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Chapter 168: Chapter 147 Over-the-shoulder Throw_1
Tang Qing, riding Lin Jiaxue’s grandpa’s motorcycle, had bought the necessary oil, salt, soy sauce, vinegar and some rice, noodles, meat, and vegetables and was ready to head home. There was no hurry for the Chinese New Year goods. Those could wait till tomorrow, there were still a few days until New Year. He planned on taking Lin Jiaxue with him for shopping tomorrow.
While passing by a home appliance store in town, Tang Qing halted his motorcycle and peered inside. Now that he had a hefty sum in his pocket, he really wanted to buy a refrigerator, air conditioner, and washing machine to take home. Having these conveniences would make life slightly easier. His family had intended to make these purchases before his grandparents passed away. They weren’t struggling financially, but his grandfather always refused on the grounds that it was wasteful. His grandparents were used to frugality. The decision-making power rested with grandpa, and nobody else could say much if he declined.
He was tempted but, after some hesitation, Tang Qing decided against it. His pocket wasn’t exactly ’flourishing’ with cash. The bonus card was left at his uncle’s house, and in his parents’ eyes, he was just a ’penniless’ person. It was clear he shouldn’t be able to afford such big purchases.
He thought it better to avoid unnecessary trouble.
What a damned situation, having money and nowhere to spend it. He was earning more than fifteen million every day, yet there lay three hundred and eighty million RMB idly in his account.
Tang Qing, unable to do anything, shook his head helplessly.
Alas, life is as desolate as snow.
Tang Qing silently revelled in this delightful frustrating moment while on the motorcycle.
Suddenly.
A hand landed ’heavily’ on his shoulder, startling him greatly. His first thought was that the police had come for him; his second thought was that if it were the police, it wouldn’t be a hand on his shoulder, but a gun.
Tang Qing instinctively grasped the hand, planning to flip the person over his shoulder, as the person was standing like Ouyang Feng in the movie "Eastward Journey," looking too cool.
But when he regained his senses, he hurriedly retracted his hand.
However, it was too late. He had pulled too hard while trying to resist, accidentally dislocating the person’s joint. The crisp sound of the dislocation echoed in Tang Qing’s ears.
"Ah..."
A scream like a pig being slaughtered sounded behind him. Tang Qing hurriedly turned around and saw a young man clad in a black down jacket, clutching his right arm and wailing on the floor. Upon closer inspection, he realised that it was an acquaintance, a close one at that. No wonder they didn’t offer a greeting before making physical contact.
The shriek immediately attracted the attention of the passers-by. Seeing a man huddled on the ground, clutching his right hand and crying out in misery and desolation, they started murmuring among themselves. Those who loved drama had smiles on their faces, probably thinking about how much they would have to talk about when they returned home. 𝖓𝔬𝔳𝖕𝖚𝖇.𝖈𝔬𝔪
Seeing this, Tang Qing didn’t bother with pointless niceties asking things like ’Are you okay? Are you alright? Is it bad?’.
Did his screaming and howling look like he was okay?
Tang Qing didn’t say much. Words could not solve the matter anyway. He parked his bike, knelt down and grabbed the dislocated hand, trying to remember the bone-setting techniques that Han Leng had taught him.
The moment Tang Qing grabbed the injured arm, the person instinctively tried to resist. But it was futile given Tang Qing’s strength. He felt as if his hand had been clamped by pliers. He was unable to free himself at all.
Once he made up his mind, Tang Qing quickly placed his hand on the dislocated joint and applied force.
"Click..."
A low noise sounded, and just like that, Tang Qing had reset the dislocated bone.
"Ah ... Oh? Uh, it doesn’t hurt anymore?" The person figured his hand was ruined because the process of setting the bone was indeed excruciating. But after screaming for a bit, he suddenly realized his hand didn’t hurt anymore. He flexed his fingers, other than a slightly bloated feeling, there was no problem at all. His face was filled with astonishment. Mouth agape, he looked at Tang Qing as if he was seeing an alien.
He was well aware of Tang Qing’s abilities – when did he gain such strength and precision in bone-setting skills?
The people around were also stunned. They didn’t expect this ’assaulter’ to be a bone-setting expert as well. Their impression of Tang Qing changed drastically in an instant. Capable people always garner respect. Some villagers even recognized Tang Qing which triggered another round of "know-it-all" chatter.
Seeing that the other person was fine, Tang Qing nodded in satisfaction. He hadn’t anticipated that his first attempt at bone setting would be this flawless. However, it wasn’t that surprising — under the proficient manipulation of technique and strength, and his profound understanding of human anatomy, achieving mastery purely based on theory wasn’t entirely implausible.
At this moment, Tang Qing finally smiled and said, "Tuo’er, you’re okay, aren’t you?"
The person in front of him was Shen Tuo, his elementary and middle school classmate, and a best friend from the same not-so-nearby village. As for the nickname Tuo’er, no one used to call him that; everyone called him by his name. But once, he committed an act so outrageous it shocked everyone — during sixth grade, he lost a bet and went up to the teacher’s podium to drop his pants in front of everyone, dumbfounding his teacher and classmates. Since then, everyone started calling him Tuo’er.
