Chapter 66: Private Message

Xu Dong carried the blood sample into the lab and didn’t come out for nearly an hour. When he finally emerged, he was holding the test report, lost in thought.

The results showed that Aofeng’s development was completely normal. In fact, his physical condition was clearly superior to other dogs of the same age, and his hormone levels showed no abnormalities.

But Aofeng was already a year old. Why hadn’t he entered his heat cycle yet? Normally, a German Shepherd’s first heat occurs between six and eight months of age. Even late bloomers usually go into heat by around nine months. That said, the first heat doesn’t mean the dog is fully mature. Even breeding dogs don’t mate until they’re about two years old.

Xu Dong glanced at the report again, unable to stop himself from doubting his own expertise. After some thought, he sat down at his computer and sent an email to his mentor.

His mentor, Zhou Botong, was a professor of clinical veterinary medicine at Western Agricultural University and held a prestigious position in the field. Whenever someone encountered a difficult case they couldn’t solve, they often turned to him. Xu Dong had also sent him Aofeng’s previous check-up report.

About twenty minutes after the email was sent, Xu Dong’s computer chimed with a new message. He opened it eagerly and began reading carefully.

In the email, Zhou Botong analyzed Aofeng’s hormone levels and came to almost the same conclusion as Xu Dong. However, he had a different take on why Aofeng hadn’t shown signs of heat. He believed that Aofeng had already gone through it, but his symptoms were different from other male dogs. Based on the information Xu Dong provided, Zhou Botong noted that Aofeng had been undergoing intense training over the past few months. This training had significantly drained his energy, using up any excess reserves in his body.

Xu Dong thought about it and realized his mentor made a good point. In fact, the other dogs at the base didn’t show particularly obvious signs during their heat cycles either. Compared to regular dogs, police dogs were generally more restrained. And Aofeng, with his eccentric personality since puppyhood, having different symptoms wasn’t all that strange. If his mentor said there was no problem, then there definitely wasn’t one.

With that thought, Xu Dong stopped worrying and cheerfully began packing up. As he did, he took a moment to send a message to Song Changfeng, letting him know that Aofeng was perfectly healthy.

After reading the message, Song Changfeng felt a wave of relief. Even though he had always believed Aofeng was in great shape, it was hard not to feel anxious in front of a professional. When it came to medical matters, the experts naturally had the final say.

He slipped his phone into his pocket, walked over, and rubbed Aofeng’s head. “The test results are in. You’re all good.”

Aofeng was a little annoyed at first by the sudden head pat, but hearing those words immediately lifted his mood. Xu Dong’s earlier worried looks had made him so nervous he barely touched his lunch, afraid something might really be wrong.

After that brief moment of joy, man and dog returned to training. They were in the middle of an intense session when Sun Xiaobin suddenly came running over again.

Ever since he took over the unit’s short video account, the guy had been completely unrestrained. He went around all day with his phone, filming everything from dogs to people, claiming he was “gathering material.” Everyone tolerated it because the quality of his videos kept improving day by day.

Among all the people and dogs, his favorite subjects were Song Changfeng and Aofeng. Not only was Aofeng incredibly cooperative, but he also had the most fans in the entire base. Especially after representing the base in a recent competition and winning first place, Aofeng had gained a whole new wave of followers.

These new fans flooded the comment sections, constantly urging Sun Xiaobin to post more videos of Aofeng. Pressured by their demands, he had already come over to film several times in the past few days.

By now, neither Aofeng nor Song Changfeng was surprised by his visits. After a quick greeting, they went right back to training. As usual, Sun Xiaobin picked up his phone and filmed Aofeng crossing a high-altitude balance beam. On screen, Aofeng’s movements were agile and fluid, making the dozen-meter-long beam look like nothing at all.

Once he finished filming, Sun Xiaobin did a quick edit, added a lively and energetic soundtrack, and hit publish. After posting the video, he casually found a dry patch of grass, sat down, and opened the account’s backend to check the private messages fans had sent.

He quickly skimmed past the meaningless ones. If someone started off with insults like a lunatic, he didn’t hesitate to report and block them. Sometimes, people asked about how to train their own pets. In those cases, Sun Xiaobin would consult with experienced trainers at the base and reply after getting proper answers. If a particular question came up often, he’d even organize a team to film a demonstration video.

Thanks to his efforts, the account’s private messages gradually became more focused on serious discussions about pet care, which made Sun Xiaobin quite pleased.

But today, one message stood out. It was from someone claiming to be part of a film crew, asking to rent one of the base’s police dogs for a movie shoot. If they were interested in collaborating, the message said, they could add the sender on WeChat to discuss details further.

Sun Xiaobin was skeptical. With so many scams online these days and new tricks appearing all the time, this could easily be someone pretending to be a film crew member. To get to the bottom of it, he clicked into the sender’s profile. There was no official verification badge, but based on the videos they had posted, they did seem like someone who worked behind the scenes in the film industry.

Sun Xiaobin found himself torn, unsure whether to follow through with the contact request.

When Song Changfeng and Aofeng finished a round of training and paused to rest, they saw Sun Xiaobin sitting nearby, frowning deeply, clearly struggling with indecision.

“What’s wrong?” Song Changfeng asked.

Sun Xiaobin looked up, as if he’d just seen a lifeline. He held up his phone in front of Song Changfeng and said, “Brother Song, take a look at this for me. Is this private message real or not?”

Song Changfeng glanced at it and said, “What if it’s real? What if it’s fake?”

Sun Xiaobin replied, “If it’s real, then of course I should add them on WeChat and find out more. If I really have a shot at getting on the big screen, our Training Base could blow up in popularity!” Ever since he took over the Video Channel, all he could think about was how to boost the base’s visibility and grow the channel into something big.

“If it’s fake, then obviously I’ll report and block them right away. Who knows what kind of scam they’re running?”

“Practice is the only test of truth. If you want to know whether it’s real or not, just staring at the message won’t help. You could send them a message first, ask for some details about the production crew, and judge from their answers,” Song Changfeng said. He was a decisive person, always quick and efficient in handling things.

Sun Xiaobin nodded as he listened. “You’re right, Brother Song. I’ll ask them what’s going on before making a decision.”

With that, he pulled up the private message, quickly typed out a reply, and sent it. Now, it was up to the other side to respond.