Chapter 23: Sneaky

The violent scene that had just occurred left Xu Qing feeling somewhat shaken.

In an instant, he had gripped an adult's neck with one hand and slammed them to the ground so hard they almost stopped breathing, and even now, red marks could be seen on their neck.

It was too brutal.

Standing still to calm himself, he turned back and looked at the young man lying on the ground like a little chick, too scared to move. Clenching his fist, he said, "Don't move, I'm going to call my police friends to come over."

"Cough cough... Big brother, let me off just this once."

Upon hearing the word 'police', the young man raised his head from the ground, glanced at Jiang He with fear in his eyes, and turned to Xu Qing pleadingly, "I've already been hit... cough cough, let me off just this once, I was just blind for a moment, I won't dare next time."

"You deserved to be hit. You've got hands and feet, why not do something good? You think my money comes from the wind?" Xu Qing spat disdainfully, but his motion to go back to his room ceased. He turned around and asked the man, "Is this your first time?"

"First time, first time... cough cough, don't call the police, I really won't do it again," the young man tried to get up. Seeing Jiang He's head move, he immediately lay back down obediently.

Such bad luck; he had heard that this place was haunted and that people went to bed early. He had hesitated for a long time before mustering the courage to check it out, only to be almost suffocated by someone as soon as he started.

Is this woman from the national team or what?

"..."

Xu Qing fell into thought, or more accurately, pretended to be thoughtful, stroking his chin as he looked at him. He really didn't want to call the police a hundred times over.

"Apologize."

"I'm sorry."

"Forget it, I'll still call the police. I'm going to call my police friend to ask if this counts as self-defense, and if something serious came of the fall, I'd have to accompany you to the hospital," Xu Qing said, turning to reach for his phone.

"No! I'm fine! Big brother, just let me off this once... cough cough, I fell on my own."

"So afraid of the police, it's really your first time?"

"Really, truly."

"Leave the way you came in."

"Huh?"

The young man was stunned for a moment, and then, realizing what was said, he quickly got up. He couldn't help but grimace as he moved his sore body, keeping his head low and enduring the pain as he climbed out the window.

In the dead of night, the living room was brightly lit. Xu Qing waited for him to leave, then went over to tidy up the window, turning to look at Jiang He.

"Trying to steal here is really short-sighted."

"Just like that, you're letting him go?" Jiang He asked.

"What else can I do... notifying the authorities might lead them to question that hit you gave him, as well as your identity," Xu Qing shook his head. "It's pretty troublesome."

"He came to steal and they're worried about me hitting him?"

"It depends on the severity of the injury... You weren't sleeping? Why are you still dressed?"

Xu Qing found it strange. In the middle of the night, Jiang He was still fully dressed. Could it be she was thinking of sneaking out again?

"I'm used to sleeping in my clothes."

"Oh, you weren't planning to run out, were you?"

"Not at all. I just wanted to listen to what you were going to do, then..." Jiang He didn't finish her sentence. Hearing the noise outside, she thought it was Xu Qing and wondered what he could possibly want in the middle of the night.

"As if. You think that everyone is like you, roaming around at night like a night owl... Go back to sleep, I will call someone to fix the window tomorrow."

Xu Qing walked towards his room, then paused at his doorway, turned around and said, "If I was sneaking around in the middle of the night doing that sort of thing..."

Jiang He looked at him expressionlessly, "Doing what sort of thing?"

"Ha... Never mind, just go to sleep."

"..."

The living room light was turned off again, and after a short while, Xu Qing's room door closed. Moments later, Jiang He glanced outside the window and quietly returned to her room.

...

...

The next day, Xu Qing got up early, washed his face and brushed his teeth, after which Jiang He also came out fully dressed.

"Were you hiding in your room secretly practicing martial arts?"

Seeing the sweat on Jiang He's forehead, Xu Qing couldn't help but ask, as she always looked like this whenever she got up early.

And yet, he couldn't hear any noise...

"Mm," Jiang He did not deny it, practicing in the chilling frost of winter and the scorching heat of summer was part of a martial artist's self-cultivation.

"Next time, can you practice with the door open so I can see how you train?"

"Sure."

Unexpectedly, Jiang He agreed so readily. Xu Qing was a little surprised, but he didn't say anything. He went back to his room to grab his phone and keys, and when Jiang He was ready, he gestured to her to head out.

"Let's go, out for breakfast, and find a contact for window and door installation on the way."

"You want me to come with?"

"Of course. I thought about it all last night. It's not good to just stay at home strategizing; to learn about life, the best way is to experience it."

As Xu Qing spoke, he led Jiang He out, stepping out of the building to breathe in the morning's fresh air, contributing to Jiangcheng's carbon dioxide emissions.

"Look more, listen more, learn more."

He gestured around, "Life is everywhere. Do you know how to learn?"

"How do I learn?" Jiang He asked, somewhat expectantly.

"Forget your past thinking and notions, forget where you come from before, and treat everything as completely new," Xu Qing said with his hands in his pockets, strolling leisurely ahead. "Free, equal, civilized, harmonious, prosperous, democratic, just, lawful, industrious, patriotic, honest, and amiable. Remember these twenty-four words of truth first, and repeat them."

"..."

Jiang He opened her mouth, but the words were stuck in her throat and she couldn't speak.

As if she could remember it all in one go!

"Like the thief last night, if you encounter a similar situation, you can subdue him, but don't be too harsh. Were you thinking about breaking his neck last night?"

"No, I held back a lot of strength," she said.

"That's good... it's troublesome to injure someone here, even if that person is very bad. As long as they don't intend to kill you, you cannot kill them; leave everything to the government officer," Xu Qing paused before continuing, "But considering your strength, hardly anyone could threaten you, so never aim to kill, no matter the situation."

"Then to what extent can I hit someone?"

"It depends on the situation. For example... why do you need to hit someone?"

"If you sneak into my room in the middle of the night, how hard should I hit you?" Jiang He asked.

"...That's basically impossible, think of another 'if'," Xu Qing curled his lip. "Do I look like that kind of person?"

"Very much so."

"..."

Xu Qing, whose character was being questioned, got angry.

"I'm a Hero, one with integrity and upright moral standing, understand?"

Jiang He pursed her lips, "I'll tentatively believe you."

"What do you mean by 'tentatively'?... Wait, why would you have such a weird thought as me sneaking into your room?" Xu Qing wondered, feeling that he didn't look like a bad person at all.

And normally he hadn't done anything... except for picking up the shoe she'd thrown into the trash bin, nothing else.

"You said it last night."

"Last night?" Xu Qing scratched his head, just remembering the joke he made last night, he said speechlessly, "That was a joke... If I would really do something like that, would I say it out loud?"

Jiang He didn't say a thing; she had been troubled the night before thinking about what to do if that really happened, she couldn't just beat him half to death for real.

"Speaking of which, if it really happened, what would you do?" Xu Qing asked.

"I would punch you once," Jiang He said.

"One punch?"

"One punch."

Xu Qing looked at her hand; that one punch would likely be fatal.