Wen Ning raised his hand and smacked Lu Ming on the back of the head.
The sharp smack rang especially loud in the quiet woods.
Lu Ming yelped and nearly fell flat on the ground. Clutching the back of his head, he turned around, his eyes round with outrage.
"What was that for!"
Rabbit Spirit A, who was leading the way, was startled by the noise too. He glanced back and frowned.
"Hey, hey, hey, what are you doing? No hitting your coworkers. Our organization values harmony and friendship. What kind of behavior is this, roughhousing like that?"
Rabbit Spirit B chimed in from the side.
"That's right, harmony and friendship! Master Jin set the rules. Hitting people costs you work points!"
Wen Ning withdrew his hand, his expression changing at lightning speed. His gritted teeth instantly gave way to an amiable look, complete with a faint smile of concern.
"Oh, I saw a mosquito on his head. I was just swatting it for him."
Rabbit Spirit A tilted his head to inspect the back of Lu Ming's head, then looked around the pitch-black woods. He scratched one of his rabbit ears and muttered.
"Oh, oh, swatting a mosquito. Swatting a mosquito in this freezing weather."
Lu Ming stood beside them, clutching his head, his face a picture: Where would a mosquito come from in this freezing weather! Could you at least make up a believable lie! Aren't you just taking advantage of an idiot?
Sure enough, Rabbit Spirit A glanced at Wen Ning again and actually believed him. In the end, all he said was:
"Well, then, if you're done swatting it, let's go. It's not far now."
He turned back around and continued leading the way, but his ears drooped noticeably lower than before.
They bounced less often