In the bamboo grove, Ah Bing’s face was etched with anxiety, unable to bear watching any longer. The delicate young cousin paired with the ferocious mastiff—no matter how one looked at it, the scene seemed utterly brutal.
Beside him, Shen Jue wore a playful smile, wondering whether his little cousin would appreciate this “welcome gift.”
“Master, we should really intervene. If something truly happens, the old madam will surely hold us accountable.”
This was no ordinary stray cat or dog—this was the old madam’s most beloved cousin!
Shen Jue waved his hand, signaling Ah Bing to stay silent, his eyes carefully observing the girl and the dog.
Over there, the mastiff, drooling glistening saliva, slowly approached Wen Jinxin, circling around Lan Hui repeatedly, its shiny nose sniffing incessantly at them.
As it drew closer, its appearance became clearer: pitch-black fur, sharp fangs, and blood-red eyes like those of a fighting bull—all enough to strike fear into anyone.
Though Lan Hui was steady by nature, she was still a seventeen-year-old girl. Her body stiffened, her face drained of color from fright, and she trembled all over.
Yet, despite her overwhelming fear, she still shielded Wen Jinxin behind her, preventing the mastiff from having any chance to touch her.
Shen Jue’s lips curled into a mischievous grin. Wasn’t his little cousin supposed to be quite capable, even taking a whip for him? He wanted to see just how much she could handle.
Perhaps drawn by the faint fragrance on Wen Jinxin, the mastiff kept sniffing toward her, its heavy front paws already beginning to stretch forward restlessly.
Wen Jinxin remembered—this mastiff of Shen Jue’s, General, had once caused trouble.
On one occasion, Shen Jue took General out, and for some reason, the dog went berserk on the street, biting several people.
Laotaifei had never believed that Shen Jue would allow his dog to harm others, insisting that Shen Jianqing investigate thoroughly. To this day, she could still recall Laotaifei’s resolute words:
“My Ah Jue may be mischievous, but he is a child of upright and pure character. He would never do such a thing.”
“Of course, we must investigate. But to appease public anger, we must punish severely now. Mother, as your son, I must give an explanation to the entire city!”
As Prince Zhennan, tasked with guarding Guangzhou, Shen Jianqing could not shield his own son. Moreover, given Shen Jue’s consistently poor reputation, no one was willing to believe he was innocent.
At the time, the incident caused a major uproar in Guangzhou City, with many citizens jointly petitioning for Shen Jue to be severely punished.
Shen Jianqing had no choice. He personally visited the affected families to apologize and punished Shen Jue by making him kneel in the ancestral hall for five days.
Shen Jue’s lack of ambition and indulgence in pleasure were, at most, the traits of a spoiled young master. But harming the common people was an entirely different matter.
It wasn’t that Shen Jianqing didn’t want to believe Shen Jue—it was simply that the facts left him no room for belief.
Shen Jue, stubborn as ever, never once softened his stance toward Shen Jianqing during those five days, refusing to eat or drink the entire time.
She remembered it so clearly largely because she had accompanied Laotaifei during those five days. Laotaifei understood Shen Jianqing’s predicament and did not pressure him, but she spent those days wiping away tears in her room.
Five days later, Shen Jue was carried out unconscious. Only after he awoke did he learn that his General had been beaten to death with military rods.
Even after the truth was uncovered, the father-son relationship between Shen Jue and Shen Jianqing remained more strained than ever.
Wen Jinxin initially believed the rumors as well, and the Shen Jue she heard about upon first arriving at the Prince’s mansion was precisely such a monstrous villain who committed every imaginable evil.
It was only afterward that she, like others, came to know Shen Jue had been wronged.
Laotaifei was right—no matter how unruly he might be, at his core, he was still an upright and kind-hearted person. She believed that someone like him would not raise a mastiff that would casually harm others.
She still remembered a sentence Shen Jue uttered after he woke up: “Sometimes, people aren’t as obedient and humane as dogs.”
Since she had accompanied Laotaifei to visit him, Wen Jinxin was present when Shen Jue said this. Though he spoke with sarcasm, lamenting that no one believed him, his words carried an indescribable loneliness and sorrow.
At that moment, Wen Jinxin felt that he must have truly cherished General to be so deeply saddened.
That was also the first time Wen Jinxin realized that some things should not be judged solely by appearances. At the very least, her impression of Shen Jue began to shift slightly—perhaps he wasn’t as wicked as the rumors claimed.
Just as she was thinking this, the majestic mastiff seemed to catch a scent that intrigued it, vigorously sniffing at Wen Jinxin’s skirt.
Its sharp claws had already begun incessantly pawing upward, and with just a light scratch, a tear appeared in the outer layer of Wen Jinxin’s overgarment.
“Miss, run quickly!” Lan Hui was already crying in panic—a primal fear of such a powerful beast.
Yet Wen Jinxin, her face deathly pale, stood frozen in place, stunned and motionless.
In the bamboo grove, Ah Bing covered his eyes with his hands, peeking through the gaps between his fingers, his voice filled with alarm. “Master, haven’t we played enough? General must be hungry.”
He had seen General hunting and tearing into prey before. Just look at General’s teeth, sharper than blades—if they were to bite down on the young miss’s slender, pale wrist, they’d probably find her bones too tough to chew.
Shen Jue found it amusing to see Wen Jinxin frightened out of her wits. No one but him knew that General was actually quite intelligent and humane.
When General was first brought back, its wild nature made it difficult to tame, and it accidentally bit a servant who was feeding it. Shen Jue gave it a stern lesson.
Since then, without his permission, even if it was starving and a rabbit ran right past it, General would not lunge to bite.
