Chapter 15: Because of You

Zhang Shutong was momentarily stunned, but his body immediately reacted. He took a swift step forward, ready to signal his friends to rush and wrestle the gun away.

Unexpectedly, with a muffled thud, the young girl nonchalantly delivered a kick of unparalleled force. The man’s body instantly jerked backward like a kite with a broken string, leaning back with both feet lifted off the ground—

Lu Qinglian swiftly shifted her footing, landing lightly midair, then twisted her ankle. The sole of her shoe scraped harshly against the dirt and stone road, a grating sound that sent a chill through the air as she surged forward with sudden strength.

Her other leg followed immediately; she spun on her heel and kicked back with pinpoint accuracy, striking the long gun.

Within the blink of an eye, two powerful kicks landed: the first knocked the man down, the second sent the weapon flying. The next moment, the man, wearing a cap, was sent flying backward along with the gun, crashing heavily onto the dirt road behind.

Dust billowed as the girl calmly retracted her leg, her robe falling softly by her side.

...

Evening of December 5, 2012.

Zhang Shutong and his friends had just encountered a man wielding a gun.

The man had taken one of their classmates hostage.

And then the man was sent flying.

Zhang Shutong and the others were dumbfounded. To describe their state in a phrase brimming with contemporary flair and nostalgia, one might say:

“My friends and I were utterly shocked.”

Only when the man on the ground began groaning and cursing intermittently did they snap back to reality. Qingyi rushed forward and delivered a palm strike to the man, Ruoping hurried over to check if Lu Qinglian was all right, with Dukang following closely behind.

Zhang Shutong picked up the long gun not far away, clutching it tightly, his heart finally settling.

In just that brief moment, he had broken into a cold sweat. Now, as the night breeze blew, he felt a chill down his back.

Really, there wouldn't be any more surprises, right?

The events of that night were nothing if not turbulent. First, the patrolling police, then the bald man electrofishing, and finally this gun-wielding man—each more dangerous than the last. Zhang Shutong pinched the bridge of his nose and glanced at Lu Qinglian.

Ruoping was busy questioning her, her expression a mix of surprise and admiration. Lu Qinglian occasionally nodded gently or shook her head as usual, as if the person she had just kicked wasn’t a criminal with a gun, but a shuttlecock beloved by girls.

Thinking back on that kick, Zhang Shutong still felt a surreal sense of disbelief.

He had always known Lu Qinglian was a mysterious figure, but this was absurd. Was she really a temple caretaker at the Green Snake Shrine and not a Shaolin temple disciple?

Back in high school, he had trained in self-defense for a while—saving the world required at least a bit of martial skill. Though he only ended up slightly better than an ordinary person, his basic perception was decent.

The girl’s two kicks just now were flawless in reaction, power, and precision. Not only was his high school self no match, even his current self eight years later couldn’t hold a candle to Lu Qinglian’s skill.

Compared to physical prowess, Zhang Shutong was better with his brain. He felt his mind was still under control, but combat ability wasn’t something you could just summon on a whim.

Now was the time to think.

“Shutong, come take a look at this,” Qingyi called from the side.

He went over and saw that they had found a snakeskin bag emitting faint noises, like a few chickens inside.

Zhang Shutong first felt the sack through the fabric. The two moved apart, prepared themselves, then opened the bag and shone a flashlight inside. Indeed, there were creatures closely related to chickens—

Inside lay two large birds, half-dead, their once splendid yellow feathers drooping miserably. They exchanged glances, confirming their suspicions.

“Crested ibises?” Qingyi hesitated.

“Probably. I’ve only seen specimens,” Zhang Shutong said, furrowing his brow as he parted the birds’ crests. “Aren’t they close to extinction? For these two to be found is impressive.”

These birds were endemic to the island, protected at a high national level. Anyone caught with them would face several years in prison.

“No wonder that bald guy was brandishing a knife…”

“Electrofishing was just incidental to them. Look at this gun,” Zhang Shutong picked up the long rifle. He had only ever been interested in cold weapons before and wasn’t as knowledgeable about guns as Qingyi.

“An air rifle?”

“Yeah, let me check... Oh, it’s a PCP model, quite advanced.” Qingyi examined it, almost raising it in a shooting stance. “This thing has serious killing power... so they really were poachers?”

“Exactly. Just two poachers, and we happened to stumble upon them.” Zhang Shutong sighed. “But look, the birds aren’t dead yet—they must have shot at something else.”

Of course, this was no longer their concern. They would hand everything over to the police.

