Chapter 19: Chapter 19: The Little Girl Has Real Skills
After the middle-aged woman spoke, a chorus of voices rose up, condemning and mocking Renee Jennings.
"You say you can understand what dogs are saying? By that logic, I can say I understand what tigers are saying!"
"Just pay them already! Have you no shame?"
"Well, Iâve seen it all now!"
The middle-aged woman was gloating internally.
âLittle brat, trying to outsmart me? In your dreams!â
Diana Jennings and her two children looked worried, but Renee Jennings was the exact opposite.
She calmly said, "Since you donât believe I can communicate with dogs, letâs do a little experiment."
"What kind of experiment?" someone asked, intrigued.
Renee Jennings looked over at a dog owner in the crowd of onlookers. "Bella is injured. Could I possibly borrow your dog?"
The young couple exchanged a look and asked quizzically, "How do you mean, âborrowâ?"
Renee Jennings said, "Let me ask it a few questions. I can find out your names from your dog."
The young couple agreed.
Renee Jennings looked at the toy poodle in the young manâs arms. "Hello there, little fella. Iâm Renee Jennings. And you are?"
The toy poodle replied, "My name is Oreo."
Renee Jennings said, "Oreo, your name sounds delicious."
The young coupleâs eyes went wide with shock.
Renee Jennings then asked, "What does your daddy like to call your mommy?"
Oreo was very cooperative. "Daddy calls Mommy his âshweet wifeyâ!"
"And what does Mommy call Daddy?"
"Doggy!" Oreo finished, unable to keep from grinning.
Renee Jenningsâs lips curved into a smile as well.
The young couple was dying of curiosity. The girlfriend couldnât wait to ask, "What did Oreo say?"
Renee Jennings raised an eyebrow. "It said the dad calls the mom his âsweet wifey,â and the mom calls the dad âdoggyâ."
The coupleâs faces immediately lit up with excitement, and they nodded vigorously.
"Thatâs right!"
"Oh my God, you can really talk to dogs!"
The crowd of onlookers looked on in amazement.
"Holy cow, she can actually understand what dogs are saying? She wasnât just making it all up?"
"Thatâs incredible!"
Zaneâs and Jasmineâs faces were flushed with excitement.
âAuntie is amazing!â
The middle-aged woman hadnât expected the tide to turn so quickly.
Her expression darkened, and she spat through gritted teeth, "You must all be in on this together!"
The young couple frowned. "No, we are not. We donât know this lady."
The middle-aged woman snorted. "I donât believe you."
Just then, several other pet owners in the crowd stepped forward, offering to let Renee Jennings borrow their own "fur babies."
One small dog.
Two small dogs.
Three small dogs.
Renee Jennings questioned each one, then announced the names of the pets and their owners.
The dogsâ owners looked at Renee Jennings with newfound respect and admiration.
"That is so cool!"
"This girl is the real deal!"
Renee Jennings leveled a gaze at the middle-aged woman, her lips curling into a mocking smile. "Anything else youâd like to say?"
The middle-aged womanâs face turned ashen. She opened her mouth, but no words came out.
Renee Jenningsâs gaze shifted, landing on the guilty-looking chubby boy. "Youâre the one who cut Bella with a blade. Why did you do it?"
The chubby boy frantically looked down. The short-haired woman cried out anxiously, "Nonsense! My son didnât do it! Stop filming!"
She tried to shield her son, to keep the onlookersâ phones from capturing his face.
Renee Jennings sneered. "Bella says its mother was beaten to death by your son with a stick."
The expressions on the faces of the middle-aged woman and the short-haired woman changed drastically.
The chubby boy suddenly burst into a wail, "Itâs all Beikeâs fault for not letting me have the cookie! And she keeps biting me in my dreams every night! She dared to bite me, so Iâm taking it out on Bella!"
The crowd of onlookers instantly erupted into chaos.
"This kid is so vengeful!"
"Good heavens, to be so twisted at such a young age!"
