Whoever can strike me hard will be rewarded handsomely.

Just when Qin Ji thought Jiang Jibai was about to add another penalty to his punishment, a shadow entered his field of vision, standing before him like a towering mountain.

A warm hand landed on his hair.

Jiang Jibai stood against the wall, the narrow gap making him feel a little cramped, his waist and abdomen almost touching Qin Ji's nose.

Qin Ji looked up, puzzled, and met Jiang Jibai's gentle gaze.

"Am I too harsh on you, which makes you think I would be so easily disappointed in you?"

Qin Ji realized almost instantly what Jiang Jibai was about to do, and his calmed emotions surged again. He opened his mouth silently.

"Step back a little."

Qin Ji mechanically followed Jiang Jibai's instructions and stepped back an arm's length.

Jiang Jibai half-squatted down, pressed Qin Ji's head forward with his left hand, burying his face in his shoulder, and slightly raised the ruler in his right hand.

Although both incidents were handled somewhat poorly, Qin Ji's explanations were acceptable and somewhat understandable.

"An additional thirty strokes will be added, the same as before, five more for each time you hit the wall."

With Jiang Jibai using his body to block the wall, and being held so tenderly by him, how could he possibly touch it?

Qin Ji's face, which was buried in Jiang Jibai's shoulder, felt a little hot, and his eyes also felt a little hot.

Although he knew Jiang Jibai couldn't possibly kill him, the leniency he received weighed heavily on Qin Ji's mind.

The weight of the stone made his heart ache, yet he couldn't bear to move it.

He deceived his teacher; all that tenderness was a lie.

Having acted in front of Wang Jing and the Empress Dowager for so many years, Qin Ji had never felt so distressed and so anxious as he did now.

Even though it was inconvenient to exert force with a backhand, Jiang Jibai's punishment was still hard to bear.

Physiological tears welled up in my eyes almost instantly.

Qin Ji's sobs were low, unlike the loud, wailing cries he had sung before; his sobs were muffled and intermittent.

The pain caused him to tremble uncontrollably, and his arms instinctively rose up, only to be firmly stopped by Jiang Jibai's hand just as they were about to hit the wall.

There was no further punishment or reprimand; Jiang Jibai simply offered a gentle reminder, "Aren't you afraid of running into a wall?"

Qin Ji whimpered, put down his two hands that were aching and didn't know where to put them, and gently took Jiang Jibai's clothes.

He truly experienced what it means to balance leniency and severity.

The ruler is cold and devoid of warmth; punishment is merciless and severe.

The comfort is warm and gentle; the person who stops him before he hits the wall is forgiving and compassionate.

The burning sensation from the wound and the burning sensation in his heart intertwined, turning into hot tears that soaked Jiang Jibai's shoulders.

Qin Ji silently cried out in his heart: "Ah, what a blessing, what a blessing!"

The pain seemed less intense after the teacher comforted me.

Because the teacher was holding me as punishment, I was able to endure it. My knees felt like they were rooted to the ground, and I didn't move an inch or try to dodge.

After everything was over, Qin Ji had no more reservations. He tightly embraced the person who had taught him a lesson and given him warmth, and took deep breaths in Jiang Jibai's arms.

After a long pause, she finally said in a thick nasal voice, "Teacher, it hurts..."

To be honest, this audacious little disciple is surprisingly adorable when he acts cute.

Jiang Jibai stroked Qin Ji's head until the student, who was softly crying out in pain, gradually calmed down before half-carrying him to the small couch in the cubicle.

After settling the person on the couch, Jiang Jibai turned and left. Qin Ji guessed that he was going to get medicine for himself. He was very satisfied that Jiang Jibai had killed Guan Mai so obediently without his orders. He lay obediently on the small couch, hugging his pillow, waiting happily for his teacher to apply the medicine.

Hearing the door open, Qin Ji didn't even look up. As usual, he started trembling as soon as he finished sighing, and said in an imperious tone, "Apply the medicine gently."

Jiang Jibai was already used to his junior disciple's behavior of daring to make demands of him after just being disciplined. He placed the medicine box on the low table next to him with one hand, flicked the rattan cane in his hand with the other, and succinctly told Qin Ji two words, "Lie down properly."

Upon hearing this tone, Qin Ji's ears twitched, sensing something was amiss. He turned his head and saw his gaze fixed on the rattan hanging beside the couch.