Zhang Shutong continued analyzing:

“So what Dukang saw was that guy in the cap. They were two from the start, the cap guy went west, and the bald man came later.”

Qingyi slapped his thigh:

“I knew it! I blamed myself. We heard the bald guy on the phone, talking about students and not being seen. I thought he saw Dukang, but it wasn’t him…”

“It was the guy in the cap, warning him,” Zhang Shutong finished.

Sighing, Qingyi felt guilty.

---

Zhang Shutong patted his shoulder, offering some comfort, then called Dukang over to recount the events. They pieced together the sequence:

First, there was no ambush.

The poachers were always two: the man in the cap ahead, the bald man behind. The cap man doubled back from the west and happened upon Ruoping and the others.

The three had gone up a dirt road, and once they realized the bald man was electrofishing, not burying a body, they relaxed and moved away from the foul smell.

Meanwhile, the cap man sought his partner but found none—only three students nearby.

Ruoping was closest. Upon spotting them, the man raised his gun and took her hostage.

He forced the three to the fish pond. Ruoping tried not to reveal Zhang Shutong and Lu Qinglian’s presence, but their loud conversation gave them away. The man prepared to wait in ambush.

At that moment, Ruoping was still the hostage, but the cap man, perhaps thinking Lu Qinglian looked weak in her robe, swapped hostages, setting the stage for the two fast kicks.

Within minutes, Zhang Shutong and Qingyi arrived, confronted the man, and Lu Qinglian knocked him out with a kick.

Ruoping then remembered her phone, picked it up, and sighed in relief. It was broken open but intact—the back cover easily removable plastic, so it wasn’t too damaged.

But that didn’t stop Ruoping from kicking the cap man twice in the groin, causing the boys to shudder inwardly.

After calling the police again, the group sat exhausted on the curb, still shaken by the night’s ordeal.

They exchanged glances, seeing the gleam in each other’s eyes under the dark sky. Someone poked another, and laughter broke out as they began joking again.

Qingyi played with the air rifle—he’d only seen those in magazines and never held a real one before. Knowing it would be confiscated soon, he felt reluctant to part with it.

Dukang, ever the daredevil, teased Ruoping from a distance, asking if she had been scared enough to cry, making a silly face with his tongue out.

Ruoping jumped up, saying he looked like he was going to cry too, reaching to grab his ear. Dukang begged for mercy, reminding her he had saved her in the reeds.

Ruoping dismissed that, crediting the frogs for the rescue instead.

Someone then suggested writing about the night’s events for their next Chinese essay—four people, each writing a segment starting from fishing, recounting their experiences.

Since Ruoping excelled in Chinese and often had her essays used as exemplary pieces, it was sure to get noticed. Combined, it would make a thrilling story.

After four years, they were seniors now; gaining admiration from juniors would be a fitting legacy.

The idea excited them, and they began dividing up the tasks.

Zhang Shutong thought to himself: why not erect statues for these three? With him joining, the four of them standing by the school gate would be more impressive than even Gu Qiumian’s father.

Besides, the other three had plenty to write about: “I caught frogs in the reeds,” “I got scared and cried in the reeds,” “I tied fishing lines in the reeds”—a broad range of topics.

His own contribution could only be titled “Why Apple iPhones Have No Signal,” but argumentative essays weren’t popular in middle school, so it was a lost cause.

It was truly cold. Zhang Shutong sneezed and quickly turned his head. From afar, at the end of the road, red and blue lights flickered.

Sirens blared;

The police had finally arrived.

...

The island’s police vehicle was a pickup truck. One officer stepped out, about to ask who had called, when the group moved aside, revealing the two unconscious men behind them, startling the officer.

They tossed their bikes in the truck bed, squeezed in, and went to the station to give their statements.

Halfway through, Officer Xiong returned. He glared at Dukang, but a colleague pulled him back. They whispered something, then when he looked up again, his face red and strained, he simply patted Dukang’s shoulder and walked away as if nothing had happened.

—After all, Dukang had been wiping down the fishing rod right in front of them, almost tearing the tissue he used, showing great flair and determination.

Ruoping smiled beside him, teasing:

“Oh, tired from all that wiping? Want some water? Looks like you didn’t clean this spot well—it’s so dark. Oh, the rod is black to begin with? Never mind, keep wiping…”

They had put on quite a show, but since they had done their duty, they had to endure it and even be praised, receiving banners to the school.

It turned out the two poachers were habitual offenders. After interrogation, the police learned that besides the two birds, they had killed many foxes, badgers, pangolins, and more, all in the car not far from their fishing spot.

They had buried the fish to hide the smell after the bald man had forgotten about the dead fish in the car, which had rotted.

