Chapter 35: A Punch to Reboot

Ning Weidong felt a chill in his heart and turned his head back abruptly.

He saw a young man wearing a military-green padded jacket and trousers, black velvet Beijing-style cotton shoes, and a flocked cotton hat worn backward, leaning against the wall at the entrance of the North Room, looking over with a smile that wasn't quite a smile.

Ning Weidong narrowed his eyes; he had just seen this person.

He was one of the two people who had been wandering around the courtyard earlier, alongside Zhang Jinfa.

Ning Weidong had originally been on guard against Zhang Jinfa leaving someone behind to keep watch, but he hadn't expected the opponent to be placed inside rather than outside, which left him no choice.

Unless he stayed hidden in the Cellar and never came out, they were bound to run into each other.

The young man walked over, looking Ning Weidong up and down: "Buddy, you're quite something, going underground in broad daylight."

Ning Weidong stared at him without responding.

The young man said brazenly: "Let's go~ My brother said just now, no matter who it is, once they come here, they have to go over and let him take a look."

Ning Weidong still didn't respond, just watching him.

The young man frowned, then laughed instead of getting angry: "Oh ho~ So you want to spar and see if my skills are tough?"

Ning Weidong raised an eyebrow; he could tell this person was very confident in his own combat ability.

The young man took two more steps forward and stopped two meters away from Ning Weidong: "Fists and kicks or wrestling?" As he spoke, he lowered his center of gravity and assumed a stance; one look and it was clear he was a trained fighter.

Ning Weidong was expressionless, but before the man's voice had even faded, he took a step forward, his figure flashed, and his left hand shot out a quick jab.

Before he transmigrated, Ning Weidong was not skilled at fighting, but the original owner had a wealth of experience in this area.

Especially before going to the countryside, when he was by Qi Jiazui's side, fighting was a daily occurrence. Being young and weak in strength, if one wanted to have combat effectiveness, one had to hone techniques and know where to hit to cause pain, where to cause injury, and where to cause disability.

It was strange to say, but although the original owner wasn't very bright, he was exceptionally gifted in this regard and quite willing to study and learn, even spending more than half a year specifically studying Human Anatomy.

Now, all this knowledge and experience had become Ning Weidong's along with the memories.

Added to that was the significant improvement in his physical fitness after his transmigration; at this moment, the sudden punch, although a lead hand punch without the support of a major leg-pushing and waist-twisting motion, still carried massive kinetic energy from the lunging step.

The young man's pupils contracted sharply as he watched the fist coming; it was too fast! His brain reacted to dodge, but his body couldn't keep up.

"Bang!" The punch landed on the young man's face, the immense force like a hammer blow, instantly causing the young man's brain to shut down and reboot.

A moment of excruciating pain, then darkness before his eyes; the six-foot-tall man collapsed to the ground like a noodle, unconscious on the spot.

Ning Weidong was slightly surprised; he hadn't even realized he was this powerful.

Seeing the opponent's full confidence earlier, he had been a bit worried, thinking if it really didn't work, he would use a screwdriver.

He hadn't expected...

Ning Weidong steadied himself. Seeing the young man fall with blood gushing from his nose, he thought for a moment and went over to turn him from lying on his back to his side, to prevent the nosebleed from flowing back into his trachea and choking him to death.

It would be troublesome if he really caused a death.

However, this person was indeed trained, and his physical fitness was quite good; as Ning Weidong moved him, he actually groaned and began to wake up.

Ning Weidong took a step back.

Since he was awake, it saved a lot of trouble, so he turned and left quickly.

Ning Weidong returned home, closed the door behind him, bolted it, and took out the items he had just obtained.

There was no table, so he simply pulled the foot-washing basin from under the bed and dumped the loose Ocean Coins into it with a clatter.

Even as a transmigrator, Ning Weidong couldn't help but feel his heart racing.

Having previously taken one hundred yuan from Wang Jingsheng, plus the fifty given by Wu Bingzhong, Ning Weidong was no longer so strapped for cash.