He covered his injury in shock and rolled to the corner of the small tatami mat, shrinking his neck. His voice, which had stopped trembling, was now pitiful and trembling as he pleaded, "Teacher, are you going to punish me again?"

Jiang Jibai tapped the edge of the bed with a rattan cane, signaling Qin Ji to lie down, and said in an unquestionable tone, "12 strokes."

This was a debt owed for the Mid-Autumn Festival. Qin Ji hadn't thought of it at first, but he remembered it when he heard this number with both odd and even parts.

The horrific scene of being ravaged by this thing last time was still vivid in Qin Ji's mind, leaving him with lingering fear. Therefore, he lingered, desperately trying to plead, "Teacher, is there anything I did wrong?"

Jiang Jibai clearly lacked the patience he had shown before in persuading this person who was pretending to be confused. "If you don't come over now, the amount will be doubled."

How can a living person utter such cold and emotionless words?

Cold-blooded and ruthless!

Poison Master!

While Qin Ji was cursing inwardly, he scrambled to the edge of the bed at lightning speed, afraid that if he was even a second too slow, Jiang Jibai would utter the number twenty-four.

Before he could even get a firm footing, he was already being beaten. The pain made Qin Ji jump upwards, and he let out another earth-shattering cry.

Waaah, excessive blessings are not blessings, I don't want them!

She had been so gentle in holding him as punishment to prevent him from hitting the wall, but then she turned around and became a completely different person, showing no mercy. The tenderness she had shown before almost made Qin Ji wonder if he was hallucinating.

The river is white, but the weather is unpredictable and fickle!

It hurts so much, boohoo.

Qin Ji cried out in a series of loud bangs, but dared not dodge. Even though he unconsciously moved his position, he still obediently returned to his original spot while crying.

The young apprentice cried miserably, but Jiang Jibai seemed unmoved and punished him as he always had.

Actually, there was a bit of pity. Although the boy was audacious and often did outrageous things, he obediently accepted all the punishments he had to accept. Even when he cried loudly, he never ran away or held a grudge.

From the boy's occasional questions, one can tell that he has been reflecting on his words. He doesn't just accept the teacher's teachings blindly; rather, he has truly thought about what Jiang Jibai said and listened carefully.

The boy, as pure as a rough gem, was tossed and turned under his tutelage, crying so pitifully; how could one not feel the slightest pity for him?

Jiang Jibai's consistent principle is to punish mistakes and never change the set amount.

This applies not only to Bian Feibai, but also to his other two disciples.

Jiang Jibai had a set of rules in his mind. How he punished, whether lightly or heavily, whether he spared or not, was always based on the matter, not the person.

These 12 blows are the punishments that Bian Feibai didn't receive last time for his reckless act of impersonating His Majesty and sitting on the throne, which sowed the seeds of confiscation of his family's property and extermination of his clan. Jiang Jibai will never show any leniency or let him off lightly.

Qin Ji had no time to ponder why Jiang Jibai had suddenly resorted to such a vicious act; all he could do was cry and tremble.

It hurts so much.

He was covered in sweat, and his eyes and nose were brimming with tears and snot.

Qin Ji relived his previous nightmare, mentally elevating the rattan cane to the ranks of the most terrifying instruments of torture, something he never wanted to see again in his life.

When it was all over, Qin Ji lay exhausted on the edge of the bed, gasping for breath and occasionally crying out in a slightly hoarse voice, while cursing Jiang Jibai in his heart.

As the cool cloth was applied to the wound, Qin Ji's heart, which had been hanging in suspense, finally settled down. Knowing that Jiang Jibai would no longer spout new numbers as if trying to kill him, he mumbled again in a hoarse voice, "Apply the medicine gently."

Jiang Jibai moved the man closer to the couch, wiped his face clean with another clean handkerchief, and sighed helplessly, "I know, ancestor."

Qin Ji's ears twitched at Jiang Jibai's words; he knew he could use this opportunity to his advantage. "I'm thirsty, I want some water!"

Jiang Jibai knew this troublemaker was at it again. He was about to call a servant in to pour water when he heard the boy grumble in dissatisfaction, "You don't even want to feed me water yourself, do you? You have to have someone else do it?"

Jiang Jibai: "..." (Itchy hands)