The King of the Kids

After having dinner with Uncle Bai Ningguang, Xue Ming prepared to leave and return to Hengyin alone to pay New Year's greetings.

The father and daughter were immediately displeased upon hearing this.

Bai Ziqing asked, "Aren't you taking me with you?"

Bai Ningguang pressed further, "Not staying overnight? My daughter told me you're really good at fixing things and very fast. I was hoping you could help me fix my toys!"

Xue Ming took off his coat and winter clothes and explained to Xiao Qi, "Why don't you stay home and keep your uncle company? We have plenty of time, but you two have very little time."

"Okay." Xiao Qi pouted and ran to the kitchen to wash the dishes.

"As for your toys, Uncle," Jiang Xueming rolled up his sleeves and pulled a toolbox from under the sofa, "Let me see them."

Bai Ningguang immediately beamed with joy and pulled a large cardboard box out of the bedroom.

Jiang Xueming took a closer look--

--Good heavens, they're all toy guns, more than twenty of them.

There are cultural relics from 2005, as well as valuable items from 2025.

Some sound and light toys, when pressed, produce strange sounds like "Dad's dad is Grandfather".

Bai Ningguang kept all these broken treasures, never wanting to throw them away.

Jiang Xueming scratched his head when he saw these things. To be honest, this was his old profession—when he sold beef Hung Hom, there were many GAS competition pistols at the shooting range, which were just toys in the eyes of the military and police.

Xue Ming can fix these things; he can understand the structure at a glance.

"Uncle, aren't we rich? I understand if you want to hold an arms exhibition at home, but I don't understand if you want to hold an antique exhibition. Why don't you just throw away the broken little items and buy new ones?"

Bai Ningguang immediately patted his chest and said, "No! These are all my precious swords!"

Jiang Xueming asked in surprise, "Could it be that they have a record of victories?"

"Of course!" Bai Ningguang said with a grin, "Look at this!"

I pulled an SVD plastic gun out of the cardboard box.

"I bought this when Xiao Qi was born. I went to the woods to hunt partridges and sparrows. Others used lead bullets—I couldn't afford an air gun, so I used this. I would bring them back to make soup for Chunxiang to help her recover."

Jiang Xueming was stunned. "Uncle, you can't repair this thing—it's illegal nowadays. If I were to repair it, it would be considered manufacturing a firearm."

"I don't want you to fix it, I just want it to look nice again." Bai Ningguang stroked the SVD's hollowed-out plastic wood grain base. It's a good thing it's made of plastic, otherwise it would be rotten by now.

"I understand, the restored model, right?" Xue Ming took the SVD from his father-in-law and began to disassemble it.

"Yes, yes, yes!" Bai Ningguang's eyes lit up immediately when he saw Jiang Xueming's method of taking apart the toy, which didn't seem like he was just messing around.

He quickly picked up another pistol, a scale model.

"This one! And this one too, all M1911s are made of aluminum alloy. I went to great lengths to buy them."

Jiang Xueming disassembled the toys to clean off the dust and mold. He pulled out a large basin from the toilet, poured in Blue Moon laundry detergent, threw all the parts in, and started wiping with a sponge.

He craned his neck to look at the M1911, which was no bigger than the palm of his hand; it looked like a child's model.

Bai Ningguang said excitedly, "This is for Qingqing, it's her tenth birthday present."

Jiang Xueming: "Why did you decide to send this?"

"I wanted to teach her how to draw a gun safely, how to carry it properly, and how to reload quickly," Bai Ningguang explained. "Back then, all that was available on the market was scrap metal like zinc alloy, which would stunt a child's growth if they handled it too much. I had to ask around at a mold factory for ages before I finally got a scaled-down aluminum alloy model. It couldn't fire anything; all we could do was eject the casings and play with it. You see?"

After saying that, Bai Ningguang pulled up the sleeve with his broad, thick hand, and immediately plastic cartridges popped out of the ejection port.

But this thing is getting old, and its shell-removing function isn't very reliable anymore.

Bai Ningguang fiddled with the casing for a long time but still couldn't remove it.

Xue Ming reached out to release the magazine, pulled the slide back, and the spent cartridges obediently fell out of the grip.

Bai Ningguang beamed with joy. "Great! Can this be fixed, Xiao Jiang? Qingqing took this out to play, and so many kids were so envious. Her classmates even tried to take it from her—"

At this point, Uncle Ningguang immediately drew his gun and aimed.

"I saw my daughter shove someone aside with a 'Hey!' and start firing her gun, all while pretending to be serious. And then..."

Uncle Ningguang was all smiles, but he started to pant.

"Then she said—you bad thing, don't rob me."

Xue Ming took a tissue from the table and handed it to his uncle, saying, "Don't cry. It's the New Year."

"I'm so happy, I..." Bai Ningguang didn't know what to say, "I feel so, so good—Xiao Jiang, when I think back to that time, when I was still young... Chunxiang didn't leave either, she would often come home to visit. We didn't get divorced."

