Translator: Transn Editor: Transn
Qi Yunfei immediately replied, with excitement, “Okay, okay, I’ll ask him!”
While Lou Cheng was waiting for her reply, he found Qin Rui’s QQ and sent him a message: “Qin Rui, are you there? I have something to ask you.”
Qi Yunfei replied with an anticipated emoji, “It’s called the Yao Ning Martial Arts Club! He said it is a good martial arts club in Ningshui County. Brother, please ask about it, please... ”
“Okay.” Seeing that Qin Rui did not reply, Lou Cheng searched for Qin Rui’s name in his contacts and gave him a call.
After hearing the classic ringtone, the call was connected. Qin Rui said in astonishment and delight,
“Cheng? What’s up with the sudden call? Back in Xiushan?”
“No, I just have something to ask you.” Lou Cheng answered with a smile, “Have you ever heard of Yao Ning Martial Arts Club?”
“Ah? Yes, I know, I know. What happened? Did they mess with you?” Qin Rui felt a little surprised and asked him in bewilderment.
Lou Cheng thought about how to describe the relationship between his sister and her boyfriend, then he said carefully, “One of my relative’s children didn’t want to go to high school, so he decided to join the Yao Ning Martial Arts Club after he graduated from the middle school. Haha, so I called you to get some details about this club.”
“Yao Ning Martial Arts Club. How should I say this... This club isn’t too bad. I’ve seen the coach several times. He was a fighter of Amateur First Pin and has several good disciples. He is also very dedicated to instructing his disciples. So this club is one of the best clubs in Ningshui County,” Qin Rui said as he thought about it.
Lou Cheng heaved a sigh of relief, “Ok then, that’s good to know.”
At this time, Qin Rui cried a little and chuckled, “What do you mean by that? If your cousin really wants to learn martial arts, he might as well join my club, the Gushan Martial Arts School. I dare not say that we are the number one in Xiushan, but at least we are among the top three. My club is better than Yaoning in all respects. And rest assured about getting in. With me around, he’ll definitely get in. When he does, I’ll help you take care of him and guide him carefully!”
One of the main economic pillars of martial art schools is fees from students. So logically speaking, the school should never refuse new students. However, they do reject applications, because the number has an impact on a very important statistic – the pass rate of the Ranking Event.
The number of coaches in a martial arts club is limited, so the number of students who could be guided carefully and effectively would also be limited. If the school enrolled students blindly and ignored this limitation, then the teaching quality would decrease significantly, pulling down their pass rate for the Ranking Event. Such schools would easily be stuck in a vicious cycle. Good fighters would always choose other martial arts school. Without good players, the pass rate would just continue to decline...
Because of this reason, all martial arts schools set a standard and only enroll students within a reasonable range. This resulted in a limited supply for martial arts schools that are in high demand.
It sounds better... ” Lou Cheng pretended to be polite and said, “Will this be difficult for you or trouble you?”
“Why would it be troublesome? Aren’t we good friends?” Qin Rui answered like he was patting his chest, “You can give my phone number to him and let him contact me directly so that you don’t need to be a mailbox.”
“Okay! When I return to Xiushan for summer break, I’ll treat you to a meal!” Lou Cheng said gratefully.
He did not ask the preliminary results of several martial arts teams in Xiushan, because according to Qin Rui’s posts on twitter and his QQ comments, the results were not too ideal. All of the teams did not advance in the preliminaries.
As for Qin Rui himself, he still had a long way to go before he reached the level of Amateur First Pin. So, he did not attend the biannual Amateur Ranking Event in the first half of the year.
After chatting for a while, Lou Cheng hung up the phone. He sent a “smile” emoji to Qi Yunfei and said, “Ask your boyfriend, does he want to apply for Gushan Martial Arts School?”
“Yes, yes, yes!” Qi Yunfei a knew little about this aspect, so she replied immediately.
A few minutes later, she sent a “surprise” emoji and said, “He said, who doesn’t want to go to this club. Brother Lou, do you really have a way?”
According to my boyfriend, the quota for new members of Gushan Martial Arts School is really limited and because it’s popular. Since my cousin is still a university student without any skill or relationships, how could he get my boyfriend in?
Or does my uncle know some leaders in Gushan Martial Arts School?
