Chapter 574: Stunned, Chapter 574 — Stunned As the big wolf dog leaped out, Old Headstrong immediately knew something was wrong. The dog must have seen Li Liānhua’s fair, bare figure and mistaken her for one of the village’s heat-affected female dogs. Without delay, Old Headstrong pulled his hand out from his crotch, straightened up, and called out, “Huzi! You—come back! This is the text content of Chapter 574 of the novel *Rural Beauty 574*. (www.qrge.com)” The big wolf dog bared its teeth, growled, and charged toward the village chief and Li Liānhua, refusing to heed Old Headstrong’s call. “Chief, hurry up! My dog has lost control!” Old Headstrong shouted. The village chief and Li Liānhua were busy, and when they heard Old Headstrong’s cry, the big wolf dog had already reached them. Startled, the chief gasped and swiftly drew out his gun, then took off running. Li Lianghua gasped in surprise, staring at the wolf dog's full mouth of teeth, completely at a loss, standing frozen in place, still holding the posture she had adopted when facing off against the village chief. "Run!" the village chief turned and called out, straightening his back like a spear as he shouted at the elderly stubborn one who had just arrived and was now approaching. "Old Stubborn One, how come you didn't keep an eye on that beast? Are you really thinking of giving up on this orchard?" The elderly man smiled apologetically all the while. "Chief, I really don't know whether you're enjoying yourself here or not—just didn't notice that dog charging straight at me, and now I'm completely helpless." As he passed the village chief, he hurried toward Li Lianghua, calling out as he ran, "Lianhua sister, don't move! Don't move—this dog won't bite you!" This content is from Chapter 574 of the rural beauty series. Li Lianghua nodded stiffly and firmly, watching the large wolf dog circling around her. Tears were almost streaming down her cheeks as she gazed at the dog’s steady, unwavering eyes, fixed on her still-dripping Water Curtain Cave. What if the dog decided to take a sip from there? Oh my goodness—she’d be the very first woman in the village to be bitten by a large wolf dog! The village head seemed to have lost his mind. He had rushed to the apricot tree where Lu Yun was hiding, bent down, picked up a clod of earth, and hurled it at the wolf dog, shouting, “You brute, don’t think of bothering my woman!” Thwack! The village head’s aim was surprisingly good—the clod landed squarely on the dog’s back. The large wolf dog swiftly turned, bared its sharp fangs at the village head, then turned back and licked the water-dripping cave several times with its dripping, perspiring tongue before letting out a low, mournful howl and charging toward the village head with all four paws in motion. Li Lianhua was licked twice by the dog, her spirit so startled it seemed to have flown away. Her whole body trembled like rice paper, and as she closed her eyes, she prepared to endure all the disasters the big wolf dog had in store. Unaware of the fact that she had been pushed aside, the big wolf dog turned around to go find the village head. "You dog! More refined than I am—go back to your own home!" The gruff old man rushed over and kicked the big wolf dog, which was sprinting toward the village head. The big wolf dog let out two mournful whines, rolled over twice from the kick, then rose up, glanced at the old man, and charged again toward the village head. "Village head, hurry up and get out of here! This dog has lost its canine nature—now I can't control it anymore!" Seeing the village head standing bare-chested beneath the apricot tree, looking this way, the old man grew anxious and shouted loudly. He simply couldn't allow this dog to bite the village head, or else the entire orchard would no longer belong to him next year. The village head hadn't expected the long-standing grumpy old hound to harbor such fierce resentment toward him—especially when it ignored the elder's calls, lunging forward with its long tongue lolling out. After glancing down at the now-terrified figure lying flat on the ground, and recalling just how the hound had gently licked Li Liānhua earlier, he instantly realized that once the dog charged, it would surely target his most vital spot. As the hound closed in, he suddenly went completely blank. "Uncle, what are you waiting for? Get up the tree—quick, get up the tree!" Lu Yun shouted desperately, hiding in the apricot tree. Though the village head was irritable, he was still Li Ying's father—how could he just watch helplessly as the hound bit his gun handle? As the village head looked up and saw Lu Yun's figure emerge from the tree, he was about to ask him why he was there when the hound's low, mournful whining reached his ears. In a panic, he grabbed a low branch and climbed up the tree like a monkey. Aah! Woof! The dogs were entwined, and the large wolf dog leaped high, nearly biting the village chief in the buttocks, sending him staggering and nearly falling. Fortunately, Lu Yun reacted swiftly and caught him by the arm. "Uncle, thank goodness! We were so close to being bitten," Lu Yun said, watching the chief's comical state. He wanted to laugh, but held it in, blushing deeply. Upon hearing that Xiao Ying was waiting outside the orchard for Lu Yun, the village head immediately grew anxious. He glanced at the large wolf dog whining and circling under the apricot tree, then shouted at the old grump, "Old Grump, get that dog out of here right away!" Even before the village head spoke, Old Grump had already taken hold of his clothes and arrived at the apricot tree, kicking the dog twice with force. Then, he unfastened the rope wrapped around his arm, tied it securely around the dog’s neck, and firmly fastened it to a nearby tree, effectively securing the troublesome creature. Only then did he come down to the tree and smile apologetically at the village head, saying, "Village head, please come down and dress yourself first. That dog has been disrespectful to you. I’ll slaughter it and serve it as dog meat for dinner." As the village head descended and quickly dressed, he didn’t even have time to greet Li Liānhua, who remained in the same pose, trembling all over. Turning to leave, he added with a cold sigh, "I’ll make sure to eat that dog—bone, meat, and all—right down to the last drop Lu Yun stepped down from the tree, noticed by the grumpy old man. Now wasn’t the time to take advantage of the village chief’s presence and slip away—otherwise, he’d surely be dogged by that old fellow. Lu Yun didn’t follow the village chief out of the orchard. While the grumpy old man had been watching the village chief battle Li Liana, he’d already started fiddling with his own equipment. Now that the village chief was preoccupied with Li Liana and had abandoned her in the orchard, Lu Yun might just witness another thrilling encounter.