Daily life of a teacher in the martial arts department

The door opened, and Nocturne entered gracefully, carrying an exquisite food box and a small box of beautifully packaged fruit.

"I heard that you two encountered a mythical creature and were slightly injured..." Nocturne walked over. Today she was wearing a set of loose black clothes. The loose clothes contrasted sharply with her slender neck and arms, which only made her exquisite figure stand out more.

She walked to Ying Qin Guan's bedside, put down the food box and fruit, and said, "This woman has come to visit you..."

As she spoke, she opened the food box, and an enticing aroma immediately filled the air. Nephalem, whose mouth was practically watering, was instantly invigorated.

Nocturne introduced with a smile, "This is a special jujube soup brewed by a woman. Drinking it will have some benefits for your health."

Jade Dried Jujube Soup... Nephalem had heard of this soup when he was in college, and it left a deep impression on him. In ancient times, this soup would be considered a complete tonic, one of the few truly highly nutritious soups that could invigorate blood circulation and remove blood stasis. More importantly... while Nocturne hadn't directly displayed any amazing culinary skills, everyone knew that the Imperial Academy had two Doraemons; the soup she made would definitely taste good!

You can tell just by smelling it!

Just as Nephalem was getting ready to try, Nocturne suddenly turned around and said with a smile, "I heard that Director Nephalem went out yesterday and got a stomachache. I asked the doctor before I came, so I didn't prepare anything for you... Director Nephalem, you won't be angry with me, will you?"

I have nothing to eat!

Nephalem, whose appetite had been whetted by the aroma, suddenly lost all interest. He knew that Nocturne was joking, and that the Chief had even used such a title. He could only sigh and say, "Do I think I'm such a stingy person?"

"Hehe..." Nocturne chuckled softly, her attitude ambiguous.

"Thank you." Ying Qin Guan did not refuse. The Nocturne Soup had already been prepared and delivered here. It would be too much to refuse again.

Nocturne walked to a stool and sat down. She took out a folding fan from somewhere, opened it with a snap, and said with a smile, "I was a little worried about your health before I came, but now I see that the woman was worrying too much."

"Don't worry about it!" Nephalem, who hadn't gotten any soup, covered his head with the blanket and muttered, "There's a poor soul here who's been restricted from eating and is starving to death."

Ying Qin Guan glanced sideways, about to complain about how the Nephalem acted like a child, but Nocturne spoke first.

"Chief Nais does have a bit of a childlike charm."

Low emotional intelligence: Just like a child.

High emotional intelligence: Childlike fun.

The three chatted for a while, and after Ying Qin Guan finished his soup, Ye Qu packed his things and got up to say goodbye.

"I won't bother you any longer, as many other people may come to visit you later."

Her eyes held a hint of amusement as she left, but Nefertari had her head buried under the covers, so Ying Qin Guan didn't notice.

Ying Qin Guan picked up a napkin and wiped his mouth. He was obviously not full. He then opened the fruit gift box that Ye Qu had brought. Inside were neatly arranged fragrant tassels. This could be considered a noble fruit, and it would be very suitable as a gift.

Ying Qin Guan's inner energy surged, and under Nephalem's gaze of "Is this the fucking precision and endurance double A?", he used his inner energy to peel off Xiang Liusu's skin, took a bite, and felt that the taste was not quite right, so he told Nephalem about it.

"This tassel...it tastes different from what I've had before."

"Really?" Nephalem used his inner energy to create a knife, cut off a small piece, and tasted it. "Isn't this a normal fragrant tassel?"

"No, no, no," Ying Qin Guan denied. "They're completely different. The boss gave me two before; these are nowhere near as good..."

Upon hearing this, Nephalem immediately understood. He waved his hand and said lazily, "If the taste is wrong, then that's it. Zhu Ran, the kind of person who would give away such ordinary tassels, must be some special variety, plus it was air-freighted by a magician to keep it fresh throughout the process... Wasn't the one you ate back then much better than this?"

Ying Qin Guan recalled for a moment and nodded—at the same time, he also learned the boss's real name, which he had always called "Boss." Although some people occasionally called him Boss Zhu or Sir Zhu, he really didn't know his full name.

"That's settled then." Nephalem clapped his hands, somewhat wanting to grab a fragrant tassel, but then gave up. It wasn't that he had amazing self-control. Rather, he felt that if he really had to break his vow, he shouldn't break it over something like this; it would be too much of a loss.

Ying Qin Guan ate a few more fragrant tassels, which made him half full. Ye Qu's cooking skills were truly superb. The bowl of dried jujube soup was not only incredibly delicious, but it also whetted Ying Qin Guan's appetite.

Just then, the knocking sounded again. Unlike Nocturne, this knocking was very urgent, followed by a light and energetic female voice that clearly showed she had no burdens on her chest.

"Teacher, we've come to see you!"

Then, another female voice came through.

"If you knock too hard, it will disturb the teacher's rest."

Finally, a male voice rang out, its tone tinged with a hint of mockery.

"I think the teacher might be playing cards with someone inside..."

The door was pushed open, and in came the Royal Academy's F4... now it's F3.

That is, Luo Shui, Zhong Hongyu, and Fu Feihan.

They were also carrying some gifts. Zhong Hongyu, as their representative, stepped forward respectfully, bowed slightly, and said, "We heard you were injured, teacher, so we came to see you..."

Before she could finish speaking, Luo Shui interrupted, "Is the injury serious? It seems alright. Is that a Nephalem next to you? Why is its head buried in the blanket? Is it going to be buried? That bastard cheats at cards every day, it's finally going to get its comeuppance."

