===Chapter 19: Deceived and Crippled===

"Bro, you haven't relapsed and reported me again, have you?"

As these words were spoken, the neighbor's face changed, and he straightened up nervously. "N-no, I haven't!"

"That's good then." Chen Yu put the cleaver back in his waist and patted the neighbor's shoulder. "I couldn't sleep well last night, afraid that I would be caught again and have to spend at least one or two more months there."

"N-no... that won't happen." The neighbor sensed the threat in Chen Yu's words, bowed his head, and, with a stiff resolve, moved the last box of his "treasures" into Chen Yu's house.

"Is everything moved?" Leaning against the door frame, Chen Yu peeked into the neighbor's empty house.

"It's... it's all moved."

"Is there anything else you want to throw away?" Chen Yu rubbed his hands together. "You can give it all to me."

The chubby neighbor turned around and looked at his empty home, on the verge of tears. "Only the load-bearing wall is left."

"Oh, I don't want the load-bearing wall." Extending his arm, Chen Yu hugged the neighbor and said, "Let's go. You've been working hard for so long, I'll treat you to breakfast."

"No need!" The neighbor hurriedly refused. "I'll just eat a bite myself..."

"I didn't ask for your opinion." Interrupting the neighbor, Chen Yu forcefully led him into the elevator. "You must eat."

 "Then... then... let me put on a hat."

Watching the chubby neighbor go back into his house, covering his head to hide the title "Waste Otaku," Chen Yu narrowed his eyes slightly. "You really dislike your title, don't you?"

The chubby neighbor looked up and glanced at Chen Yu's title, "Waste Otaku." "Do you like the words 'Waste Otaku'?"

"As for me," Chen Yu rubbed his head, "I'm fine with it."

After all, his previous titles were things like "corpse," "murderer," or "terrorist."

Compared to those, the title "Waste Otaku" seemed quite mild...

"Since you really dislike your title," Chen Yu licked his lips and gleamed with excitement, "as a friend, I'll help you change it."

"Huh?" The chubby neighbor was taken aback.

...

"Help... help... help me!"

Qingcheng, Central Park.

On the snow-covered pedestrian path, two men were engaged in a chase.

The first was the chubby neighbor, running for his life, on the verge of exhaustion.

The second was Chen Yu, casually holding a cleaver, leisurely trailing behind.

"Pick up the pace," Chen Yu swung the sharp tip of the knife, aiming at the neighbor's jiggling buttocks. "Otherwise, I'll stab your butt again."

"Big... big brother... ancestors... please spare me," the chubby neighbor gasped, panting like a dying dog. "I... I... I can't run anymore."

"You can't even hold on after just twelve laps around the park?" Chen Yu mocked from behind. "Truly a waste otaku, such a waste. Your ex-girlfriend broke up with you because you couldn't last long enough, right?"

"I can't go on... I really can't run anymore."

In the face of absolute exhaustion, even the most piercing taunts were useless. When the chubby neighbor depleted the last bit of energy in his body and stumbled on the twelfth and a half lap, he finally fell to the ground, moaning and groaning, refusing to get up anymore. "Then... just kill me... kill me..."

Stopping in his tracks, Chen Yu saw that the neighbor had indeed reached his limit, so he put away the cleaver. "Fine. You have synovitis. Let's end your first morning jog here."

"How... how do you... know so much about me?" The chubby neighbor painfully turned his head back, a mix of fear in his gaze. "Even... even that I have synovitis..."

"I've been keeping an eye on you for quite some time," Chen Yu smiled mysteriously.

The chubby neighbor: "..."

He felt increasingly uneasy.

And he regretted his foolish act of "reporting" even more.

"Damn it, I'm doomed!"

The chubby neighbor howled to the sky.

"Hmm?" Chen Yu looked surprised. "You still have the energy to yell? Then let's run another lap."

Half an hour later.

The morning gradually brightened.

The first rays of sunlight illuminated the white snow, tinting it with a reddish-brown hue.

    With the lopsided neighbor in tow, they arrived at a breakfast shop on the street. Chen Yu waved his hand and said, "Bring us three trays of steamed buns and a glass of soy milk."

"I can't eat that much," the chubby neighbor tiredly waved his hand.

"Who said it's for you to eat?" Chen Yu took the tray handed by the waiter and placed the separate glass of soy milk in front of the neighbor. "You only drink this."

The chubby neighbor: "..."

"Losing weight, not only requires exercise, but also dietary control," Chen Yu grabbed a beef pancake and stuffed it into his mouth, mumbling as he chewed, "For the whole day... you can't eat... meat."

"Who said I want to lose weight!" The chubby neighbor was momentarily stunned, then slammed the table. "Who said I want to lose weight?!"