Lou Cheng sent her the phone number of Qin Rui and said, “Get him to call this number. Qin Rui is the name. He’s a disciple of the Gushan Martial Arts School and he can help your boyfriend get a place.”
“Really?” Qi Yunfei could not believe her ears.
“If Qin Rui dares to lie to me, he’s probably tired of living.” Lou Cheng laughed in his heart and said “Seriously. This is definitely a true offer. But, I can’t guarantee whether he would try to get some cash from your boyfriend. So just remind him to be careful.”
“Yes, I understand!” Qi Yunfei didn’t send an emoji this time. She was very anxious to get her boyfriend to call Qin Rui.
While Lou Cheng waited for her reply, he tried his best to stay awake and expel his drowsiness. He began to look through the tourism projects around Songcheng. He wanted to pick out some visiting locations that Yan Zheke might like and make some detailed travel guides so she wouldn’t be left with a bad impression. He was looking forward to this trip.
He was not excited about the possibility that they might have more intimate contact. In fact, he felt that traveling together and experiencing new and interesting things could help bring out certain aspects of someone’s character that might be suppressed by familiar circumstances. And it would help make their relationship more stable, while also making them feel more comfortable.
According to the words of “Talker”, relationships require effort from both parties. Once you get a girlfriend, it would be wrong for you to be too excited or plan nothing from then on. If you always get along with her stiffly or cautiously, both of you would feel tired sooner or later.
While he was comparing and analyzing every travel route, Lou Cheng also opened the Taobao app. He bought several items that he had saved in the shopping cart. There were some snacks for Yan Zheke and other things that could be used to please her.
After a while, Qi Yunfei replied, “Brother, he said it’s true. He knows Brother Rui. He said he is the core disciple of the Gushan Martial Arts School and is a strong and young fighter. So he would definitely be able to help him!”
“That’s good.” Lou Cheng replied to her a smiling emoji.
Qi Yunfei sent a “worship” emoji and said, “Brother Lou, you are really awesome. You know such a powerful person!”
Maybe that should be said in the opposite way? You are supposed to say that Qin Rui is awesome for knowing a strong person like me... Lou Cheng boasted a little, then he said casually, “Because I was his classmate in high school.”
“That explains it!” Qi Yunfei suddenly understood and didn’t pursue it further.
Lou Cheng was interested in their stories, so he asked, “Fei, you care about your boyfriend quite a bit huh. ”
“Of course ~ After all, he is the first boy that I really like.” Qi Yunfei chuckled.
“What does the word ‘really’ mean?” Lou Cheng was a little confused.
Qi Yunfei sent an emoji which looked like a man was scratching his head embarrassingly, “I have had boyfriends before... ”
Before? My sister, you are only a student in Ninth Grade! Lou Cheng really was shocked. “When exactly did you have a boyfriend?”
“Just when I was in Fifth, Sixth, Seventh and Eighth Grades.” Qi Yunfei confidently explained, “At that time, I was only a child and I didn’t understand love. I tried it for fun. It’s because others would always boo and push us to pair up. But when I was in a relationship with them, I just held hands with them, like playing house. I never thought of it as a real relationship at all!”
Lou Cheng wiped the cold sweat, that did not even exist, and said,
“You are still such a kid!”
Lou Cheng looked at his cousin and thought about his own elementary and middle school life. Back then, he was just as ignorant as her!
Because he was very shocked, he did not try to persuade Qi Yunfei further. After chatting for a while, he quit QQ and tried to take a nap, casually.
...
For the next few weeks, Geezer Shi did not create obstructions purposely. When they confronted two groups that made it into the rankings last year, he set Lou Cheng and Lin Que as the final fighters. He paired Li Mao and Yan Zheke as a group to fight the real battle. Also, he made Sun Jian and Lin Hua a group which just fought after the former one. There was no doubt that Songcheng University Martial Arts Club won the match. So the team advanced with a sweeping victory and just waited for the distribution of bonuses in May and the drawing for their opponent in the quarter-final.
Very soon, it was the second to last weekend of April. At half past seven in the morning, Lou Cheng and Yan Zheke were already on the school bus driving to the old campus.
“I can’t believe I’m skipping my first day of martial arts special training because of you... ” Yan Zheke sighed with sweetness.
