Big Brother, Beat Him Up

After a very, very long time, Zhang Qiling slowly closed the notebook. He remembered. Then he slowly wrote down what had happened during this period, just in case he needed it. Anyone who saw how calm he was would have given him a thumbs-up and respectfully called him "big brother"! But he really had no fucking choice. He couldn't just go and die, and he was already past the stage of going mad.

Yu Zhi pushed the door open and went in. Seeing the notebook Zhang Qiling held out to him, he quickly put it away in his space. He admired him tremendously, though his expression remained calm, as if nothing had happened. Only a little over three hours had passed by the time everything was done. He spoke his thoughts aloud. "That's my big brother for you. Your ability to accept things is incredible. No wonder you're called the strongest man on the planet!"

"The strongest man at what? Have you two tried it?" Blind Man poked his head in through the doorway, interrupting with a mischievous look.

"Blind Man, do you want a fight?" The domineering force behind Zhang Qiling's mild voice made Yu Zhi's face turn bright red in an instant. He really couldn't resist Zhang Qiling's voice, paired with that calm, handsome face and his superb physique and bearing. He wiped his nose. Good, good, no nosebleed.

Yu Zhi pretended nothing had happened and walked into the kitchen.

Blind Man ignored Zhang Qiling and watched Yu Zhi's retreating figure instead, letting out a strange chuckle. He thought the two of them were interesting.

"What does the Wu Family want that saber for?" Zhang Qiling asked.

"You remembered? So quickly this time? Did that kid have something to do with it?" Hei Xiazi asked in surprise, though he wasn't expecting Zhang Qiling to answer.

He glanced toward the kitchen and lowered his voice. "Who is he, and how did you two end up together? Looks like he's pretty worried about you, too. Not bad, Mute. Haven't seen you for a few years, and you've gotten capable."

"Him? Ask him yourself. It's not convenient for me to say. In any case, he's someone we can trust completely, someone we can entrust our lives to," Zhang Qiling replied.

"All right. It's not easy getting Mute to say that much. I'll go have a chat with him later. I don't know why the Wu Family wants the saber. They probably want it mainly to deal with 'it.' They might have other plans too, but I haven't discovered any yet." Blind Man grew a little more serious.

"Mm. Be careful," Zhang Qiling said.

"I know." Hei Xiazi nodded. "Speaking of which, Mute, you two... forget it." Blind Man stopped halfway through his sentence and thought better of continuing. He wanted Mute to be a little wary of that kid. Someone who could make his way into Mute's heart in such a short time was no simple person. But there was little point in telling Mute, so he would keep a closer eye on him himself and get someone to investigate him while he was at it.

"Don't investigate him. It'll bring trouble." Zhang Qiling knew Hei Xiazi's thoughts all too well. After knowing each other for so many years, they could tell what kind of shit the other was going to take the moment he lifted his ass. He didn't want Hei Xiazi investigating that man, for fear of bringing trouble to him. Once "it" or someone from the Nine Gates set their sights on him, he was bound to get hurt.

"All right, you're the boss. Whatever you say!" Blind Man looked as if he'd taken a blow and let out a string of mournful wails. He walked into the kitchen, singing as he went. "All you hear is the new love laughing, never the old love crying."

The sound made Zhang Qiling trip over his own feet and stagger. Fortunately, he was quick enough to steady himself in a tenth of a second. How had he never noticed what a drama queen Blind Man was before?

In the kitchen, Yu Zhi listened to the two men talking outside. He was deeply gratified by Zhang Qiling's words. He hadn't been so good to him for nothing; he knew to protect him. Hearing how concerned Hei Xiazi was about Zhang Qiling also put him a little more at ease. It seemed he could discuss some of his upcoming plans with Blind Man. Having someone to help would surely make a difference, especially since Hei Xiazi's combat ability was first-rate and he was quick-witted and clever. If he could pull him away from the Nine Gates' forces, he would definitely be a great help.

Yu Zhi hadn't actually meant to eavesdrop on Zhang Qiling. His hearing and eyesight were simply sharp. Though the two men had spoken quietly, they hadn't made any particular effort to avoid being heard. Presumably, Hei Xiazi had done it on purpose. As for Zhang Qiling, he probably hadn't given it that much thought. Whether Yu Zhi heard him or not, he would have said the same thing.

If going through life and death together still wasn't enough for Zhang Qiling to let down his guard and stop scheming against him, then Yu Zhi could only say he'd been blind and trusted the wrong person. He would deserve to die, and could only blame his bad luck for meeting a fake Zhang Qiling.

Seeing Blind Man come over, he said, "Come carry the dishes out. It's time to eat."

"All you see is the new love laughing, ah~ ah~ ah! Uh, okay." Blind Man pursed his lips, thinking this person was no fun at all. He looked fair, clean-cut and mild-mannered, with the handsome face of a young scholar. By rights, someone like that should have been the easiest to tease, so how had he run into one whose skin was as thick as his own?

