Chapter 276: One Slap

To catch a thief you need the stolen goods; to catch an adulterer you need both parties; relying only on a few blurry photos isn't very convincing.

Zheng Tan guessed that Zhang Dong would surely smooth things over with sweet talk, but seeing Bai Lao Shi's demeanor, she probably wouldn't be easily fooled this time; at her age, dating is aimed at marriage, so even if Zhang Dong temporarily talked his way out with excuses, she'd still hold a grudge. What Bai Lao Shi asked Zheng Tan to help with was to obtain evidence.

Hearing Bai Lao Shi say that, Zhang Dong obviously has a past record; though he's a capable person, I don't know how he previously convinced Bai Lao Shi to forgive him, and now this sort of thing has happened again—this time Bai Lao Shi doesn't intend to let it slide easily.

On regular workdays Bai Lao Shi is busy with kindergarten students, so the large chunk of daytime is enough for Zhang Dong to do many things.

Helping to keep watch on someone isn't actually that difficult for Zheng Tan; it's just a bit boring.

After a brief exchange via text message, Zheng Tan didn't give a direct reply. If he were human it would be fine, but a cat's daytime movements aren't very convenient, and besides, Zheng Tan isn't comfortable carrying a phone during the day.

That day, Zheng Tan yawned as he walked toward the residential complex where Zhang Dong had recently rented. He had observed the place for several days; Zhang Dong had lately become more restrained, so even if he ran into that girl, although her attitude remained enthusiastic, he likely had been scolded by Bai Lao Shi and wasn't so overly affectionate. Moreover, Zheng Tan in broad daylight didn't think this guy would do anything.

Zhang Dong works at a small company nearby, not far from the rented complex, so Zheng Tan didn't feel like constantly tailing him; he just took a stroll. If he happened to see Zhang Dong, he'd go over to look; if not, he'd wander on his own. There's a small pet shop nearby with two chinchillas placed outside, which is quite interesting; Zheng Tan would often stop and watch them whenever he passed. Actually, what Zheng Tan mainly watched were the girls attracted by the chinchillas—the pet shop put the two chinchillas at the entrance to draw passersby, especially some young girls.

The people gathered there were probably a few college students who had come out to stroll since they had no morning classes. Zheng Tan's gaze followed several girls moving by; the one in the middle had a good figure, long legs and a slim waist. When she smiled she had two dimples. After those girls disappeared into the flow of pedestrians, Zheng Tan prepared to look away, but suddenly his gaze halted. He saw a fashionable woman. Her long, wavy hair appeared casually loose. Unlike the attire of the few female students just before, her stylish, mature vibe was striking; although her clothing color didn't stand out in the crowd, one had to admit—her face, figure, and every movement exuded a charm that was captivating.

However, what kept Zheng Tan from looking away was the scene he caught a glimpse of just as he was about to avert his eyes, and then the woman curling her red lips.

Just then, a man talking on his phone hurried past; the fashionable woman walked this way, the two moving toward each other, and when they passed shoulder to shoulder, their shoulders bumped. The woman gave an apologetic smile and softly said sorry. The middle-aged man on the phone stared at her for a few seconds, then hastily said it was no problem, feeling embarrassed. After they passed each other, the woman's face showed a faint smile. From Zheng Tan's angle, he happened to capture a fleeting image—at the moment of their collision, the wallet in the phone‑talking middle‑aged man's pocket had already shifted.

Seeing that, Zheng Tan couldn't help but feel inwardly amazed—indeed, you can't judge a person by appearance!

Before Zheng Tan had finished his thought, he saw the fashionable woman's smile deepen as she stared in a direction and waved.

Zheng Tan looked that way and saw, diagonally across the street, Zhang Dong—who should have been at work—running over impatiently, almost bumping into a taxi.

Do they know each other?!

Indeed, they're both thieves, and besides, these two are decent‑looking; although Zheng Tan looks down on Zhang Dong, he can't deny that this guy has a pretty little face that attracts women.

The two must be quite familiar; their interaction is totally like old friends, even with a hint of something more. No, it shouldn't be just ambiguous—those little gestures and the eye contact between them let Zheng Tan be certain they definitely have an affair!

Sheesh, this guy is impressive—originally Zheng Tan thought Zhang Dong was juggling two lovers, but now it seems there may be even more; perhaps this is just the tip of the iceberg?

On the street they didn't do anything overly intimate,

Zhang Dong raised his hand to tug at the woman's hair by her cheek, letting his fingers slide down the strands, brushing over her prominent breasts, his gaze lingering suggestively as he moved; when he shifted his hand, he flicked his fingers slightly—the wallet he had just stolen was also there, merely hidden by his coat, not easy to notice.

The woman took off her sunglasses, gave Zhang Dong a proud glance, then linked her arm with his, and they left together.

Zheng Tan followed them; since he'd run into them, he decided to help Bai Lao Shi keep an eye on things—too bad he came out without his phone this time, otherwise he could have summoned Bai Lao Shi to catch them in the act.

Zhang Dong is in a good mood now; yesterday he contacted that friend with whom he'd had intimate contact, learning she would come to Chu Hua Shi today. When he got a call during his morning shift at work, he took leave to go pick her up, and also asked her for ideas regarding the recent theft incident. Of course, having her come over to help also meant they could engage in some 'intimate communication'—they hadn't seen each other in a while and missed each other greatly. Marrying a wife like Bai Lao Shi, who is family‑oriented and good at housework and childcare, is certainly fine, but Zhang Dong prefers something more passionate, and at the same time he's reluctant to just set Bai Lao Shi aside; plus some personality factors lead him to maintain a habit of keeping one main partner while occasionally running off to flirt with others—especially when he sees an old flame, he can't help himself.

