Cangmang Asks the Way 1: Guardian of the Lamp

Grandpa Geng helped Cang Tianci up and stumbled open the dormitory door. He anxiously called out to the stunned teenagers inside, "Tianci is injured! Come quickly and help him sit down and clean him up. I'm going to find Coach Zhou."

All eyes were fixed on the doorway. When they saw the figure next to Grandpa Geng, covered in mud, dressed in rags, with a face bruised and bloodshot, the entire dormitory seemed to freeze.

Chen Gang, who was sitting on the edge of the bed wiping his old boxing gloves, suddenly stood up, rushed forward, and reached out to firmly support Tianci's other side of his body. His voice was urgent: "Uncle Geng, what happened?" He looked at Tianci's injury and his brows furrowed.

"Damn it..." In the corner, Wu Bin's leopard-like, sharp eyes narrowed instantly, flashing a piercing light. He sprang from the bed like a spring, nimbly darted to the door, glanced warily at the dark corridor outside, then retreated, lowering his voice to Chen Gang, "Brother Gang, look at the wound. It wasn't from a fall; someone attacked you viciously."

Li Qiang's dark face was filled with astonishment. He leaned closer, looked at Tianci's miserable state, gasped, and muttered, "God... what... what kind of trouble have we gotten ourselves into?"

Sun Peng, leaning against the lower bunk opposite him, was stunned for a moment, then a look of disbelief flashed across his face. Deep in his eyes, besides his usual mockery, there was also a hint of fear he himself didn't realize—this stutterer actually dared to fight like this? He said sarcastically, "Oh ho, is our 'Little Heavenly Gift' out doing some chivalrous work?"

"Sun Peng, shut up!" Chen Gang shouted without turning his head. He took Tianci from Grandpa Geng and carefully helped him toward the bed.

Sun Peng was speechless, feeling a little embarrassed. He pouted awkwardly but didn't say anything more, only looking at the figure being helped with complicated emotions.

"Don't crowd around him anymore, spread out a bit, let him get some fresh air," Chen Gang directed, then said to Li Qiang, who was closest, "Qiangzi, quickly go and fetch a basin of warm water. It needs to be clean."

Li Qiang responded and immediately grabbed the basin and rushed towards the water room.

Wu Bin silently walked to Tianci's bedside and helped clean up the clutter scattered at the foot of the bed.

The small dormitory was filled with an unusually complex atmosphere due to this sudden change: there was concern, shock, wariness, and also cold mockery. Tianci keenly sensed all these complex changes. Like an outsider, he calmly observed this microcosm of the world with the "seeing" that his older brother had taught him.

Grandpa Geng said to Chen Gang, "Keep an eye on things, I'm going to find Coach Zhou right now!" After saying that, he hurriedly ran out.

Zhou Zhenhua had just put down his chopsticks and bowl for dinner when he heard Grandpa Geng's breathless words. His face instantly darkened to a grim degree. Without a word, he rushed into the dormitory and knelt down to carefully examine Tianci's injuries. When he saw the bruises under his ribs and the bleeding wounds on his arm, his brows furrowed into a deep knot.

"Can you walk?" Zhou Zhenhua asked.

Tianci nodded.

"Chen Gang, Wu Bin, give me a hand, get him to the hospital." Zhou Zhenhua stood up, his voice carrying an undeniable determination. "The rest of you stay in the dorms, don't wander off."

Chen Gang and Wu Bin carefully helped Tianci up. Zhou Zhenhua led the way, and the group quickly left the dormitory building. Grandpa Geng, worried, followed along.

The on-duty doctor in the county hospital's emergency department gave Tianci a thorough examination and took X-rays. While waiting for the results, Zhou Zhenhua stood in the corridor, his face ashen. Grandpa Geng sat on a nearby bench, glancing towards the emergency room every now and then. Chen Gang and Wu Bin stood against the wall, neither of them speaking.

After the X-ray came back, the doctor said that the bones and muscles were fine, mainly just skin injuries, but there were several bruises that were quite severe and would take time to heal. He prescribed some medicine and told me to go home and rest well, and not to do any strenuous exercise for the next couple of days.