Today was the day that Lou Cheng would be taking part in the Professional Ranking Event!
As his girlfriend, she felt that she should not miss it. So she specifically took a day off and was about to accompany him as “Coach Yan.”
Of course, she wouldn’t relax her martial arts because of romance. She deliberately got up early and did nearly two hours of morning exercise.
Lou Cheng was very happy and touched by her company. However, in reality, he laughed and said,
“Actually, you can wait till next Sunday to take leave. I will definitely advance in the group competition.”
Professional Ninth Pin was the threshold which divided amateur fighters and professional fighters, so the competition of this level would emphasize on weakening the impact of accidental factors. If a powerful fighter made a mistake or failed once, they would still be given the opportunity to continue fighting in this competition.
So, the first two members could advance from group competition. The fighters would not be eliminated after only failing in one battle. Even though Lou Cheng was not conceited, he still thought it was impossible for him not to rank at least second in the group.
After hearing Lou Cheng’s discourse, which went totally opposite to his mind, Yan Zheke immediately raised her arm and said cheerfully,
“Then, should I go back to the Martial Arts Club?”
... Lou Cheng became speechless and he deeply realized that humans should not be too hypocritical. Then he chuckled without showing any shame and said, “I still need the help of my Coach Yan. I am afraid that I’ll be unlucky and get assigned to the Death Group!”
Yan Zheke glanced at him with a big smile and replied, “Well, it’s good that you still know where you stand!”
Finishing her sentence, she signed, “I am really worried about you. You have to fight so many battles. I don’t know what will happen... ”
She suddenly raised her hand and covered her mouth to stop herself from saying the word “accident.”
I almost become a Corvine Mouth!
Due to the rules requiring the first two fighters to advance from the group with a stable pass rate, the agenda of the Ranking Event of Professional Ninth Pin was also increased accordingly. Usually, it would be held over two weekends and last four days. Currently, 158 people applied for and passed the verification for this ranking event. However, only 15 fighters could pass. So the fighters were divided into fifteen groups and each group had 10 or 11 members. After fighting in a one-cycle way, the first two in the group would advance. So according to the speed, there were at most three battles a day. All the group competitions could finish before next Saturday or Sunday afternoon.
This was all because these people were just one step away from being a professional fighter. The treatment for professional fighters, in all aspects, was much better. The fighters of Amateur First Pin would choose to attend this ranking event if their physical quality had not declined or even if they had nothing else to do. Just in case they were lucky enough to be assigned to a good group or a good draw in the knockout round?
That was why the number of people applying for the Ranking Event of the Professional Ninth Pin was so large. If there were no limitations, the number of people who pass would be higher by a big margin. Therefore, a verification standard was setup to filter applicants. The applicants had to hand in the documents to prove they had beaten at least two fighters of Amateur First Pin in the last year. Lou Cheng passed the verification easily when he sent the video of him defeating a Professional Ninth Pin fighter.
Watching his girlfriend cover her mouth, he felt a little panicked. Lou Cheng was going to play a joke. However, he saw “Gorilla” Chen Changhua, whose eyebrow could move, carrying his luggage and stepping on the school bus.
“Club manager Chen, I thought you stayed near the stadium last night.” He greeted him.
Chen Changhua was still the club manager of the Martial Arts Club in name.
“Hey. I do have a few friends that live there, but I was afraid they might cause me to lose my focus.” Chen Changhua replied with a wry smile. Then he found a seat and stopped talking. As he sat there, he closed his eyes to relax while still remaining very cautious.
Compared with how Chen Changhua behaved, Lou Cheng suddenly had the thought that he was somewhat too relaxed.
When they arrived at Hall One of Songcheng martial arts stadium, it was already very crowded. There were fighters who applied for this ranking event, as well as groups of families and friends who came to cheer, and the audience who came to watch the battles of professional-to-be fighters.
After waiting in line for a few minutes, Lou Cheng pulled out the data of their grouping and started to analyze the situation with Yan Zheke, head to head.
“Zhao Baosen, from Putuo Martial Arts Club... ”
“Liu Xin, from Binhe Branch of Songcheng Police Department... ”
...
“They all seem to be quite strong.” After looking through the information, Lou Cheng said it with a smile. There was nervousness or embarrassment on his face.
