Then he went out, walked downstairs and headed straight to his destination. Once he had arrived, he did not need to purposely look for Yan Zheke and simply followed the unconscious glances of boys passing by from the front to spot her.
Yan Zheke was sitting on a wooden bench outside a red maple forest with head buried in her cell phone. The black hair hanging behind her shoulder caught the lingering light of the setting sun, and the scene looked so tranquil and beautiful that it was like a flawless picture.
Lou Cheng almost held his breath for fear of destroying such an aesthetic view, but his heart urged him to quicken his pace. He arrived beside Yan Zheke and blurted out.
"Are you cold?"
Gee, what kind of greeting is this? Did I just speak out my concern over her?
Yan Zheke stood up with circling gaze as she watched the somewhat flustered Lou Cheng. She looked down and broke into a smile. "My cotton-padded jacket keeps me warm."
Like most young girls at her age, she wore a pink padded jacket.
Before Lou Cheng could respond, she looked sideways and pointed at a paper bag on the ground as casually as possible.
"When shopping with Qing, I happened to see a discount store selling martial arts shoes. And I recalled your shoes wore off during the match, so I bought a pair for you. Try it on for size."
When she was talking, she blushed suspiciously.
Lou Cheng was surprised for a second and then became exhilarated all of a sudden. He felt like his heart was about to explode with joy like rolling stones running through the ground, what left in his head was this question.
Did she make a special trip to the mall just to buy a pair of shoes for me?
The timing was by no means coincidental. After the match, she abruptly brought up the idea that she wanted to go shopping with Guo Qing.
Otherwise, how could she run into a discount store selling martial arts shoes by coincidence?
Yan Zheke was embarrassed and annoyed at Lou Cheng's sudden realization and his smiley face.
"I just happen to see one! What are you thinking…"
Before she could finish the sentence, the shadow of Lou Cheng came near her and she found herself in a firmly-built chest.
"You!" Yan Zheke whispered and struggled to get out of his arms.
By using Listening Skill, Lou Cheng sensed her attempt wasn't for real. So he held her firmly and refused to let her go.
After several unsuccessful attempts, Yan Zheke gave up resisting. She lightly clenched her fists and shyly hit at Lou Cheng's shoulder. "How could you hug me in front of so many people!"
"Because I grow too excited and happy…" When Lou Cheng held the girl in his arm, looking at her smooth black hair, smelling its breath, touching her lithe and soft body, he gradually calmed down. The thrill of joy he was experiencing just now weakened but lingered on.
Dong dong dong! Dong dong dong! Lou Cheng heard two racing heartbeats. When he looked down, Yan Zheke buried her face in his shoulder and he could see a rosy glow on the part of her crystal skin where she failed to cover.
At this moment, the world seemed to quiet down. Lou Cheng wanted to kiss her hair stealthily but Yan Zheke still felt uneasy at this intimacy. She was worried that somebody might stare at them, so she refused him again.
"Try on the shoes, please!" said the girl with a blush.
Lou Cheng knew girls were timid, so he did not insist and soon released his hold. He sat down on the bench with an everlasting smile and took out the shoe box from the paper bag. From the corner of his eye, he saw several boys passing by became frustrated at the scene. Seeing Yan Zheke with Lou Cheng was like good Pak Choi being twiddled by a stupid dog.
Till this very moment, it dawned on Lou Cheng why Yan Zheke did not wait at the cafeteria. After all, it was kind of weird to try on shoes in a place where people had their meals.
And when he had new shoes on, he immediately walked around and made a few fighting poses to test its performance when pulling the strength. He was satisfied with the result and gave a sincere compliment. "This pair of shoes fits me well, better than several pairs of my old martial arts shoes. But how did you know my size?"
Catching a satisfying look on his face, Yan Zheke pursed her pinky lips and slightly raised her jaw with pride. "I'm a hermit who knows everything~"
Lou Cheng guessed she peeked at his size when fetching shoes for him, but he did not say it because he could not burst the bubble here. It was not the right thing to do.
He chuckled and said, "No, no, no. You're not a hermit."
"Then who am I?" Yan Zheke asked in doubt.
Putting a serious look on his face, Lou Cheng answered, "You are a fairy who knows everything!"
"Phew…" Yan Zheke turned to him with a smile and said in a seemingly bitter tone, "Cheng, I did not expect you to be this nauseating!"
