PD Chapter 20: Dog Nanny Employment Agreement

As He Linzhou walked into the room, he glanced around, visibly shocked, and finally squeezed out two words: “Oh, damn.”

Wen Xunchuan moved to the window, about to open it for some ventilation, when he noticed cigarette ash scattered all over the floor from the windowsill to the floor, with a shattered porcelain ashtray lying in pieces on the ground.

He sighed, turned around, and walked over to He Linzhou.

Seeing Wen Xunchuan approaching with a fierce look, He Linzhou instinctively took a step back, “What… what’s wrong with you this time?”

Ignoring him, Wen Xunchuan squatted down to grab Chun Mei, who had been curiously wagging her tail and sniffing around He Linzhou’s feet.

He Linzhou chuckled awkwardly, “Last time I came by, you didn’t have a dog. Did you just get one?”

Wen Xunchuan checked Chun Mei’s paws one by one and inspected her fur carefully to ensure there were no cuts from any glass shards before finally relaxing a little.

Since Wen Xunchuan didn’t respond to him, He Linzhou patted Chun Mei’s head and tried to make small talk, “Who would’ve thought you had a soft spot for pets?”

Wen Xunchuan looked up at He Linzhou and asked suddenly, “Do you know how to cook dog meat?”

He Linzhou: “…”

Wen Xunchuan stood up, tiredly surveying the room, including He Linzhou. Naturally, he didn’t place his hopes on someone like He Linzhou, who was more suited to being pampered than doing manual labor. Resigned, he took out his phone to book a cleaner on a housekeeping app.

It wasn’t easy to find cleaning help at night. Finally, one arrived, took one look at the state of the room, and refused to clean, no matter how much extra was offered.

Left with no choice, Wen Xunchuan had to roll up his sleeves and do it himself.

As he expected, He Linzhou, who promised to help, was utterly useless—a total waste of space.

When Wen Xunchuan vacuumed the carpet, He Linzhou grabbed a face towel from the bathroom and wiped the ash off the windowsill. When he mopped the floor, he looked back by chance, only to see He Linzhou slinging the dirty towel at the wall, creating an artistic-looking splatter of black spots. By the time he took down the ash-stained curtains and the urine-stained sofa cover to throw them into the washing machine, He Linzhou had already started playing tug-of-war with Chun Mei using the towel.

Leaning by the window and whipping the towel around, He Linzhou shouted that he was tired—a guy who hadn’t even participated in a school cleanup since elementary school. Wen Xunchuan picked up a dog chew toy from the dog bed and threw it at He Linzhou.

“Hah!” He Linzhou caught the flying toy, raising his eyebrows in smug victory, “Nice try, sneak attack failed.”

The next second, Chun Mei pounced on him, pinning him down.

Two fools.

After finishing the cleaning, Wen Xunchuan wordlessly slammed the bathroom door behind him.

He spent nearly an hour in the bathroom, scrubbing himself clean from head to toe. Only when he was thoroughly refreshed did he finally step out.

He Linzhou lay lazily on the sofa, flipping through TV channels in boredom. Hearing the noise, he glanced over.

Wen Xunchuan was dressed in a neat set of loungewear: a long-sleeved cotton T-shirt with a crew neck that didn’t even reveal a hint of his collarbone, with his damp hair sticking to his head—a faint, almost nonexistent trace of allure.

“Tch.”

He Linzhou looked away in disinterest, commenting, “You’re even less provocative at home than in the bar.”

Wen Xunchuan glanced at him while drying his hair, replying calmly, “Depends on who I’m with.”

Then he turned and walked into the study.

He Linzhou blinked, glancing curiously at the study’s closed door.

In just a few minutes, Wen Xunchuan returned from the study holding a few sheets of paper. He nudged He Linzhou’s legs with his knee and looked down at the dazed guy on the sofa, “Move.”

Snapping back to reality, He Linzhou pulled his legs back and sat up, his expression slightly off.

Wen Xunchuan gave him a puzzled look and sat beside him.

He placed the pen and papers on the coffee table in front of him, not even getting a chance to speak before He Linzhou started, “I think you might have misunderstood me.”

He responded absentmindedly, “What?”

“Actually, I prefer things a bit more… provocative.”

“…?” Wen Xunchuan turned his head.

“Though I may look pretty serious, the whole ‘forbidden charm’ vibe isn’t really my thing.” He Linzhou leaned in with a sly smile, “You know, men, right?”

Wen Xunchuan suddenly realized he might have developed an immunity to He Linzhou’s constant self-confidence. His gaze swept over He Linzhou’s face as he replied, “I think you might be misunderstanding yourself.”

He leaned forward, dodging He Linzhou’s encroaching presence, and spread out a freshly printed “House Rental Contract” on the table. “Look it over. If it’s all good, just sign.”

“What am I misunderstanding?” He Linzhou glanced at the contract on the table, “What’s this?”

“A rental agreement. Or you could consider it a short-term contract for selling yourself,” Wen Xunchuan said. “You can stay here, but I have conditions.”

“What conditions?” He Linzhou picked up the contract and skimmed it, quickly feeling bewildered—not because of any unreasonable or domineering clauses, but because this contract was… unique.

“1. Party B is required to walk the dog twice daily, between 7 and 8:30 in the morning and evening. 2. Party B must feed the dog three times a day, mainly with dog food, supplemented by canned food and low-salt treats. 3. Party B must bathe the dog twice a week. 4. When Party A is not present, Party B must monitor the dog’s behavior; any messes must be cleaned, and any damaged items must be compensated for. 5…”

He Linzhou put down the contract, speechless. “And you call this a ‘House Rental Contract’? Why not just call it the ‘Comprehensive Guide to Dog Care’?”

Wen Xunchuan pursed his lips, holding back the urge to explain that the original title was “Dog Nanny Employment Agreement.” He’d changed it at the last minute when printing it, feeling the title was a bit too direct.

He tapped his finger on the signature line for Party B, “Stop complaining. If you agree, just sign.”

Without a second thought, He Linzhou grabbed a pen, ready to sign his name. But just before he put pen to paper, he paused and looked at Wen Xunchuan, “I have a condition too.”

“What?” A droplet of water trickled down from the wet hair at Wen Xunchuan’s temple, sliding down his cheek to his jaw, catching the light from above as it sparkled.

He Linzhou’s gaze followed that droplet, watching as it slid down his slender neck and seeped into the collar of his light-colored shirt, forming a dark spot on the fabric.

“Party A is only allowed to wear a bathrobe at home.”

Wen Xunchuan, expressionless, gathered up the contract from the table, “You can leave now.”

He Linzhou laughed, “Come on, I was just joking.”

He pressed down on the contract, signing his name without a second thought. Then he looked up at Wen Xunchuan, a bit incredulous, “That’s it? I thought, knowing you, the conditions would be more along the lines of ‘don’t touch this, don’t mess with that…’”

“Oh, right. Almost forgot.” Reminded by him, Wen Xunchuan picked up a pen and added to a blank page, “Don’t touch anything in the study, don’t go into my bedroom, and don’t use the bathtub in the bathroom…”

“…”