Urban Martial Saint

Broom Star, the little boy, stayed in the same room with Ye Qing at night, and with Da Hei sleeping there too, Ye Qing’s room was arguably the most crowded one.

The next morning, finding a place for the little boy became a major issue. Everyone had to go to work, even Ye Qing had to go to protect Lin Huayu on her way to school, so they couldn’t just leave Broom Star at home alone.

In the end, it was Mo Xiang who took Broom Star to school with her since she was a primary school teacher and her students were about the same age as Broom Star. By having him in the classroom, she could keep an eye on him and let him learn something, which would be beneficial for him.

Ye Qing was very confident with Mo Xiang taking care of Broom Star. In fact, as long as Huo Pingping wasn’t looking after Broom Star, Ye Qing wasn’t worried at all; these girls were all very responsible.

In the morning, Ye Qing first went to deliver food to Scar Lee. When he left the day before, he had specifically marked the door and phone. If Scar Lee had gone out or used the phone, he would have been able to tell. To be honest, Ye Qing still had some doubts about Scar Lee.

However, when he went there in the morning, all the marks were still in place. That meant Scar Lee hadn’t opened the door or touched the phone. It seemed that he had really submitted to Ye Qing and didn’t dare to play any more tricks.

Ye Qing was pleased with Scar Lee’s reaction. He needed to use Scar Lee to find out more about Boss Lin. So, it was crucial whether Scar Lee would cooperate. Now it seemed that Scar Lee was fully cooperating.

After giving some instructions to Scar Lee, Ye Qing went to work, beginning his routine of protecting Lin Huayu.

When he went to pick up Lin Huayu, she was on the phone, sounding quite upset. Just as Ye Qing approached, she angrily threw the cell phone into his arms, saying, ”I don’t want to talk to him anymore, you talk to him!”

”Ah?” Ye Qing was speechless. Who was this person on the phone, and how was Ye Qing supposed to talk to him? After hesitating for a moment, he put the phone to his ear and softly greeted.

”Hello, Little Leaf?” came Zhao Chengshuang’s annoying voice from the other end, ”You’re already at work so early? That’s quite professional of you.”

Ye Qing finally understood why Lin Huayu wanted him to talk. Holding the phone, he said, ”What’s going on?”

”Oh man, I just can’t communicate with this cousin of mine,” Zhao Chengshuang complained with a sigh.

”What’s happening?” Ye Qing was puzzled. Could these two cousins really be having a fight?

Zhao Chengshuang spoke in frustration, ”You see, my cousin, next year she’ll be taking the college entrance exam. But her grades aren’t that good, so my uncle is thinking of finding her a tutor to help her out. I thought, Huayu being a university student and all, would be so suitable to coach my cousin. But, you know, after just a short chat, the whole thing collapsed.”

”It’s no wonder it collapsed, with Lin Huayu’s temperament, do you think she could even sit still to tutor your cousin?” Ye Qing muttered to himself internally, ”For something like this, wouldn’t it be better to find a professional tutor?”

”That was my thought too. If my cousin didn’t want to do it, we could just get a tutor,” Zhao Chengshuang paused for a moment before saying, ”By the way, aren’t there many talented students at Shenchuan University? Could you help me look for one? The most important thing is that they need to be good at math, my cousin is really poor at it.”

”I’ll see what I can do,” Ye Qing said. ”Any other requirements?”

Zhao Chengshuang chuckled, ”Preferably a beautiful woman...”

”So that’s really the only requirement,” Ye Qing hung up the phone without continuing. There was no need to say more.

After dropping Lin Huayu off at school, she kept grumbling about Zhao Chengshuang all the way. Through her rant, Ye Qing had a pretty good grasp of the cousin’s character.

Zhao Chengshuang’s cousin was similar to Lin Huayu. Lin Huayu was the only girl of her generation in the Lin family, and Zhao Chengshuang’s cousin was the only girl of her generation in the Zhao Family, spoiled since a young age.

Lin Huayu’s temperament was somewhat more tolerable than Zhao Chengshuang’s cousin though, who had quite a difficult personality, which explained Lin Huayu’s dissatisfaction.

Lin Huayu arrived at the school rather early that day. When she entered the classroom, only a few students were there. Most of them were gathered around a corner desk.

Ye Qing remembered that sitting at that desk was his fellow villager, Wang Tiezhu. Right now, Wang Tiezhu was sitting there, his face flushed red, while five or six people were pointing at him and talking.

”We’re all classmates here, and I don’t care if you’re poor, but could you please consider other people’s feelings? Bringing so much food into the classroom every day, you know how strong the smell is? We’re all here to study together; the classroom isn’t just for you. Can’t you show a little public spirit?” a girl scolded, pointing at Wang Tiezhu’s nose.

”Let’s not waste time on that, let’s deal with the main issue first!” a flashy-dressed boy waved his hand. His name was Huang Bin, and he was one of the richer ones in the class. Of course, compared to Lin Huayu, he was nothing, practically a beggar.

Huang Bin hadn’t noticed Ye Qing and Lin Huayu entering from behind. He glared at Wang Tiezhu and said, ”This isn’t the first time I’ve lost money in the classroom, and I haven’t cared much before. But last night, I paid extra attention and deliberately walked out last. I purposely put two hundred yuan in my desk pocket, and now, this morning, the money is gone.