When they were done with flirting, Lou Cheng changed back to his old shoes. He was happy to receive this gift but was also in a dilemma. "I do not want to fight in this pair of shoes. This's the first gift you have given to me. What if I break them?"
He made up his mind that this pair of shoes was only for daily practice.
Yan Zheke snickered. "If this pair of shoes was broken, you need to collect every piece of it, put them together and preserve it safely."
They made small talk on this topic as they walked toward the cafeteria hand in hand. When they arrived, they ordered a single-pot stir-fried dish.
After the meal, Lou Cheng still did not want to separate with the girl. He lowered his voice and said, "I remember you don't have any classes tonight, right?"
"Yep." Yan Zheke answered with a big smile, "So what're you trying to say here?"
"Have I said before that I'll be your sparring partner on weekends? But we don't have time for this because we spent yesterday dating and there's a match today. How about practicing in martial arts club tonight? I'm free as well." Lou Cheng suggested.
Yan Zheke was on the bench for several challenge tournaments and was dying to have a try in person. After a minute of hesitation, she replied, "Well, fine with me. I haven't come back to the dormitory anyway, so I still have my practice suit with me."
"Since it's just a casual training, I'll not fetch my practice clothes. And I can try my new martial arts shoes thanks to your gift." Lou Cheng said in a delight, "We'll walk there for better digestion."
He picked up all the bags and naturally grabbed the girl's left hand with his right hand, intertwining his fingers with hers and walking toward the long bridge.
"Well, my fans created a forum for me." Lou Cheng recalled this and told Yan Zheke with pride.
Adorkable and surprised, Yan Zheke slightly opened her mouth and replied, "Fan forum? For you?"
She was incapable of connecting Lou Cheng with these two words. Fan forum?
"Yep, those fans who supported me after watching my challenge tournaments built this forum." Lou Cheng added. He was afraid that Yan Zheke might misunderstand his meanings and take him as a despicable man who seduced young girls to be his fans.
"Really?" Yan Zheke acted a bit excited and curious. She took out her phone and asked, "Where? Where can I find this forum?"
Upon finishing this sentence, she pouted and laughed at herself. "How silly I am! Just search your name and the web page will show up immediately."
Entering his name, finding the forum and clicking the link, Yan Zheke concentrated on reading the posts. However, Lou Cheng had an evil intention right now. On the excuse that he feared Yan Zheke might fall, he reached an arm around her slender waist but failed to grab anything because she wore too many clothes.
"These two moderators are so funny. I guess they are two little girls." Yan Zheke turned to Lou Cheng and her eyes were sparkling. "You unwittingly gained fans who support you so much."
"I didn't expect either." Lou Cheng frankly answered.
Yan Zheke chuckled. "I'll be your fan as well. Hum, I'm going to register an ID first. What should I name myself? It must be simple, direct and tasteful."
"Simple, direct and tasteful?" Lou Cheng thought about her requirements, trying to help her decide a nickname.
Suddenly Yan Zheke let out a laugh. "I got one!"
"What name?" Lou Cheng asked in curiosity.
Yan Zheke moved her phone to the other side and turned her back to Lou Cheng. "See for yourself after I replied."
Her reaction made Lou Cheng itching to reveal the secret. He patiently waited for a moment. Upon hearing Yan Zheke say "all done", he immediately took out the cell phone and entered the forum. There was a new reply in the signing-up post, and the replier's name was "Lou Cheng's Girlfriend".
With muscles twitched at the corner of his mouth, he was stunned and looked at Yan Zheke, smiling. "How simple! How direct! How tasteful!"
"Of course!" Yan Zheke narrowed her eyes with laughter and slightly raised his head.
Meanwhile in another city, Yan Xiaoling in her room blurted out upon seeing this ID.
"Holy high, my sister!"
…
It was still early but there were quite a few teachers and students exercising in the martial arts club.
Lou Cheng took off the coat and changed into his new shoes while Yan Zheke put on martial arts suit. They found a quiet place to do simulation training of the actual combat.
During the whole process, not only did Lou Cheng have to play defensive, but also he needed to attack Yan Zheke for real. At the beginning of the training, he was overcautious because there was no referee to stop his attacks in time. In order to not hurt the girl, he must be careful in pulling the strength. As the training progressed, he seemed to get the hang of it and become more familiar with his body, mastering at will without breaking the rules.
