C5 Fifth Chapter Communication Therapy Two

Upon hearing the comment, Liu Xu's lips curled into a sly grin. He approached the golden retriever and made a show of inspecting it.

The young man, clearly impatient, gestured dismissively. "Go back to where you came from. I heard you're just a temp. What can you possibly know about treating illnesses?"

Liu Xu didn't bother to argue. With a chuckle, he posed a question, "Have you and your girlfriend broken up recently, or did you have a fight?"

The question caught the young man off guard. His eyes widened in surprise as he stared at Liu Xu. "Do you know me?"

"First, tell me if I'm right," Liu Xu replied, a gentle smile on his face.

"...You could say that," the young man conceded, visibly taken aback by Liu Xu's insight. He nodded earnestly. "Yes, we had a fight, but we didn't break up. We've made up since then. But how did you know all that?"

"Your dog told me," Liu Xu said, patting the golden retriever. "Your girlfriend brought it to live with you, and it's been with you both for three years... I imagine when you fought, she stormed out. Dogs are empathetic creatures; after three years, it sees you both as its family."

"It's worried it won't see its mistress again, and that's why it's not eating. Once it sees you two back together, it'll recover."

Liu Xu's details were spot on, and the young man was mostly convinced. He hurriedly added, "She was just away on a business trip. She's back today, actually. She called me from the train station; she'll be here any minute."

His words were a veiled challenge to Liu Xu—if he was bluffing, he'd soon be caught out.

But Liu Xu's information was accurate, sourced directly from the Elf Pet App, so he remained unruffled and nodded, "That's great."

The Golden Retriever's owner was clearly worried about her beloved pet. It wasn't long before she rushed into the shop, suitcase in tow and panting from the effort.

Almost immediately, everyone, including the young man, noticed a change in the Golden Retriever. The dog perked up, its eyes brightening with recognition and life.

Despite not having eaten anything today and lacking strength, the animal continued to squirm in the man's embrace, eager to be let down.

The young man promptly set it on the ground, and it dashed over to the girl who had just entered the shop, whimpering and nuzzling her hand with its head.

Liu Xu offered a slight smile, glanced around, and scooped up some dog food. Approaching the Golden Retriever, he said, "Eat up. You need a full belly for strength, right?"

The Golden Retriever barked, shedding its sullen demeanor, and eagerly devoured the food.

Noticing the change, the shop assistants quickly brought over more dog food and water for the dog to feast on.

Although the Golden Retriever didn't eat much, likely due to the long period without food, the marked improvement was enough to validate Liu Xu's diagnosis.

The young man, seemingly in awe of Liu Xu's remarkable healing touch, saw the Golden Retriever perk up after eating and, without hesitation, pulled out a thousand yuan from his wallet.

"I failed to recognize a great talent before me. Brother, no, you're truly a master of pets," he said, handing the money to Liu Xu. "Consider this a consultation fee. Rest assured, with your expertise, I'll be sure to recommend all my pet-owning friends to your shop!"

Liu Xu accepted the money with composure, humbly offered a few words in response, and then he and Hsu Xiaoyue escorted the pair out of the store.