Chapter Fifty-Seven: "I Wish to Become Your Disciple"

Chapter Fifty-Seven: "Accepting You as My Disciple"

"Ahhh! Gentler, gentler, please go easy..."

Xu Junior’s anguished screams echoed through the infirmary. He lay half-sprawled on a hospital bed, while a male doctor in a white coat carefully massaged his injured ankle.

Chen Xiao was on the adjacent bed. Compared to Xu, Chen was battered and bruised, his injuries far more severe, and a young nurse was applying medicine to his arm.

This was the school infirmary of Kyd Academy. As a prestigious institution, its medical staff were highly skilled.

Chen Xiao frowned as he listened to Xu's cries, unable to help but chuckle bitterly. "Xu, stop whining. It's just a sprained ankle. I’m practically mummified here, and I haven’t made as much fuss as you."

Xu shot Chen Xiao a glare, but then shamelessly smiled at the nurse tending to Chen. "Beautiful lady, why not let you wrap my injury instead? Just looking at you makes me forget the pain."

The nurse blushed deeply but didn’t dare reply. Xu glanced at the doctor beside him. "Uncle, please, stop. My leg isn’t broken, but you’re about to break it. Could you step outside and let someone else handle this?"

The doctor, recognizing the infamous Xu Junior from school, dared not get angry. He simply forced a smile and hurried out.

"Be careful not to get your wound wet these next few days." The nurse’s face was flushed as she finished treating Chen Xiao, avoiding eye contact with Xu as she hurried away.

"Xu..." Chen Xiao managed to sit up. "Are we going to have trouble over what happened today?"

It was, after all, the first time in his life he'd seriously injured someone. He felt uneasy.

"Hmph, if I don’t go after that Ma fellow, he should count himself lucky! Would he dare come after us again?" Xu snorted, then turned to Chen Xiao, his expression suddenly strange. "Hey, Chen... what about you? How did you suddenly become... so strong? Damn! You sent those guys flying with just a few punches... When did you get so much strength?"

Chen Xiao hesitated, then just smiled bitterly in silence.

At that moment, the door to the ward opened. Xiao Qing walked in, her face cold, her expression frosty.

"Master, you've come to see us?" Xu greeted her with a radiant smile, but Xiao Qing merely glanced at him. "You, step outside."

"Eh? Outside?" Xu's face fell. "Master, I’m an injured man! My leg’s almost broken!"

Xiao Qing regarded him coolly, her voice devoid of emotion. "If you don’t leave, your other leg will break soon. Want to try?"

Xu gulped, not daring to say a word. He hurriedly climbed out, hopping on one foot and leaning against the wall. Before he left, he shot Chen Xiao a look full of “good luck.”

Xiao Qing’s face seemed calm, but her gaze held something hidden, sharp and unwavering as she stared at Chen Xiao for half a minute.

Chen Xiao felt uneasy under her scrutiny... Was she here to settle accounts for the trick he'd played on her earlier? But if anyone deserved blame, it was Xu Junior. Why come straight to him?

Finally, Xiao Qing walked to Chen Xiao’s bed and sat gently on the edge, her eyes meeting his.

"How are you feeling?"

Her voice was not as cold as before, even somewhat gentle.

Chen Xiao managed a smile. "I’ll survive."

Xiao Qing fell silent again, gazing at him for another two minutes.

Unable to bear it, Chen Xiao chuckled uneasily. "If you have something to say, just say it. You keep staring at me, it’s making my skin crawl."

To his surprise, he saw a blush bloom on Xiao Qing’s cheeks.

She... she was blushing? Xiao Qing, usually calm as still water, was actually embarrassed?

"I..." Xiao Qing’s voice sounded odd. "Since I was little, whenever there was a fight, it was always me standing up for others. No one ever stood up for me."

Her voice was soft, almost like goose down, with a hint of shyness.

Chen Xiao smiled wryly. With her skills, who would ever have the chance to stand up for her?

"So... thank you for this time." Her gaze seemed flustered, and she quickly turned her head away, speaking quietly. "You... you have great strength, but your skills are poor. Have you trained in any internal martial arts?"

"No," Chen Xiao shook his head.

Xiao Qing turned back, her expression much calmer, studying him for a while. After confirming his answer was genuine, she slowly said, "With your current abilities, you won’t get far. If... if you want to learn, once you recover, I’ll teach you."

Chen Xiao scratched his nose, embarrassed. "Well... you’re our president. If I want to learn martial arts, of course I’d ask you..."

But Xiao Qing shook her head. "The martial arts club—I’ve disbanded it."

