Lou Cheng turned around after giving a nod and pulled Yan Zheke by the hand. They moved on, following the waiter.
He had nothing to do with the Gao Fen Martial Arts Club or had any friendship with them. Either way, there was no need to go up and exchange polite greetings and delay his dinner.
Next to Zhang Zhutong was a pretty girl with straight bangs. She leaned forward and followed his line of sight, asking curiously, "Zhutong, what are you looking at?"
She could only see a couple disappearing in the corner, walking hand-in-hand. Besides the beautiful image of the girl leaving, there was nothing out of ordinary.
"No, it's nothing." Zhang Zhutong turned his gaze away and subconsciously denied it.
Everyone dropped the topic and started swarming him, eagerly chatting with him and putting on a show of friendship.
After taking a few more steps while surrounded by those with him, he couldn't help looking back even while knowing they had clearly left.
Had that guy come back?
When Zhang Zhutong thought of the time, he estimated it was still winter vacation. Why wasn't Lou Cheng returning to Xiushan?
What was he planning to do in Gao Fen? Was he innocently passing by or was he trying to get involved in something?
Under the warmth of the soft light, a waiter set the table and filled the cups with tea. He pushed the door to leave, waiting to serve the food.
"You're joking! Who the hell does year-end dinner this early?" Gu Shuang grumbled. She picked up her phone and started making a call.
Taking the opportunity to tease her boyfriend, Yan Zheke said, "You have quite the fate with Zhang Zhutong."
Lou Cheng deliberately sighed. "It's a small world."
The two of them started discussing this issue before diverging to more nonsensical topics. Gu Shuang ended her call minutes later and raised her eyebrows at them, looking rather gossipy. "I knew it! The Gao Fen Martial Arts Club isn't having some year-end dinner!"
"Then what kind of gathering is it?" Yan Zheke asked, playing along.
Gu Shuang snickered.
"Didn't Gao Fen establish ties with Brutale, the famous European city? This time, the mayor of Brutale came here with a delegation of all sorts of people for a business trip. That delegation includes martial artists; therefore, we're also sending some of our fighters to welcome them. Since the Divine Fire Club has a close relationship with the upper classes, they're entrusted with this responsibility."
Grinning, Yan Zheke diverted the topic to tease her good friend. "What do you mean by 'our Gao Fen'? Shuang Shuang, you've only just moved here a few years ago, but you've already forgotten you're from Xiushan? So they called a meeting with people in his circle just for this?"
"Exactly. This is an incredibly great opportunity to show your face. Who knows if it might lead to opportunities for collaborations," Gu Shuang explained before urging her friend, "Ke, why don't you ask your Cheng to join them? He can go earn some prestige in front of the foreigners!"
It was fun simply just thinking about it!
"Forget it. I'm not from Gao Fen." Lou Cheng burst out laughing and rejected Gu Shuang's plan to create chaos in the world.
Yan Zheke chuckled. "I heard Brutale is one of the places where European martial arts originated from. They have numerous Mighty Ones, with many strong fighters among the youth. Aren't you curious about them?"
"A little, but there's no lack of future opportunities. There's no need to join such a boring gathering," Lou Cheng said, explaining his thoughts.
The mainstream martial arts systems in Europe was the same in essence, differing only in the details. Both focused on body refinement plus the will to harness the Spirit. Having developed in another direction, the European martial artist system didn't have concepts like Force Concentration or body refinement through Dan. When it came to physical invulnerability, European fighters also trained their inner radicular pulp and contacted with the Heavens and the Earth, thereby reaching the same conclusion as their Eastern counterparts.
Yan Zheke cocked her head in confusion. "What do you mean by future opportunities?"
Lou Cheng grinned. "I'll definitely be visiting you from time to time when you start studying abroad. I may even have a short stay there. Of course, I'll have many opportunities to experience foreign martial arts."
"You're already thinking that far ahead?" Yan Zheke asked, eyes gleaming.
"Stop, stop, stop! Can you two stop showing PDA no matter what the topic is?" The forever-single Gu Shuang raised her hand, whining. "Can't we just talk properly?"
"Nope!"
"Nope!"
Lou Cheng and Yan Zheke exchanged looks and replied in unison with a smile.
In the hall, Zhang Zhutong recalled what he saw earlier and pondered over the reason for Lou Cheng's unexpected appearance in Gao Fen. He was in such deep thought that he didn't snap out of it until someone waved in front of his face.
"What's wrong, Zhu Tong? Are you worried about tomorrow?" the pretty girl with straight bangs asked with concern.
The other fighters in the gathering also turned their attention to him when they heard this question.
"I'm not really worrying. I feel expectant, I suppose," he answered with a smile.
Unlike regular Challenge Tournaments, friendly matches in diplomacy visits were always concerned with preserving each other's face. The authorities believed it wasn't a good idea to win or lose too much. They would also pick fighters who could represent them and guarantee to only narrowly beat their opponents at the same time.
