Martial Arts Master

Right as he approached the club entrance, Lou Cheng was greeted by a lean and swarthy youth with a side-parted haircut. He began in a thick Guangnan accent,

“Hello, Mr Lou. I’m Huang Bin. The car is ready and waiting for you at the entrance.”

“Thank you,” said Lou Cheng politely.

“You don’t have to be so formal. It’s my job,” replied Huang Bin, beaming. He turned and led the way, guiding Lou Cheng out of the entrance and into a jet-black multi-purpose vehicle.

Lou Cheng studied his surroundings with perfunctory glances. The interior design was themed around mellow yellow, and the front and rear seats were separated by a curtain and partition. It was more luxurious than the ride he had that morning. Communication was done through walkie-talkies to ensure absolute privacy. At the bar, there was a shelf containing vintage wines. The refrigerator had two layers, one containing cooled drinks and the other containing ice cubes and ice-cream.

“To University Town…” Huang Bin said into the walkie-talkie.

He had already sent the location to the driver, but he didn’t want to miss out on any chances of showing his diligence! After everything was done, he didn’t linger and got out of the car with a smile, so that he wouldn’t take up any of the future Physical Invulnerability Master’s time.

Lou Cheng nodded at him gratefully. He then opened the fridge and grabbed a bottle of chilled mineral water. He took a cup out and began pouring and drinking by himself.

At the club exit, Yu Wangyuan and Lu Shaofei were waiting for their ride back to the Sky Capital to arrive. They were ambivalent about the whole proceeding they just witnessed. The latter pursed her lips.

“The people in the Assistant Team are such snobs! They are totally at his beck and call. If I can attain the Physical Invulnerability stage, I would never pick any of them to be my assistant… Compared to them, Auman is pretty nice. She’s warm and attentive towards everyone…”

“Perhaps, their snobbish attitude is exactly what the club wants…” said Yu Wangyuan. A smile of self-derision rested on his round face.

“What do you mean by that?” Lu Shaofei asked, toying with her short hair.

“It’s to create a difference between classes and illustrate the merit of privileges. If Inhumans, Physical Invulnerability Masters and Physical Invulnerability Masters-in-line are all treated equally, how do they exemplify the difference in status? How do they provoke and motivate us to do better?” said Yu Wangyuan, his tone calm but mixed with melancholy. “Sending out a few more cars and hiring a few more drivers is a trifling matter to the club. But why should they do it? The only way to get others to treat you seriously and suck up to you is through working hard and improving yourself. That’s how you become valuable to them.”

Lu Shaofei considered his words thoughtfully. She made a slight nod. “It does feel that way… Back when I was on the Dan Stage Team, it was impossible for us to have a car arranged for us off the bat. If you miss the to and fro rides, you’ll have to get there by yourself. You could hardly get a hold of anyone from the Assistant Team for days. In fact, they don’t appear at all under normal circumstances. At that time, I told myself that I had to do well and enter the Reserve Team!”

His teammate’s agreement turned Yu Wangyuan into a chatterbox.

“With our stage and capabilities, were we not in Longhu, we would be above others no matter which province or city we go to. There will be endless opportunities for us to be hired and subjected to VIP treatment and privileges. Yet, if that happens, there won’t be any motivation for us to strive for better. You will have everything you want and no one to compete against. Living so comfortably would indubitably soften your willpower. Back when I first left the military, if I had chosen to join the police force, I would have easily become a high-ranking officer. But I have ambitions. I want to become a Mighty One that lives up to his name!”

“Besides getting pointers from Physical Invulnerability Masters, the reason why the professional league reserve team concept is popular is that when you put so many Inhumans together every day, they can hardly avoid comparing and competing against each other. It does wonders for training.”

Lu Shaofei heaved a sigh. “You are right. My greatest goal at the moment is to…”

She paused, then let out a sudden laugh. Taking some time to compose herself, she said, “Is to surpass you!”

“That’s great! And my goal is to catch up to Leader Tu!” Yu Wangyuan chuckled.

