Master's Bearing (2)

After hearing Kai say, "If no expert comes out to spar with me, then starting today, you can take down the sign of your martial arts hall!" Cui Jianhao and the other two, who had helped Dongfang Yinyin's father to a corner to rest, all rushed back over once again.

The moment the three ran out, Cui Jianhao's face flushed red. He shouted angrily at Kai, "Who says there's no one in our martial arts hall? Are your dog eyes blind?" Then he turned to Dongfang Yinyin and said, "Yinyin, don't worry. I, Cui Jianhao, may not be some martial arts master, but even if I have to risk my life, I won't let this bastard tear down our hall's sign!"

While Cui Jianhao spoke indignantly beside her, Pei Shao was secretly laughing to himself.

Did Cui Jianhao and the others really take everyone for fools? Did they think no one could see through such a simple setup? A martial arts master challenging a hall? What a joke! What era was this? Who would still do something that outdated? That so-called "Kai" was most likely a stooge Cui Jianhao and the others had hired!

Even though Pei Shao had seen through Cui Jianhao's scheme, he did not dare make any rash moves. Showing off in front of a beauty was certainly nice, but Pei Shao would not do something as stupid as risking his life. If he stepped forward to challenge him, that "Mr. Kai" probably would not mind crippling one more person to help Cui Jianhao and the others put on a convincing show.

What puzzled Pei Shao, however, was that A Zheng and Zhang Huaiyuan remained completely expressionless and motionless, as if they had resigned themselves to letting Cui Jianhao perform alone. Could they have reached some agreement and decided to give Cui Jianhao the chance to show off in front of Dongfang Yinyin? Pei Shao wondered inwardly. Like the other students, he obediently lowered his head and played the turtle.

Dongfang Yinyin did not know whether Cui Jianhao had truly fooled her or whether she simply had no other choice but to go along with his plan. Hearing his bold declaration, she nodded gently and said, "All right. Then I'll leave it to you."

"Yinyin, before I go up there, can you promise me one thing?" Cui Jianhao took a step forward, then suddenly stopped. Turning back, he smiled at Dongfang Yinyin and asked.

"Huh?" Dongfang Yinyin had not expected Cui Jianhao to pull something like this out of nowhere, and she was instantly dumbfounded.

Pah! What a lowlife! Pei Shao's view of Cui Jianhao and the other two immediately shifted from contempt to disdain. Hiring a stooge was cliché, but at worst it merely showed a lack of creativity. Yet Cui Jianhao had actually turned around at the last moment to use the situation to pressure her. That was low even among lowlifes! These days, even middle schoolers trying to pick up girls disdained using such a trick!

"Yinyin, I admit that I, Cui Jianhao, am neither a martial arts master nor a gentleman. I'm going up there to fight him entirely because of you. But if I win, I hope you'll do me the honor of joining me for afternoon tea." When Cui Jianhao said this, nearly every student nearby wore an odd expression.

If they still could not tell by now that Kai was a stooge Cui Jianhao had hired, they would be insulting the intelligence of this group of high-paid white-collar workers—there was not a single fool among those who could afford to study martial arts at Eastern Martial Arts Hall.

Dongfang Yinyin's expression was equally unpleasant. Having received old-fashioned conservative education since childhood, she felt that being forced to accept Cui Jianhao's invitation was practically no different from being a hostess. The martial arts hall's reputation was indeed immensely important, but Dongfang Yinyin would never treat her own chastity as a joke.

Just as Dongfang Yinyin hesitated, Cui Jianhao suddenly said something that left everyone utterly confused. "Heh, forget it. I was only joking." After saying that, he walked straight over to Kai.

What was that supposed to mean? He was giving up? At that moment, Pei Shao felt that he could not quite see through Cui Jianhao after all.

Kai, meanwhile, seemed not to regard Cui Jianhao as worth his attention at all. When Cui Jianhao walked over, Kai did not even blink. Unlike when he had fought Dongfang Lie, he did not take up any sort of stance. Instead, he merely smiled disdainfully, looking as though Cui Jianhao was beneath his notice.

Perhaps enraged by Kai's contempt, Cui Jianhao immediately clenched his fists and charged forward, his face red. When he was still one step away from Kai, he suddenly leaped from the ground and launched a textbook flying scissor kick at Kai's waist.

At that moment, almost everyone thought Kai would fall with the momentum, then pretend to be in pain from having been defeated by Cui Jianhao due to underestimating him. But what happened instead left everyone utterly stunned.

Kai shot out his right fist like lightning and slammed it viciously into Cui Jianhao's stomach, sending his entire body flying sideways! Before the crowd's dumbfounded eyes, Cui Jianhao spun through the air and crashed hard into the wall beside Kai with a dull bang.

Cui Jianhao struggled to raise his head, but immediately spat out a huge mouthful of blood with a "wah." Dongfang Yinyin stared in disbelief at Cui Jianhao struggling on the ground, while Pei Shao's scalp went numb.

Pei Shao felt that he was practically starting to admire Cui Jianhao! Even if he really was doing this to pick up a girl, he was still worth admiring! That blow Cui Jianhao had taken just now had practically gambled with his life! Not just anyone had that kind of courage!

However, when Pei Shao shifted his gaze to the faces of the other two in the "young masters' trio," he suddenly understood. He saw not the slightest trace of shock on either A Zheng's or Zhang Huaiyuan's face. The two merely put on concerned looks as they gathered around Cui Jianhao, fussing over him with solicitous concern.

Damn it! So it was a scheme after all! Pei Shao cursed inwardly. If this had not been a plan the three had discussed beforehand, then even if the other two were not surprised by Cui Jianhao's courage in "risking his life to pick up a girl," they would not have been completely free of jealousy. Pei Shao did not even need Castle's help to tell that the blood Cui Jianhao had spat out had to be fake.

Yet aside from Pei Shao, no one present noticed the expressions of the other two. Everyone had been frightened by the mouthful of blood Cui Jianhao had just vomited. After a brief shock, Dongfang Yinyin also revealed a worried, concerned expression. She quickly walked to Cui Jianhao's side and asked softly, "How are you?"

With the support of his two companions, Cui Jianhao soon stood up. He gave Dongfang Yinyin a bitter smile and said weakly, "I'm all right. It's just a pity I won't have the good fortune to have afternoon tea with you."

"Stop talking. Go to the back and recover first." Dongfang Yinyin gave Cui Jianhao a worried glance, though her words left plenty of room for interpretation.

One could imagine that after taking that blow, if Cui Jianhao invited Dongfang Yinyin out for tea or dinner again in the future, she probably would never be able to bring herself to refuse him. After all, he had spat out such a huge mouthful of "blood" for her!