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Huo Baichuan did not dare imagine what he would become if things truly developed according to that storyline. But he knew that if Tao Yan, who had always been proud and arrogant, really fell to that point, he would never cling to life and carry on.

"Times are different now. You can't take bodyguards with you when you go out, and there isn't even a single surveillance camera on the streets. If you run into bad people while you're out alone, I might not get there in time to save you. I might not even be able to find you," Huo Baichuan said solemnly. "So I want to teach you combat and fighting. First, it can help build up your body and get you to 1.801 meters! Second, if you ever run into someone with bad intentions, you'll at least have a chance to fight back."

As the heir to the Huo Group, which had a market value of hundreds of billions, Huo Baichuan had received all kinds of combat, fighting, and counter-surveillance training since junior high. Chairman Huo had come from a military background and had served as a soldier before starting his business from scratch. Therefore, he did not want his son to be a pampered rich kid who could do nothing and had no strength to defend himself. At the very least, he hoped that when Huo Baichuan encountered danger, he would not place all his hopes on bodyguards.

So, ever since elementary school, Huo Baichuan had enrolled in various international wilderness training camps every winter and summer break. Chairman Huo's original intention had been to cultivate his son's independence and ability to survive on his own. Yet he had overdone it, instead sending Huo Baichuan farther and farther down the "wrong path" of wilderness exploration and extreme sports. Of course, that was a later matter.

Still, under Chairman Huo's painstaking upbringing, Huo Baichuan had indeed become a rich second-generation heir with well-developed limbs and exceptionally strong survival skills. Forget throwing him into the nineties, thirty years ago when technology was still underdeveloped—even if Huo Baichuan were dropped on a deserted island where not even birds shat, or into an uninhabited primeval forest, he could survive tenaciously and return to modern society in one piece.

In some ways, Tao Yan especially envied Huo Baichuan's physique and mobility. He, too, had grown up under his parents' high-pressure policies. But compared with Chairman Huo's concern for Huo Baichuan's personal safety, Tao Yan's parents had clearly devoted more energy to his schoolwork. They wanted Tao Yan to grow into an elite with both character and academic excellence, so while strictly controlling his grades, they also enrolled him in all kinds of extracurricular tutoring classes. His heavy schoolwork pressed down on him like mountain after mountain, leaving Tao Yan with no energy at all to pursue additional athletic interests during his student years. His morning and evening runs were his only physical activity.

"...So, what do you think? Consider it!" Huo Baichuan said, showing off his biceps in front of Tao Yan. "Train combat with me, and maybe you'll even grow a few more centimeters!"

Tao Yan's gaze swept unobtrusively over Huo Baichuan's head. After a brief moment of consideration, he said, "Fine."

"That's more like it!" Huo Baichuan slapped the back of his head, then his right hand uncontrollably reached for Tao Yan's arm and gave his upper arm a hard squeeze.

Tao Yan was stunned. "What are you doing?"

Huo Baichuan said with a look of disdain, "You really do need to work out. Look at you—you're so young, yet there's not a bit of muscle on your arms."

As he spoke, he reached out and poked Tao Yan's abdomen. "Do you not have abs either?"

Tao Yan instinctively blocked him.

Huo Baichuan gave a "Hey," then said smugly, "What's there to be embarrassed about? Just train properly with me, and you'll definitely have them within six months."

As he spoke, Huo Baichuan lifted the hem of his shirt again as if showing off, revealing eight perfectly shaped abdominal muscles. "I'm telling you, abs trained like this aren't the same as the ones you get by hiring a trainer at the gym. Look, aren't they beautiful?"

Tao Yan stared at Huo Baichuan, who was showing off his eight-pack like a street vendor praising his own wares, with dark lines all over his face. The latter had yet to react and kept lifting his shirt hem as he asked Tao Yan, "Jealous, right? Jealous, right? Want to touch them?"

"Touching is free. Just fry me more spicy Tiger-Tooth Potatoes!"

Tao Yan gaped at him in astonishment. Was he willing to throw away all his dignity for a bite to eat?

"For a little spicy Tiger-Tooth Potatoes, is this really necessary?" Tao Yan could not help mocking him. "Look at how pathetic you are. Anyone who didn't know better would think I'd been abusing you!"

"Is this about a little spicy Tiger-Tooth Potatoes?" Huo Baichuan stared at Tao Yan indignantly and could not help retorting, "This is clearly about nearly half a basin!"

"And this is all your fault! You clearly asked me what flavor I liked, but then you didn't make it the way I wanted. You even used your words to shut me down. You clearly don't respect me!" Huo Baichuan rambled on. "I may not be a picky eater, but there are things I like and things I don't. You clearly know I don't like sweet-and-sour flavors, yet you insisted on making so much sweet-and-sour Tiger-Tooth Potatoes. You did it on purpose to tempt me!"

Knowing he was in the wrong, Tao Yan tried to explain, "I saw that you were enjoying the Liangpi."

"Can Liangpi be compared to Tiger-Tooth Potatoes?" Huo Baichuan looked at Tao Yan reproachfully. "I even add garlic when I eat Liangpi! Does that mean I usually eat raw garlic too?"

"Eating is just like programming. Every kind of food has a different way of pairing it. A system that runs normally on one platform might not work on another. You're the one who cooks—how do you know less about the market than I do, the one who eats?"

Tao Yan gave a dry laugh and glanced sideways at the eloquent Huo Baichuan. "You do know you're just the one who eats, huh?"

Huo Baichuan, who had been speaking passionately, suddenly wilted. Apparently recognizing his status as someone who merely ate without contributing, his momentum weakened. "Well, even if I can't cook, I helped you wash and pick the vegetables. I can wash the dishes too. Besides, you asked me first what flavor of Tiger-Tooth Potatoes I liked, and only then did I answer."

Tao Yan looked at Huo Baichuan in some surprise. He had not expected this rich second-generation heir's eloquence to have improved so much after a few years apart. "I only asked what flavor of Tiger-Tooth Potatoes you liked. Did I ever say I would cook according to your preferences?"

Huo Baichuan: "..."

Tao Yan chuckled. "Just because I asked, you expected me to do things your way. You're quite confident."