Chapter 27 – Then You Hit Me

Lu Yuan nodded to the girl and thanked her before turning to head to the second floor of the gym.

He greeted Cheng peng, saying he planned to practice a bit more and told him not to wait and to go home by himself.

This was Lu Yuan’s first time on the second floor.

The stairs leading from the first floor to the second, and the walls of the second-floor corridor, had picture frames hanging at intervals.

Almost all the frames contained photos of the gym’s disciples and students winning trophies in martial arts competitions.

Lu Yuan looked at each photo.

Some of the photos showed awards won at the city level, some at the provincial level, and the highest was from a national competition.

But the person in the photo holding the third-place trophy and belt, smiling brightly, didn’t seem to be wearing the Yuan Martial Arts Gym uniform.

“Crane,” Lu Yuan read aloud the characters printed on the person’s clothes.

This photo appeared quite old, with slightly yellowed edges.

“Did Yuan Martial Arts Gym used to be called something Crane Gym?” Lu Yuan speculated as he looked at the photo.

At this moment, a slightly authoritative voice sounded behind him.

“What are you doing here?”

Lu Yuan quickly turned around to see a medium-built man in his thirties, standing about ten meters away, looking at him expressionlessly.

Lu Yuan recognized him at once.

It was the same Coach Qin he had met on his first day at the gym, the one who had given him a tremendous sense of pressure and who taught Cheng Peng’s class.

It was also because Cheng peng had told him about Coach Qin’s record of punching a boxing stance weighing over a hundred kilograms that Lu Yuan’s strong interest in martial arts had been sparked.

“Hello, Coach Qin.”

Lu Yuan raised the application form in his hand and explained, “I’m a student in Coach Lin Zhiqin’s class. I’m here to get Coach Lin’s signature.”

“Oh.”

The man’s expression softened slightly, and in a few steps, he was standing in front of Lu Yuan.

“What signature? Let me see.”

“Okay.”

Lu Yuan respectfully handed over the application form, but inwardly he thought: So fast!

Without seeing how he moved, the ten meters between them had vanished in an instant, almost like the “shrinking the ground into an inch” described in novels!

Of course, the reality couldn’t be that exaggerated. It was likely due to the man’s high agility attribute or advanced footwork skills.

Is this the strength of a professional level martial artist?

Lu Yuan marveled silently.

“An application form for the official disciple assessment?”

The man glanced at the form, then gave Lu Yuan a quick once-over, casually asking, “How long have you been in the martial arts gym?”

“One month and one week,” Lu Yuan answered honestly.

“Have you mastered the three basic skills? Have you measured your boxing power?”

The man fired off questions one after another.

Lu Yuan guessed that he was helping Lin Zhiqin by vetting him.

It was similar to being called to a teacher’s office, only to accidentally run into your head teacher, who would then seize the opportunity to grill you with questions—”What are you doing here?” “Did you forget to turn in your homework or were you eating in class?” “Did you pass the last exam?”

Pretty much the same idea.

Lu Yuan answered honestly, “I’ve measured my boxing power; it’s over a hundred. I feel pretty confident about the three basic skills, but I still need Coach Lin to evaluate me.”

“Hmm.”

The man nodded, handed the application form back to Lu Yuan, and gestured forward with his hand. “Go ahead to the second-to-last office. Coach Lin should be in there. Go on.”

“Thank you, Coach Qin.”

Lu Yuan politely bid the man farewell and walked straight ahead as directed.

Two or three seconds later, the feeling of being watched from behind gradually faded away.

When he reached the door of the office the man had indicated, Lu Yuan glanced back in the direction he had come from.

The man’s figure had long disappeared.

Upon closer inspection, the old photo he had been looking at earlier seemed to be gone too, leaving a blank spot on the wall.

“Why did he take that photo?”

Lu Yuan wondered but didn’t dwell on it. He needed to focus on his own tasks first.

He reached out and knocked on the door.

