Rebirth without Regrets

Chapter 132 Testing

When Leng Binghan opened his eyes again, Wang Yingying's beautiful face came into view, with a slight blush on her face, looking at him dreamily.

"Good morning, Sister Yingying!" Leng Binghan said hello awkwardly, thinking about sharing the same bed last night.

I looked at the time and saw that it was only half past six, which was the time when I usually got up to exercise. I couldn't help but wonder for a while. Usually, this Wang Yingying was like a lazy cat, unable to shout, and she was often late for work.

Why did she get up so early today? Could it be that she was not honest when sleeping, causing her to not sleep well?

Seeing Leng Binghan, Wang Yingying couldn't help but tremble, her face felt hot, and her eyes were a little erratic. Thinking of the shameful feeling and inexplicable tears last night, she almost died of embarrassment. Fortunately, Leng Binghan didn't know. But.

No matter what, my attitude towards Leng Binghan can no longer be as peaceful as before. Just looking at his clear and smiling eyes, I always feel a little flustered. It seems that he will see through me.

"It's nothing. I saw how good you are, so I decided: I will exercise with you in the future, and I will be as good as you!" Wang Yingying said it righteously, but her heart was as strong as a deer's, and her expression showed that

Somewhat panicked.

"Okay, you finally figured it out. You will get better if you exercise more. Wait for me for two minutes. I'll be fine soon!" Leng Binghan didn't pay attention, but quickly ran back to his room to start washing up and changing exercises.

Clothes.

The air in the morning was fresh and clean. Facing the morning breeze, Leng Binghan took Wang Yingying for a jog along the lake while telling her some precautions and tips for running and morning exercises. However, Wang Yingying's attention was obviously

If you are not above this, you are a little absent-minded. It usually takes Leng Binghan to say it several times before you can understand it.

After finishing the run, Leng Binghan patiently and meticulously taught her how to practice Wu Qin Xi. This actually aroused Wang Yingying's interest, and she started to follow Leng Binghan's gestures. Leng Binghan took care of the areas that were not in place one by one.

She corrected her, looked at Leng Binghan's serious expression, and felt his ears and temples rubbing against hers when he corrected her. At this moment, Wang Yingying was like a happy bird, but this little bird was just jumping in her heart.

, or there was light dancing in her eyes, and occasionally she met Leng Binghan's eyes, and her face immediately turned bright red, but Leng Binghan didn't think much about it, thinking it was because of her strenuous exercise.

"Ah, Xiao Yingying, it's rare to see you out exercising!" Grandpa Lin looked at Wang Yingying with obvious surprise and asked, "What's the relationship between Xiao Han and you?"

"Good morning, Grandpa Lin, your health is getting better and better!" Wang Yingyingwan's eyes were full of joy, and she said to the old man with a smile: "Grandpa Lin, you also know Xiaohan, he is my brother!"

"We know, we know! Xiaohan and I are old acquaintances, but we don't know his relationship with your family. It's no wonder that Xiaohan does a good job of keeping secrets, haha!" the old man said very kindly.

So the two of them chatted about Leng Binghan. The old man was curious about Leng Binghan and asked about everything. Wang Yingying also liked it very much when she saw someone praising Xiaohan. She was even more excited than herself when she was praised.

The conversation was in full swing, but the coldness was left aside.

After returning home from morning exercise, they suddenly saw a car parked at the door. The two of them didn't pay much attention to it. There were so many people coming to see Wang Peiyuan or Fu Chunling every day. But most of those cars came at night, and it was still relatively rare in the morning.

.

Entering the house, there are three people sitting on the sofa in the living room. The oldest one is about forty-one or twelve years old, with a straight figure and handsome face, full of the charm of a mature man, and a pair of sharp and bright eyes.

The other two people are relatively ordinary looking, about thirty years old. It is really difficult to identify them in a crowd. The only difference is that their eyes are very bright.

Wang Peiyuan and Fu Chunling were talking to them nervously.

At this time, when they heard the door ring, several people turned around and looked over. Seeing Leng Binghan and Wang Yingying coming back, Wang Peiyuan hurriedly called them over.

"Yingying, Xiaohan, these three police officers are responsible for investigating yesterday's car accident. I still have some details that I need to ask you about. Instead, you should tell them everything you know." Wang Peiyuan explained to the two of them.

