“Don’t envy me, your brother… Ever since my freshman year, every moment I wasn’t in class, I spent working odd jobs to pay for my living expenses and support myself. In the end, even my girlfriend got taken away by some rich, free-spending classmate…”
“That’s because you’re useless—” Xu Hao started to snarl through gritted teeth from the ground, but another sharp crack of the belt cut him off with a yelp, swallowing the rest of his words.
“Every penny I have, I earned with my own abilities. I didn’t beg for it from anyone.”
“Hmph… aren’t you still relying on that godfather of yours—”
Crack. Another whip of the belt landed squarely on Xu Hao’s backside, cutting his retort short.
“The money I have now, the rank I carry, the position I hold in the military—I earned all of it by saving people with my own skill. And out there, through hails of bullets, one shot at a time, stacking up the lives of hundreds of enemies.” Xu Ze gritted his teeth, forcing out each word, then brought the belt down again with another crack.
“Ah…” Xu Hao groaned in pain again. This time, though, he didn’t speak. Instead, he turned his head and stared at the uniform that had always puzzled him—especially the insignia on the shoulder.
“Don’t think for a second that your brother has it easy out there, living it up. Every time I think about what might happen to me—if something goes wrong, and you’re still underage, and Mom and Dad are getting older—I pray you’ll turn out all right. At the very least, you need to be capable enough to keep the family safe.” Looking at Xu Hao lying on the ground, still stubborn and defiant, Xu Ze’s pale face reflected deep disappointment and grief. He brought the belt down again, this time harder, making Xu Hao’s face twist in pain.
“Look at you… how can I feel at ease? How can I trust you to take care of Mom, Dad, and the family?” Xu Ze’s voice dropped to a low, bitter growl. “I’m not asking you to be extraordinary or outstanding. All I want is for you to be a man—someone who can carry responsibility.”
“In two months, you’ll be twenty. You’re already a grown man. But look at yourself now… smoking, doing drugs, lying to your sister when you’re broke, selling your stuff. With you like this, how can the family ever rely on you? How can Mom and Dad ever count on you to take care of them?”
The more Xu Ze spoke, the heavier his heart grew. Each lash of the belt landed harder than the last, the sound echoing off their target. But Xu Hao clenched his teeth, and his screams gradually grew quieter.
By now, a sizable crowd had gathered around them. A few police officers pushed their way through, calling out for people to step aside. The onlookers parted, watching to see how the authorities would handle this.
One of the boys who had made a phone call earlier spotted the officers and broke into an eager grin, hurrying over. “You guys are here on Uncle Luo’s orders, right? Quick—that soldier over there, he hit me, and now he’s beating up my classmate too! Arrest him!”
But the lead officer didn’t move. He just watched Xu Ze delivering those harsh lashes with his belt, then quickly glanced at the shoulder insignia. His face went pale when he saw the two yellow bars and four gleaming stars. Without a word, he turned and pushed his way back out of the crowd.
The crowd was stunned—why wasn’t the officer doing anything? The boy was equally baffled. He chased after the officer and demanded, “Why aren’t you arresting him? He beat up my friends, and he’s still at it!”
The officer, already on his phone and muttering something into it, barely acknowledged him. “Director Luo… the one doing the hitting isn’t some random soldier. He’s a senior colonel. From what I overheard, he might be from the field forces or special ops—doesn’t seem fake. He’s disciplining his younger brother.”
He glanced at the bruise on the boy’s face and added, “He did hit some people, though…”
“Oh… okay, I’ll go talk to him. Mm-hmm.”
The officer hung up, let out a weary sigh, and led his two men back into the crowd.
“Comrade… Comrade…” Hearing the voice beside him, Xu Ze paused and turned his head.
Now that the officer got a clear look at Xu Ze’s face—so young, yet so resolute—he felt a fresh jolt of shock. A senior colonel in his twenties? Who on earth was this guy?
He quickly put on a nervous smile and tried to reason with him. “Comrade, this is a public place. If you keep this up, you’re putting us in a difficult position. Besides, the kid doesn’t know any better—give him a stern talk and leave it at that. What if you really hurt him?”
“Officer, you’ve come at the right time. This KTV has a problem. I suspect there are drugs being hidden and sold here, and they’re letting minors and young people use drugs on the premises.” Xu Ze glanced at the officer, then at the manager and a few security guards standing nearby, and said coldly, “I suggest you conduct a search.”
“Uh…” The officer’s face shifted. He hesitated, then forced an awkward laugh. “Comrade… we inspect this place every month. It should be clean. Why don’t you just take your brother home for now?”