Jiang Xueming didn't say anything, but skillfully unlocked the socket and examined all the rusted aluminum parts. It would probably be very difficult to repair them.

Cold, metallic—unlike love made of plastic, unlike love made of plastic.

If it's just something like nylon or ABS, you can fix it by using UV-cured resin or automotive putty to fill in the gaps.

Aluminum alloys are very difficult to rust. They have low density and are prone to oxidation. Once they rust from a bump or knock, the damage is irreversible. If you really want to restore them as Uncle Bai Ningguang said, they would probably have to be melted down and remade.

Xue Ming examined the toy—or rather, the toy model.

He could vaguely recall that among the many notes on Xiao Qi's crew ID, there was no mention of combat skills training.

In other words, Bai Qingqing had never received formal training as an armed employee at the train station.

When using the ASH-12, her posture was very standard; even when her palms were bleeding and her skin was torn during continuous firing, her standing posture remained unchanged.

It's likely that all of this was a precious skill that Uncle Bai Ningguang taught Xiao Qi with toy guns from a young age.

Modern toys are very easy to use, and weapons are becoming increasingly convenient and easy to operate. These days, you can see kids as young as ten practicing drawing guns quickly with toy models on TikTok.

In a way, the hobby that this "King of Kids" taught the children—which saved Xiao Qi countless times and also Xue Ming's life—was also a lifesaver.

"Can it be fixed?" Bai Ningguang wiped away her tears, a glimmer of hope returning to her eyes. "Can it? Is it possible?"

Xue Ming nodded. "Okay."

Bai Ningguang then pulled out a Type 81 model from the cardboard box.

"This—this was before Xiao Qi was born. The Yugoslav embassy was bombed by the Americans. My friends at the Taohe Police Station and I were so angry that we cried. I felt powerless and incompetent, so I went to cut down trees. I didn't know what to do with the wood, so I whittled it into this gun."

The wood was completely rotten. Judging from the steel bars embedded inside, Uncle Ningguang probably really intended to use this thing as a decoy target on the battlefield. Its gun shape is very upright—even though a few corners are chipped, the Russian gas-operated lineage is still there, and you can tell it looks like the Type 81 at a glance.

Before Uncle Ningguang could ask...

Xue Ming immediately replied, "Yes, it can be fixed."

Immediately afterwards, Uncle Ningguang pulled out a Type 95 from the cardboard box.

It's a toy from five years ago, an electric launcher that sprays resin gel.

"I bought this thing five years ago. The workmanship is terrible. I got it from Taobao. I'm getting old. When I heard about the border conflict between China and India, I went to the police station to donate money. I didn't know what to do, but they wouldn't take my money. They just told me to eat more, sleep more, stay healthy, and be ready to fight at any time."

Bai Ningguang stroked the Type 95's rackless receiver.

So I bought this.

Jiang Xueming took a look at it and started talking as he unpacked it.

"Its gear set is broken. The plastic gears pull the air pump to launch the resin balls, and fragments of the balls easily fall into the high-speed rotating bevel gears—this is easy to repair."

Bai Ningguang quickly waved his hand. "No, no, no, I don't want you to fix this part."

Jiang Xueming asked in confusion, "Why?"

Bai Ningguang said seriously, "Nowadays, many children are using these to shoot things around. I bought it not because it can shoot anything, but so that I, as a worker, can experience what it's like for border guards to stand guard with guns."

Jiang Xueming: "That's easy."

Bai Ningguang: "Besides, it's made of two shells joined together, and it feels soft and flimsy when you squeeze it. I want to touch something heavy, solid, something that makes me feel at ease."

Jiang Xueming: "This is made of nylon, so it's easy to solve."

That concludes my discussion of Uncle Ningguang's patriotism.

Then Jiang Xueming found something that wasn't so patriotic in the cardboard box—

--Winchester M1887 Shotgun toy.

Bai Ningguang explained hesitantly, "This is..."

Jiang Xueming's professional instincts kicked in. "Arnold Schwarzenegger's sidearm, a pump-action pistol, firing 10-gauge shotgun shells."

Bai Ningguang: "No, no, no, it's not like that. We're firing 13mm soft cartridges, sponge cartridges."

Jiang Xueming immediately opened the bolt and examined it carefully. "The ejection is pretty bad, Uncle, you really went all out with this, this little part is made of steel."

Bai Ningguang blushed. "Chunxiang and I confirmed our relationship at the movie theater—that's the movie we watched, the first Terminator movie."

Jiang Xueming: "It has sentimental value. It can be repaired by replacing a small part."

If pump-action shotguns are the epitome of a childish fantasy, then what follows is a bit of a stretch—

--Maxwell Customized M870 Competition Shotgun.

Jiang Xueming felt ashamed; when he pulled this large, expensive toy out of the cardboard box, he felt that even the original model wasn't this heavy.

"A legitimate American-made machine. Uncle, how do you explain that? Is there any connection?"