, seems to be very normal, but I don’t know if it is an illusion, Leng Binghan always feels that he seems a little worried.

"What else is there to say? Didn't we all say it at the police station yesterday?" Wang Yingying seemed to be a little resistant. For her, it was best not to think about this incident again for the rest of her life.

Wang Peiyuan lowered his face and scolded: "Yingying, don't be petty! This is work, a serious matter, and you must cooperate!"

Wang Peiyuan rarely spoke to Wang Yingying in such a serious tone. Now she felt even more aggrieved and said loudly: "I don't, I won't!" After saying that, she turned around and ran back to her room upstairs.

Seeing this, Leng Binghan stepped forward and said: "Godfather, why don't you ask me? Sister Yingying and I have been together all the time. We are very familiar with all the situations. Just ask me. This matter is important to me."

Sister Yingying is very irritating, it’s best not to let her think about it all the time and get hurt repeatedly.”

Wang Peiyuan did not speak, but looked at the three people, with a bit of hope in his eyes. It seemed that he also felt that Leng Binghan's suggestion could be adopted.

Unexpectedly, the man in his forties stood up and insisted: "Secretary Wang, it's not that we are unaccommodating, it's just that the matter is very important. In order to understand the comprehensive situation, we must inquire carefully about every detail and every relevant person.

I hope you can understand!"

Leng Binghan felt very strange. Are these three people really policemen? Which police station has such courage to talk so eloquently in front of the Municipal Party Committee Secretary, without changing his expression, and ignore the Municipal Party Committee Secretary's wishes? Besides, from the beginning,

When I saw this person, I had a different feeling. I always felt that this person was not simple.

But seeing his insistent request, Wang Peiyuan did not object and could only say: "Well, let me go up and persuade Sister Yingying!"

"Well, Xiaohan, go ahead and ask your sister Yingying to cooperate with their work. This case is not easy!" At this point, Wang Peiyuan had a heavy look on his face and rubbed his forehead, looking very worried.

The case is not simple, Leng Binghan has known it for a long time. And Wang Peiyuan's expression confirmed his suspicion: these people must not be ordinary policemen, otherwise Wang Peiyuan would not have such an attitude. But these are also

They are all within the scope of his consideration. He also hopes that these people can find out who can use such methods to deal with himself and Wang Yingying. If this matter is not figured out for a day, he will feel like his bones are stuck in his throat.

There is no peace.

After Leng Binghan's patient and careful persuasion, Wang Yingying finally agreed to accept their inquiry. The two of them were questioned in their own rooms. As for their respective school and work matters, someone would naturally ask for leave for them.

"Name?"

"Leng Binghan!"

"gender?"

As soon as he heard this question, Leng Binghan wanted to go crazy. You can't tell whether his grandma's is a boy or a girl! Are your eyes bad? Why do the police like to ask such idiotic questions? But in order to avoid

Extraneous matters arose, but he still endured a breath and answered honestly: "Male!"

…

After asking all kinds of random questions for a while, the other person suddenly said: "Look at my eyes!"

Leng Binghan couldn't help but look into his eyes, and suddenly felt that his eyes were extremely deep, glowing with a strange brilliance. They kept rotating, getting bigger and faster, as if they were trying to suck in the soul of people.

As if. I couldn't help but feel dizzy for a while, but soon a stream of clear water rose from my stomach and flowed through my brain, and I suddenly woke up again.

All this happened very quickly, and it was over in the blink of an eye.

What's wrong with me? Leng Binghan shook his head, as if he rarely had this kind of dizziness. Could it be that he was hypnotized? The thought suddenly came to his mind, which startled him. He couldn't help but ask.

come out.

"Yes, I just tried to hypnotize you!" the other party said word by word, with a strange tone.

Leng Binghan blurted out unintentionally just now, but he never thought that the other party would answer him. He looked at the other party suspiciously, and found that the other party looked very strange, his eyes were dull, and he sat there in a daze, like a sculpture, but instead seemed to be trapped.

It's like being hypnotized.

