Chapter 189: Concerned Citizen Mr. Xu
"Hello, I’m Seria."
"The network connection has been lost!"
"Ti to fight for server channels again..."
"I got disconnected!"
"A blade cuts the body, but the heart severs the soul."
"Such talent!"
"I pressed the wrong button, move away!"
"..."
Jiang He didn’t understand why this music struck such a chord with veteran players. After all, she had only started playing last year, and Arad had already been destroyed once.
In today’s age of data-driven gaming, no one racks their brains for strategies anymore. Gone are the days of the thrill of defeating the goblin in Gran Forest with just a sliver of health left. Everything now is about speed—quick wins, instant results.
Gas that were once hardcore side-scrollers had beco template-based. Players chased after the sa supre gear to deal damage in excess of 99,999, making it feel like they were hacking. The joy from back then had fundantally changed.
Once, sporting wings and chains ant you were a big deal. Now, people casually buy 12 sets of Spring Festival packages just for the gems inside. Even with the ga’s reset, the now-grown players found it hard to recapture the old happiness. mories, after all, remain mories.
As Jiang He finished her round, the chat was still buzzing. She put down her chopsticks, cracked her knuckles, and clicked to match with a new opponent. She wondered if Xu Qing was watching her from his phone. After a mont of thought, she asked, "Are you watching ?"
The chat continued without pause, and more ssages like "Yes, yes, yes!" popped up, leaving her unsure if Xu Qing was among them.
"I was asking my boyfriend if he’s watching, not you lot."
"You didn’t need to add that explanation."
"Really unnecessary."
"Critical hit received."
Jiang He muttered under her breath. Her match was already set, and her opponent seed shocked by her garish outfit.
"Renaissance vibes?" the opponent typed mockingly.
"You're just missing a pair of chains on your feet."
Jiang He (ID: Seedling19): "Watch my sword!"
As Jiang He struggled to type with her one-finger thod, her opponent took advantage and ambushed her, prompting the chat to erupt in laughter.
Her gaplay was still at the level of bullying noobs. She hadn't yet reached the rank she had with her gunner character, but the flashy new outfit boosted her confidence. After being ambushed once, she rcilessly cut down her opponent. ＲÂℕÒꞖƐ𝙨
"Flashy noob."
Hu Tong had initially logged in to check if Xu Qing was still tweaking his armor. Seeing no such action, he figured it was another solo stream night and prepared to leave the livestream to play so LoL himself.
The design of the female ghost swordsman annoyed him greatly. What era was this outfit from? A worn-out Christmas hat and oversized wings? At first glance, he thought he had traveled back in ti.
Just as he was about to close the stream, he heard a rapid clattering sound. He looked up, stunned to see Jiang He tapping furiously with two chopsticks.
What the hell!
Though it lasted only half a minute, Hu Tong couldn’t tell if it was short or long. He forgot about LoL altogether. Watching the relentless comnts and Jiang He’s performance, he opened a long-untouched icon on his desktop—DNF (Dungeon & Fighter)—and started the update.
That winged outfit suddenly looked a little more appealing. It just needed a jarhead helm to complete the look.
At 7:30 PM, Xu Qing still hadn’t returned.
Jiang He glanced repeatedly at the clock hanging beside the living room TV. He had said he'd be back by "seven or eight," which to her ant 7:30. Yet there was still no sign of him.
Winter lon, her cat, wagged its tail and jumped onto the table, only to be shooed off by Jiang He. She didn’t need to guess—it was after her dried sweet potato again.
"Does the strear also keep pigs at ho?"
"That’s a cat, though it’s a bit chubby."
"Buddy, you're new here. Stick around for a few days, and you’ll learn about this place's five wonders: the male strear crafting armor by hand, the female strear addicted to gaming, the statue punished to stand in the corner, the ever-vigilant Zhong Kui, and the pig-cat."
"The information overload…"
By 8 PM, Jiang He ended her stream, then picked up her phone to ssage Xu Qing: "Are you watching ?"
Checking her stream stats, she was surprised to find that although the viewer count wasn’t as high as when both of them stread together, it was still much better than when she stread alone.
Xu Qing hadn’t replied on WeChat. Setting her phone aside, she edited and uploaded clips from tonight’s session, then replayed footage from yesterday's stream, watching Xu Qing banter with their audience.
It was after 9 PM, and Xu Qing still hadn’t responded. She finally sent another ssage: "When are you coming ho?"
Xu Qing’s reply ca at 10 PM: "Almost there, on my way now."
