Oh no! I've only been a freshman and I've already been targeted by a mean upperclassman.

Lunch consisted of four dishes and a soup.

Steamed sea bass.

Dry-fried green beans.

Garlic broccoli.

chicken soup.

Add a plate of cold wood ear mushroom salad.

Sweet and sour pork ribs are not available.

Li Qingcang brought the dishes to the table.

Shen Ruolan wanted to help.

He tapped the back of my hand with his chopsticks.

"Sit down."

Yan Xi sat next to Li Chen.

Opposite them were Li Mohan and Shen Ruolan.

Li Qingcang sat in the main seat.

Li Chen noticed a detail.

The placement of the dishes on the plate.

The bass and broccoli are on Yan Xi's side.

The cold-dressed wood ear mushrooms are on his side.

His grandfather never arranged the dishes carelessly.

"Try it."

Li Qingcang picked up his chopsticks.

First, I put a piece of fish belly on Yan Xi's plate.

Put it in her bowl.

Yan Xi glanced at the fish in the bowl.

fish maw.

The tenderest part.

It has the fewest thorns.

"Thank you, Grandpa."

Li Qingcang nodded.

She then placed another piece of green beans on Li Chen's plate.

"Take your piece yourself, there's only one piece of fish belly, give it to her."

Li Chen: "...Okay."

Li Mohan stretched out his chopsticks.

We just encountered a sea bass.

"Wait."

Li Qingcang did not look up.

"Why are you in such a hurry when the elders haven't finished eating?"

Li Mohan's chopsticks, which had been suspended in mid-air, retracted.

Shen Ruolan suppressed a laugh.

He lowered his head and drank his soup.

Yan Xi took a bite of the fish.

I chewed it twice.

"The fish was killed alive and bled for at least forty minutes. The steaming time was controlled between seven and a half to eight minutes, and the heat was controlled very precisely."

Li Qingcang glanced at her.

"Can you tell the timing of the bleeding?"

"The fish meat fibers are not dark red from blood stasis, and the tissue is elastic. If the blood is not drained enough, there will be a slight astringent feeling when you bite into it, but this one does not."

Li Qingcang tapped his chopsticks on the rim of the bowl.

"You little rascal."

He didn't finish his sentence.

But the corners of her mouth curved upwards.

Li Chen quietly ate green beans beside him.

He now understands a fact.

His grandfather and Yan Xi communicated in a completely different way than he did.

His grandfather didn't care about feelings.

I don't ask about their plans.

I won't ask you what your motives are.

He tried everything he could with just one fish.

The art of cooking—a skill passed down through three generations of the Li family.

Yan Xi can taste the heat and the timing of bleeding.

This shows that her taste memory and analytical abilities are not fake.

In the old man's eyes...

It works better than answering any question.

Halfway through the meal.

Li Qingcang put down his chopsticks.

I took a sip of soup.

He looked at Yan Xi.

"You just said that Chenchen's knife skills are two centimeters higher than my wrist's point of force."

Yan Xi stopped.

When she said that.

Li Qingcang was in the kitchen.

"You can hear me even through a wall?" Li Chen asked.

"Is your grandfather's ear like an ordinary person's?" Yan Xi asked back.

Li Qingcang chuckled.

"In my generation, listening to the wind and determining location were fundamental skills for practicing kung fu."

"But this girl can judge the knife-holding posture by the sound of chopping vegetables. This isn't martial arts; it's intelligence."

Yan Xi didn't respond.

I picked up a piece of broccoli.

"After you finish eating."

Li Qingcang looked at Li Chen.

"Come with me for a walk downstairs."

Li Chen glanced at Yan Xi.

"Together."

Li Qingcang added a sentence.

After the meal.

Li Mohan washed the dishes.

Shen Ruolan tidied the table.

Nobody's arguing.

In front of Li Qingcang.

The order is so clear that it needs no further discussion.

The three people went downstairs.

The community garden is not large.

There is a gravel walking path.

A few persimmon trees.

The bare branches stretched out against the gray sky.

Li Qingcang walked in front.

The walking pace is not fast.

But every step she took landed steadily.

The transition from heel to toe involves almost no extra sway.

Yan Xi walked beside Li Chen.

Her gaze remained fixed on the old man's back.

"Your grandfather's center of gravity shifts lower when he walks than yours and your father's." Her voice was very low.

"He trained his whole life," Li Chen said.

Walk to the open space in the middle of the garden.

Li Qingcang stopped.

Turn around.

"Chenchen".

"Um."

"Make your move."

Li Chen was stunned for a moment.

"Now?"

"Now, just play any set."

Yan Xi took a step back.

Standing next to the persimmon tree.

Li Chen glanced at her.

I took off my coat.

Hand it to her.

Yan Xi took it.

I folded it.

It was draped over his arm.

Li Chen flexed his wrists.

Then begin the movement.

Jeet Kune Do has no set routines.

Therefore, he doesn't use fixed moves.

Instead, it is a series of continuous attack and defense simulations.

Probe with your front hand.

A straight punch with the rear hand.

Side kick.

Close hands.

Inch-force elbow strike.

It's not fast.

I only used about 50% of my strength.

Seven or eight movements were completed.

To conclude.

Li Qingcang stood three meters away.

