I'm Actually Panicking Because My Heart Doesn't Beat (GL) - Chapter 47
Fang Gu’s teaching was very solid—no unnecessary words, just real cases.
In the very first lesson, she gave Guan Xiaoxuan three cases to study. Some were strange incidents that happened in Xinglin City, and others came from different provinces.
Guan Xiaoxuan noticed that Fang Gu’s theory lessons and Lin Weiwei’s points exchange classes were almost connected. The difference was that Fang Gu taught the theory—explaining what kind of strange situations required which points-exchange items—while Lin Weiwei handled the practical side, guiding Guan Xiaoxuan on how to actually use the items.
Combining theory with practice, this kind of course made Guan Xiaoxuan very focused. She knew if she missed or forgot anything, it could lead to serious, irreversible consequences.
Fang Gu’s lessons lasted two hours. At 10 o’clock sharp, whether she finished or not, Fang Gu politely said goodbye and ended the live session.
Guan Xiaoxuan stretched, stood up, and twisted her waist to loosen up her muscles.
Her cat, Guazi, was asleep soundly on her pillow. She reached over, stroked the cat, drank a bottle of soda, then went back to her desk. After organizing her lesson materials, she finally went to bed.
The week passed quietly and normally for Guan Xiaoxuan.
Besides going to school every day, she kept up with her courses at the Strange Affairs Bureau. She was doing well in theory lessons, naturally paying attention in class and reviewing after. She was also very enthusiastic in Lin Weiwei’s points exchange classes. But her performance in Zhang Tong’s shooting lessons was pretty bad.
As a retired soldier, Zhang Tong had a tough temper, but he understood that some people were strong in certain areas and weak in others.
Guan Xiaoxuan had solid theory knowledge and knew the points-exchange items well. But in shooting, she had never even hit the five-ring target.
Either she missed completely or hovered between the 7 and 9 rings. Her best score was a 6-ring, which she only got after missing the target nine times.
Guan Xiaoxuan was shocked at how bad her shooting really was. The heroes in TV dramas who never missed a shot really only existed on screen.
“All right, let’s stop here for today,” Zhang Tong said, not wanting to be too harsh on the young girl on the first day. “Shooting depends on feel, and once a week just isn’t enough. There’s a shooting range downtown—I’m buddies with the owner there. Next time you can use my name to practice.”
Guan Xiaoxuan rubbed her sore wrist and nodded seriously.
Shooting skills come from practice. Going to class once a week was mostly just learning the theory of guns—without shooting targets in person, it was useless.
She remembered the address Zhang Tong gave her. It wasn’t far from her home, only about three kilometers away. She could check it out later and maybe get a membership if it wasn’t too expensive.
This month, the original owner of her bank account had some interest coming due—over 50,000 yuan in interest. Guan Xiaoxuan didn’t plan to touch the principal money and left it in the bank, just in case she needed it later.
Plus, with her new part-time job, she wasn’t worried about food or expenses. She wasn’t living lavishly yet, but a comfortable life was definitely possible.
The points exchange class lasted until 5 p.m. After class, Lin Weiwei took Guan Xiaoxuan to the parking lot, planning to drive her back to the city.
Sitting in the car, Guan Xiaoxuan felt sore all over. Lin Weiwei noticed and smiled, “Has Teacher Zhang been making you shoot a lot?”
“Not really,” Guan Xiaoxuan thought for a moment and said, “He’s just trying to help me. The shooting lessons are only three hours long. Zhang wants me to get used to it quickly.”
Lin Weiwei nodded. “Teacher Zhang is a good guy. He just worries a lot that your team might run into danger with the strange cases. He wants to pass on all his skills to you.”
Curious, Guan Xiaoxuan asked, “Director Lin, did something happen to the team before?”
“Well, how should I put it,” Lin Weiwei glanced at Guan Xiaoxuan and smiled. “I’m just warning you—don’t tell Xing Tianqing about this. She doesn’t like to hear these things.”
“Don’t worry, I definitely won’t tell Xing.”
“Actually, your team members have been replaced several times already.”
Guan Xiaoxuan was slightly stunned. “What do you mean?”
Lin Weiwei sighed. “It means they’ve basically all been sacrificed once.”
She went on, “Dealing with the supernatural is really dangerous. You face all kinds of risks—you never know whether accidents or death will come first. Don’t let Teacher Zhang’s tough guy image fool you, he has a soft heart. Every time he attends a team member’s funeral, he cries hard. Maybe he’s thinking about his comrades.”
Lin Weiwei said, “Usually, for new members like you, we don’t tell you these things. But since you’ve already faced three supernatural incidents, you should know how dangerous those things are. You could die at any time.”
Guan Xiaoxuan listened quietly to Lin Weiwei, then after a while said, “I appreciate your concern, but when I applied to join the supernatural bureau, I was already prepared for this.”
Lin Weiwei looked at her and asked in surprise, “Aren’t you afraid?”