Wang Tiezhu, you were the first one in the classroom, could you explain to me where the money went?”

”I… I don’t know…” Wang Tiezhu replied softly.

”Don’t know?” Huang Bin glared, saying, ”Is ’I don’t know’ all you have to say? I was the last to leave, no one had touched my money. You were the first to enter the classroom, and then I came in right after. Now the money is gone, and you say you don’t know, are you implying I stole my own money?”

Another boy said, ”Wang Tiezhu, though you’re poor, you should have some dignity. What do you mean by this? If you didn’t have money, you could have just said something. These two hundred yuan, Bin Zi here would have considered it charity to you. But, if you stole, that’s a different matter altogether!”

”I didn’t steal!” Wang Tiezhu said urgently.

”Then what happened? Where’s the money? The money! Tell me where the money is!” Huang Bin said while grabbing Wang Tiezhu’s collar in fury, saying, ”Two hundred yuan may not be much to me. I just can’t swallow this grievance that you’ve dared to steal from me, believe it or not, I can make sure you’re unable to attend school!”

Wang Tiezhu hung his head, gripping the hem of his clothes with his hands, not daring to respond. His inferiority complex, combined with his poverty, left him completely voiceless in this school.

”What’s going on?” Ye Qing approached, and everyone’s expression changed at the sight of him.

Practically everyone knew that Ye Qing and Wang Tiezhu were from the same hometown, and they were aware that Ye Qing looked out for Wang Tiezhu. Now that Ye Qing had come, he was certainly there to support Wang Tiezhu.

Huang Bin also shuddered, hastily letting go of Wang Tiezhu, but his heart was unwilling to let it go, saying, ”Eldest Brother Ye, you’ve come at the right moment. You’ve always been fair in your dealings, and I admire you for it. Tell me, shouldn’t someone who steals be punished?”

”Stealing should indeed be punished,” Ye Qing said indifferently, ”However, wrongfully accusing an innocent person should also be punished!”

Huang Bin, with an unhappy expression, said, ”I didn’t wrong anyone; I’m speaking with facts. I was the last one to leave last night; he was the first to come this morning. Right after him, I arrived; no one else was in between. The Two hundred yuan I deliberately left here are gone, now tell me, if he didn’t steal it, did my money magically grow wings and fly away?”

Ye Qing glanced at Wang Tiezhu, whose head was down, his hands continually twisting his clothing, his face turning beet red.

”Tiezhu, did you take his money?” Ye Qing asked.

”I… I didn’t…” Wang Tiezhu looked up at Ye Qing, his eyes resolute. It was only in front of Ye Qing that he could hold his head high and speak a few words.

Huang Bin angrily said, ”You say you didn’t take it, and that’s enough? Who would believe that?”

Ye Qing said softly, ”I believe him!”

”I believe him too!” Lin Huayu walked over, giving Wang Tiezhu a thumbs up, saying, ”Don’t be afraid of him, Wang Tiezhu, Ye and I believe you!”

Ye Qing had been sitting with Wang Tiezhu during class these past few days, and Lin Huayu, being with Ye Qing, consequently became desk-mates with the two of them. Lin Huayu did not get along well with other classmates, but she had a somewhat decent relationship with Wang Tiezhu.

A flicker of gratitude crossed Wang Tiezhu’s face as the support from Lin Huayu and Ye Qing eased some of the redness from his cheeks.

Huang Bin hadn’t expected the response from Ye Qing and Lin Huayu, finding it hard to restrain himself, he said, ”Eldest Brother Ye, Miss Lin, we should speak with facts. You believe him just on his word; then tell me, where exactly did the money go?”

”It doesn’t matter how it’s gone,” Lin Huayu said in her typical imperious fashion. ”Wang Teizhu says he didn’t take it, so he didn’t take it!”

Huang Bin was instantly at a loss for words. If Lin Huayu said this, there was little he could do.

”There will be an answer to this matter, but not right now,” Ye Qing said. ”You were the last one to leave, and he was the first one to arrive, but this does not prove he is the one who took the money. Because, how can you be certain that nobody entered this classroom in the middle of the night?”

The crowd exchanged glances, Huang Bin said sternly, ”We can search him; I’ve marked my money, and I recognize it!”

”Alright.” Wang Tiezhu nodded decisively this time, which took Huang Bin by surprise. Could it be that Wang Tiezhu really didn’t take the money?

”There’s no need for a search,” Ye Qing waved his hand, saying, ”I believe Tiezhu didn’t take it. Once everyone has arrived, I will help you find out who did!”

The crowd looked at Ye Qing perplexedly; they respected his fighting skills, but such a matter wasn’t something you could just say you would solve and do it. They thought that Ye Qing was merely bluffing—dozens of people in a classroom with not a single clue, where would he even begin to look?

”Fine, Eldest Brother Ye, since you said you can find out, I will wait for your word!” Huang Bin immediately said. ”Once everyone is here, Eldest Brother Ye, you must catch the thief for me. Keeping such a person in class tarnishes our reputation, and we must drive him out of this classroom!”

Huang Bin quickly took the bait, aiming to force Ye Qing into a corner. If Ye Qing couldn’t find the culprit, he would lose face, and Huang Bin had played a calculated move to trick Ye Qing publically.