...
At the other service station in the Hall 1, Zhao Baosen, who looked very strong and tough, also received the data.
At first, he looked at it carefully, but his eyes suddenly gazed at the data as he blurted out,
“Lou Cheng!”
Lou Cheng in the Songcheng University Martial Arts Club!
...
Liu Xin had changed his uniform and was very relaxed, so he wasn’t in a hurry to look over it the moment he received the data. He walked to a secluded place, leisurely, then he picked it up and scanned through the paper quickly, out of habit.
“Lou Cheng from Songcheng University Martial Arts Club... ”
Crack. The fingers that Liu Xin used to hold the edge of the paper became as tight as hooks.
...
“Zhao Baosen mastered the Eight Trigram Palm and also practiced the Crane Movement... ” Yan Zheke told him in a clear and soft voice.
Lou Cheng dared not be careless in case of unforeseen problems. So he began to seriously discuss things with his girlfriend.
At that moment, he heard the intercom calling his name,
“The fighter named Lou Cheng from Songcheng University Martial Arts Club, please go to the service counter now.”
Uh? Lou Cheng and Yan Zheke looked at each other with stunned expressions.
After putting away the phone, they left their seats and found the closest service counter.
“Hello, I am Lou Cheng from Songcheng University Martial Arts Club. What’s the matter?” Lou Cheng asked politely.
The staff was a girl with a round face. She looked deeply at Lou Cheng and said,
“Your opponent for this morning’s battle forfeited.”
Forfeited? Lou Cheng was stunned for a while. Before he had time to reply, he heard the staff continue, saying,
“Your afternoon opponent and evening opponent too! All your opponents forfeited!”
...
In a standing corner of Hall One, Zhao Baosen clutched his face with his hands and sighed heavily.
As a fighter, if you quit before fighting with a strong enemy, that would leave you feeling humiliated and oppressed. But after careful consideration, he thought defaulting was the best choice.
People all know how strong Lou Cheng from Songcheng University Martial Arts Club is. And they also regarded him as a top fighter among those of Professional Ninth Pin, so they thought he would definitely get a free pass. If I confronted him, as an amateur fighter who hasn’t even reached the professional level, I cannot imagine how difficult it would be for me to win!
In this high-intensity competition, fighting with such a strong enemy who I have little hope to defeat is a meaningless waste of time and energy. I would even have to take the risk of getting hurt without enough time to fully recover. So, strategically, it’s better to give up and save my stamina to compete for the second position. That’s the most reasonable and wise decision!
At almost the same time, several fighters who just received the group data had the same thought. With his great stamina, Lou Cheng wouldn’t be influenced by the previous battle, regardless of whether the battle was hard or not. So it’s better for them to give up as soon as possible. As they cut off the path of retreat, they could fight the next battle with their full strength.
...
Forfeit? It was difficult for Lou Cheng to describe his own feelings now. To win without fighting certainly made him feel happy, but he also felt a little regretful and annoyed because he had come from far away and discussed the fights so seriously. This default route made his fist, which was filled with energy, punch out into the air.
“They forfeited the match. Does it mean that they gave up all the fights or only the one with me?” He asked again unconsciously.
He understood that it was common for fighters in the Ranking Event of Professional Ninth Pin to forfeit, but the purpose of forfeiting often concentrated on the agenda for the next week. Some fighters forfeited because they were injured in the high-intensity fights and others gave up because they had already failed more than three matches. There was no hope for them to advance, so they didn’t want to waste time-fighting again.
The staff answered him with a professional smile,
“They only gave up the match with you... ”
Before she finished her last sentence, she suddenly glanced at the new messages on the computer screen in front of her in surprise. Then, she looked at Lou Cheng like he was some kind of monster,
“Your, your three opponents for tomorrow also forfeited... ”
What is this situation?
I have worked in this Martial Arts Club for three years. This is the first time I have encountered such a situation. So many fighters have forfeited the match with him voluntarily after they heard his name!
Yan Zheke heard this dialogue while standing next to Lou Cheng with her shining eyes. She could not help but chuckle before she said, “Cheng, I suddenly remembered two sentences that I have read before.”