The so-called hypnosis is a technique that uses special induction to make people enter a state similar to sleep but not sleep. In this state, the person's consciousness enters a relatively weakened state, and the subconscious mind becomes active. Therefore, its psychological activities, including perception, emotion

, mental activities such as thinking, will and behavior are closely related to the words and deeds of the hypnotist, just like a sponge that can fully absorb the hypnotist's instructions. During the hypnosis process, the hypnotized person follows the hypnotist's hints or instructions and does

The depth of hypnosis varies depending on the individual's susceptibility to hypnosis, the prestige and skills of the hypnotist, etc.

Leng Binghan has heard about hypnosis more than once in movies and books in his previous life, but has never really seen it. He even thinks that the descriptions of hypnosis are exaggerated and inaccurate. Everyone's subconscious has an unwavering belief.

The task is to protect this person. In fact, even in the hypnotic state, the person's subconscious mind will protect itself like a loyal guard. Hypnosis can better communicate with the subconscious mind, but it cannot drive a person to do what his subconscious mind does not want.

Things you agree with, so you don’t have to worry about being controlled or having your secrets stolen.

But why did the other party want to hypnotize himself, and why did he fail and hypnotize himself instead?

Leng Binghan asked: "Why do you want to hypnotize me?"

"I want to fully understand the specific details of yesterday's car accident. I'm afraid you may have concealed something or even ignored it yourself!" the other party replied honestly.

"Who are you? You're not just any police officer, are you? What's your name?"

Hearing this question, the other party paused for a moment, with a painful look on his face, as if he was struggling hard, but finally said: "We are not the police, we are part of the Special Operations Group of the Seventh Bureau of the Ministry of National Security. My name is Zhang

Yuan, the one next door is named Qi Hongwei, and the other one is our Director Zheng, named Zheng Shimin."

"Special Operations Group of the Seventh Bureau of the Ministry of National Security?" Although Leng Binghan didn't know what this organization did, he could guess that it must be a privileged organization that handles special affairs. Otherwise, given Wang Peiyuan's position and identity, where would he be?

It's their turn to come to the house and give advice.

"What's so special about yesterday's car accident that you need to come forward to solve it?" This is something Leng Binghan has never figured out.

"I don't know about this. We are just peripheral personnel, responsible for investigating and discussing materials and information. We don't know the specific circumstances of the case."

It seemed that he really didn't know anything, and he couldn't find out anything no matter how much he asked.

But Leng Binghan suddenly remembered that she was hypnotized. Did Wang Yingying next door have the same experience?

Zhang Yuan's answer was indeed yes. Leng Binghan was immediately furious. Investigating the case was important, but using hypnosis at all times without distinguishing the target was a bit too intrusive on people's privacy? Will there be any negative effects after hypnosis?

No one can say what kind of sequelae or shadows it causes.

He ignored this person and immediately got up and ran to Wang Yingying's door. Seeing that the door was closed, he raised his foot and kicked the door open. He rushed into the room and saw Wang Yingying's eyes closed and her expression dull.

From time to time, there was a painful expression on his face, and he was obviously in deep hypnosis. The other person should be Zhang Yuan. Speaking of Qi Hongwei, he looked at himself who broke in through the door in surprise. He was a little dumbfounded. Obviously, there was no

Thinking about how he could break in when he was supposed to be hypnotized next door.

Seeing Wang Yingying's appearance, Leng Binghan's heart felt like a knife. If it hadn't been for her own persuasion, how could she have reluctantly agreed to be questioned? Recalling the thrilling scene again, it was cruel enough.

, and now I have to recall all the details more deeply through hypnosis. How much pain will I suffer?

Leng Binghan bit his steel teeth into pieces, his clenched fists trembled, and his eyes were as sharp as knives. He stretched out his hand to catch Qi Hongwei's neck, lifted him up from the chair, and said loudly: "What the hell are you doing?"

Wake up my sister quickly, or I will kill you!" He said this through gritted teeth, word by word, and with his ferocious expression, no one would doubt the truth of his words.

sex.

Poor Qi Hongwei's neck was stuck and he couldn't breathe. His face turned pale and he couldn't speak.

At this time, Wang Peiyuan, Fu Chunling and Director Zheng Shimin, who heard the commotion, also ran up. They were shocked when they saw this situation. Wang Peiyuan, who was well-informed, reacted quickly and hurriedly grabbed Leng Binghan's hand.

He held his hand and shouted loudly: "Xiaohan, Xiaohan, let him go quickly, otherwise he will be strangled to death by you."