They also clarified why last time, when the group was fishing, they hadn’t encountered the electrofishing men—because Dukang had bumped into the cap man moving a stool, who had gone back with the bald man to check things out.

An expert was called to the station—actually a chicken castrator—but since the ferry was gone for the night, they had no choice but to make do.

Chaos ensued.

Ruoping’s mother arrived as well. Dukang and Qingyi just called home to report they were safe and coming back soon. Island boys were wild but as long as they didn’t stay out all night, their families weren’t too worried.

After everything was done, yawning, they left the station. It was just past nine.

The other three lived in the northern part of the island, not by coincidence but because the residential area was all there.

Only Zhang Shutong was an exception; his home was in the east. His parents had been transferred there for work and didn’t build a house, so the family of three currently lived in staff dormitories built by Zhang’s father.

Though called dormitories, the conditions were comparable to a three-bedroom apartment, about ninety square meters.

Usually, they would separate here: the three walking one way, Zhang Shutong the other, each heading home.

But this time there was a new factor—what about Lu Qinglian?

Only then did Zhang Shutong realize something: the Green Snake Mountain was also in the east, roughly on their way. Otherwise, how would he know about the small shop at the foot of the mountain, even though the mountain was farther east than his home?

Ruoping insisted that Zhang Shutong escort Lu Qinglian home before going back. It was too dangerous at night for a girl to walk alone. Zhang thought to himself, “If we go together, it’s not me protecting her—it’s more like she’s protecting me.”

But that was just a joke. There was no hesitation over such a small matter, so he nodded in agreement.

Dukang had learned his lesson this time—he didn’t get jealous or insist on coming along. He solemnly patted Zhang Shutong’s shoulder, saying, “Be careful on the way,” which Zhang appreciated as growth.

After making their plans, they waved farewell.

Zhang Shutong’s eyelids were heavy with exhaustion. Gender propriety be damned; getting Lu Qinglian home quickly was the priority. He wanted to pat the bicycle seat for her to ride, only to realize the back had long been modified into a box.

No wonder Dukang was so decisive...

However, the police station was not far from the mountain, and the island itself was small—hence the name “small island.”

It stretched five kilometers north to south, about 2.5 kilometers east to west, covering roughly nine square kilometers, with a permanent population of about 8,000. Despite this, it was the largest inland island in northern China.

Moreover, the station was not at the westernmost point, so walking from here to the mountain took at most twenty minutes.

Zhang Shutong pushed the bike, Lu Qinglian walked beside him, and they passed through the town.

The so-called town was just a few main streets laid out in a tofu-block pattern, with department stores, restaurants, phone service centers, supermarkets. None of the signs were illuminated; the only light came from street lamps, and the islanders had no nightlife. The street lamps cast a yellow glow on the asphalt.

A small shop still had its lights on. Zhang Shutong asked if Lu Qinglian wanted water, but the girl shook her head, and they continued.

“Are your family worried?” Zhang Shutong suddenly asked, remembering she had no phone and hadn’t contacted anyone all this time.

“It’s fine. They know I went out tonight.”

The “they” she referred to was likely her grandmother. Zhang had heard from Dukang at the funeral that Lu Qinglian had lived with her grandmother all these years.

But where were her parents?

He also recalled Dukang saying that Lu Qinglian’s grandmother had passed away before her, meaning the girl would soon be alone.

Zhang Shutong didn’t want to pry into others’ family affairs. Instead, he said:

“If anything’s inconvenient in the future, you can contact us.”

No need to remind her—after tonight, Lu Qinglian was surely considered a comrade by Ruoping and the others.

Better to keep things light:

“When did you tell your grandmother?” Zhang Shutong asked casually. “At school?”

“At noon.”

Noon?

At that time, she hadn’t yet returned to school and was sweeping snow at the temple. Did her grandmother foresee she would go out at night?

It seemed she didn’t want to say more.

Zhang Shutong took this as a sign she preferred not to discuss family matters.

Then he remembered another question that had puzzled him:

“So, what exactly were you doing out tonight?” Zhang Shutong asked, curious.

Before she could answer, he quickly added:

“Don’t tell me it was to fight crime.”

“You could say that for now,” the girl replied calmly.

Zhang shrugged, saying nothing more.

If he asked again, he hadn’t yet decided what to say—but for now, he would definitely not ask again.

They walked side by side for a while longer, then Zhang Shutong asked another question:

“With your skills, why did you hide at first?”

The girl stopped and turned to look him straight in the eyes, answering quietly:

“Because of you…”