holding onto that hope had been wise. In just a short time, Aofeng had completely transformed, going from a Salted Fish Dog to a model police dog. His recent performance had been so outstanding that Director Li was considering putting him on the list of dogs to receive focused training.

And Dezi, a diligent and sincere Trainer who truly loved police dogs, was also one of Director Li’s top picks.

He had originally thought Dezi and Aofeng would make a strong team and compete together. He hadn’t expected Dezi to choose Shan Dian instead. While Shan Dian wasn’t lacking in talent, his temperament and past experiences made him seem a bit unfit for competition.

“Are you sure you don’t want to reconsider?”

Dezi shook his head firmly. “No, Director. I’m sticking with Shan Dian. But I do have one request, and I hope you’ll approve.”

“What is it?”

“I’d like to personally help Aofeng find a new Trainer. He’s different from other police dogs, and I hope his new Trainer will respect that,” Dezi said.

Every Trainer had their own style. Some, like Dezi, balanced gentleness with firmness. Others were strict and wouldn’t tolerate the slightest disobedience. While the methods varied, the intention was always the same. But Dezi believed that a police dog like Aofeng, who could think for himself, wouldn’t thrive under a Trainer who demanded blind obedience. People and dogs with clashing values, even if forced together, would eventually end up like a mismatched couple headed for divorce.

Director Li nodded in agreement. As a dog lover himself, he didn’t want to see that happen either. In fact, he still regretted not letting Zhu Cheng spend more time as an Assistant Trainer before assigning him a dog, which had led to the dog becoming somewhat depressed.

“Thank you, Director.” Dezi felt a weight lift off his shoulders. He finally felt a bit more at ease.

After leaving Director Li’s office, Dezi began thinking about how to gather information on the personalities of the previous batch of Trainers. Once he had a clear picture, he would send someone to feel them out, then bring Aofeng over to see if they clicked. If it worked out, great. If not, he’d keep looking.

Deep in thought, Dezi didn’t even realize that his current mindset was just like that of a parent setting up a blind date for their child—worried the other party wouldn’t like their kid, and also afraid their kid would be too picky to accept anyone.

In short, it was just too hard!

Translator’s Notes