"What?!" Chen Xiao was stunned. After all the effort to drive out the challengers, now she was dissolving the club?

Xiao Qing snorted. "Did you think I liked running these chaotic groups? My original plan was just to start a martial arts club so I could find out who was bullying Xu Junior in school. Since he refused to say, I’d figure it out myself. I thought skilled fighters would eventually reveal themselves—those who practice martial arts usually have a strong sense of pride. But I didn’t expect you and Xu to deceive me!"

Chen Xiao smiled wryly. "I suppose that’s not really my fault. I wanted to tell you, but you said you’d break Xu’s leg, so I kept quiet."

Xiao Qing seemed to smile, her tone odd and her eyes glimmering. "And now, you’re not afraid I’ll break his leg?"

"Well, after today he did stand up for you. Even if he didn’t accomplish much, he tried. I doubt you’re the type to turn your back on someone."

Xiao Qing couldn’t help but laugh, a smile blooming on her face like a flower. The beauty in her features nearly stunned Chen Xiao—not least because, in that moment, she looked just like a phoenix standing before him.

Chen Xiao, momentarily entranced, let his gaze linger. Xiao Qing caught his look and, feeling annoyed, stood up. "Rest well."

She turned away, took out a small bottle from her pocket, and tossed it over her shoulder.

"This is my family’s healing medicine. Apply it externally."

With that, she left the ward like a gust of wind.

Chen Xiao held the bottle, lost in thought, when suddenly the door was kicked open and a girl barged in.

Looking closely, he realized it was—

Lu Xiaoxiao! The daughter of Lu Bancheng!

"Uh, you..." Chen Xiao was puzzled. "May I ask..."

Lu Xiaoxiao strode right up to him. "Hey! You’re Chen Xiao, right? Teach me martial arts! The move you used today, that last punch that sent someone flying—I want to learn that!"

Martial arts? Chen Xiao was torn between laughter and tears—was she serious?

"You want me to teach you martial arts?" He scratched his nose. "I got pretty badly beaten today..."

"I don’t care! Those last moves were amazing! That’s exactly what I want to learn!" Lu Xiaoxiao’s eyes sparkled.

"Well..." Chen Xiao was at a loss. "If you want to learn martial arts, you should ask President Xiao Qing. Her skills are much better than mine."

"Her?" Lu Xiaoxiao scoffed. "Forget it! Watching her fight is like watching a butterfly—her style is way too girly!"

Girly? But... aren’t you a girl yourself?

Seeing Chen Xiao’s odd expression, Lu Xiaoxiao grew impatient. "Hey, I’ll pay you! My private judo coach gets two hundred thousand per session—I’ll pay you at the same rate!"

"It’s not about the money," Chen Xiao replied, scratching his nose. He was actually quite willing to get closer to Lu Xiaoxiao, given his current assignment, but to be her coach?

Chen Xiao knew his own abilities well; his real strength came from a supernatural power, not actual martial arts. He couldn’t teach anyone how to replicate that brute force. If he became her coach, he’d be exposed as a fraud in no time.

Lu Xiaoxiao grew frustrated, glaring at him. "What are you hesitating for? I’m offering you the highest pay! Fine, if you want, I’ll even let you date me!"

That left Chen Xiao utterly petrified.

Date... date you?

He swallowed hard, staring at Lu Xiaoxiao—and her "four eyebrows."

"Hmph, plenty of guys want to date me!" Lu Xiaoxiao shot him a glance. "Given your skills, I’m giving you a chance to get close to me! What, not satisfied?"

Chen Xiao could believe it. Though her looks were mediocre, her family background would attract plenty of men—anyone who married Lu Bancheng’s daughter would save themselves decades of struggle.

But... Chen Xiao wasn’t one of those men.

"No need for that," Chen Xiao replied awkwardly, then coughed, straightening up. "My skills aren’t something I can easily teach, but seeing your sincerity, I’ll agree for now. However..."

Lu Xiaoxiao slapped her chest and grinned. "Haha! As long as you agree, any condition is fine! And from now on, as long as I’m around, no one in school will dare mess with you! If anyone tries, just mention my name! Hmph, at Kyd, no one dares touch my people!"

This sounded so odd to Chen Xiao, as if he’d become a pampered toy for a rich girl.

...

That afternoon, Cabbage Girl also came to visit Chen Xiao, bringing him her homemade dinner: dumplings.

And, of course, they were cabbage and pork...

(Is my update pace slow? I started posting the first chapter on March 6th, and now, less than a month later, I've already written over 200,000 words. That’s not slow, right?)