He didn't say anything.

After Li Chen finishes collecting them.

The old man walked over.

"Your sealing shot was off-angled."

He raised his hand. Not to demonstrate, but to directly grab Li Chen's right forearm, pressing his forearm inward two or three centimeters.

"Here. When you block, your elbow is pointing outwards. If the opponent attacks in a straight line, you can block it. But if they cut in with an arc, your blocking hand will leave a gap about three fingers' width below their ribs."

Li Chen's forearm was pressed at an uncomfortable angle. But he didn't move, savoring the difference in position.

"Again."

Li Chen reworked the sealing technique at the corrected angle.

The force is now smooth.

Li Qingcang released his grip and nodded. He offered no further comment.

Then he looked at Yan Xi.

Yan Xi leaned against the persimmon tree. Li Chen's coat was draped over her arm. His gaze never left the two of them.

"What are you looking at?" Li Qingcang asked her.

"When he throws a punch, his breathing rhythm and footwork are not completely synchronized. He inhales a fraction of a second before his front foot lands, and exhales only when he exerts force."

Li Qingcang raised his eyebrows.

"You noticed?"

"I watched it twice. The first time to confirm. The second time to count."

The old man remained silent for a few seconds.

Then he walked up to Yan Xi, raised his right hand, palm facing up.

"Put your hands up here."

Yan Xi glanced at him and placed her right hand in his palm.

Li Qingcang pressed his fingers on her wrist. Then he pressed them again.

"Your pulse is steady. Not fast. You weren't nervous just now."

"There's nothing to be nervous about."

"Your finger joints have good mobility. The ballet you practiced as a child makes your fingers more flexible than the average person's." Li Qingcang released her hand. "If you learn something, you'll pick it up quickly."

Yan Xi's gaze shifted slightly.

"Teach me?"

The old man didn't answer directly. He walked to the opposite side of her and stood sideways.

"The core of Jeet Kune Do is not about hitting people, but about efficiency: the shortest distance, the fewest movements, and the greatest power."

He raised his right hand.

Straighten.

Fingertips pointing forward.

"This move is called a lead hand straight punch, look."

His arm did not retract significantly.

It simply moved forward about twenty centimeters from a stationary position.

It was incredibly fast. The air was sliced ​​through with a short, cracking sound.

Yan Xi narrowed her eyes slightly.

"The power comes from the back foot, passes through the hip, waist, shoulder, elbow, and fist. The entire chain moves in only one direction, with no wasted power."

He turned to Yan Xi.

"You try it."

Yan Xi placed Li Chen's coat on the stone bench next to her.

Stand in the position Li Qingcang pointed to.

She imitated the posture she had just taken.

The right foot is behind.

Left hand in front.

"foot."

Li Qingcang squatted down.

I adjusted the angle of her right foot with my hand.

"Turn out 15 degrees, shift your weight to your back foot, 60/40."

Yan Xi has made adjustments.

"Throw a punch."

Yan Xi pushed out with her left fist.

The movements were clumsy.

But the trajectory is straight.

Li Qingcang stood up.

I glanced at it.

"Not bad, better than when your boyfriend first practiced."

Li Chen stood to the side.

My lips twitched.

Yan Xi withdrew her fist.

He glanced at Li Chen.

There was a glimmer in her eyes.

It's not about being proud.

It was a rare kind of excitement.

Li Qingcang walked to Li Chen's side.

I patted him on the shoulder.

The voice was lowered.

But Yan Xi wasn't standing far away.

"This girl's eyes."

The old man said.

"Um."

"When she watches you throw a punch, she's not looking at the movement, she's looking at you."

Li Chen clenched his fingers.

Li Qingcang patted him on the shoulder.

The force was a little stronger than before.

"good."

Two words.

It came from his grandfather's mouth.

It carries more weight than any words.

Li Chen knew.

This is the hurdle.

It's over.

on the way back.

Yan Xi walked beside him.

He was still holding his coat.

"Your grandfather."

"Um."

"He's more direct than your dad."

"That's how he's been his whole life."

Yan Xi handed the coat back to him.

I touched the back of his hand with my finger.

"When he taught me to punch, he adjusted the force of my kicks just like you adjusted the force of your hairpin for me."

Li Chen paused for a moment.

"It's just enough. Not too much, not too little."

Yan Xi took two steps forward and looked back at him.

A winter wind blew by, and the end of her low ponytail brushed against her shoulder.

"Your family is all like this."

Li Chen stood there, watching her retreating figure.

She said this morning that she was afraid she wasn't good enough for him.

But she didn't know.

His grandfather hasn't taught anyone how to punch for many years.

His phone vibrated in his pocket. He took it out.

It was posted by Yan Xi.

She had already reached the entrance of the building. Her back was to him.

[Yan Xi: Your grandpa's dried hawthorns. Please bring them up for me. I forgot to take them.]

Li Chen glanced at the ground. The bag of dried hawthorns was on the stone bench. Yan Xi had put her coat down underneath it earlier.

He bent down and picked it up. He dusted it off.

When I looked up, there was no one left at the entrance of the building.

But his phone lit up again.

[Yan Xi: Your grandpa said I look better than when you first practiced.]

Yan Xi: I've got that in mind.