Apprenticeship

Wang Xingle swallowed hard and continued:

"Around this time last year, Zhang Yue became a prospective martial artist. It's said her talent was exceptional, so she was specially recruited by the Extreme Martial Arts Hall and signed a contract to enter the Basic Training Camp.

After word got out, the Wang Family investigated Zhang Yue's background, so they had my good-for-nothing father bring her and her mother back to the Wang Family.

Then, on the day Zhang Yue was to take her prospective martial artist assessment, my father showed up at their door, but Aunt Zhang refused to go back with him.

An argument broke out later, and you've likely heard about my father's temper... In the end, Aunt Zhang passed away."

Su You nodded indifferently. The third young master of the Wang Family didn't have much ability, but his personality was extremely twisted. If it weren't for Old Master Wang doting on this youngest son, he likely would have been kicked out of the family long ago.

Wang Xingle glanced at Su You and continued, "Later, the Wang Family suppressed the matter, and in the end, they just had a bodyguard take the fall."

Su You frowned and nodded, never expecting that the grievance between Zhang Yue and the Wang Family was so deep; it wasn't just a grievance anymore, but a life-and-death blood feud.

"Brother Su, look..." Wang Xingle's expression was slightly fawning.

Su You frowned and said, "Enough, this matter ends here. But if I catch you doing this again, you're dead."

"Brother Su, don't worry, I will definitely turn over a new leaf from now on."

As Wang Xingle spoke, he bent down to pick up the envelope that had just fallen to the ground.

"Hmm?" Su You gave Wang Xingle a cold look.

Wang Xingle shuddered and hurriedly handed over the envelope, "Haha, I, I was just helping you pick it up, Brother Su."

Su You waved his hand, "Alright, take your men and get out of here!"

"Yes, I'll be going then." After saying this, Wang Xingle immediately turned and walked away quickly, not forgetting to pull the two burly men along when he reached the door.

After Wang Xingle left, Su You closed the bun shop door and returned to the room behind the shop.

"It's alright now, Sister Yourong. They definitely won't dare to come back again."

He Yourong's eyes were slightly red, "Little You, thanks to you being here today, otherwise I really wouldn't have known what to do."

Su You stepped forward and pulled He Yourong into his arms, saying softly, "Sister Yourong, I will take care of you and Yuan Yuan from now on."

He Yourong's body stiffened, and she buried her head even deeper into Su You's chest, acting like a frightened quail.

With such warmth and softness in his arms, even though she was wearing thick clothes, Su You could still feel the gentle softness against his ribs. His mind immediately began to wander; while his right arm held her steady, his left hand began to stroke down from her shoulder.

"Brother Little You." A crisp voice suddenly rang out. He Yourong pushed Su You away abruptly, her pretty face turning bright red in an instant.

Su You was left between laughing and crying; his good moment had actually been ruined just like that?

He Wenyuan ran over, tugged on Su You's arm, and asked, "Brother Little You, did you beat up those two bad guys and chase them away?"

Su You nodded helplessly, and He Wenyuan let out a happy cheer.

"Brother Little You, will you teach Yuan Yuan martial arts, please?"

He Wenyuan looked up at Su You, her eyes full of hope.

Su You paused for a moment, then smiled and said, "Of course I can. You want to learn martial arts to protect your mother, right?"

He Wenyuan nodded vigorously. Su You turned to look at He Yourong and asked, "Sister Yourong, what do you think?"

He Yourong hesitated for a moment and said, "Why don't we just send her to a martial arts hall? She's just starting out and only needs to learn the basics. You're so busy with training at the headquarters, and your time is so precious..."

Because the two major martial arts halls had an age limit of sixteen for students, many small martial arts halls had sprung up. However, they were only responsible for martial arts instruction before the age of sixteen, and the instructors' strength was generally only that of advanced students from the major halls.

On the other hand, He Yourong also knew that Su You had been sent to the Extreme Martial Arts Hall headquarters for training. Although she didn't know much about the Basic Training Camp, she knew that anyone sent to the headquarters for training must be a genius among martial artists, and their cultivation time was definitely precious.

Su You's expression darkened, and he spoke with a serious tone, spouting nonsense:

"Sister Yourong, a tall building rises from the ground. If the foundation isn't laid firmly, it will seriously affect her future. Look at all those people coming out of those small halls—how many of them actually become martial artists in the end? That's why I must be the one to teach Yuan Yuan her foundation."

He Yourong was startled. She was just an ordinary person and didn't understand what Su You was talking about, but she felt his words made a lot of sense. Still, she was a bit hesitant:

"Then try not to let it affect your own cultivation."

Su You laughed, "Don't worry, it's just laying the foundation; it won't take much time."

He Yourong finally felt relieved and said with a smile:

"Alright then, you and Yuan Yuan wait here for a while. I'll go buy some groceries now, and we'll go to my place later. I'll cook myself; consider it Yuan Yuan's apprenticeship banquet."

Su You's eyes lit up. He Yourong's cooking skills were quite high; it seemed he was in for a treat today.

"What are we waiting for? Let's go together!"

Afterward, Su You and He Yourong took Yuan Yuan to the vegetable market to buy groceries, then returned to He Yourong and Yuan Yuan's small home, looking for all the world like a family of three.

He Yourong's home was about 60 square meters, with two bedrooms and a living room. In this era, it was actually considered quite decent, as most ordinary people lived in low-rent housing that was much smaller than this.

In the kitchen, He Yourong, who was busy working, heard the laughter of her daughter and Su You. She smiled at first, then sighed softly.

She wasn't unaware of Su You's feelings, but she herself was very conflicted. After all, she was much older than him, and she had a daughter.

"If only I had met him fifteen years ago." He Yourong sighed. Before today, she could comfort herself by saying she only saw Su You as a younger brother, but when he appeared before her today, she understood her own heart completely.

"Sister Yourong, what are you thinking about? If you don't flip the food, it's going to burn!"

Su You suddenly appeared in the kitchen, placing his hands on He Yourong's shoulders.

"Ah!" He Yourong was startled, her face flushing slightly. She hurriedly stirred the food, not daring to look back at Su You.

While talking to He Yourong, Su You slowly moved his hands down until they clasped in front of her lower abdomen. He pressed his body close to her, and his breath as he spoke brushed against her cheek, making her face turn even redder.

"Little You, don't do this." He Yourong's voice trembled, as if she were considering whether or not to stop him.

Su You pressed his face against He Yourong's neck and said softly, "Sister Yourong, don't worry. I just want to hold you gently like I did in the shop earlier; I won't do anything else."

He Yourong let out a sigh of relief. She stole a glance at her daughter's movements in the living room, then, as if resigning herself to fate, stopped paying attention to Su You's small movements and continued cooking on her own.