Chapter Thirty-Seven: A Successful Escape (First Update of the Fifth Watch)

“What do you think you’re doing?! Don’t think I’m afraid of you! Hmph!” Even now, the boy still hadn’t grasped the gravity of his situation. He squared up, ready to go a round with Song Nianqiang. “So, you’ve had some training after all!” Song Nianqiang grinned at the boy’s stance. Rich kids liked to join all sorts of clubs, and this one was clearly from the taekwondo club.

“I want to see if you can really make me lose control over myself!” As he spoke, Song Nianqiang strode quickly up to the boy. The boy didn’t hesitate either, throwing a punch straight at Song Nianqiang’s face—precise and fierce. But Song Nianqiang tilted his head slightly and dodged with ease.

“Damn it! You really dare to fight back?!”

Song Nianqiang had only meant to scare the boy a little—after all, Jiang Ningzhi had already warned him twice not to get into any fights. But now, his temper flared. He suddenly hooked his arm around the boy’s neck and jerked him backward. Instantly, the boy was slammed to the ground.

“One small step forward, one giant leap for civility.” That was the slogan pasted in the restroom. Yet none of the boys paid it any mind; they relieved themselves however they liked. The floor was dotted with puddles, and now, after being taken down by Song Nianqiang, the boy landed right in one.

Spoiled young masters like him had never suffered such indignity. He shot upright with a snap, gritted his teeth, and kicked fiercely at Song Nianqiang’s waist. But Song Nianqiang simply reached out, caught the boy’s foot, and lifted it sharply, forcing his ligaments to stretch painfully. The boy gasped in agony.

“Heh, you’ve got some guts, I’ll give you that!”

Song Nianqiang’s laughter was the start of the boy’s real misery. With a casual sweep of his leg, he knocked the boy’s other foot out from under him, then let go. The boy crashed to the floor with a thud, gritting his teeth in pain.

“Get up—I want to see what else you’ve got!”

Song Nianqiang gestured him over. Despite his frail appearance, the boy was surprisingly stubborn. He dragged himself out of the puddle and charged at Song Nianqiang, teeth clenched. But this time, Song Nianqiang didn’t even bother to engage—after all, the boy reeked of urine, and Song Nianqiang was hardly going to dirty himself further.

He dodged aside, letting the boy rush past—straight toward the big guy standing behind Song Nianqiang. The big guy wrinkled his brow at the stench and let fly a kick, sending the boy stumbling backward five steps before he could steady himself.

Clutching his chest, the boy grimaced in pain. The big guy hadn’t held back. “Now I’ll use your own words against you—stay away from Jiang Ningzhi from now on!” Song Nianqiang strode over, jabbing a finger at the boy’s nose. The boy, however, just panted heavily, and when he saw Song Nianqiang’s finger so close, he suddenly lunged, trying to bite it.

Fortunately, Song Nianqiang was quick enough to pull his hand back, or he really might have been bitten. But this was the final straw for his patience. “Damn you, you don’t know what’s good for you!”

Crack! He slapped the boy hard across the face, then ignored the stench and grabbed the boy by the neck, forcing him down. He drove his knee upward—at first, the boy managed to fend him off a couple of times, but Song Nianqiang’s strength was overwhelming. In a few swift motions, he broke the boy’s resistance and drove his knee into the boy’s nose, breaking it.

“Shit!” The sharp crack echoed, and Song Nianqiang decided that was enough. But, out of habit, he gave the boy one last kick, sending him sprawling. Now the boy’s face was covered in blood. Song Nianqiang was about to go over and kick him again when the big guy held him back.

“Forget it—why get angry over trash like this? It only dirties our hands!” With that, the big guy grabbed the boy, hauled him up, and punched him hard in the stomach. The boy doubled over, clutching his belly and squatting on the floor.

Stop once you draw blood—that was Song Nianqiang’s usual rule in a fight. The boy was now terrified by the sight of his own blood, even if it was only from his nose—it was still his blood.

“Song Nianqiang! Are you in there?!”

After coming out of the restroom, Jiang Ningzhi found a crowd gathered outside the boys’ bathroom. Kezi, being a bit of a celebrity at school, was now reduced to playing doorman—which meant, without a doubt, that Song Nianqiang and the big guy were inside. Only those two would draw such a crowd. With so many students gathered, Jiang Ningzhi immediately guessed what had happened. But, being a girl, she couldn’t barge into the boys’ bathroom, so she had to shout from outside.

“Oh no!”

Hearing Jiang Ningzhi’s voice outside, Song Nianqiang realized things had gotten out of hand. The big guy grinned and pointed at the window. Though the window wasn’t very big, Song Nianqiang could just barely squeeze through, and since it was only the second floor, jumping down was nothing for him.

“I’ll leave the rest to you!” With that, Song Nianqiang leaped through the window and vanished from sight. Thanks to Jiang Ningzhi’s commotion, things had escalated. Song Nianqiang’s name was already taboo among the upperclassmen—if it was heard anywhere on campus, it meant something big had happened.

The teachers’ offices weren’t far from the bathroom, so the upperclassman discipline director arrived first and flung open the door, but Song Nianqiang was nowhere to be found—only the big guy remained.

“Feng Yingcai, Sun Liang, both of you—come out!”

Sun Liang was second in the entire grade, so the director naturally recognized him, and the big guy was always with Song Nianqiang—hard not to know his face. The big guy strolled out indifferently, while Sun Liang struggled to his feet, one hand clutching his nose. On seeing the blood, the director quickly waved to the onlookers: “Someone help Sun Liang to the infirmary!”

But his call was met with indifference—not a single boy was willing to help. Song Nianqiang’s reputation was too intimidating. Jiang Ningzhi, seeing this, moved to help Sun Liang herself, but Kezi, quick-eyed, beat her to it, hoisting Sun Liang up and heading for the infirmary.

“Come on, a few more hands!” Sun Liang called to the crowd as he was carried away, and a few sharp-witted students surged forward, lifting him and running toward the infirmary. The director was startled by their enthusiasm. “Careful, he’s injured!” But before he’d finished speaking, the group had already disappeared from sight.

“Lao Jing, your student’s been hurt—go check the infirmary!” The director felt a headache coming on. He had to deal with the big guy’s violence and had no time for the injured student.

When the crowd had dispersed and Song Nianqiang still hadn’t reappeared, Jiang Ningzhi was puzzled. “That’s odd. The big guy was there—how could Song Nianqiang not be?” As she wondered, a hand landed on her shoulder.

“Standing outside the boys’ bathroom—planning to sneak a peek?”

“Ah!” Jiang Ningzhi jumped at the sudden slap. She stared at Song Nianqiang in disbelief. “Weren’t you just fighting in there?” she asked suspiciously.

“Fighting? What fight? I was out buying drinks with the guys!” He shook the Pepsi in his hand for emphasis. Jiang Ningzhi glanced skeptically at the other delinquents, but they all nodded in unison—they could vouch that Song Nianqiang had been with them buying drinks.

“Hmph! If I ever find out you’re lying, you’d better watch your ears!” Then she added, her tone turning worried, “Feng Yingcai was called in by the discipline director—you should check on him!”

Clearly, Jiang Ningzhi wasn’t just a pretty face—when it mattered, she always thought of her friends.