Chapter 12 - Insidious

Chapter 12 - Insidious

Three kerosene lamps were placed in the corner of the small, enclosed room, their dim yellow light flickering.

"Li Wei, be honest: who started it?" A horse-faced male instructor stared intently at Li Wei.

"It was them."

"Alright, tell me what happened." The male instructor glanced at Instructor Lisa beside him before turning back to Li Wei.

"Okay." Li Wei nodded. "I was in my dorm talking to my roommates, and went to the washroom to shower. When I passed by dormitory room 7, a group of people suddenly rushed out and dragged me in. Finn was the ringleader and he ordered the other boys to gang up on me and shut me up.

"I struggled and fought back as hard as I could..." Li Wei recounted the 'facts' with genuine emotion. He even appeared slightly nervous.

Speaking too smoothly wouldn’t align with the scenario he was painting. He even made sure to pitifully show off his wounds and bruises.

In another room with a similar layout, Instructor Marn, Instructor Danton, and another bald male instructor were questioning a boy from dormitory room 7. The three-on-one dynamic was overwhelming, and the boy looked visibly anxious.

"So what you’re saying is, Li Wei suddenly burst into your room like a crazy person, climbed on top of Finn, and began ruthlessly hitting him up," the bald instructor stated.

"Yes." The boy nodded.

"Then why did he rush in to beat Finn?"

"Well..." The boy was momentarily stumped. His first thought was, Li Wei must have heard Finn's yelling from outside. But it wasn't like he could risk revealing Finn’s evil plan.

Should he say that Li Wei had a grudge against Finn? But Li Wei had beaten Finn up before, and Finn had also been punished at that time. Besides, Li Wei was doing well with his seven days of double training, and the punishment was almost over. Why would he cause trouble now?

After thinking it over, the few reasons the boy could come up with all seemed far-fetched and unrealistic. Moreover, he had to consider his and Finn's current positions.

After a moment of silence, the boy could only say, "I don't know."

Just then, the wooden door creaked open. Instructor Marn, dressed in a beige training attire, walked in with a stern face.

Finn's eyes lit up, and he asked eagerly, "Uncle, how did it go? Has that bastard been expelled?"

"Who are you talking about?" Marn walked slowly to the bedside.

"Who else? That bastard Li Wei!"

"..." Marn shook his head silently. "The one who almost got expelled wasn't him, it was you! If it weren't for my somewhat good relationship with the camp director, you’d have already been kicked out the door last night!"

"No, that's not... What’s happening?" Finn was bewildered but with his face wrapped up in white bandages, it was hard to see what kind of expression he was making.

"You dare ask me that? What are you putting up a front for! I'm your uncle; you think I don’t know the kind of person you are?"

Marn picked up the cup of water beside him and took a sip. "Tell me everything that happened last night. Down to the last detail. Don't try to leave anything out. The truth will come out sooner or later."

Five minutes later, Finn recounted everything.

"What do you want me to say?" Marn looked down at Finn. Finn avoided his eyes, his black eyelids twitching.

"Even if what you're saying is true, it's useless. We have eyewitness testimonies and evidence from last night. The outcome of our investigation has already been set in stone. You can either keep your head down and train for twenty days or pack your bags and go home."

Seeing that his nephew was still somewhat unconvinced, Marn continued, "I advise you not to mess with Li Wei again. If Li Wei's telling the truth, then it would be in your best interest to swallow your pride and not cause any more trouble. If you get caught going after him again, you'll be expelled immediately.

"Even if Li Wei was lying, that’s all the more reason to not mess with him! He's much smarter and much craftier than you. Don't embarrass yourself by playing into his hands like a fool."

He paused, then quietly said, "Don't make a fool of the two of us."

Marn turned around and left the ward, leaving a dazed Finn in bed.