After shouting several times, Leng Binghan seemed to wake up from his rage and let go of his hand. Qi Hongwei immediately collapsed, hugging his neck and coughing loudly. The scene just now frightened him. For a long time,

Suffocation and lack of oxygen made his mind go blank, and he really felt the breath of death. He had no doubt that this child wanted to kill him and was not just talking about it. Although they were from the Seventh National Security Bureau, they were not combatants.

, I am usually responsible for collecting information and materials. Even with some training, when have I ever encountered such a dangerous situation?

"What's going on?" Wang Peiyuan asked loudly, seeing that the scene was in chaos. Although he was a little worried about why Xiaohan had a conflict with these people, he believed that Xiaohan was not the kind of person who was unreasonable and unreasonable.

Leng Binghan calmly told the other party about the hypnosis.

Seeing Wang Yingying who was still hypnotized, Fu Chunling, who was heartbroken about her daughter, ran over and hugged her and started crying. Seeing her daughter in this state, Wang Peiyuan was also furious, and she patted the table and said loudly: "Director Zheng,

I need your explanation, who authorized you to perform hypnosis? If anything happens to my daughter, the lawsuit will be taken to the State Council or the Military Commission, and I will never let you go!" As he spoke, the majestic aura suddenly dissipated.

Come on.

At this time, he is not the municipal party committee secretary, but a father. Even if he faces mountains of swords and seas of fire, he will not be afraid for his daughter!

Seeing Wang Peiyuan's resolute attitude, Zheng Shimin was also a little dumbfounded.

Except for some special circumstances, hypnosis is expressly prohibited. Although they often use this method for the convenience of investigating cases, because they handle it well, no trouble has occurred, so everyone turns a blind eye.

.But now that Wang Peiyuan and the others have been arrested, not to mention knowing the powerful background of Wang Peiyuan's family, even the boss of the Seventh Bureau of National Security does not dare to touch the edge. If this matter becomes a big issue, not only himself, but also the people above him will also

It won't be easy.

Zheng Shimin secretly scolded his subordinates for their incompetence for not handling this matter well, and said with a smile: "Secretary Wang, don't be angry, we will wake up Ling Qianjin immediately. Hypnosis is also a last resort, but we will never do it to Ling Qianjin.

What's the impact?" After saying that, he quickly glanced at Qi Hongwei. Qi Hongwei also understood that, regardless of the fact that he was still feeling uncomfortable, he hurriedly stepped forward to unlock Wang Yingying's hypnosis.

I saw him mumbling words, making some strange gestures with his hands in front of Wang Yingying, and suddenly shouted: "Wake up!" As soon as he finished speaking, Wang Yingying opened her eyes, looked around in confusion, and said: "

Mom, what's wrong with you? Why are you crying? Why did you all come to my room?"

Seeing that Wang Yingying recovered, Fu Chunling hugged her and cried again. Wang Peiyuan and Leng Binghan both breathed a long sigh of relief, and the big stone hanging in their hearts was finally put down. Only Fu Chunling held her

Wang Yingying looked confused and didn't know what happened. However, seeing her mother crying so sadly, she became sad herself and cried with her.

At this time, Zheng Shimin went to wake up Zhang Yuan again and asked him carefully what happened. Not only did he fail to hypnotize him, but he was hypnotized by him. For a person who is proficient in hypnosis, this is simply a great shame and humiliation.

But Zhang Yuan couldn't remember what happened just now. He only remembered that he was preparing to hypnotize the other party. Seeing that the other party was about to be hypnotized, he suddenly became confused and didn't know anything until he was woken up just now.

Only then did I suddenly realize that I had been anti-hypnotized.

Zheng Shimin glared dissatisfied at his two subordinates who failed to achieve anything but failed, and frowned. Why was Leng Binghan not hypnotized, but hypnotized the other person instead? Could it be that he was also a master of hypnosis? But he

How old are you? Even if you are proficient in hypnosis, it is impossible for you to be your opponent?

At this time, Wang Peiyuan came over, with a gloomy face and said angrily: "Director Zheng, you have asked what you should ask. Regarding this matter, I will complain and report it to your superiors. You are not welcome here, you can leave."

!" He gave the eviction order without any ceremony.

Zheng Shimin also knew that there was no way to end the matter, and he had to taste the bitter fruit himself. But he still said: "Secretary Wang, I'm really sorry about what happened today. But before we leave, we still want to talk to Leng Binghan."