"Don't you dislike your 'Waste Otaku' title?" Swallowing his food, Chen Yu patted the neighbor's shoulder with his greasy hand. "I'm helping you change, bro."

"I don't need it! I don't want to change..."

"Smack."

Before the words were finished, Chen Yu slammed the cleaver heavily on the table and continued eating the meat buns.

The chubby neighbor instantly shut up, bowing his head and silently drinking the soy milk.

After finishing breakfast, the neighbor couldn't escape and was "coerced" by Chen Yu into a fitness club.

They obtained two monthly cards and arrived at the equipment area on the second floor of the gym.

"Can you lift a 500-kilogram barbell?" Chen Yu asked.

The chubby neighbor: "..."

Chen Yu said, "Then let's start with 50 kilograms."

Tears welled up in the chubby neighbor's eyes. "Brother, I beg you, spare me."

Hearing these familiar lines, Chen Yu couldn't help but recall his fond memories in the "police station" and "security bureau"...

"Brother," he smacked his lips, his face turning serious, and spoke sincerely to the neighbor, "If I spare you, then who will spare you?"

"...Huh?" The neighbor was confused.

"Listen to me, bro. I'm doing this for your own good." Chen Yu leaned closer to the neighbor's ear and spoke rapidly, "Think about it. Who brought about your current suffering?"

"You," the neighbor replied.

"What did you say! What did you say?" Chen Yu corrected him, "Your current suffering is brought about by yourself. Think about it, as a citizen, is there anything wrong with reporting a criminal?"

"I was wrong." The chubby neighbor lowered his head. "I won't dare to report again."

    "Do you have any self-respect? What did you do wrong?" Chen Yu raised his voice, "When a rat crosses the street, everyone shouts to beat it! It's only natural! If there's a criminal around, it's reasonable to voluntarily report them! It's virtuous and ambitious! You did nothing wrong!"

"...I did nothing wrong," the chubby neighbor's face turned gloomy. "Indeed, I did nothing wrong."

"But the reality has made you so unlucky," Chen Yu complained indignantly, "Is that fair?"

"Unfair!" The chubby neighbor looked at Chen Yu with resentment.

"Why is it unfair?" Chen Yu snapped his fingers, "Because you're not strong enough. You're too useless. A mere criminal dares to retaliate against you. Think about it, if you were a muscular guy, a pillar of the nation, or even a leader of young people, would anyone dare to retaliate against you?"

"Definitely not!" The chubby neighbor straightened his chest.

"That's right," Chen Yu nodded in satisfaction, "When evil sees a glimmer of light, it only wants to quickly extinguish it. But if it sees the sun, let alone revenge, it will be instantly incinerated."

"You're right..." The neighbor nodded heavily.

"So, all the unfairness in this world stems from you not being strong enough."

"You're right!"

"That's why, do you know why I bothered you yesterday?" Chen Yu coaxed, "It's because I admire you."

"Admire me? Me?" The neighbor was stunned.

"Yes." Chen Yu nodded, waving his hand, "It's been almost a year, and no one in the entire residential building dares to report me. How tragic is that? Seeing a crime but not stopping it, seeing someone drowning but not rescuing them, seeing an elderly person fall but not helping... It's a moral decline, too decadent. The coldness of reality and the loss of morality have gradually eroded people's bottom line. But..."

He paused for a moment, firmly gripping the chubby neighbor's shoulders with both hands. "But only you! Only you dared to report me without hesitation."

"Only me..." The chubby neighbor was absent-minded.

"Yes! Only you!" Chen Yu was moved. "Only you, who are not afraid of sacrifice or retaliation, reported me. You showed me that there is still hope for us humans! And that hope lies in you!"

The chubby neighbor was dumbfounded.

"So, in order for this last spark of humanity to thrive, I choose to protect you, spur you on, educate you, and cultivate you!" Chen Yu almost believed his own words. "That's why I intentionally retaliated against you, but I never truly sought revenge. It was to let you maintain your original intention while realizing the reality! All the injustices in the world stem from you not being strong enough!"

"I won't allow this ember of humanity to be defeated by the darkness of reality!"

"You! Don't be a 'Waste Otaku' anymore!"

"You! Become stronger!"

"Only by becoming stronger can you continue to uphold your ideals!"

"Only by being stronger can you strike down evil without facing retaliation! Fulfill the goal of a true king!"

"Don't become a mere flickering spark that can be extinguished with a blink of an eye."

"You..."

Chen Yu emphasized each word, resolute and forceful, "You must become that sun!"

    "..."

    The chubby neighbor stared blankly at Chen Yu, his mind empty.

After a while, his brain seemed to comprehend everything, and he suddenly grasped Chen Yu's hands tightly. "Brother! I misunderstood you!"

Chen Yu replied, "Being misunderstood is the fate of the speaker."

...