The voice of Lin Zhiqin came from inside almost immediately.

“Come in.”

Lu Yuan pushed the door open and went inside.

It was a small office with just a desk, a coffee table, and a boxing stance in the corner. There were some withered plants by the window, their leaves yellowing, suggesting they hadn’t been watered in a long time.

Lin Zhiqin was sitting on the sofa in front of the coffee table, smoking. The ashtray in front of him was overflowing with cigarette butts.

As Lu Yuan entered, Lin Zhiqin was extinguishing a cigarette.

“Who are you?” Lin Zhiqin asked, frowning at Lu Yuan.

“Lu Yuan, one of your students,” Lu Yuan replied, realizing that Lin Zhiqin wasn’t very reliable.

Despite being one of the top-performing students in the class, it seemed Lin Zhiqin had no recollection of him. It was no wonder the classes were becoming more perfunctory. Anyone who signed up for his class was just unlucky.

If it weren’t for his professional panel, personal effort, and his dad Lu Xinghua paying the tuition, Lu Yuan’s chance at this would have gone down the drain.

“Lu Yuan… Oh, I remember now,” Lin Zhiqin said, a look of sudden realization crossing his face, though Lu Yuan wasn’t sure if it was genuine.

Lin Zhiqin picked up the cigarette pack from the coffee table, pulled out another cigarette, and lit it. He asked, “What do you need from me?”

“I want to apply for the official disciple assessment, so I came to get your signature, Coach Lin,” Lu Yuan said, handing over the application form.

Lin Zhiqin didn’t even glance at the form. His indifferent eyes studied Lu Yuan through the slowly dissipating cigarette smoke.

“If I remember correctly, you’ve only been in the class for a month, and you had no prior foundation.”

“Yes,” Lu Yuan nodded, meeting Lin Zhiqin’s gaze without flinching. “But my boxing power has already broken through 100 kilograms, and I believe I’ve mastered the three basic skills.”

“Hah.”

Lin Zhiqin couldn’t help but laugh.

“You say your boxing power exceeds 100 kilograms?”

“Yes. I just measured it downstairs before coming to see you.”

“Then hit me.”

Lin Zhiqin, cigarette in hand, stood up from behind the coffee table with an amused expression.

He walked up to Lu Yuan and beckoned him with his hand. “Punch me. Let me feel your boxing power. Don’t worry, go ahead and hit me with all you’ve got.”

“Whoosh•”

The sound of Lu Yuan’s fist cutting through the air was sharp and clear.

Before Lin Zhiqin could finish his sentence, Lu Yuan’s fist was already speeding toward his face.

“Coach, watch out,” Lu Yuan warned, but only after throwing the punch.

His eager expression masked a deep-seated anger.

Lu Xinghua had squeezed out 10,000 for his lessons despite their financial struggles at home. And yet, Lin Zhiqin, as a coach, was either late, left early, or didn’t show up at all! Out of ten classes, at least six were just “free practice” sessions.

Hit you? I’m hitting you alright!

“Bang!”

A muffled thud sounded.

Lu Yuan’s fist was firmly caught by Lin Zhiqin’s right hand, though Lin Zhiqin had to step back half a step.

The smile on Lin Zhiqin’s face vanished, replaced by a look of sheer astonishment.

He stared at Lu Yuan, as if truly seeing him for the first time.

“Sorry, Coach. I didn’t hurt you, did I?” Lu Yuan gently pulled his fist back from Lin Zhiqin’s grip, scratching his head apologetically.

“No, of course not. You couldn’t hurt me,” Lin Zhiqin muttered, snapping out of his shock.

He repeated himself a couple of times.

Suddenly, he threw away his cigarette and stared intently at Lu Yuan, his eyes shining.

His expression was like someone who had just sifted through a pile of sand and found a sparkling diamond underneath.

“Quick! Show me the three basic skills I taught you in class!” Lin Zhiqin urged Lu Yuan, his tone growing ever more impatient.