Wang Peiyuan was stunned, "Why, you still want to retaliate?"

Zheng Shimin smiled bitterly and said: "How is this possible? Just through our understanding, Leng Binghan knew some information that was very helpful for us to solve the case. I believe Secretary Wang also hopes that we can solve this matter as soon as possible, otherwise they will do it again in Chengdu."

Doing some cases will also have a great impact on you."

At this point, Wang Peiyuan also hesitated. At his level, he can understand some secrets that others cannot know. As Director Zheng said, if this case cannot be solved early and some problems arise, then for

The stability and development of the entire Chengdu will surely have very serious consequences, which is something he, the secretary of the municipal party committee, does not want to see anyway. But does Xiaohan really know some important clues? He just had a conflict with the other party,

I was a little worried about letting him face these people alone.

Zheng Shimin seemed to see his scruples and said: "Secretary Wang, don't worry, we will not use hypnosis again, let alone it will not be useful to him. Leng Binghan may not be as simple as you think, we will not

It hurt him."

"Then I hope to be able to observe!" Wang Peiyuan was still a little worried.

"That won't work. You should also know our rules. There will be some secrets that need to be kept secret, even from you." Zheng Shimin refused.

"Godfather, it's okay, I want to talk to them too!" Wang Peiyuan still felt it was a bit difficult to make a decision, but Leng Binghan happened to come over and heard it, so he said honestly.

"Okay, Xiaohan, your godfather is next door. If you need anything, just call me!" Wang Peiyuan warned, while looking at Zheng Shimin with some warning, which made Director Zheng feel dumbfounded. When will the National Security Council

The person who came out of the seventh game makes others so worried? It's just because I didn't handle today's affairs well and underestimated this half-year-old child.

He didn't feel it at first, but after what happened, he became very interested in this child. He always felt that there was some secret hidden in this child. If he could find something on him, he might as well go back and redeem himself. Zheng Shimin

Decided to test him well.

The door was closed, and only Zheng Shimin and Leng Binghan were left in the room. The two did not speak, but just looked at each other.

Zheng Shimin was also very surprised when he saw Leng Binghan looking at him without fear, acting neither humble nor overbearing, and generous. However, the more he looked like this, the more correct he felt that his judgment was.

Zheng Shimin snorted coldly, and suddenly a powerful aura erupted from his whole body, attacking Leng Binghan.

This was the first time Leng Binghan encountered such a situation, and he was shocked. Before he could think of how to deal with it, the air flow slowly moving between the five light balls in his body seemed to sense changes in the outside world.

The ground started to circulate, and an aura suddenly came out of the body, producing a great power and spreading out, making a cold wind seem to blow in the room, like a radar command, which not only blew Director Zheng's

All the momentum was rolled back, and the two air currents merged into one and rushed straight towards Director Zheng.

Zheng Shimin was shocked and turned pale. He hurriedly took a few steps back, gritting his teeth and using his skills to resist the powerful momentum. He was like a small boat in the rapids, seeing that it would be destroyed at any time. His feet were involuntarily moving step by step. After retreating, my back was already pressed against the wall. There was no way to retreat. It was like supporting an invisible pressure weighing more than a thousand kilograms. It seemed that it was difficult to even stand and breathe.

After a short time, he gradually started to sweat all over his body, and a look of horror and pain appeared on his face.

Seeing this situation, Leng Binghan was also very surprised. His mind moved, and the powerful momentum suddenly returned to Leng Binghan's surroundings, as if there was a suction force, and continued to surround and be sucked into the body. As the surroundings of the body continued, The aura became thicker and thicker, and some ***-white light was faintly visible, surrounding his body. It was as if a person was hidden in the steaming clouds, vaguely visible, and very ethereal.

Leng Binghan did not notice this abnormal phenomenon. As more and more airflows poured in, he only felt that his whole body was expanding, as if his whole body was about to explode. Fortunately, these airflows continued to flow with the airflow in his body, and the speed Getting faster and faster, every time it circulates, a part of it will be absorbed by the five light balls. Gradually, all the ***white airflow is absorbed by him, and gradually disperses, and the colors of the five light balls become even more bright and bright. , and I felt that my whole body was in peace and I felt indescribably comfortable.

