Whoever can strike me hard will be rewarded handsomely.

Although he didn't use the small bamboo sticks, Jiang Jibai's Iron Sand Palm, which could lift the stone lock with one hand, was still difficult to withstand.

Perhaps because slapping him was already considered letting him off the hook, every slap was delivered with full force.

With each palm strike, Qin Ji would howl for a long time, his two dragon claws tearing the bedding out of shape, leaving two wet claw marks on the clean bedding.

Jiang Jibai pressed down on the boy's lower back, which was soaked with cold sweat. His palm strike was not fast, which taught him a lesson while giving him enough time to digest the aftereffects, so that the pain would not accumulate too quickly and exceed his limit.

The little apprentice's injuries hadn't been properly treated these past two days, and it was unclear what kind of treatment he had received. He looked even worse than when he had just been punished yesterday, his scalding hot hands burning Jiang Jibai's palms.

With each palm strike Jiang Jibai landed, he could feel his subordinate's body trembling in pain as if it had been severely injured.

The boy cried miserably, his face ashen, tears streaming down his face as if they were free.

Large beads of sweat streamed down his temples. When the pain became unbearable, he cried and kicked his legs. Perhaps knowing he couldn't escape, he obediently didn't try to dodge.

"Nineteen strokes." The boy reminded him in a hoarse voice, and "thoughtfully" included the three strokes he had just given him in the count, in case he was afraid he had miscalculated.

Jiang Jibai didn't take the young man's little tricks seriously and ended the fight with a slap that landed slightly below the wound.

The sound was loud and the location was tricky, but I didn't suffer here, which was much better than the repeated torment and terrible old injuries.

Even so, Qin Ji still let out a wail, showing sufficient respect for the final slap.

After paying his respects, he lay motionless on Jiang Jibai's lap, humming softly for a long time.

The boy's eyelashes were soaked with tears, his eyes and nose were red from crying, and he looked as pitiful as could be with a mess of wounds on his head.

Jiang Jibai wanted to massage his wounds.

The boy grabbed his sleeve, refusing to let go, "It hurts!"

Because he was so weak, his groan of "pain" was uttered with great difficulty.

I don't know who she learned it from, but she's getting better and better at acting cute.

Jiang Jibai wiped the boy's face clean and coaxed him gently for a long time before finally getting the boy to let go. He reluctantly allowed Jiang Jibai to rub the wound and apply medicine, which made Jiang Jibai's ears pierce again.

I thought the boy would take a while to recover from his listless and spoiled state, but to my surprise, as soon as I finished applying the medicine, he got up again and said he wanted to go back to the Bian residence to deliver the two mechanical books that I had given him yesterday to Bian Xiaozao.

"Does it not hurt anymore?" Jiang Jibai asked.

Qin Ji stared at Jiang Jibai in disbelief.

You poison master, try it and see if it hurts.

Listen to this, is this even human language?

There's no rush to deliver the books.

That made more sense. Qin Ji was appeased. "It's not just about sending books; there are other things to take care of at home."

Jiang Jibai didn't want to pry into private matters, so he helped his limping young disciple out of the bedroom.

The young disciple stood hesitantly by the door, "I'll do it tomorrow..."

He didn't dare to say it aloud, but Jiang Jibai understood the meaning perfectly.

Jiang Jibai's gaze lingered for a moment on the thin red at the corner of the young disciple's eyes, and naturally he did not miss the faint blue shadow of weariness in the boy's eyes.

Bian Feibai, acting as an elder brother for the first time, failed to treat his younger cousin with the same respect, and with a casual remark, he struck him severely. Now, he has been punished for three days in a row and still has to attend to His Majesty's duties while injured, which can be considered a sufficient lesson.

Besides, this was the first time he had punished his disciple in this way, and he didn't know his own limits. The young disciple knew his mistake and was able to correct it, so it's not that he can't be forgiven this time.

Jiang Jibai, who was always very principled, convinced himself and was about to speak when he saw the boy secretly watching his expression, taking two steps to the side to avoid being within his reach and leaving a safe distance. "I have a lot of things to do tomorrow and can't come early. If Shen Jiangliu were here, please don't be so rough with me..."

If he loses his temper, it's a small matter if his cheap senior brother is silenced, but it's a big deal if he loses the national dignity!

Qin Ji knew that this poison master was a man of his word and had an iron will, so he tried to persuade him in a reasoned manner, "If it really doesn't work, how about I pay on credit? I'll take half first, and pay the rest later, is that alright?"

Seeing his junior disciple's winking and gesturing, Jiang Jibai swallowed the words "You don't need to come back for punishment tomorrow" that were on the tip of his tongue, and a smile flashed in his eyes. "Alright."

After tireless efforts, Qin Ji secured a "reduction in sentence" for himself. He was overjoyed and prepared to leave when he and his apprentice bumped into Shen Jiangliu, who was leaving for his shift.

Shen Jiangliu paused, rubbing his eyes in disbelief.

How come he has small-hole honeycomb briquettes in his house?

Are emperors really that free at the end of the year?

He just wanders around outside all day.

Qin Ji paused, then instantly straightened his back and straightened his leg, standing tall and imposing.

Looking at the roast goose in Shen Jiangliu's left hand and the fine wine in his right, and then thinking about what he had come here for, he completely lost his composure.

"Teacher, all six departments are supposed to have their shifts end at 3:45 PM, but he left early!"

When did he offend this honeycomb briquette with small holes?

Shen Jiangliu hurriedly brushed the blame off his head, saying, "The Ministry of Water Resources just finished calculating the year's water expenditures today. Lord Feng was considerate of us working so hard for so many days, so he let us finish our shifts early."

"Junior brother, what are you doing here?"

Are they bored? Is the Great Yin Dynasty doomed?

Shen Jiangliu was unaware of his junior brother's "punishment period." Even when his teacher went next door yesterday, he only said that he was there to deliver books.

Qin Ji snorted coldly and turned to leave, saying, "I have important matters to discuss with my teacher."

none of your business!

His departing figure, with his hands behind his back, was dashing and imposing.

There was no indication that he had been beaten.

He just gritted his teeth and broke one.

...

The next day, the junior disciple was indeed very busy and did not arrive early; he was not seen even when the moon was high in the sky.

Shen Jiangliu had already gone back to his room to rest. Jiang Jibai waited in the study for a long time, but no one came. He guessed that his junior disciple probably wouldn't come, so he washed up and went back to his room to sleep.

He was half asleep when someone pulled off his blanket, and a blast of cold air woke him up completely.

Jiang Jibai lifted his eyelids, squinted, and wanted to see which kind of deity it was.

An unfilial son pulled him halfway off the bed and shook him violently, grabbing his shoulders with both hands.

"Teacher, it's me! Wake up!"

The movements were loud but the voices were soft, determined to wake Jiang Jibai without letting Shen Jiangliu, who lived in the next room, hear.

Jiang Jibai slapped him across the face, "Shut up."

"Waaah~"

The unfilial son wanted to cry but dared not utter a sound, like a thief, and let out a soft whimper like a puppy.

Jiang Jibai pushed the unfilial son onto the bed, grabbed the torn-off quilt, wrapped him up, and whipped him twenty times through the quilt. Then, amidst the unfilial son's groans, he casually put on his coat, slipped on his shoes, and added some charcoal to the stove.

After adding the charcoal, Jiang Jibai put down the fire tongs and, too lazy to light a lamp, sat on the edge of the bed and, by the light of the charcoal fire, reached for the prepared ointment on the wooden table beside the bed.