Bo Ting choked on his words.
Calling him uncle?
Did he look that old?
He glanced at his black raincoat. Although it completely hid his true form and made his face unrecognizable, judging by his build alone, Bo Ting didn’t think he looked that old, right?
Was this bear child doing it on purpose?
“Heh.”
He frowned and let out a scoff. He hadn’t expected the brat to dare mock him even at this point.
Bo Ting pulled out his phone to call property management.
But just then, the place suddenly went quiet.
It was probably his attitude that scared them, Bo Ting thought matter-of-factly.
A few minutes later, there was a “click” from the other side, and the security door swung open.
The bear child’s “parents,” who had been cooking in the kitchen, finally seemed to hear the commotion. They walked over from the dim living room, their voices stiff and robotic as they scolded:
“All you do all day is cause trouble!”
“Why can’t you learn something good for once?”
“Have you apologized yet?”
The “mom’s” complaining voice drifted over.
It sounded oddly fake from across the hallway.
The bear child Xiao Wang nodded.
“I’ve apologized.”
Bo Ting listened to this routine, assuming they were about to shirk responsibility again.
He was just about to furrow his brows and speak up when the “dad,” who hadn’t said a word until now, pulled a thick stack of cash from his pocket. In the ghostly darkness, he said furtively:
“Sorry about that.”
“You said we smashed your window, right? We’ll make sure to discipline the kid properly this time.”
“This is compensation. Take it first and see if it’s enough. If not, we’ll get more.”
Bo Ting: …
Huh?
So reasonable?
This wasn’t quite what he’d expected.
He eyed the “dad” suspiciously. Bo Ting paused for a moment before taking the money, his originally aggressive questioning softening a bit.
Good to see some sensible people.
Still, he kept his tone stern: “You have to discipline this child properly.”
“He smashed my window this time—who knows what’ll happen next? If someone gets hurt, it’ll be too late.”
“Got it, got it.”
Xiao Wang’s dad bent at the waist and nodded eagerly, not daring to utter a single word of rebuttal.
But in the hazy night beyond the doorframe, his bald head looked unnaturally rigid, almost like he had a neck problem.
Bo Ting nodded. Thinking of the compensation, he figured it was enough for a new pane of glass.
However, “What are the other bear kids’ names?”
He couldn’t just catch this one—there were four problem children involved, and the others couldn’t be allowed to get off scot-free.
Xiao Wang, who had long been scared senseless, had no intention of covering for the others.
Seeing how obedient his “parents” were, he spoke up timidly: “Uncle, they’re all from upstairs in our building.”
“Xiao Hei on the third floor, Xiao Chuan on the fourth, and Xi Xi next door.”
Bo Ting noted them down one by one. Looking back at the now well-behaved bear child, he twitched his lips at the earlier “uncle”:
“Alright. Tonight, write another self-criticism and post it in the neighborhood group. Over a thousand words, got it?”
“Got it.”
Xiao Wang nodded with a mournful face, not daring to object.
Seeing the family of three all looking properly remorseful, Bo Ting pocketed his phone and let them off the hook.
After slamming the door shut with a “bang,” he turned to head for Xiao Hei on the third floor.
The commotion on the fifth floor had been heard throughout the building.
Xiao Hei had noticed when Xiao Wang got caught. Before Bo Ting could even knock, the door opened the next second, and he proactively offered compensation.
“Sorry, big brother. I was wrong.”
Bo Ting: …
This one had some emotional intelligence.
He even knew to call him “big brother.” Still, “You can’t skip the self-criticism.”
“Same deal—over a thousand words.”
He frowned and laid down the law.
By the end of the night, Bo Ting had finally educated all the bear children.
After issuing four self-criticism notices and taking a leisurely post-dinner stroll for digestion, he sauntered back downstairs to the neighborhood.
But, huh?
What a coincidence—Doudou was out for a walk too?
Bo Ting caught a whiff of that familiar stench. He looked up and saw a big black dog sprawled in the garden, doing who-knows-what.
Late at night, Sister Han—wearing slippers and scrolling videos on her phone—looked up and awkwardly locked eyes with Bo Ting.
Their gazes met, and both froze.
Bo Ting instinctively glanced over and couldn’t help but greet her friendly-like.
“Sister Han, out walking the dog so late?”
Sister Han, rattled by Bo Ting’s eerie black raincoat getup, twitched her lips. Even Doudou seemed a bit panicked for some reason, and her voice lacked its usual vigor:
“Isn’t it because there are fewer people out at night for walks?”
“Is Little Bo out for a stroll too?”
She’d picked a good time, alright. Nights were empty, so Doudou could run wild without worry. During the day with crowds… tch, running into those bear kids like tonight didn’t even bear thinking about.
Bo Ting shook his head and couldn’t resist recounting the window-smashing incident:
“I actually came downstairs to deal with the window.”
“These parents are so irresponsible. No idea how they raise their kids.”
“Just casually smashing windows.”
Ah? Bear children?
Was he talking about that porcelain doll in Building 5?
Sister Han blanked for a second, then recalled how picking on the young one there brought out the big ones. She couldn’t help but wince, inwardly shocked: Little Bo actually went picking a fight there?
And he won?
Sister Han’s expression shifted. She exchanged a glance with Doudou, forcibly suppressing her admiration, and stiffly tugged at the corner of her mouth.
She just felt that Little Bo opposite her was truly unfathomable. Choosing not to offend him back then had been the right call!
They chatted idly for a bit more.
Bo Ting glanced at his phone and saw that the bear children he’d just disciplined had already submitted their self-criticisms?
The thousand-word pieces—neatly formatted—had been forwarded to the neighborhood group, starting with the kids’ self-reflections.
Bo Ting’s fingertip paused. He tapped to read them carefully.
Not bad.
But they weren’t copied, were they?
His brows furrowed slightly. He stared at his phone expressionlessly for a few seconds.
Sister Han noticed the neighborhood group messages too.
Those bear kids in Building 5 had been wreaking havoc for days, just like her Doudou stirring up public ire. This public self-criticism drew plenty of attention.
Especially since “Xiao Wang’s” parents had gone quiet without their usual “barbaric wrangling.”
No one openly cheered in the group to avoid neighborly friction, but Sister Han was sure plenty were gossiping privately!
And the one behind it all was this young man right in front of her.
Sister Han gripped the leash, sneaking a glance at Bo Ting. His face, shrouded in the raincoat hood, seemed utterly mysterious. For some reason… she couldn’t quite recall what he used to look like?
Whatever.
Bo Ting stared at his phone for a few seconds. After a moment’s contemplation, he decided not to dwell on whether they’d copied or not. It was so late—overthinking would just give him a headache.
Sometimes, you had to cut yourself some slack.
But…
After pocketing his phone, something occurred to him. He turned to Sister Han with a friendly smile and suddenly asked:
“Oh right, Sister Han—do you think I seem… strange today?”