Lu Shaofei took a meaningful look at him. She felt that her affable-looking teammate was behaving a lot more profoundly than usual.

He has a military background and rich experiences. Unlike me, a ‘clean sheet’ who only progressed step by step in the Longhu Martial Arts School…

Lu Shaofei’s thoughts took a turn, raising doubts within herself. Uncertainly, she asked,

“But with so many high Pin holders training at one place, it would also bring everyone immense mental pressure. There would always be times when you lose out to others, and times when you fall behind the competition. Twice or thrice is fine, but if such events accumulate, the impact would be tremendous. If one is subjected to such agony for a few years in a row, even the strongest and most determined wills will waver, wouldn’t they?”

“That’s why arrangements are made for some martial artists to train with other teams. This is, firstly, to give us combat experience, and secondly, to let us regain our confidence. If all else fails, one can still switch careers to management, the police, or the military. Every year, there are Inhumans that drop out of the race. It’s not as if you are oblivious to that. That’s how intense the pressure from this competitive environment is!” Yu Wangyuan peered outside the entrance. He laughed abruptly. “Alright, our ride is here. When you get home, etch the feelings of indignation you felt earlier into your brain. Turn that into motivation and endeavor to not let him catch up to you in a year!”

“Fighting!” Lu Shaofei waved her fist gallantly.

Beside the door of the silver-grey multi-purpose vehicle, Auman’s face had clouded over so much so it almost leaked water droplets. From the second floor of the office, she had witnessed the scene of Huang Bin ingratiating himself with Lou Cheng from start till end. She felt as though someone had stabbed her in the back.

I have always endeavored to be impartial to everyone. Not once did I compete against the seniors in the office for gains. At long last, by sheer dumb luck, the Director assigned me to be in charge of Lou Cheng. Even then, I was apprehensive and didn’t dare to have any thoughts above my station. All I wanted was some approval for my proper work attitude. Who would have thought that a senior employee like Huang Bin, who’s usually all smiles, would contact Lou Cheng privately and take over my position forcefully!

In the past, he even expressed interest in me and got quite close to me. Yet, when opportunity is involved, he has shown his true colors!

Damn snake!

Life is so hard in the workplace!

…

The multi-purpose vehicle traveled smoothly. Though they occasionally encountered traffic jams along the way, they managed to arrive in University Town at six-twenty pm. The car wound its way to the entrance of Jiang Fei’s campus.

Lou Cheng glanced out of the window. He spotted Jiang Fei and picked up the walkie-talkie. “You may stop here and return. Thank you,” he said to the driver.

“Mr. Lou, I can dwell a little longer and send you to your dining location before I leave,” the driver proposed on his own.

“That works too. Just let me check with where I’m heading to. If it’s inside the campus, then I wouldn’t have to bother you,” said Lou Cheng, bending his head to exit the vehicle as the car door opened automatically.

Fatty Jiang wore a grey T-shirt, pale-yellow shorts, and black sandals. With a dart step, Lou Cheng drew near him in an instant and tapped at his right shoulder, before flashing to his left.

No matter how many times he did it, it always worked like a charm. As usual, Fatty Jiang was tricked to scour at his right blankly for a few seconds before realizing what was going on.

Looking to his left, he murmured, “Not cool, man. How can an Inhuman Mighty One make a fool of an average person like me?”

“You never looked in the right place even before I began practicing martial arts,” Lou Cheng laughed. “Where are we going for dinner?”

Fatty Jiang was getting even plumper!

“A time-honored eatery. Their white cut chicken is simply—clicks tongue—I’ll leave the rest to your imagination. I go there once every week to satisfy my cravings,” said Jiang Fei, swallowing his saliva.

His description made Lou Cheng hungry. “How far is it?”

Jiang Fei looked ahead. “Ten to twenty minutes by foot.”

“Then let’s take a ride there. Send me the address,” said Lou Cheng, indicating him to follow with a pat.

When they were in the car, Jiang Fei’s eyes widened. He scanned around and gave a heartfelt compliment.

“Cheng, the treatment you are getting is insane!” he said as he erected his thumb.