In the end, Shen Tuo couldn’t escape being reprimanded by his parents. This incident not only got him a severe beating from his father but also turned him into a school legend, gaining fame far and wide. His exploits continued to circulate in the school even to this day, which directly resulted in him not having a girlfriend in middle or high school.
"Tang Qing, damn, what were you doing just now? I was just saying hi to you, and you used that heavy hand on me. That hurt me to death. And where did you learn that bone-setting technique? You’re so skilled," Shen Tuo, who was now alright, quickly stood up and asked in astonishment.
The onlookers, realizing that there was nothing left to see, went about their own business.
"Who told you to sneak up on me like that? I’d been sparring with a soldier for a few days — it was just an instinctual response. If my reaction wasn’t fast enough, I could have thrown you down and flattened you," Tang Qing replied with a smile and a mock scold.
"Get outta here, you’re the one who would be flattened. You’ve changed quite a bit in the year since we last saw each other, you’ve gotten more handsome, and even taller. Overall, you’re just slightly behind me. Eh, keep up the good work, don’t disappoint me. Oh, where’s Lin Jiaxue? Is she back?" Shen Tuo examined Tang Qing from top to bottom and declared narcissistically.
Since he knew Tang Qing, he naturally also knew Lin Jiaxue. Whenever he thought about these two, Shen Tuo was filled with envy, jealousy, and bitterness. The embarrassing incident from his past was spread by his classmates to high school, following which no girls wanted to date him. Ah, to think he would be satisfied with just one girl, and yet there aren’t any at all.
Shen Tuo was on the verge of tears and wished he could wring the neck of his past, foolish self.
"She returned with me this morning. She’s helping me clean the house," Tang Qing said with a laugh, unreservedly rubbing his relationship in Shen Tuo’s face.
Shen Tuo immediately felt like he had been severely wounded.
"Sigh, darn it, why is your life so good? Why don’t I have a gentle, intelligent, beautiful, and kind-hearted childhood sweetheart? No, you have to help me find one." Shen Tuo started ’acting up’ again, shaking his shoulders like a woman. His personality was like that of Li Kai--he didn’t bear any ill will and loved to goof around. If not for that incident, his slick talking could have charmed quite a few girls.
"Don’t get your hopes up, young man. You’re no longer at the age to find a childhood sweetheart. You’ll be turning thirty in a few years. Speaking of which, what have you been doing this last year? I heard you dropped out of school," Tang Qing said with a mix of laughter and sighs. He knew about the crazy exploits of Shen Tuo’s later life, how he often flaunted his ’achievements’ on his Moments. Although Shen Tuo was infamous at school and had no luck with women, his shameless personality thrived once he entered society, sweeping off countless good girls off their feet.
"Well, I followed Dad to work in the south. I couldn’t focus on my studies and realized I wasn’t cut out for it. I thought it would be better to start working early and potentially become a tycoon. When that happens, I’ll have your back," Shen Tuo replied confidently, patting his chest.
"Alright, I’ll rely on you in the future," Tang Qing said with a laugh. Though unconvinced, he couldn’t ruin the friendly atmosphere, could he? He couldn’t be vague when he needed to back up his friends. He knew Shen Tuo’s offer to ’have his back’ wasn’t an empty gesture—Shen Tuo was genuinely instinctual when it came to his friends.
While Shen Tuo didn’t become a billionaire in his later life, he amassed a fortune worth tens of millions. Tang Qing knew Shen Tuo initially worked at a factory, then quit to sell fruits, slowly becoming a fruit wholesaler. He even heard that Shen Tuo established a canned fruit company later on. Despite this, Shen Tuo never showed any signs of superiority or looked down upon Tang Qing. On the contrary, he invited him genuinely a few times to come and help but was always rejected by Tang Qing.
Having experienced the departure of his dearest people, Tang Qing no longer had much desire for big riches. What’s the point of earning more money? Who would he flaunt his wealth to? Who would he spend it on? In his previous life, he was a common man and didn’t wish to change the world.
"Hehe, come on, I earned money this year. I’ll take you out for a nice meal tonight," Shen Tuo said generously, climbing onto Tang Qing’s shoulder.
"Let’s skip it. I have to go home for dinner tonight. They’re all waiting for me. We can do it some other time," Tang Qing declined. It was more important to have dinner with his wife. He cherished every moment of togetherness with her. Even if they couldn’t do much, just having her by his side was enough. While most people say that brothers are like hands and feet whereas women are like clothes, for him, his family was the most important.
Seeing Tang Qing decline, Shen Tuo wasn’t upset. Given their close relationship, he knew all about Tang Qing and Lin Jiaxue’s relationship — it was a kind of love he yearned for, but one he was deprived of: "Alright, then. I’ll come to see you tomorrow. Do you have anything planned?"
"I don’t, but why don’t you come over for lunch tomorrow? I should be going now," Tang Qing nodded, seeing that it was getting late. At this point, he had bought everything he needed and was ready to go back home.
"Alright, make sure there’s plenty to eat. I’ll bring Liu Chun and the others too," Shen Tuo said. His family lived in the town, so they didn’t need a lift.
"Sure."
PS: Previous two Chapters were blocked, but they won’t affect the plot.