“I am afraid,” Guan Xiaoxuan said, “but rather than be scared, I’d rather do something meaningful.”
“That’s true,” Lin Weiwei smiled. “I hope every time you go on a mission, you come back safe.”
Since their homes were not on the way, Lin Weiwei dropped Guan Xiaoxuan off at the subway entrance so she could take the subway home.
It was May, and the days got dark earlier. Even at 6 p.m., there was still a little light in the city.
Guan Xiaoxuan got on the subway, found a seat, and started scrolling on her phone out of boredom.
She had been at the shooting range and the points exchange center all day, so she didn’t have time to use her phone. She left home with 100% battery and now had 95%.
Feeling exhausted, Guan Xiaoxuan’s hand holding the phone began to ache. After a while, she put it away.
When she got home, she only fed her pet sunflower seeds, didn’t even take a shower, and went straight to bed.
She slept until 9 a.m. the next day.
“Ah! Ah!!”
Guan Xiaoxuan screamed as soon as she opened her eyes because her whole body ached like she had been run over by a car while sleeping.
She painfully climbed out of bed and looked at her trembling hands. Her shoulders and back were sore and stiff—she just wanted to cry.
Shivering, she got out of bed and went to the bathroom, only to find in despair that she couldn’t even raise her hands to brush her teeth or wash her face.
Tears welled up, but she could only rinse her mouth with mouthwash—she couldn’t even wash her face.
Putting on her jacket was so painful that she was trembling all over. After finally getting dressed, she ran into Xing Tianqing.
It was probably the first time Xing Tianqing saw Guan Xiaoxuan looking messy and unwashed. She looked surprised and teased, “What’s with this look?”
Guan Xiaoxuan immediately burst into tears, shaking her hands and saying, “I need to go to the hospital. My hands feel numb!”
She even shed two sad tears.
Xing Tianqing couldn’t help but laugh, but seeing Guan Xiaoxuan look upset, she quickly stopped and came closer to hold her hands, asking, “Did you go shooting yesterday? How many hours?”
“Three hours.”
“You shot for three hours on your first day?” Xing Tianqing raised her lips in disbelief. “Didn’t Teacher Zhang tell you to take it easy?”
Guan Xiaoxuan thought for a moment and said, “He did tell me to rest, but since the lessons are short, I thought I should practice more. He didn’t stop me, so I practiced for three hours.”
Xing Tianqing shook her head with a bitter smile. “You just have to show off. Even if you run, you need to rest halfway. But you practiced for three hours straight. Maybe Teacher Zhang thinks you’re some kind of pro, so he didn’t stop you. Who knows…”
She laughed quietly.
Guan Xiaoxuan frowned and asked, “What should I do now? My hands and shoulders hurt so much. Could they be broken?”
“Maybe.”
Guan Xiaoxuan turned pale with fear.
“Just kidding,” Xing Tianqing said as she rubbed Guan Xiaoxuan’s shoulder. “There’s no way you’re broken. It’s just muscle soreness. If you don’t warm up, this will happen. There’s a massage place right by our neighborhood gate. I’ll take you there.”
She pulled Guan Xiaoxuan toward the elevator.
Guan Xiaoxuan asked as they walked, “Are you sure it’s not broken? Just muscle pain? But it feels like my bones hurt too. Look, I can’t even lift my hand.”
Xing Tianqing sighed. “Let’s get an X-ray first. If it’s nothing serious, then we can get a massage.”
Guan Xiaoxuan worried, “X-rays cost money, right? Will the bureau cover it?”
Xing Tianqing looked at the dirty, worn-out girl in front of her, smiled, and said, “I’ll cover it. That’s okay, right?”
At the hospital, the X-rays showed nothing serious—just muscle soreness.
Then Xing Tianqing took Guan Xiaoxuan to an old Chinese medicine doctor for a massage. After one session, Guan Xiaoxuan felt much better. Although it still hurt, at least she could lift her arm.
Seeing Guan Xiaoxuan bouncing back to life, Xing Tianqing helplessly said, “Next time don’t be so reckless. You’ll hurt yourself if you don’t practice carefully.”
Guan Xiaoxuan rubbed her wrist and nodded. “I know. I’m just competitive. When I missed the bullseye, I got anxious and wanted to practice more.”
During practice, Guan Xiaoxuan really didn’t feel much—just some soreness in her wrist. Who knew that after sleeping, her whole body would feel like it was falling apart, and the pain was unbearable.
Before, when she exercised, the worst was sore legs and losing balance, falling to the ground with a thud. Now it felt like her whole body was taken apart.
Xing Tianqing listened and sighed, “I heard your scores. They’re not great.”
Guan Xiaoxuan hung her head and said sadly, “Teacher Zhang even recommended a shooting range for me to check out today.”
But now, she probably couldn’t go.
Seeing her like this, Xing Tianqing laughed and said, “Since your morning is wasted anyway, why don’t I come with you? I’m pretty close with the owner of the shooting range.”