“Don’t all multi-purpose vehicles look like this?” asked Lou Cheng in amusement. He picked up the walkie-talkie and told the address to the driver.

“I know…” Jiang Fei beamed. “I’m talking about getting a private driver!”

“He’s not my private driver. It just happened that he was assigned to me,” Lou Cheng replied honestly.

Jiang Fei nodded. As he felt the car starting up, he subconsciously looked to the road through the window, at milling students from his school who were enduring the heat. He, on the other hand, was in a cool environment with chilled drinks laying before him.

Ten minutes later, with some stops in between, the multi-purpose vehicle arrived at the Lin Eatery which Jiang Fei recommended.

They watched the driver leave before entering. They then proceeded to order 2 white cut chickens, 2 roasted geese, 2 servings of Char Siu, 4 plates of rice noodle rolls, and more. The waiter was bewildered as he took their orders.

“We’ll take home anything we don’t finish!” Jiang Pang shouted unhappily. The waiter instantly snapped out of his trance.

When they had both settled down, Jiang Fei began to inquire about the Longhu Club with curiosity. He then smiled and pointed outside.

“There are three universities near here, and an abundance of beauties passing by. Whenever I’m here, I dedicate a long time to admiring them. Though I don’t have a girlfriend, it makes me feel content, as though I own the whole forest.”

“I call that mentality ‘watch, my (the emperor) land is like a painting!” Lou Cheng teased Fatty Jiang.

“What do you want me to do? I’m the one in despair here…” Jiang Fei shrugged. “Last year, during winter break, a few classmates came over to Xiushan for leisure. After hearing that you are Lou Cheng, they were quite friendly to me and constantly introduced girlfriends to me, but, none of them worked out…”

“Well, I can’t help you either. It’s your fault for not seeing through your diet!” Lou Cheng took the opportunity to provoke him.

“Sigh, now I leave it all to fate. Maybe someday someone will discover my rich inner beauty,” Jiang Fei laughed self-mockingly.

They shot the breeze around the same subject until they began talking about job-hunting. Jiang Fei said, unhappily, “It’s impossible for me to become filthy rich like you right after graduation. To be fair, with my field of specialization, I have plenty of choices if I’m willing to work in factories. There’s no fear of not being able to find a job. The problem is, I feel like I can achieve more. Well, I’ll just try my luck and apply to different companies during the latter half of the year. Anyway, I’ll either be staying in Huacheng or going to Gaofen. Other places are out of my consideration.”

“Mhm, Gaofen’s progression in recent years has been hopeful,” replied Lou Cheng. He didn’t know much about Jiang Fei’s field of specialization, so he refrained from giving opinions.

“Sometimes, I really miss high school. Other than studying, there was nothing to worry about and no decisions to make. Whenever I was free, I could use the time solely for leisure. Unlike now…” Jiang Fei mused sentimentally.

“Once you step into society, you’ll start missing university life!” replied Lou Cheng earnestly. “Personally, I preferred university over high school. During high school, I wasn’t really matured and didn’t know how to live life. I simply spent my days without a care. In university, my view on various aspects gradually took shape. I found a sense of individuality. Besides, it was relatively relaxed as well.”

“Alright, I get it. You had your dream girl beside you during university!” said Jiang Fei, stuffing a piece of white cut chicken into his mouth.

“Don’t expose me!” Lou Cheng chuckled in amusement.

They chatted all the way until the sky was pitch-black, reminiscing the past and discussing the future. That’s when they left the Lin Eatery unhurriedly and strolled towards the entrance of Jiang Fei’s university.

They exchanged goodbyes, and Jiang Fei ambled back to his dormitory room. His roommates were playing online games.

“Fatty! Where have you been? On a date?” jested one of his classmates in the midst of his activity.

“Nah! As if I can get a girlfriend!” said Fatty Jiang in self-derision. “Had dinner with a high school classmate.”

With the current Heavenly Son of China, Lou Cheng!

“Oh…” Without saying more, his roommates shifted their attention back to the game.