After leaving the hospital, Zhou Zhenhua asked Chen Gang and Wu Bin to take Tianci back to the dormitory first, while he turned and headed towards the police station.

At the police station, he gave a detailed statement about how Tianci was beaten by the three men, the physical characteristics of Hei Pi, and his suspicion that the other party might have been instructed by Zhao Xiaohu. The officer on duty recorded the statement and said he would investigate.

By the time he finished, it was late at night. Zhou Zhenhua returned to the sports school and first went to check on Tianci in his dormitory. Tianci had changed into clean clothes and was leaning against the bed, his face still pale.

Zhou Zhenhua sat down on the edge of the bed, remained silent for a while, and then spoke: "Tianci, you did the right thing by protecting your classmate. But next time something like this happens, the first thing you should do is run, find an adult, and call the police. If you fight them alone and something serious happens, what will your parents do?"

Tianci kept his head down and didn't speak. His hand unconsciously pressed against his chest—there was a crushed plastic medicine box there, which he wanted to give to Lin Wanqing, but it was crushed in the dark alley before he could give it to her.

Zhou Zhenhua saw the action but didn't ask any further questions. He simply stood up, patted him on the shoulder, and said, "Alright, get some rest tonight. I'll go to the school tomorrow to explain the situation to Teacher Fang."

The next day, Zhou Zhenhua went to the fourth-grade office at Jixian Elementary School. He recounted the incident, the injuries, and the connection between "Blackie" and Zhao Xiaohu to Teacher Fang.

Fang Wenhui's expression grew increasingly somber as she continued her narration. She remained silent for a moment, then called Zhao Xiaohu over.

"Zhao Xiaohu, yesterday evening, Cang Tianci was attacked by three young men on his way back to the sports school and sustained serious injuries. One of the ringleaders, named Hei Pi, works for your father. During the attack, they mentioned that Cang Tianci 'got into trouble with someone he shouldn't have.' Is this related to you?"

Zhao Xiaohu's face flushed red, and he said stiffly, "Teacher Fang, I don't know anything about this! Many people work for my dad. What they do has nothing to do with me!"

"Zhao Xiaohu," Fang Wenhui's tone softened slightly, "I'm not interrogating you. The police have already been notified, and the police station will investigate. If it has nothing to do with you, that's for the best. If it does... tell us now, and we can work together to find a solution. Once the police have investigated, the situation will be different."

A flicker of panic crossed Zhao Xiaohu's eyes, but he still managed to say, "Teacher Fang, I... I really don't know."

Fang Wenhui looked at him and sighed softly, "Okay, go back to class first. You can come see the teacher anytime you've thought it through."

Zhao Xiaohu turned and walked out of the office, his back stiff. At the door, his eyes met Zhou Zhenhua's, and he quickly lowered his head and left.

Fang Wenhui watched the figure disappear at the end of the corridor, remained silent for a long time, and then said softly, "Teaching is easy, but teaching people is hard."

Zhou Zhenhua was startled. As he walked out of his office, he paused at the end of the corridor. Outside the window, several younger children were chasing and playing on the playground, their laughter drifting in through the glass, sounding distant.

Zhou Zhenhua returned to the sports school and told Cang Tianci what had happened there, then asked:

"Tianci, what did you see in this matter?"

Tianci remained silent for a long time before saying:

"I see... fists... can't solve everything. But... without fists, some things... don't even have a chance to be resolved."

A glint flashed in Zhou Zhenhua's eyes, and he nodded, saying, "Well said. Remember the pain you felt today, and study and train even harder in the future." With that, he stood up and left the dormitory.

Tianci leaned against the bed, recalling his elder brother's words: "Ask your heart, not your fist; when your heart is clear, your fist will naturally be true."

He seemed to understand a little. He asked not how far the fist could hit, but how steadfast the heart could remain.

As night fell, the sound of snoring gradually rose in the dormitory. Tianci opened his eyes in the darkness, slowly turned to his side, took out the medicine box from his inner pocket, and silently looked at it for a long time in the dim light coming in from the window.

Then, he carefully put it back in its original place and hid it close to his body.