Holding her phone, Jiang He considered responding but decided not to. At 10:30 PM, as she yawned while glancing at the clock, she heard the sound of keys turning in the door.
"You taught to tap like that—" Jiang He perked up and walked halfway toward him before freezing in place at the sight of Xu Qing.
The hem of his T-shirt was stained with blood.
"Don’t panic. It’s not mine," Xu Qing said, startled by her sudden serious expression.
"Not yours?"
Jiang He grabbed his arms and checked him over, only relaxing once she confird he wasn’t injured.
"It’s a long story. Let toss this shirt and take a quick shower."
Xu Qing quickly pulled off his shirt and slipped into the bathroom. Jiang He, watching his broad shoulders disappear, pursed her lips and sat on the couch to wait.
Scenes of him coming ho late with blood on his clothes gave her a montary sense of deja vu.
"Can you grab my pajamas?" Xu Qing called from the bathroom, cracking the door open slightly.
"Sure, I’ll find them for you."
Jiang He went into Xu Qing’s cluttered storeroom, rummaged for a mont, and returned with his pajamas in one hand and his boxers hooked on her finger. She passed them to him through the door.
A short while later, Xu Qing ca out, towel-drying his hair, and slumped onto the couch. He grabbed Jiang He’s half-finished can of cola and chugged it down.
"I was so thirsty... I was supposed to be back by seven, but then stuff happened—had to go to the hospital and the police station, which delayed until now."
"What’s with the blood?" Jiang He asked, glancing at the discarded shirt. The stain didn’t look like it was from a nosebleed.
"It’s Qin Hao’s."
"Are you okay?"
"I’m fine. Soone else is in trouble, not ," Xu Qing waved it off.
"Good."
Jiang He finally let out a full breath, moving closer to Xu Qing to poke and prod his stomach. "I thought you’d been attacked."
"…Can you not think of such grim things?"
Xu Qing leaned back on the couch, eyes half-closed in exhaustion.
"If it were you coming ho this late, with blood on you, I’d think you attacked soone."
"Well, I stay ho gaming every day. I don’t even take my sword out. How could I hurt soone?" Jiang He replied. "You’re tired, right? Go rest early."
"If you keep touching like that, I won’t be able to sleep."
"I’m just checking if you’re hurt." Jiang He retracted her hands, adjusted Xu Qing’s pajama top to cover his stomach, and added, "That fat guy—is he dead?"
"...No, just injured. Don’t keep saying things like ‘dead.’"
"Okay." Jiang He glanced at the clock. It was already past 11, nearing midnight. "Do you want sothing to eat?"
Xu Qing looked at her. Normally, he wouldn’t have noticed, but right now, she really looked like a little housewife.
Just as Jiang He was waiting for an answer, Xu Qing grabbed her and gave her a firm kiss, leaving her with a mouthful of cola flavor.
"I’ve eaten already. Let’s sleep early," Xu Qing said contentedly, getting up from the couch. "We’ll talk tomorrow."
"Goodnight," Jiang He said.
"Goodnight, and stop thinking about fighting all the ti. This was just an accident."
The next day.
"To sum it up, it was a failed ‘hero saves the beauty’ mont that turned into saving the hero. A complete accident. I’ll check on him again today and also go back to the station... You really don’t need to give your sword for self-defense."
Over breakfast, Xu Qing explained the incident to Jiang He, slipping on his shoes and grabbing his phone and keys to leave.
Jiang He held her sword, looking concerned about him running into more trouble.
"I’m not a walking disaster magnet. Haozi is. Wherever that fat guy goes, trouble follows. I just got dragged into it."
"Co back early."
"I will. Don’t forget to study."
After exchanging farewells, Xu Qing stepped into the morning breeze, still cool with a touch of wind. He hailed a cab to the hospital, buying a bunch of bananas downstairs before heading to the fifth-floor ward where Qin Hao was lying in a hospital gown, sipping congee.
Qin Maocai sat beside him, his face dark, scolding him. He stopped only when Xu Qing arrived.
"Uncle, have a banana." Xu Qing handed him one, peeled another, and looked at Qin Hao. "Can you eat? Never mind, I’ll eat it myself."
"What happened exactly?" Qin Maocai asked Xu Qing.
"He didn’t tell you?" Xu Qing was surprised.
"He made himself sound like a hero, just short of tying firecrackers to himself and blasting off into the sky!" Qin Maocai glared at Qin Hao. "If he were as amazing as he claid, why is he lying here?"
"I underestimated him. Who would’ve thought he’d pull a knife..." Qin Hao muttered.
"Drink your congee! Let Xu Qing explain."
"..."
