"What’s wrong with this dog’s left eye?" she asked curiously.
"Its left eye is blind," Daniel Harris replied.
"Was it caused by a disease?" She knew that dogs could also get cataracts and such.
"No, when it was young, some kids blinded it," he said, "so Big Yellow doesn’t like getting close to people."
"Did you save it? Is that why it only gets close to you, its owner?" Mabel Quinn asked.
Daniel Harris seemed a bit surprised, "Why do you think it would be my dog? And not the Crown Prince’s dog?"
"You said it doesn’t like getting close to people, but it’s very close to you now, and just now when it was about to attack me, as soon as you called its name, it stopped immediately. This shows it really obeys your commands. Generally, a dog only obeys whom it considers its owner like that, so I guess you’re its owner," Mabel Quinn explained her reasoning and then added, "In a place like Han Garden, the Crown Prince seems unlikely to have a mongrel, right? Uh... Big Yellow is a mongrel, right?" Anyway, she thought it looked exactly like the mongrels she saw back in Drumbeat Village.
"It is a mongrel," Daniel Harris said.
Mabel Quinn said, "Mongrels are pretty good, too. They even have a scientific name, the Chinese Field Dog. But now in the city, people mostly keep pet dogs. It’s rare to see a mongrel. Actually, mongrels are smart and loyal. I used to stay in a small village for a while when I was a kid. Almost every household there kept a few mongrels to guard the house, and these mongrels were really good at it."
Thinking of that summer in Drumbeat Village, a smile unconsciously appeared at the corner of Mabel Quinn’s lips. That period of time was beautiful and nostalgic for her.
As for Daniel Harris, seeing the smile at the corner of Mabel Quinn’s lips, his heart suddenly felt a slight flutter, as if her smile made him feel like he was trying to hold onto something, yet unable to grasp anything.
What exactly was he trying to hold onto? Why did he have such strange feelings when facing her?
In the evening, Mabel Quinn received a call from Grace Yowell, "Mabel, are you free tomorrow? Let’s meet up."
Tomorrow was a day off, so Mabel Quinn readily agreed.
Grace Yowell mentioned a location, and the next day, Mabel Quinn got herself ready early. Her clothes, pants, and shoes were the usual ones she wore. However, her bag, a nylon backpack she used for work, seemed unsuitable for shopping. But the other bags she had fit for shopping were left at home, so Mabel picked a small shoulder bag from the pile of brand-name bags Kyle Kinston had bought for her. It looked pretty ordinary with no prominent logo and was just the right size for her keys, phone, and wallet.
When she reached the agreed location, Grace Yowell was already waiting in the car. Mabel Quinn got in, and Grace Yowell smiled and said, "I was going to go shopping with you, but as soon as I stepped out, I got a call inviting me to a charity banquet. I was just worried about having no company, Mabel, why don’t you come with me?"
"Sure," Mabel Quinn agreed since she was out today to catch up with childhood friends anyway.