Chapter Seventy-Four: Bandaging

I carried the Little Witch all the way to the bottom of my apartment building. Though she grumbled and cursed along the way, she didn’t dare struggle again. Carrying her up the stairs would be exhausting, and since she’d already tasted the consequences, I doubted she’d risk more disobedience.

So I said, “Hey! I’ll let you down now and you can walk up yourself. If you behave, that’s the end of it. But if you try anything funny or make a run for it, don’t blame me for being rough. I always keep my word, as you already know. Others might fear you because your father’s a general, but he’s nowhere near here. I’m not one of his soldiers, either. His rank means nothing to me, and there’s no one here for you to hide behind. You’d better be sensible and stop causing trouble. Don’t get on my bad side for no reason, understand?”

The Little Witch let out a snort. “You’re just lucky. If we were on my turf, you wouldn’t dare bully me like this—someone would’ve beaten you to a pulp in no time. Would you still be so arrogant then?”

I let her down and laughed. “A pulp? That’s a new one. All right, up you go.”

The moment her feet touched the ground and she was free, she tried to kick my leg. But I’d anticipated her move, stepped aside in a flash, and raised my right hand, landing a firm smack on her backside.

She’d planned it all: kick me in the leg so I’d be in too much pain to follow, giving her a chance to escape. But her foot met only air, and she instantly realized the tables had turned.

Clutching her bottom, she yelled, “No fair! That doesn’t count—I didn’t even hit you!” She backed away, pressing herself against the building’s outside wall.

I raised my hand in warning. “If I waited until you actually kicked me, who knows if I’d get the chance to teach you a lesson? By then, you’d be long gone. Clearly, you haven’t learned enough yet. I guess I’ll have to keep going until you yield.”

She pressed herself desperately against the wall, trying to shield her rear. I searched for a way to reach her but found none. My hand hovered in the air, poised to strike, but I didn’t. The sight was enough to terrify her into pleading.

“I surrender, all right? I beg you, don’t hit me! I’ll do whatever you say, okay?”

Seeing her finally yield, I halted and let my hand freeze in mid-air, growling, “You surrender? I haven’t even hit you yet.”

“I do, I truly do! No need to hit me again!”

“So, are you going to run anymore?”

“No, I won’t.”

“And are you going to disobey again?”

“I’ll listen, I promise.”

“What if you pull another trick?”

Her eyes darted about as she hesitated, then said, “I really won’t dare! If I misbehave again, you can… you can spank me every day, how’s that?”

I sneered inwardly, not believing a word. If such a troublemaker could be trusted, then castor beans could sprout after being roasted. But I didn’t need to trust her, just hold her in check until dawn. Once her brother came to fetch her, I’d be free of all responsibility, no matter what chaos she stirred at home.

So I asked, “Do you keep your word?”

The Little Witch quickly replied, “I do, absolutely! I swear on Uncle Lei Feng—no, Chairman Mao himself!”

Her oaths were so odd I could only shake my head. “Fine. I’ll trust you one more time. But you’d better remember your promise—if you try anything, I’ll spank you so hard you won’t forget it, understand?”

She nodded earnestly, her face full of sincerity. Only heaven knew how much she hated me inside. I didn’t care; as long as she was subdued for now, that was enough.

I said, “Now listen—go upstairs, and don’t make a sound. Don’t wake my family.”

She nodded again and shuffled toward the stairs. She kept her eyes on me, her hands behind her, backing up the steps, wary of my hand.

I couldn’t help but laugh. “I won’t hit you as long as you behave. If you trip walking like that, it’s not my fault.”

Only then did she, cautiously, turn around, still protecting her backside, and scurry up the stairs at a swift pace.

Satisfied that she was temporarily under control, I felt a weight lifted from my heart. Worst case, I’d stay up all night guarding the living room. As long as her brother came for her at dawn, all would be well.

I followed her up and reached the door. As I fished out my keys, I whispered, “Once we’re in, go to my room and sleep. Don’t wake anyone else. I’ll be in the living room—don’t even think about running off again. By the way, weren’t you sleeping just fine in my sister’s room? Why get up in the middle of the night?”