Clearing his throat, Xu Qing began, "It’s just as I said. We were eating, and then soone insisted we go to an internet café to play. Once there, so guy tried to mug a girl with a stick. Haozi, being the hero, stepped up and took a stab for it."
"That’s it?"
"That’s it."
"Exactly! But he had to go on about how his imposing presence scared the mugger, how he wrestled and fought like a pro. What nonsense!" Qin Maocai angrily bit into a banana before turning to Xu Qing. "Before you ca, this kid was bragging for half an hour."
Sotis it seed Qin Hao had chosen the wrong profession. He should’ve beco a storyteller. When paired with Xu Qing, they could probably run a whole opera house—though Qin Hao would clam up the mont he faced a girl.
"I wasn’t exaggerating. I did manage to disarm him at first..." Qin Hao muttered.
"Are you okay?"
"I’m fine, just bled a lot." Qin Hao’s face was still a bit pale.
Seeing all that blood made him think he was going to die, but after getting stitched up, he realized he would survive.
Finishing his congee, Qin Hao urged, "Dad, you should go eat sothing."
"Alright, I’m going."
"I’ll stay here," Xu Qing offered.
After Qin Maocai left, closing the door behind him, Qin Hao shifted uncomfortably in bed to find a more comfortable position. He eyed Xu Qing but said nothing.
"How bad is it?" Xu Qing asked, lifting the blanket to check Qin Hao’s heavily bandaged abdon.
"Not too bad. I twisted to avoid the vital areas."
"Make sure the congee doesn’t start leaking out of your stomach."
"Stop joking. What’s with you? Planning to transform or sothing?" Qin Hao shot back irritably, pulling the blanket over himself again.
"Transform into what..." Xu Qing sat back in his chair, peeling another banana. "I was just in a rush. If it were a couple of years ago, back when I had a temper, I would’ve slapped his head clean off."
"..."
"Does this count as a heroic act? Can I get an award?" Xu Qing leaned forward. "Preferably a banner to show off to my dad."
"In your dreams. They’re still assessing the injuries. At most, you’re just... ‘a helpful citizen assisting law enforcent.’ Forget about the hero title."
"Luckily, I’m a cop. Otherwise, you’d be the one worrying about getting sued for that slap."
"Hmph, honest folks always get the short end of the stick."
"You’ll need to file a report later. By the way, where’d you learn that tiger palm technique? Is your ancestor Xu Chu? I should ask your dad one day."
"You might be descended from Qin Qiong," Xu Qing quipped.
"Ha, wouldn’t that be convenient."
A knock at the door interrupted their banter. They both looked toward it, then at each other, before Xu Qing tossed his banana peel and got up to answer.
A girl with a long braid stood at the door, nervously holding a large bag of fruit. She blinked at Xu Qing, visibly unsure of herself.
"Uh, the stout officer..."
"He’s not stout, just... sturdy. Co in." Xu Qing chuckled and stepped aside. "Sturdy officer, yesterday’s girl is here to see you."
"Hello, sturdy officer."
"My na’s Qin," Qin Hao corrected, displeased.
"Oh, I’m sorry! Officer Qin..." The girl stamred, clutching the fruit, looking awkward. "Thank you so much."
"Just doing my job."
"Ah..."
"You two chat. I’ll head over to your station." Xu Qing waved.
"Hey, wait—"
"Later! Qin Uncle will be back soon."
Xu Qing left. In the corridor, he glanced around and spotted Qin Maocai returning.
"The girl he saved is here to thank him," Xu Qing said.
"Got it."
"I need to head to the station. See you."
"Go on." Qin Maocai waved him off. "When his armor’s ready, I’ll make him wear it every day."
Hospitals, with their pervasive sll of disinfectant, always carried a sense of unease. Xu Qing didn’t linger, heading out to hail a cab directly to Qin Hao’s precinct.
Heroic act or not, this ordeal was turning into a hassle. Qin Hao really was a walking disaster magnet.
Upon arrival, he found Qin Hao’s ntor, Old Chen, reviewing surveillance footage. The two had t the previous day.
The incident had occurred in a side alley. Qin Hao had taken the mugger’s stick and moved toward the alley’s edge, barely visible in the footage.
"You’ve trained?" Old Chen asked, eyeing Xu Qing’s build.
"Yeah, a bit."
"Let see your hand."
"I just ss around."
"That slap was clean and decisive."
"..."
"Make sure not to get into fights. Soone with your skill could end up in jail."
"You’re the one who got into that fight last ti, aren’t you?" Old Gu chid in from the side.
Xu Qing froze.
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