But that hundred-odd yuan didn't solve the core problem.

Wang Jingsheng's money had to be returned eventually, and besides, a hundred yuan or so was plenty for food and drink, but it couldn't change his life.

This money was different; if he exchanged the Ocean Coins for cash, two thousand yuan was not a small sum at this time. If used properly, it could leverage quite a few things. If the seller was in a hurry to sell, he could even buy a single-courtyard house, with its own land, trees, and a well.

Ning Weidong unwrapped the oil-paper seals; as expected, they were all fifty Ocean Coins per bundle, mostly dated the third year of the Republic, with some from the ninth year.

The condition varied, but at this time, antiques and collectibles hadn't yet gained traction, so the condition of the Ocean Coins didn't affect the price much; it was more about their value as precious metal.

Ning Weidong was in no hurry to cash them in; with those two hundred yuan in cash, he didn't need to touch these Yuan Shikai silver dollars for the time being.

But there was another problem: where to store so many Ocean Coins?

Leaving them in the earthquake shelter definitely wouldn't work.

Don't forget what Zhang Jinfa did for a living; he kept several "Buddhas" under his command.

Although these "technical experts" rarely did break-ins, that didn't mean they couldn't.

He had just run into one of Zhang Jinfa's men, and although he had "rebooted" him with a punch, he couldn't actually kill him.

Plus, since Wang Jingsheng had exposed Ning Weidong's existence, it wouldn't be hard for them to figure it out.

They would definitely send someone to investigate later, and if he left them at home, they would be stolen.

Even the room where Ning Weiguo and his wife lived wasn't safe.

Ning Weidong thought it over and suddenly remembered a place.

He pushed the foot-washing basin containing the Ocean Coins under the bed and stood up to leave the room, but just as he opened the door, he ran into Wang Kai head-on.

Although they were still three or four meters apart, judging by the direction Wang Kai was coming from, he was heading straight for his room.

"Brother Wang~" Ning Weidong greeted him from the doorway.

Although they lived in the same courtyard, the original owner didn't have much interaction with Wang Kai.

Wang Kai was also taken aback, not expecting Ning Weidong to come out suddenly, and said sheepishly with some embarrassment: "That... Brother Weidong, I was in the wrong that day..."

Ning Weidong was a bit surprised; this guy was looking for him just to apologize?

He waved his hand and said: "Brother Wang, what are you saying? I've already forgotten about it."

The implication was to tell Wang Kai that he would never reveal what happened that night.

Wang Kai, however, was hesitant, seemingly having something else on his mind.

Ning Weidong felt disgusted; he had been in a hurry and was intercepted by Wang Kai, making him quite impatient, and the other party was speaking as if he had a mouthful of cotton.

Finally, Wang Kai stammered: "Brother Weidong, that day... I mean, when you met Xiaonan, did you see anyone else?"

Ning Weidong raised an eyebrow; how could he not understand that Wang Kai still suspected Shi Xiaonan of having someone else on the side.

He did not want to get involved in this mess, so he hurriedly said, "Brother Wang, what are you saying? I really didn't see anything. At the time, it was just Sister Shi alone, limping along. Besides... my Sister Shi is not that kind of person."

Wang Kai gave a bitter, wry smile, as if a weight had been lifted from his heart: "I've let you see a joke."

Ning Weidong responded perfunctorily, and watching Wang Kai turn and walk out, he could not help but curl his lip.

Shi Xiaonan was too beautiful, and Wang Kai was just an ordinary, honest man; he simply could not hold onto a woman like Shi Xiaonan.

Previously, because of his work, Wang Kai held an absolute advantage financially.

But now, Shi Xiaonan had returned to the stage to perform, directly erasing the economic gap.

Having lost this firewall, Wang Kai's inferiority complex began to act up, leading him to constantly self-doubt and subsequently become suspicious of Shi Xiaonan.

However, their life had nothing to do with Ning Weidong.

Watching Wang Kai leave, he hurried straight toward the southeast corner of the courtyard.

(End of chapter)