There was no need to worry about it harming Wen Jinxin, but Shen Jue couldn’t be bothered to explain all this. After all, such an entertaining scene wasn’t something he could witness often.
However, he had already seen what he wanted to see. If this continued, something might truly go wrong.
Such a delicate person could be blown over by a strong wind—who knew how long she would need to rest after such a scare? It wouldn’t matter much if she were frightened, but if Grandmother were to grieve because of her, it would be a loss not worth the gain.
But just as Shen Jue was about to call General back, something astonishing happened.
Wen Jinxin, who had been frozen in place, suddenly reached out her hand.
Her skin was naturally fair, and after being confined indoors for over half a month without sunlight, it had taken on an almost translucent whiteness. Her fingers were slender and elegant, with nails a soft, pale pink—so captivating that one couldn’t look away.
Before Lan Hui could react, Wen Jinxin’s fingers had already touched the mastiff’s head, a gentle, tentative contact.
Most astonishing of all, the previously agitated and growling mastiff did not attack Wen Jinxin. Instead, it even seemed to be gradually calming down.
Lan Hui stared wide-eyed, her face a mask of terror. She was convinced her young miss had gone mad.
But she dared not speak or move, fearing that any motion would startle the beast and provoke another frenzy, which would truly ruin her young lady’s delicate hand.
Wen Jinxin had initially taken a gamble, without full certainty of success. Yet she knew common sense: if the mastiff truly intended to attack, there was no outrunning its speed, and frantic flight would only ignite its hunting instincts further.
Even if it had no initial aggression toward you, such actions could stir its wild nature.
Since the risk of attack existed either way, she might as well take the chance—she was willing to trust Shen Jue.
His pet ought to share his temperament.
The mastiff’s fur was glossy, its thick, long coat offering a strangely delightful texture under her touch, like soft, fluffy cotton batting. Once she started stroking it, she found it hard to stop.
The mastiff, in turn, seemed to adore her scent, sniffing her continuously. It ceased its restless movements and gradually settled into a seated position, nuzzling its head against Wen Jinxin’s palm as if thoroughly enjoying her caress.
Lan Hui transitioned from sheer terror to utter disbelief. “Y-young lady… this…”
It was simply too thrilling!
Wen Jinxin gently massaged its head, her uncertain expression melting into a smile as she carefully reassured Lan Hui.
“Don’t be afraid. It means no harm—it just wants to play with us. Come, you try petting it too.”
Even lying on the ground, the half-human-height mastiff was not to be underestimated.
Lan Hui swallowed hard and looked down, meeting the mastiff’s bull-like eyes just as it let out a low whimper toward her. Her newly mustered courage instantly evaporated.
Staggering back half a step, she shook her head vigorously—this was far, far too terrifying.
Wen Jinxin quickly soothed the mastiff by gently scratching from its head down to its chin and neck. She vaguely recalled seeing someone tease a dog like this before and instinctively mimicked the gesture.
The mastiff clearly loved this action. Its previously fierce demeanor transformed in an instant, and it lay back on the ground with evident pleasure.
Its eyes narrowed into slits, appearing utterly docile—a stark contrast to its earlier ferocity.
Not only was Lan Hui stunned, but even Ah Bing stood with his mouth agape in disbelief. Shen Jue kept several hunting dogs, and General was the fiercest among them. Even the servants who fed it daily did so with trembling hands.
Who could have imagined that this delicate, flower-like cousin would instantly tame General? If he spoke of it, others would likely think he was boasting.
Beside them, Shen Jue narrowed his eyes slightly, his face clouded with displeasure. This wretched beast was truly spineless.
If it were lured away by food and drink offered by someone, that would be one thing—but to lose all its temper after merely being petted by a pretty girl, lying there submissively for strokes?
It was downright disgraceful!
The mastiff was truly massive. After playing with it for a while, Wen Jinxin’s hands grew tired, and she decided to stand up and withdraw.
Sensing her impending departure, the mastiff playfully nudged its large head against her, eliciting a clear, bell-like laugh from Wen Jinxin.
Just then, the evening sunlight filtered through the leaves, spilling onto her cheeks and enhancing her striking beauty. Paired with her refreshing, spring-like laughter, the sight was utterly captivating.
Ah Bing, still a young lad, had never seen anyone so beautiful before and stared transfixed.
Even Shen Jue, despite his inner disdain, couldn’t help but steal a few more glances.
By the time she reacted, she quickly suppressed the inexplicable surge in her heart, her expression slightly changed, and she forcefully kicked Ah Bing in the butt.
What a useless thing!
Shen Jue narrowed his eyes slightly, watching Wen Jinxin over there happily laughing while teasing the General, a wave of displeasure rising in his heart.
He placed his fingers to his lips and whistled. The mastiff, which had been comfortably lying with its eyes closed and tongue out, quickly opened its eyes.
One moment it had been snuggling affectionately in Wen Jinxin’s arms like a little bird, and the next it charged forward majestically. In its sudden leap, it even knocked over Wen Jinxin, who had been crouching for a long time.
Perhaps seeing Wen Jinxin fall, the mastiff hesitated for a moment.
Then a lazy voice rang out, “General.”
The mastiff no longer looked back and swiftly charged toward the direction of the voice, circling affectionately around the long legs and emitting a pleading whimper from its throat.
Following Shen Jue toward another direction in the bamboo forest, he never once looked back from beginning to end.
Meanwhile, Wen Jinxin, who had been knocked down, stood up without waiting for Lan Hui to help her and instinctively took two steps in the direction Shen Jue had left.
Even without seeing his face, just hearing his voice, she could already confirm who that fiery young man was.
—Cousin.