There were four dishes for the three of them, all home-style cooking. During the time they'd spent together, Yu Zhi had discovered Zhang Qiling's preferences: he liked the sweet-and-sour dishes of northeastern cuisine, perhaps because he had grown up in the northeast. Of the four dishes, one was guobaorou, one was di san xian, one was stir-fried pork with green peppers, and one was mao xue wang. Yu Zhi himself liked spicy food, to the point that he couldn't eat a meal without chili peppers, but he didn't like stir-fried pork with green peppers.

"Let's eat." The three of them ate the dishes with rice, their chopsticks flying over the table. The room filled with the sounds of swallowing, chewing and chopsticks clashing.

"I'm stuffed. Xiao Yu's stir-fried pork with green peppers could give mine a run for its money, but I noticed you didn't eat a single bite. It all ended up in my stomach." Hei Xiazi stared fixedly at Yu Zhi, as though trying to see through him from behind his sunglasses.

"Of course I made it for you. Isn't stir-fried pork with green peppers your favorite? A guest coming over for the first time deserves a proper welcome. I couldn't be like a certain someone who arrived and immediately told Zhang Qiling to be wary of me." Yu Zhi pushed his rice bowl away, ate the sunflower seeds he'd prepared earlier, drank tea and crossed his legs. His posture made it clear he was ready for a long, heart-to-heart talk.

Hei Xiazi opened his mouth, but in the end he couldn't squeeze out a word. All in all, Yu Zhi wasn't wrong to say it; he really had done that. Still, this kid was no ordinary person. He had actually heard them from so far away, with all that noise in the kitchen.

"Yu Zhi, I trust you. Blind Man is my brother," Zhang Qiling said, looking at the two of them. In a way, he was also giving Hei Xiazi a way out.

"Look, look, look, what a mess. The flood's washed into the Dragon King's temple; we're all family, but we didn't recognize each other. Let me apologize to you," Blind Man continued.

Yu Zhi glanced at Zhang Qiling. So you do care about that brother of yours. Fine, I haven't been around as long as he has.

After losing his memory and recovering it this time, Zhang Qiling was noticeably more lively. Even Blind Man clicked his tongue in wonder. He was talking more, too. Before, even if someone had knocked his head off, Zhang Qiling wouldn't have said an extra word.

"Blind Man, who do you work for?" Yu Zhi asked outright.

"Of course I work for myself. Does that even need saying? I haven't married a wife yet, so don't go making baseless accusations against an innocent young bachelor like me." Blind Man's utterly flippant manner made Yu Zhi's teeth itch with hatred.

"Big brother, beat him up." Though Yu Zhi said this, it was entirely a feint to the east while attacking from the west. He secretly used spiritual power to cast the Wind Binding Technique, trapping Hei Xiazi, then went up and gave him a thorough beating. To his surprise, Zhang Qiling also stepped forward and helped by covering Hei Xiazi's eyes, making it easier for Yu Zhi to beat him.

The wide grin spreading across Yu Zhi's face dazzled Zhang Qiling's heart.

"Help, I'm being bullied! Bullied! I'm being bullied!" Unable to move, Hei Xiazi could only keep shouting.

"Go ahead and scream. Scream yourself hoarse and no one will come save you. Ah, bah!" Yu Zhi froze as soon as the words left his mouth. Smack! He gave himself a hard slap across the face. Damn it, this has to be an aftereffect of being cannon fodder! A workplace injury!

Hei Xiazi and Zhang Qiling were both stunned by Yu Zhi's actions. What was wrong with him, slapping himself in the face, and so hard at that? He was ruthless.

Blind Man didn't dare keep shouting either. He wasn't afraid of a beating, but he didn't want to be slapped in the face.

"Ahem, well, um, big brother, let him go." Yu Zhi tried his best to pretend nothing had just happened and went back to cracking sunflower seeds.

"Can I just tell him? Tell him everything? Even about the book?" Yu Zhi asked Zhang Qiling in front of Hei Xiazi.

"Go ahead. He's a brother. Leave out your part," Zhang Qiling replied mildly.

The way the two of them acted as if he weren't there left Hei Xiazi speechless! He wanted to make a few cheeky remarks, but held them back.

"Let's talk in a bedroom. Let's go to yours."

"Okay."

The three of them went into Zhang Qiling's room. Yu Zhi sat down at the table, picked up a pen and paper, and began to write. Blind Man stood curiously beside him, watching and wondering. Was this person making up a story on the spot? And writing it down, too. Why not just say whatever he had to say? But before he could speak, he saw the words taking shape on the page, piecing together secrets no one but him knew.

Yu Zhi was able to write these things down thanks to his strenuous efforts to remember. In fact, everything a person saw was stored in the memory regions deep within the brain, but to keep its owner from going mad, the brain could only hide ninety-nine percent of it. The information remained buried deep inside. With his powerful spiritual force aiding his recollection, Yu Zhi remembered the entire book, as well as some side stories he had read and so on. He couldn't tell what was true and what was false, so he wrote it all down.

Watching Blind Man's shocked expression, Zhang Qiling said, "Come over here and wait."

Hei Xiazi came back to his senses and walked over to Zhang Qiling. He began trying to calm himself as he waited for the contents of that paper.