She was about to answer when I opened the door. I put a finger to my lips, signaling her to be silent, and gestured for her to go in first. Once inside, I quietly shut the door.

Turning on the living room light, I pointed to my room, indicating she should go in. Then I saw my right palm—skin torn, blood smeared. My left hand was just as bad, which explained the throbbing pain. On top of that, my clothes were filthy, two buttons missing from my coat, a big rip in my trousers. That fall had been rough—if it weren’t for my thick winter clothes, I’d be hurt a lot worse.

I shot the Little Witch a resentful glare. She stood in the living room, silent and pitiful. I opened my bedroom door and beckoned her inside.

She hesitated, fidgeting in place. I raised my hand as if to strike, and she obeyed, leaping into my room.

I closed the door behind us. “You sleep in my bed. I’ll sleep outside. Behave yourself tonight, don’t get any funny ideas. Now go to sleep.”

I stepped out, and as I left, she muttered something I couldn’t quite catch—something along the lines of “that should be my line.”

I took off my coat, dusted it off in the bathroom, washed my hands, and found some iodine to disinfect the wounds. The bleeding had stopped, so I quickly dabbed on the iodine and looked for some band-aids.

Unfortunately, I couldn’t find a single one, only a roll of gauze. With no other option, I took it to the sofa and began wrapping my hands.

By chance, I noticed the bite marks left by Hua Jingjing—they’d mostly healed now, the scab nearly gone and new skin forming. As I touched the spot, I recalled the ferocity of her bite. I sighed, thinking, “Ah, my poor hands. You’ve really suffered lately, always running afoul of stubborn, unreasonable women.”

I lit a cigarette, clamping it between my teeth, and wrapped the gauze as best I could.

At that moment, my bedroom door creaked open and the Little Witch emerged. Without a word, she walked over to the back of the sofa and stared at my injured hands. Thinking she was about to start trouble, I growled softly, “Why aren’t you asleep? What are you doing out here?”

She said, “I can’t sleep. I want to talk to you.”

I replied, “Do you want to wake my whole family? Cut the chatter and go to bed!”

She pouted but didn’t move. “I’ll keep my voice down. I really can’t sleep… besides, your blanket smells awful—I can’t lie in it.”

I was torn between laughter and exasperation. I pointed at the sofa. “If you won’t sleep, then sit here. But you mustn’t make a sound!”

She answered with a soft “mm,” then vaulted over the sofa back and planted herself beside me. I fumbled with the gauze, trying to tie a knot with my mouth and one hand. She leaned in eagerly, “Want me to help?”

I eyed her suspiciously, but her face was full of expectation, with no sign of mischief. After all, she’d caused these injuries; it was only fair she help bandage them.

I held out my hand to her.

She immediately unwrapped my earlier attempt. “What a mess you made! Let me do it properly.” She carefully and skillfully wound the gauze, her touch gentle, almost like a nurse’s—she didn’t hurt me at all.

Her face even showed a trace of remorse as she asked, “Does it hurt?”

I replied gruffly, “What do you think?”

She fell silent and finished bandaging both hands, tying the final knot neatly. “All done.”

I drew my hand back and stubbed out my cigarette in the ashtray. “So tell me—why did you try to run away in the middle of the night? Don’t you know it’s dangerous for a girl your age to be out alone?”

Xu Xin, the Little Witch, replied, “I… I was scared! I woke up in the middle of the night and saw someone sleeping beside me—it nearly scared me to death! Only when I looked closely and saw it was a little girl did I stop myself from screaming. Then I realized your phone was missing. You’re not very trustworthy—you might have called my brother while I was asleep, and that would be a disaster. So I got dressed and tried to sneak out before you all noticed. As soon as I got downstairs, I saw a taxi and thought my luck had turned. But no sooner had I opened the door than I ran into you. Hmph! If that hadn’t happened, you’d never have caught me.”

I wondered if I should tell her her brother had already been here, and why she was so afraid of going home. Since it was still early and she refused to sleep, maybe I could talk to her and help her open up.

Lighting another cigarette, I took a deep drag, exhaled slowly, and asked, “Since we’re both up, can you tell me why you ran away from home? You’re so young—being stubborn won’t do you any good. Did you ever think about how worried your parents must be when you don’t come home at night?”