The short-haired woman covered her sonâs ears, crying and shouting, "Stop talking! My Xan is still little!"
Renee Jennings beckoned to Jasmine.
The little girl, having forgotten her hurt feelings and her fear of her "wicked" aunt, ran over on her short little legs.
"Auntie!"
"Jasmine, what happened to your cheek?" Renee Jennings bent down, looking with concern at the slight redness and swelling on the little girlâs left cheek.
Jasmine blinked and pointed at the chubby boy. "That boy hit me. He said I was the one who made the puppy bleed. I said I wasnât, so he hit me in the face with his toy."
Renee Jenningsâs face darkened, her gaze sweeping icily over the chubby boy.
The short-haired woman felt her gaze and hugged her son tighter. "Whatâs the point of arguing with a child?"
"So *now* weâre not supposed to argue?" Renee Jennings scoffed. "Then again, itâs not your place to be making demands."
The middle-aged woman said with a grim face, "How much money do you want? Weâll just pay it!"
"Why would we want money? Weâre not short on it," Renee Jennings said with a smirk. "Just have your kid take one slap, and weâll call it even."
"No!" the short-haired woman shrieked. "Xan is my life! Donât you even think about touching him!"
Renee Jennings said mockingly, "So, are you offering to take the slap for your son?"
The short-haired woman could only grit her teeth and agree.
"I wouldnât want to dirty my hands hitting you," Renee Jennings stated her terms. "Leave Bella with us, and I wonât touch you."
After conferring with the middle-aged woman, the short-haired woman agreed.
Renee Jenningsâs mood improved slightly. She said lightly, "Now itâs time for your children to apologize."
The short-haired woman hadnât expected that her child would still have to apologize.
But they were clearly in the wrong, and with the constant condemnations from the crowd, they had no choice but to comply, however unwillingly.
The children who had caused the trouble took turns bowing and apologizing to Jasmine before scurrying away in disgrace.
The whole farce was finally over.
The crowd dispersed.
Renee Jennings and her party were preparing to take Bella to the veterinary hospital for treatment.
"Excuse me, miss." A well-dressed, middle-aged man in a suit suddenly stepped forward to speak with her.
"Yes?" Renee Jennings asked, puzzled.
He handed her a gold-embossed business card and politely explained his purpose. "I saw that you can communicate with pets. As it happens, my Krylia at home has been having some problems recently, and I was hoping you could take a look."
Renee Jennings was a bit surprised.
She accepted the card. "Iâm sorry, but I have to take Bella to the vet right now."
"I know," the middle-aged man explained with a smile. "We can do it whenever you have the time."
"Alright, then," Renee Jennings nodded.
He clasped his hands, looking a little sheepish. "Could I possibly get your contact information?"
Renee Jennings hesitated for a few seconds before giving him her phone number.
"Thank you. I wonât disturb you any further." The middle-aged man let out a sigh of relief and bid a gentlemanly farewell. "Until next time."
"Sis, do you want to take Zane and Jasmine home first?" Renee Jennings asked as they walked.
Before Diana Jennings could answer, the two kids chirped in unison, "No!"
Renee Jennings raised an eyebrow. "You want to come to the vet hospital?"
They werenât afraid of her now. They both nodded their little heads eagerly.
"Alright." A smile touched Renee Jenningsâs lips. "Then letâs all go together."
[System 009: Congratulations, Miss Jennings, on completing your mission. Reward granted: Poultry Dictionary.]
**
ăVeterinary Hospital.ă
"What a good boy!"
"Heâs such a perfect little baby."
Getting an anti-inflammatory shot, taking his medicine, shaving the fur around the wound, then cleaning and dressing itâBella was perfectly behaved through the whole process.
The vet and the nurses couldnât stop praising him.
Renee Jennings watched the sleeping Bella, debating whether to leave him at the hospital to let his wound heal properly.
Just as she was thinking, a vet tech came over and told her that one of their prize blue cats had been refusing to eat on its own for the last few days.