Seeing the reluctance on the officer’s face, Xu Ze gave a soft snort and ignored him. He raised the belt again and brought it down hard, his voice sharp with reprimand. “Smoking and drinking—at your age, you shouldn’t be doing that, but I let it slide because you’re almost twenty, legally an adult. But drugs? That’s something you think you can mess with?”
“It’s just for fun—ahh!” Another crack of the belt sent Xu Hao crying out.
“Just for fun? Is that the kind of thing you treat as fun?” Xu Ze snorted in anger and cracked the belt down once more.
“Are you going to do it again?” Xu Ze’s face was cold as he barked the question.
After those several lashes, whatever buzz the alcohol and drugs had given Xu Hao had been thoroughly beaten out of him. He was only holding out now because of stubborn pride and wounded dignity—resentment at being humiliated so mercilessly by his own brother. He refused to back down.
Seeing Xu Hao still silent and unyielding, Xu Ze let out a cold laugh. Kids this age really were hard to teach. But he had to make him understand what fear meant. “So you’re not going to admit you’re wrong, huh?”
Crack. Another lash landed. Xu Ze wasn’t holding back. What infuriated him most wasn’t that Xu Hao liked to have fun—it was that he’d touched anything drug-related. Sure, these were only soft drugs, not the hard stuff, but Xu Hao was already scrounging for money and selling his belongings. If he ever got into the real thing later on, where would that lead?
With his brother not around to keep an eye on him, Xu Hao needed a lesson harsh enough to make him afraid—to sear into him what he could and couldn’t touch. Otherwise, who knows what would happen down the road?
Crack… crack… Xu Ze kept swinging without mercy. Xu Hao yelped with each hit, finally lifting his head with reddened eyes and shouting, “Are you even my brother? If you’ve got the guts, just kill me!”
“So now you remember I’m your brother?” Xu Ze didn’t stop—another lash came down hard. “And that’s exactly why I’m hitting you. I wouldn’t bother with anyone else.”
Crack.
Another strike, followed by Xu Ze’s low, steady voice: “Tell me… are you going to do it again?”
Xu Hao gritted his teeth, lifted his head, and glared back. “Fine, I won’t do it again! Are you happy now?”
“You’re talking back? Apologize properly!” Seeing that stubborn defiance still there, Xu Ze brought the belt down again, then kept going—lash after lash without pause.
“Ah… ah… ah…” Another round of screams filled the air. When Xu Ze finally stopped, Xu Hao was truly scared this time. He lay trembling on the ground, turning his head to look at his brother with a trace of real fear in his eyes. Seeing the cold determination in Xu Ze’s gaze, he knew—this time, his brother meant business.
Xu Qinger couldn’t watch anymore. Seeing bloodstains beginning to show through the fabric on Xu Hao’s backside, and seeing Xu Ze raise the belt again, she threw her arms around his and cried, “Brother, stop, please stop! If you keep going, you’re going to seriously hurt him!”
“Brother Xu Ze, please, no more! Xiao Hao will behave from now on—he will!” Lin Wei, her eyes already brimming with tears, had been too intimidated by Xu Ze’s authority to speak up before. But with Xu Qinger taking the lead, she rushed in to grab his other arm, terrified he’d strike again.
Xu Ze had already landed several hard blows, and seeing the bloodstains on the pants now, his own heart ached too. But he knew that if he didn’t go this far, he wouldn’t get through to Xu Hao. Sure, the kid was showing fear now, but deep down, he was probably still defiant.
Still, he couldn’t bring himself to keep swinging. So he quietly tucked the belt back in.
The moment the belt disappeared, not just Xu Qinger, Lin Wei, and Xu Hao let out a breath of relief—the crowd did too. That officer really didn’t hold back. But most people understood: the deeper the love, the sharper the pain. If a kid wasn’t taught properly now, who knows what he’d become later.
Xu Ze crouched down slowly, looking at Xu Hao, whose eyes now held a flicker of fear as they met his. His voice was soft: “You won’t do it again?”
Xu Hao gritted his teeth, shook his head, and muttered, “No… I won’t.”
Xu Ze gave a faint smile, but there was no warmth in his eyes. Then, all of a sudden, a cold gleam returned. He grabbed Xu Hao by the collar and hauled him up, his right hand moving to his holster. In a flash, he had his sidearm pressed to Xu Hao’s head.
The crowd gasped when they saw him draw the gun—and when they realized it was real, many screamed and stumbled backward in fright.
Xu Qinger and Lin Wei’s faces went white with panic. Xu Qinger shrieked, “Brother!”
Even the few police officers still nearby went pale. The lead officer rushed over, his voice tight with tension. “Comrade… you can’t just do something like that!”