Bai Ningguang stammered, "M870 is the best-selling furniture in the United States."

Jiang Xueming: "Furniture, you son of a bitch."

Bai Ningguang: "I was thinking, if one day we really go to war with those American devils, we should at least understand their main weapons, right? These are the best-selling items in America—I need to know about them."

Jiang Xueming pressed harder. "That makes sense! What's wrong with it?"

Bai Ningguang: "The barrel can't be pulled."

The toy in Jiang Xueming's hand was very new, just like how Xiao Qi sent money home, and how Uncle Bai started to squander money and buy things with unclear meanings after he became rich.

Xue Ming pressed the release button, and the barrel unlocked smoothly. He then explained, "There's a trigger safety here. If you don't release it, you can't pull the trigger, and the barrel will lock. It's a design to prevent impact firing and accidental ejection. The prototype also has this design. This toy isn't cheap, is it?"

Uncle Ning's face turned bright red instantly. "Uh, more than two thousand yuan."

Xue Ming handed the M870 back to Uncle Ningguang: "It doesn't need repair, it's fine."

Ning Guang hugged the expensive treasure, then immediately tossed it aside in disgust, saying, "What is this thing? It's so complicated."

Xue Ming pulled something that looked very familiar from the cardboard box.

Specifically --

--It's the toy version of COMBAT MASTER, a product from the movie "John Wick".

The feeling was very strange, like you found a low-budget version of your girlfriend. She looks similar to your dream girl, but there are differences. She's a low-budget version in every way.

Competition weapons based on the STI2011 are all very heavy, with a magazine capacity of over twenty rounds. What Jiang Xueming is currently rummaging through the box is likely a counterfeit from a domestic toy factory.

Bai Ningguang was about to explain, "Ah, well... my ex-wife and I both like Keanu Reeves. We liked him when we were young, and we still like him now."

Jiang Xueming fell silent. He didn't know what to say. Making another Battle Master was just a matter of running the program on the machine, but repairing this toy was a bit more difficult.

This is a counterfeit of a counterfeit.

--According to the competitive firearms at shooting ranges in Hong Kong, one type of rapid-fire pistol with reduced propellant charge is used with a scope and red dot sight. This type of competitive pistol was featured in the movie "Triple Tap" starring Zhang Guorong and Gu Tianle.

Another type is the gas-operated GAS pistol used for indoor CQB practice. This is the toy that Jiang Xueming, Liu Xing, and Teacher Baoquan mentioned. They had handled such toys at a legal and compliant shooting range. It fires hard plastic bullets, and if not used properly, it can easily cause accidental injury. It has been classified as a firearm.

The COMBAT MASTER in Jiang Xueming's hands today is a secondary derivative toy, a replica of the original.

Its shape has been modified compared to the original, the proportions are incorrect, and the inscriptions and engravings are also wrong.

However, to be fair, this thing is very realistic in shape.

Wake up! Just showing this out would impress a lot of people!

"It keeps breaking," Bai Ningguang said cautiously. "Besides, I only play with it at home, indulging in the Keanu Reeves-esque thrill of killing. I will never take it out. I'm a law-abiding citizen and will never affect public order."

Following the original disassembly and maintenance methods, Jiang Xueming disassembled this pneumatic toy.

"--It's almost identical to the original."

He skillfully assembled and loaded the gun, aimed it according to the CARS center-axis locking technology, and remained vigilant.

This is his most frequently used combat stance after obtaining the Battle Master title.

Bai Ningguang finally saw something different in his future son-in-law's hands.

This kid seems to know how to use every toy.

--Just like an ancient knight-errant, if you throw a bunch of weapons in front of him, he will take care of them, repair them, and use them.

The leader of the children finally became alert and began to suspect Jiang Xueming's true identity.

"You"

Jiang Xueming was still in a daze.

Bai Ningguang immediately asked, "You sell toys, right?"

Jiang Xueming was stunned; he couldn't figure it out.

"I work for a security company, not a toy seller."

Fortunately, the quick-witted Xue Ming was clever enough to think fast enough.

"My boss wanted me to be a bodyguard to protect the safety of trains and railways. I've handled many guns."

Before Bai Ningguang could ask for more details, Jiang Xueming quickly changed the subject, fiddling with the toy model in her hand.

"How much does this thing cost? It's all steel, it must be expensive."

Bai Ningguang: "It's not expensive, only seven thousand seven."

Jiang Xueming: "One thousand one?"

Bai Ningguang: "Seven thousand seven."

Jiang Xueming: "Yen?"

Bai Ningguang: "RMB."

Jiang Xueming found it unbelievable. Seriously speaking, in other countries, with a gun license, a Glock only costs around four hundred dollars. Are all domestic toy factories this inflated?

"Uncle, if you have this much money, why don't you go abroad and do it for real?"

Bai Ningguang looked completely innocent.

"I don't speak English, and nobody takes me out to play."

Jiang Xueming didn't know what to say, so he could only continue working.

This work lasted all day.