Owing to her light footwork, Yan Zheke moved fast. She used her spine as the shaft to bring out the bouncing force from her feet and threw a chop fist to Lou Cheng's head.
Lou Cheng straightened his shoulders and lifted his left arm to block the punch. By swinging the lower back and shaking all the muscles and joints, Lou Cheng imitated Jiang Guosheng's move and explosively launched a massive Swing Force.
It was not until his seventh or eighth attempts that he finally succeeded. But still, he left Yan Zheke no opportunity to turn the situation around thanks to his rich experience in actual combats. And he seemed to grasp some tips after several failures.
Bang! Yan Zheke threw a chop fist straight at Lou Cheng's arm, at the same time she lost her balance, stumbled and fell sideways as if being pushed.
Lou Cheng was concerned that she might tumble to the ground, so he lunged forward and held her forearm to pull her back to his arm swiftly.
They looked straight at each other in this pose. Their distance was this close that Lou Cheng's body was against Yan Zheke's. Looking at her sparkling eyes, he felt that the silence swallowed up everything around them. Yan Zheke also sensed this strangeness and fluttered her eyelashes nervously. This pose seemed to make her shy.
Lou Cheng's breath unconsciously became heavy when he smelled the fragrant and sweet scent of her body, especially when he glanced at her rosy and smooth lips.
He did not know if other people had the urge to kiss a girl when their eyes met during an emotional outburst, but he did know he was a beast. His feelings became less important here. He wanted to kiss her because the girl was beautiful and her lips looked so sweet and tempting.
His breath grew heavier and heavier, eyes aglow with excitement, heart pounding faster and faster, head unconsciously moving closer to the girl in eager and anxiety.
Dong dong dong! Lou Cheng could no longer tell whose heart was beating this fast. And at this moment, Yan Zheke seemed to be uncomfortable at their distance and dared not confront his sight. She slowly closed her eyes, face blushing and eyelashes fluttering.
As they drew closer, her scent and charming rosy lips became more tempting to Lou Cheng.
He held his breath and was about to make the next move. Then came a sudden loud noise.
Yan Zheke got shocked and pushed him away by instinct. Like a little rabbit, Yan Zheke took two steps backward, shy and timid.
Right now, Lou Cheng felt both disappointed and angry. He turned around, trying to locate the source of the noise. It turned out to be two boys practicing buttock.
"I have to teach them a few lessons. If they were not trained professionally, they should be careful in training so as not to get hurt!" Lou Cheng panted angrily.
Yan Zheke was still blushing. She let out a laugh and rolled her eyes at him. "Let's go back. We have been practicing for almost an hour."
"What a pity! I don't know when I can have such a good opportunity again…" Lou Cheng cried out in an exaggerated facial expression.
Yan Zheke pursed her lips and looked up into the sky.
"You wait!" said she in a mischievous tone.
After they took a shower and changed their clothes, two of them strolled back to the dormitory, enjoying the peace and happiness of the night.
Yet the longest journey had its destination. When they arrived at the entrance of Yan Zheke's dormitory, Lou Cheng found it hard to say goodbye.
Yan Zheke suddenly quipped while puffing out her cheeks.
"Close your eyes."
"Why?" Lou Cheng asked subconsciously.
"No reason. Just close your eyes." Yan Zheke gave him an angry glare.
Lou Cheng suddenly recalled that it was Yan Zheke who took the initiative bashfully when he tried to hold her hand for the second time.
"So this time she is going to kiss me first?" Lou Cheng's heartbeats suddenly quickened when he thought about this.
He closed his eyes, held the breath and waited for his best gift.
At this very moment, he could only sense somebody flicking a finger at his lips. So he opened his eyes in astonishment and saw Yan Zheke "flee" to her dormitory in big smiles.
"Ha ha, this's what you get when you try to bully me!"
Annoyed and amused, Lou Cheng burst into laughter. He turned his head several times even he had already seen Yan Zheke getting into the dormitory with light footsteps.
"If I were proficient in Ice Mirror, I might perceive her action and seize the opportunity to grab her hand, hold her in my arms and kiss her…" Standing outside girls' dormitory, Lou Cheng was lost in fascination while disappointedly touching his lips. At least it gave him the motivation to progress more in martial arts.