"That's right. I've seen foreign martial arts matches online but never experienced one myself," a fighter next to Zhang Zhutong said.
As other people echoed his view, the pretty girl reminded him with concern, "The seniors will be fighting with the inhuman Mighty Ones, so we don't have to worry about it. But I heard there's a genius youth called Oblak. He's barely 20 but is already as strong as our top Seventh Pin or weak Sixth Pin fighter."
Since the ranking system within their country differed from foreign countries, they couldn't use each other's ranks for comparison purposes.
Ever since losing to Lou Cheng, Zhang Zhutong had endured hardships for at least half a year and finally made further progress, becoming a rather good fighter among the Seventh Pins. The excellent performance in the match between Lou Cheng and Peng Leyun, however, came as a blow to him. It took him nearly three weeks to recover.
When he finally recovered his confidence and called for a meeting with martial artists to prepare to meet the delegation, he came across Lou Cheng. He couldn't help feeling like his confidence was faltering.
"I'll try my best. It's not like there's completely no chance to win... Even if we lose, we won't lose too badly," he said cautiously.
As the martial fighters began going over every detail of their meeting tomorrow, Lou Cheng and Yan Zheke were in the other room, tasting the top three dishes that Gu Shuang had recommended. She truly deserved her fame. They had such good appetites that they wanted to gobble everything. The kung pao chicken, for example, was so tender. It was creamy and aromatic, tasting just moderately sour and sweet.
After having their fill, Gu Shuang sent them back to the hotel and helped them check in to their rooms.
The sky had darkened overhead. Lou Cheng and Yan Zheke went in the door hand-in-hand and turned on the lights.
This was the first time they hadn't booked two rooms as a cover-up and would sleep in the same bed. In the warm, soft light, they felt like they were a married couple returning home.
"Hotel room lights are getting dimmer and dimmer. Even if they want to save electricity, that's not the way to do it!" Lou Cheng grumbled.
Yan Zheke's face changed halfway through her response. She looked down briefly, her face twisting with pain.
"Is your period here?" Lou Cheng asked anxiously.
"Yeah." Yan Zheke was already used to telling her boyfriend about this. "I'll go get a change of clothes and wash up."
"Okay. I'll get the kettle cleaned and make you some warming ginger and red sugar tea." He immediately busied himself with the preparations.
It was only after his girlfriend finished the tea, crawled into bed, and laid on her side that he washed up and changed into his pajamas. He laid down next to her, putting his arm around her. He placed his palm on her underbelly underneath her thin clothes.
"Pretty conscientious, aren't you." Yan Zheke praised her boyfriend with a smile as she wasn't in too much pain.
She suddenly asked curiously, "Cheng, why are your hands so warm?"
"Hehe. It's a breakthrough progress of my Power of Blaze," Lou Cheng said proudly. "I've been practicing it since its second awakening, learning to control it so I can use it in everyday life. I finally succeeded recently after several months of hard work. Does it feel nice?"
There was no meaning at all to a supernatural ability without a household use!
"I'll give you a kiss!" Yan Zheke's lips puckered lightly, wearing just a hint of a smile. Her voice had become gentle and sweet. "Cheng, where are we going tomorrow?"
Lou Cheng was feeling much more cheerful after receiving his girlfriend's compliment. Smiling, he said, "I have two plans in mind. First, we can visit the safari park located north of the city. Second, we can just ride on several bus routes and relax. We can travel around the city, stop by every must-see block and street, and savor their specialties along the way. Think of it as slowly taking in the city."
"I choose the second one!" she replied without hesitation. "It sounds like it's going to be a lot of fun."
"I knew it," he said, feeling a sense of tacit agreement.
She gradually fell asleep as they chatted, basking in the warmth of her boyfriend's hands. Occasionally, she would frown as if she was enduring pain in her dreams. He couldn't help easing out her knitted eyebrows.
As the night turned darker, he climbed up and kissed her on the corner of her lips.
In a low voice, he said, "Good night, Honey."
He held her in his arms and it had nothing to do with desire.
Lou Cheng woke up on time the next morning. He looked out at the gloomy sky as he cuddled the girl in his arms, breathing in the air tinted with the fragrant incense. He basked in the joy that came with the serenity.
When he gave her a tight hug, he saw her stir and look up at him bleary-eyed.
"What time is it?"
"Half past five. Continue your sleep. I'll go for my morning exercises and then bring you breakfast," Lou Cheng replied softly.
Yan Zheke curled back up a little unwillingly before feeling something stiff under her.
Her body went rigid. Lou Cheng smiled awkwardly and said, "Some reactions can't be restrained... As long as one is healthy man, they will wake up like this. Not to mention, I have a fairy sleeping beside me."
He repeated what he had said the other day.
"I think you men are really odd," Yan Zheke murmured, slumping over as she tried to get up. "I'm going to do morning exercises too. It's no longer hurting as much."
As the two kissed good morning in each other's arms, the delegation from Brutale arrived at the Gao Fen airport.