“What sentences?” Lou Cheng buried the slight feeling of loss within his heart and asked curiously.
“The first sentence is ‘your name can scare the enemy away’ and the second sentence is ‘the name of a certain person can frighten the children so much they stop crying at night’.” Yan Zheke answered with a smile.
Lou Cheng signed and did not know whether to laugh or cry,
“It seems that these sentences make sense, but I am not accustomed to such an easy victory.”
He paused and looked at Yan Zheke and asked, “Where are we going to next?”
Yan Zheke answered seriously and righteously,
“We definitely have to go back and continue the special training in the Martial Arts Club!”
“Ah... ” Lou Cheng looked at her with a stunned face.
Yan Zheke laughed suddenly before replying,
“Since you do not want to go back, as your coach, I invite you to go on a date with me~”
In short, I won’t go to the hotel to rest because you don’t need it at all!
“Ok!” Lou Cheng was now happy instead of being stunned.
However, within his heart, he felt quite a bit of heartache because the hotel would still withdraw some money even if he returned the booked room... Why did those guys forfeit!
Although he was going to receive twenty thousand Yuan, as a person who has experienced a hard life, he still lived in a frugal way and was only generous to his girlfriend.
After making sure of the agenda, he turned around and asked the staff,
“Could you please inform me in advance whether my opponents for next weeks match forfeit or not?”
In case I end up coming here next Saturday for nothing again!
Although this gives much more time to spend with Ke, I still feel very guilty because she has to ask for a leave, which delays her martial arts and studies even without her mother’s warning.
“I’m sorry. We can’t do that. We can only inform you after others decide to forfeit.” The girl with a round face answered injured.
Next week, the number of fighters who forfeited from the competition increased. But Lou Cheng could still have a group member that was willing to challenge him. After all, at the last minute of the group combat, some people might only lack one victory to advance from the group. Or some fighters who had no hope to advance, they might want to fight with a strong enemy to gain more experience.
“Well.” Lou Cheng could only reluctantly accept this reality that others were yearning for.
...
On the last Saturday of April, Lou Cheng received the notice in advance that only his opponents for the afternoon and evening had forfeited. So he came to the arena after he finished his martial arts special training. He waited for the battle for almost two hours and defeated his opponent within two minutes.
The next morning, because his opponent was injured in the previous battle, he had already given up. Lou Cheng came to Hall One of Songcheng martial arts arena with Yan Zheke after he finished his less intense tempering. They waited for the results of the drawing together.
If he won another match, he would be a fighter of Professional Ninth Pin with an official certificate!
While they were waiting for the result they saw Chen Changhua, who had trouble concealing his exhaustion.
“Are you okay?” Lou Cheng asked. He has already congratulated this member, who was about to be his “former” leader later, for advancing from the group in second place.
Chen Changhua spit out and said with an unprecedentedly serious face,
“I should keep fighting no matter what happens!”
“What’s more, look at everyone else. Most of them are in the same condition as me. If I’m not too unlucky, I might get the certificate instead of them. Then I won’t be letting down my hard work from the last half of the year... ”
Lou Cheng was aware of Chen Changhua’s seriousness and expectations, so he felt that he shouldn’t say anything in case he influenced his decision. He looked away and held Yan Zheke’s hand. Then, he watched the big screen and waited for the results of the drawing.
The drawing in the afternoon was between the groups of ten people. However, fighters from the same group wouldn’t confront each other.
After a while, the results of the drawing appeared. Yan Zheke read Lou Cheng’s group in a low voice,
“Lou Cheng from Songcheng University Martial Arts Club VS Pan Chengyun from Hongluo Martial Arts School... ”
Pan Chengyun? Lou Cheng smiled and felt it was quite a coincidence.
...
“Lou Cheng from Songcheng University Martial Arts Club VS Pan Chengyun from Hongluo Martial Arts School... ”
In the corner next to him, Pan Chengyun looked at the countertop, then she suddenly felt very unhappy.
I tried my best to advance from the group competition, however, I have to fight with this strong fighter first!
PS: two chapters were combined into one chapter. I am trying to get monthly tickets. Today, I will go back home after finishing the meeting. Then, I will update three chapters tomorrow.
What’s more, there is a celebration activity for New Year’s day on my Wechat account-wuzei1985.