Zheng Tan watched them enter a hotel; their eyes held ambiguity and provocation, passersby could tell their relationship wasn't ordinary, and going into a hotel at this moment… thinking about the interaction between those two, Zheng Tan again felt that if he had his phone, he could have let Bai Lao Shi come over to catch them.

But, is it too late to go back and send 【a message】 now?

After thinking it over, Zheng Tan quickly ran back to Chu Hua Da Xue, climbed into the tree hole to turn on his phone, briefly described what he had just seen, and also gave the name of that hotel; as for what Bai Lao Shi would do next, Zheng Tan didn't know—she was currently in class, and he would go see her after school. By then those two should have already finished their business.

After sending the message, Zheng Tan was about to power off when a reply came back, asking whether it was the xxx hotel on xx Road.

Zheng Tan recalled the street where that hotel was located and replied with a 'yes.'

After they replied 'thank you,' there was no further movement.

After putting down his phone, Zheng Tan ran to the kindergarten to check; Bai Lao Shi wasn't there, another teacher was filling in, and he heard Bai Lao Shi had temporarily left due to an urgent matter.

"Hei Ge!" Zhuo Xiao Mao, holding a notebook, wobbled over to the classroom window edge, looking at Zheng Tan perched on the windowsill. He opened his notebook: "Hei Ge, look, little red flower plus red flag!"

Zheng Tan looked; it showed some simple letters—many kids write those poorly. However, as long as you wrote something you could get the red‑flower stamp, but the red‑flag stamp isn't given to just anyone; you have to write correctly and well.

Seeing Zhuo Xiao Mao's eager eyes, Zheng Tan raised his hand and patted his head; Zhuo Xia Mao stood there grinning, as if receiving approval and praise.

However, Zheng Tan was thinking about going to the hotel to check the situation, so he didn't stay to listen to Zhuo Xiao Mao speak; after patting Zhuo Xia Mao's head, he jumped off the windowsill and left.

Zhuo Xiao Mao watched Zheng Tan leave, the smile on his face fading. Bai Lao Shi isn't happy today, Hei Ge isn't happy either, so he isn't happy either!

A mushroom‑headed little girl from the same compound as Zhuo Xiao Mao ran up: "Zhuo Xiao Mao Zhuo Xiao Mao, do you know what one plus one equals?"

"It equals two."

The mushroom‑headed girl: "……" What are you spitting?

Over there, Zheng Tan ran to the hotel, wondering why he hadn't seen Bai Lao Shi, guessing she might have gone inside to look for someone, when he saw a figure burst out of the hotel—it was Bai Lao Shi. Behind her, Zhang Dong also came rushing out, looking disheveled, as if he'd hastily thrown on clothes, still full of wrinkles.

Bai Lao Shi's eyes were red with rage, she panted, saying nothing; after her arm was grabbed she stopped and stared at Zhang Dong. She wouldn't utter harsh words, nor did she know how to express her current feelings—perhaps because being a kindergarten teacher she can't speak harshly—and since she can't say anything, the most direct way to vent her emotion is—to slap him.

Smack!

"Bai Lao Shi, you misunderstood!" Zhang Dong ignored the fashionable woman and hurriedly prepared to find an excuse to cover up.

Smack! Another slap.

"Listen to my explanation!" Zhang Dong tried to block Bai Lao Shi as she was about to leave.

Smack! Yet another slap.

Nice slaps! Zheng Tan watched the two, and from the sound he could tell how hard the slaps were; Bai Lao Shi's strength from daily child‑holding practice came in handy now.

A hotel staff member came over, pushed Zhang Dong aside, then tried to console Bai Lao Shi, looking as if he knew her—no wonder Bai Lao Shi could just walk in and catch them in the act.

More and more onlookers gathered; Bai Lao Shi didn't stay longer, hailed a taxi and left, leaving Zhang Dong there to be pointed at and gossiped about. As for that fashionable woman, Zheng Tan didn't see her—he guessed she also knew it was best to stay hidden right now, otherwise she'd just be talked about.

In the afternoon, Zheng Tan ran to the woods to turn on his phone, intending to ask about Bai Lao Shi's situation; seeing how angry she had been that morning, he was quite upset and didn't go to the kindergarten that afternoon.

But after powering on, Zheng Tan discovered his phone had—run out of credit—!

He had only topped up fifty yuan not long ago, and it's already gone?!

After thinking, he hadn't made many calls lately, and even if he'd sent a lot of texts, that wouldn't use up credit so fast; the only explanation is that he'd been sending picture messages!

These past few days, aside from texting, he'd also sent quite a few picture MMS; how come he never noticed before that phone credit gets used up so quickly?!

Communication these days is far less convenient than it will be in a few years, when you'll be able to log onto Wi‑Fi and freely send pictures, voice, and chat app messages; now it's different, but Zheng Tan only realizes this too late.

Looking at his phone, Zheng Tan wondered when today he should go top up—should he return to the newsstand for a recharge card, or write an anonymous note with his phone number, put the money together in the place where others top up phones, and have them help him recharge?

Just as Zheng Tan was worrying about how to recharge, his phone received a notification text; he opened it and saw that it showed a hundred‑yuan top‑up just made, and a few seconds later another text arrived—it was from Bai Lao Shi.

"I'm really sorry; I didn't think things through."

Zheng Tan was about to reply when a call came straight through from the other side. (To be continued…)

ps: (6.3)