Nightmare Assault

“Tell me.” Xia Meng nodded, “I have my way to tell whether it’s true or not.”

“He is a psychiatrist and has a counselling centre. He said it’s a volunteer job, but he does accept payment,” Fatty continued, “His main clientele are not normal patients but rich ladies who would get lonely at night. Doctor Jiang would recommend them friends, the kind of friends who could warm their lonely hearts.

“This part is paid,” Fatty said, “However, the business has not been great lately, so he had to take on some extra jobs himself.” Then, his tone became serious, “The Doctor doesn’t accept any kind of order. He is the top in his field. You have to book him many days in advance. The clients have to send transportation to fetch him. He doesn’t work the individual counters. He will need private booths.” Fatty paused before concluding, “That is his bottom line. Alright, that’s all I know.” Fatty swallowed as he stared at Xia Meng. He whispered, “Do you believe me?”

“Of course I don’t!” Xia Meng was so angry that her cheeks turned red. She jumped and smacked him on his head. Then, she yanked his ears and huffed, “Are you tired of living?” Xia Meng knew Fatty wouldn’t tell him the truth. However, she assumed that Fatty would only create some fake news to deal with her. He’d mix the fake information with some real titbits. Her plan was to derive useful information from his lies. After all, this Fatty was more gullible than Jiang Cheng.

However, Fatty used such an obvious lie to try to trick her. It angered her. This was more than just trickery. This was a mockery. Did he think she was dumb?

The more she thought about it, the angrier she became. If not for the fear of creating a huge commotion, Xia Meng would beat Fatty up.

Fatty pouted. One thought became stabilised in his mind, “Xia Meng would never win over the Doctor, not in this lifetime.”

RUSTLE

“Who is that?!” Xia Meng whipped her head around. Fatty turned as well. A small head appeared on the wall before disappearing. Xia Meng let go of Fatty and made chase. “It’s the beggar from last night.”

Fatty recognised the kid from a glimpse. Then, he ran after Xia Meng. Xia Meng was too fast. Fatty was lagging behind. Therefore, after he confirmed the general direction, he chose to use another path to cut the kid off. The path he chose was the one they used earlier. It was safer. Without the Doctor by his side, he needed to be more careful. Plus, the lake was on the other side. The kid couldn’t run on water, so this path would most likely cut him off.

As expected, after the beggar shook off Xia Meng, he walked slowly on the wall. He raised his arms by his sides, trying to maintain balance. As he knelt down and tried to jump down the wall, he suddenly discovered Fatty, who was hiding behind the fake mountain. He was so scared that he tumbled and almost fell from the tall wall.

“Be careful!” Fatty shouted subconsciously. The little beggar steadied himself and looked back. He looked like he wanted to back away, but from the look in his eyes, Xia Meng was not that far behind him. He had nowhere else to go unless he wanted to jump in the lake. Even so, he didn’t let go of the bowl. The bowl was empty, and the buns were gone. He probably dropped them when he was escaping.

He turned to stare at the lake. His eyes shone with determination.

“Don’t!” Fatty shouted. “Don’t jump! Something’s not right with the lake. It’s too dangerous!” He got a better look at the beggar. Even though his face was dirty and his clothes were tattered, based on his exposed skin and thin body, he should be a kid. As Fatty consoled him, he slowly retreated. He said sincerely, “I will not harm you. You can slowly get down and leave from this path.”

The person on the wall looked at him with alarm. Soon, running footsteps came from the other side. Xia Meng was about to arrive.

The kid glanced at both sides. He was weighing the decision in his mind. In the end, he bent down and slipped down from the wall. After he landed, he quickly got away from Fatty. When he realised Fatty was not going to do anything, he turned and ran.

“Wait!”

The kid paused. He looked at Fatty with alertness as if he was sure Fatty had tricked him. That was until he saw Fatty take out a bun from his sleeve and then another from his chest. He plucked a giant leaf from a nearby tree and placed the two buns on it.

“You’re hungry, right?” Fatty placed the buns on the ground. He took several steps back, “Take them. I know what hunger feels like. You can come to me when you’re hungry next time.” Fatty said, “Stop stealing.”

The kid swallowed hungrily as he stared at the buns. Then, he ran over to snatch the buns before disappearing. When Xia Meng arrived, he was already gone.

“Where is him?” Xia Meng asked through gasps of breaths.

“He ran away.” Fatty pretended to catch his breath, “He’s too familiar with the layout. I couldn’t catch him.”

“He probably stakes out this place often.” Xia Meng stared at the wall. She chased after the kid along the wall. She was unfamiliar with the place, so she was forced to take several detours. In the end, the kid managed to escape.

“Let’s go back for now,” Fatty suggested.

It had been some time since they left. The location of the sun had moved.

Xia Meng looked around. She was slightly unsettled, “Yes. We’ll get him next time.”

“Okay.”

After the two left, a hidden wooden door at the corner opened. Then, a small head poked out.

After a few blinks, he lowered his head. Inside the bowl that he gripped tightly were two buns.