After Xiao He used the family's bathroom sink to tend to the wound on his finger, the sound of approaching fire trucks gradually grew louder downstairs.
"Woo woo woo—"
With the firefighters' efforts, the fire that had gripped many hearts finally came to an end.
Soon an ambulance arrived too, along with the little girl's parents who rushed to the scene.
"Xiao Xuan! Xiao Xuan!"
Yu Minzhen pushed through the crowd, her voice choked with emotion when she saw her daughter standing there unharmed. She quickly strode forward and tightly embraced the little girl.
The usually strong-willed girl finally broke her earlier calm demeanor upon seeing her family member, curling up in her mother's arms with silent sobs, her small body trembling slightly.
"It's okay, it's okay, mommy's here, don't be afraid—"
Yu Minzhen gently stroked her daughter's back, though her own tears flowed uncontrollably as she comforted the child, her voice hoarse and shaky.
Yu Minzhen had returned from work as usual when she heard about the fire at her home. The news made her legs go weak with fear. She immediately dropped what she was carrying and ran all the way here, terrified of seeing something irreversible.
Thank goodness, thank goodness her precious child was still alive... everything had turned out alright in the end... what a relief...
"Excuse me, are you the owner of this apartment?"
A firefighter who had just finished extinguishing the fire came over to inquire.
Yu Minzhen quickly wiped the tears from her face and looked up at the firefighter, sincerely thanking him: "Thank you for saving my daughter, I can't thank you enough—"
The firefighter blushed slightly, looking somewhat embarrassed as he said: "Ma'am, it wasn't us who did the rescuing this time. It was a young man from your building - he climbed up the outside of the building with his bare hands, four or five floors in one go! Truly incredible."
"What?"
Yu Minzhen was momentarily stunned.
For a second, she doubted her own hearing.
A young man climbed four or five floors from the outside to save someone?
If not for the firefighter's completely serious expression, Yu Minzhen would have thought he was joking.
"He's right over there—"
The firefighter pointed at two young men standing not far away.
Meanwhile, He Junhao was still reeling from the shocking scene he had just witnessed. He circled around Xiao He with a complicated expression mixing disbelief.
"Holy shit, Brother Xiao, where did you train for this?"
Xiao He shrugged and said earnestly: "Me? Actually I got a cheat skill - I learn everything instantly now."
"Hahaha—" He Junhao didn't believe it at all, thinking Xiao He was just making a joke. He punched Xiao He's shoulder playfully, "That's my Brother Xiao for you! You totally deserve to show off like this!"
Xiao He: "..."
How the times have changed - nowadays even telling the truth gets you disbelieved.
At this moment, Yu Minzhen approached and bowed deeply to Xiao He: "Thank you so much for what you did earlier! If not for you—"
As she spoke, her eyes welled up with tears again.
Xiao Xuan was her life, her everything. She couldn't imagine what her life would become if Xiao Xuan had died in the fire...
"Ah, it was nothing really, just lending a hand."
Xiao He waved it off modestly, just as another person came wailing into the scene.
A woman in her fifties or sixties rushed over, first taking in the sight of their blackened home before letting out a shriek and charging at the child in Yu Minzhen's arms: "Ahhh! You worthless little bitch! Can't even stay home properly, had to go and burn the house down! I'll beat you to death!"
"Hey! What's going on here!"
A nearby firefighter shouted and stopped the woman's attack, but she immediately plopped down on the ground and began wailing: "Why is my life so bitter! This whore gave birth to a mute little bitch, and now they've burned down the home my son worked so hard for! Heavens above, open your eyes and see! Life is unbearable!"
Yu Minzhen hugged her daughter tightly, her expression darkening: "Mother! Is the house what matters now? Xiao Xuan almost died!"
"She should die! Should have died! Why didn't this worthless thing perish? Who was the bastard that saved her? Must have been some idle busybody with nothing better to do!"
Xiao He: ?
Xiao He felt like a dog watching a street performance when suddenly kicked by this woman.
"Hey, what do you mean by that? We did something wrong by saving someone?"
He Junhao immediately challenged her.
Thinking He Junhao was the rescuer, the older woman took one look at his student appearance and decided he'd be easy to bully. She planted her hands on her hips and started ranting: "Yes! How exactly did you save her? Did you break into our home? Did you steal anything while you were at it? And that door—you kicked it in, didn't you? You'll have to pay for that door!"
He Junhao laughed incredulously: "What? Auntie, are you for real? People put out your fire and that's wrong? Maybe we should have just let the whole place burn down then!"
Nearby firefighters also spoke up angrily: "We broke the door, got a problem with that? You leave a child alone at home against all our repeated warnings about not charging e-bike batteries indoors, then lock the door from outside so she couldn't even escape? She nearly died, and now you're finding fault with everyone else?"
Hearing this, Yu Minzhen's face turned ashen: "Mother! I told you never to bring those batteries inside! It's such a fire hazard! And you're usually home at this time—where were you today? Xiao Xuan needs supervision, she couldn't even call for help in this situation! You almost killed her!"
Cornered, the older woman's eyes darted about before she defiantly retorted: "What? This old woman has to slave away for you two all day? Can't I have some time to myself? None of your business where I was! That stupid girl couldn't even put out a little fire, useless! Just like her good-for-nothing mother—"
She then launched into a tirade enumerating all of Yu Minzhen's supposed faults, her vulgar language and manner making everyone around increasingly uncomfortable.
After listening for a while, He Junhao rolled his eyes hard: "So you're just sexist then. Want a grandson so badly you'd rather your granddaughter die. Frankly, you don't even seem human."
The woman flew into a rage, pointing at He Junhao's nose and spewing: "You bastard! You motherless piece of—"
The crudest insults and most vicious attacks came pouring out, enough to make anyone's blood pressure spike.
How could someone's mouth be so filthy?
He Junhao was fuming but prided himself on being a civilized college student. He couldn't bring himself to respond in kind with such vulgarity, yet any subtle sarcasm would likely be lost on her. It felt like punching a pile of shit only to get splattered.
Just as He Junhao was about to say something, Xiao He suddenly placed a hand on his shoulder.
He Junhao turned: "Brother Xiao?"
Xiao He stared coldly at the woman, his tone icy: "I was going to confirm something first, but now I don't need to."
Then he directly pulled out his phone and called the police: "Hello officer? I suspect child abuse is occurring here. Please come immediately!"