Chapter 36

"You're saying he lunged out from this woodpile?" 

Tan Huacong looked at the location of the woodpile, then at the distance to the courtyard wall. He seemed to be pondering something before turning back to Chen Ping'an. 

"Where exactly did you climb over the wall?" 

"Hmm? At the time, I was a bit nervous and flustered, so I don't remember clearly," Chen Ping'an said, pretending to think. "Let me recall?" 

In truth, Chen Ping'an had already planned exactly where he had climbed over the wall. His current act of thinking was just to make the story seem more believable. 

"It should have been around here!" Chen Ping'an paced along the wall for a few steps before pointing to a spot with certainty. 

"Here?" 

"Yes," Chen Ping'an nodded. 

Tan Huacong walked over to the spot Chen Ping'an had indicated and glanced at the woodpile. He estimated the distance between the two and found nothing amiss, nodding for Chen Ping'an to continue. 

"When he lunged out from here, I was terrified. My mind went blank. To be honest, Constable Tan, even though I've been a constable for a while, I've never encountered a situation like this. The man was tall and determined, and his presence truly frightened me. My mind went blank, and when I saw him charging at me, my first instinct was to crouch down." 

"Crouch down?" Tan Huacong looked at Chen Ping'an with a strange expression. 

Facing a life-threatening situation, his first reaction was to crouch down? 

But then again... 

For a young man with no martial arts training, such a reaction seemed more realistic in the face of danger. 

"Yes, I crouched down," Chen Ping'an said with a hint of embarrassment. "At the time, I didn't know what to do. I just followed my instincts and crouched. I guess I was lucky. Looking back now, that reaction might have saved my life. When I crouched, he seemed to crash into the wall. I'm not sure what happened next, but he also fell down. When he fell, my mind cleared a bit. I immediately got up and tried to run toward the courtyard gate. 

But he got up faster than I expected. Before I could reach the gate, he kicked me. I had no choice but to take the kick to my chest. The force of it knocked me to the ground." 

Chen Ping'an pulled up his shirt, revealing a large bruise on his chest for Tan Huacong to see. 

Tan Huacong examined the bruise under the torchlight and confirmed that it was indeed from a kick. 

"You're saying you, an ordinary person, took a kick from Patchy Fish head-on?" Tan Huacong looked at Chen Ping'an in disbelief. 

"Yes," Chen Ping'an nodded. 

"And you only got this minor injury from his kick? You're still standing?" 

"I don't know how," Chen Ping'an shook his head in confusion. "All I know is that my chest hurt terribly at the time. But somehow, I found the strength to stand up. Just as I got to my feet, his fist was already coming at me. He was aiming for my head, but because I stood up suddenly, it hit my chest instead." 

Tan Huacong looked at the smaller bruise next to the large one on Chen Ping'an's chest and nodded. 

"After taking that punch, I was terrified. I didn't think much; I just ran backward. He chased me, but after a few steps, he suddenly fell. I don't know where I found the courage, but there was a rock nearby. When I saw him fall, I grabbed the rock and rushed at him, smashing it into his neck. 

After the first hit, he tried to fight back, kicking at me. Without thinking, I used the rock to smash his leg and then his neck. His resistance grew weaker, but I didn't dare stop. I was afraid that if I stopped, I'd be the one dead." 

Chen Ping'an's face showed fear. 

"By the time I came to my senses, this is how it ended up." 

"Mm," Tan Huacong nodded thoughtfully. 

He considered Chen Ping'an's story. 

Overall, it seemed plausible, but there were two points of confusion. First, given Patchy Fish's martial arts level, Chen Ping'an's injuries seemed too light for having taken a kick and a punch. Second, Patchy Fish had fallen twice during the encounter. 

Chen Ping'an looked at Tan Huacong, his face filled with lingering fear. Beneath that fear, however, he felt a hint of nervousness. 

Half of what he had told Tan Huacong was true, and half was fabricated. The scene in the courtyard had also been staged and altered to match his story. 

As long as there wasn't a meticulous, professional investigation, no one would find any issues. 

Still, until Tan Huacong confirmed his account, Chen Ping'an couldn't help but feel tense. He hid this emotion well, though. 

Sometimes, he really did have the makings of an actor. 

"Your luck is truly remarkable!" Tan Huacong finally exclaimed after a long pause. "If even one thing had gone wrong, it might be you lying here instead." 

"Yeah," Chen Ping'an said with a look of relief. "Maybe my old man was watching over me from above." 

At this mention, Tan Huacong also remembered Chen Tian'an. 

"Alright, I understand. I never expected Patchy Fish of the Green Fish Gang, a second-level Qi and Blood martial artist, to end up dying at your hands like this." 

Tan Huacong's two points of confusion were temporarily set aside. Perhaps Patchy Fish's injuries from the escape were more severe than they had imagined, to the point where even normal movement was difficult. 

This could explain why his punches and kicks were weaker and why he fell after just a few steps. 

It made sense. Being hunted by the Town Guard Office, Patchy Fish had money but no way to buy medicine or food. Without proper nourishment and treatment, his injuries would only worsen. It was no surprise that Patchy Fish had tried to steal food from Chen Ping'an's home tonight. 

Of course, these were just Tan Huacong's reasonable assumptions. They might not reflect the truth. 

But for Tan Huacong, as long as it was confirmed that the corpse in the courtyard was indeed Patchy Fish, the details of how it happened weren't crucial. 

"Constable Tan, what about the bounty..." 

"Mm, I'll record it and report it. Don't worry," Tan Huacong nodded. "But it's late now. Even if I record it, it won't be processed immediately. Why don't you go home for now, and we'll handle it tomorrow." 

"Constable Tan, how about I go back to the Town Guard Office with you to get everything recorded? That way, if there are any details or questions, you can ask me right away." 

Chen Ping'an, concerned about securing his official constable status, made the suggestion. 

Tan Huacong glanced at Chen Ping'an, understanding his concerns. 

After all, when it came to a medium merit, no one could rest easy. 

"Alright, let's go back together," Tan Huacong agreed. 

"Great, thank you, Constable Tan." Chen Ping'an's face broke into a smile.