The universe is vast, and no one has been able to understand the mysteries contained in it. And the mysteries of human life, even after all the efforts of wise men of all generations, have not yet been fully understood. Leng Binghan accidentally encountered it, and under the stimulation of Zheng Shimin, I had another breakthrough, and it was truly a blessing.

Zheng Shimin, who was clinging to the wall, seemed to be in a dream, as if what he saw was so unreal, so he was completely shocked for a moment and could hardly believe his eyes.

After a long time, he opened his eyes wide and said with some fear: "Which sect are you from? How can you release your true energy? It's incredible!"

"Release the true energy? What is the release of true energy?" Leng Binghan was also stunned, touched his head and asked with some confusion. He didn't know what kind of changes had happened to him. All of these changes It came very suddenly and seemed to be a matter of course. Before he could react, everything was over. Even he was confused.

Zheng Shimin thought he was pretending to be stupid on purpose, and suddenly felt a little dissatisfied. He cursed: "Although you are powerful, you can't look down on others like this?"

However, thinking of the experience he just had that he would never want to experience again, he still suppressed his emotions and said: "I think you must also know that we are the special operations team of the Seventh Bureau of the Ministry of National Security. You should know that in order to maintain The stable order of society prevents people from using their abilities to override national laws and cause huge damage. Therefore, people with stronger abilities like you must be included in government supervision, so please cooperate with us job!"

Leng Binghan couldn't help but have a bitter look on his face, but honestly speaking, this was actually expected. If it were him, he wouldn't let these potentially huge threats escape his monitoring. So he I have always been very cautious and unwilling to be exposed, but I didn't expect to be tested by this Zheng Shimin today. It's also my fault that I haven't studied systematically, and I know only a little about this matter. I feel the stones to cross the river, and I don't have much control over my abilities. , only then will you be exposed to his temptation.

However, he still held on to the last glimmer of hope and excused himself: "I really don't know what you are talking about. I am a child, how can I have any sect? Let alone let out my anger, I didn't even think about the situation just now.

You know what's going on!" This was not a lie, he was indeed not from any sect, and he was still wondering about the situation just now!

Although Zheng Shimin didn't believe it, he looked carefully and it didn't look like he was lying. He couldn't help but think: Could there really be a genius? But he really thought it was unbelievable. He pondered for a while and said: "Whether what you said is true or not, we will investigate in detail

Investigation. But since you have extraordinary abilities, you will definitely be under our supervision. However, this matter is not under my control, someone will come to contact you!"

"Now let's get down to business. Did you find anything unusual about yesterday's car accident?"

Since the other party was from the special department, Leng Binghan stopped hiding it and told the story about how he noticed being spied on before the car accident yesterday but found nothing. Zheng Shimin listened carefully and even went over some details.

Asking, for example, the time I was aware of, how I felt specifically, etc. It was so frustrating that Leng Binghan could only think about it slowly and think about it.

Zheng Shimin wrote down everything verbatim, and then said to Leng Binghan: "Thank you for your support of our work. I hope you will not abuse your abilities, and I hope you will not leave Chengdu in the near future. We will have a dedicated team

The personnel came to find you. And your recent whereabouts will be under our surveillance. We will inform you in advance so that there will be no misunderstandings!"

Leng Binghan knew that such treatment was unavoidable, but in desperation, he still warned: "Then your personnel must not interfere with my normal life, otherwise I will not be responsible for what happens!"

"You can rest assured on this. As long as you don't do anything extraordinary, they won't do anything to hinder you!" Even so, Zheng Shimin still thought: He must give them a good explanation when he returns.

Don't annoy him. Although he doesn't know his true ability, his momentum just now is beyond what he can imagine. If he annoys him, there will be no good results.

This is a blessing in disguise for me. Going back to report this matter is a great achievement.

The two were about to go out when Leng Binghan suddenly asked out of curiosity: "What happened in yesterday's car accident?"

Zheng Shimin looked around, then leaned close to his ear and whispered: "Then can you keep it a secret?"

When Leng Binghan heard that there was something going on, he hurriedly smiled and said: "Of course, I have always been very strict with my mouth."

Director Zheng smiled and said, "Me too!" After saying that, he turned around and opened the door and went out.

Leng Binghan was left stunned, and after a long while he cursed: "***, people from the Seventh Bureau of National Security also make such a joke!"