Nefertari stared with a pair of dead fish eyes just like Ying Qin Guan's, poked his head out from under the covers, and said expressionlessly, "I'll kill you, brat."

"Oh, that's terrifying—"

Nephalem and Luo Shui launched into a heated exchange, and Zhong Hongyu went to mediate. Fu Feihan, however, was quite used to this kind of atmosphere and ignored them, instead picking up the food box in his hand.

"I heard that you were sick, Teacher. Hongyu specially consulted Teacher Yequ and invited me and Luoshui as well. She specially made a soup that is said to be very good for your health. You should drink it as soon as possible, Teacher."

Ying Qin Guan raised an eyebrow slightly and asked, "This soup, is it called...?"

Fu Feihan said, "Jade Dry Jujube Soup."

Chapter Two is mostly a good thing

(PS: 23+2 missing)

The nocturne was probably intentional...

Ying Qin Guan and Nephalem exchanged a glance and came to this conclusion: sometimes, it's really hard to know what to say about Nocturne. But you can't deny that everything she does is right. A colleague is hospitalized, so she comes to visit him, right? Her students come to her for advice, so she teaches them something she's good at, right? But all of this combined... it's quite ridiculous.

But these things were nothing more than a little joke by Nocturne, and there was really no need to tell his students and dampen their enthusiasm. Ying Qin Guan raised the support frame on the bed, took the food box at the same time, and said with a smile: "Then let me see what you have learned from Nocturne."

Upon hearing this, Luo Shui immediately took a moment from her busy schedule (referring to arguing with someone) and proudly said, "How could it not be good? I took care of everything for this soup, from buying the ingredients and washing them to turning on the range hood, putting the ingredients in the pot, peeling the garlic, and so on. With me putting in so much effort, how could it not taste good?!"

The Nephalem shouted from the side, "Isn't this something that can be done as long as everyone has hands!"

"And I also handled all the haggling with the vendors!"

"It has absolutely nothing to do with cooking, you idiot!"

Luo Shui was enraged by the Nephalem's relentless attacks. He grabbed Zhong Hongyu and shouted, "Hongyu, don't stop me! I'm going to teach this guy a lesson today. How dare a mere wounded soldier be so arrogant in front of me!"

"No, I didn't stop you..."

"Hmph, since Hongyu is willing to die to stop me, then I, Lord Luoshui, will spare your life today..."

Ying Qin Guan ignored the two people over there. He took a sip of soup and felt a strange sensation in his heart.

Not long ago, Nephalem explained to him the difference between the tassels the boss gave him and the tassels he had just eaten. Now, the soup the student gave him and the soup Nocturne gave him were as different as the tassels... no, even more different. Nocturne's cooking skills were truly exceptional; if this were in an anime, she would probably shine.

Of course, it's not to say that F3 was particularly bad; it was actually around average. It's just that Nocturne's excellent performance had created a strong subjective impression on Ying Qin Guan, much like how a gift of fragrant tassels from a shopkeeper misled him about the actual fruit. Simply put, Ying Qin Guan had become like Nocturne.

"Teacher, how does it taste?" Zhong Hongyu asked calmly. "Is there anything you don't like, or anything that needs improvement?"

Although the soup tasted far inferior to the one Nocturne had brought, Ying Qin Guan naturally wouldn't say that. He finished the soup in one gulp and smiled, "I'm not a chef, so I can't give you an answer to this question... Personally, I think it's not bad."

"Really...that's good." Zhong Hongyu was still as easily fooled as she had been when they first met over a year ago, and quickly got back into the work of mediating the fight.

Sitting next to Ying Qin Guan, Fu Fei Han whispered, "He's lying."

Ying Qin Guan glanced at him with some surprise, and whispered, "What do you mean?"

Fu Feihan said, "Teacher Ye Qu, you arrived before us... just a short while ago, and you most likely brought this soup with you."

Ying Qin Guan was even more surprised. He neither admitted nor denied it, but instead, displaying the spirit of repeating a year, continued, "How so?"

Fu Feihan raised his chin and pointed towards the trash can and the small box of fruit next to it.

"The tassel wrappers are still quite moist, very fresh, so they must have just been eaten. Judging from the quantity, they perfectly match what's missing from the box. It's possible this item was delivered a long time ago, but you only ate a few when we arrived, teacher. It's not impossible, but very unlikely, so I think someone just delivered it. As for why it was Teacher Yequ, and why she said she also made this soup..."

Fu Feihan pondered for a moment, then smiled and said, "It's probably just intuition."

Ying Qin Guan said, "Your intuition is very accurate."

The absence of a "but" after this basically means a clear answer has been given.

Fu Feihan lowered his gaze, as if recalling the past.

"Yes... my intuition is usually very accurate, but sometimes I actually hope it's wrong."

Ying Qin Guan was slightly taken aback. Just as he was about to say something more, Fu Fei Han stood up and said to Luo Shui, "Luo Shui, you should also be quiet. The two people here are not only our elders, but also patients. Put your things down and leave. Don't disturb their rest."

"Damn it!" Luo Shui was unwilling, but under the combined attack of Fu Feihan and Zhong Hongyu, she could only leave. Before leaving, she only had time to leave a harsh word, "When I play the Ring of Truth in the future, I will definitely blind you to death!"

"A three-health, card-drawing, fragile character with no defense, still expects to survive until he can play a card? How laughable!"

"Wait until I smear six of these on your face, then you'll know what cruelty really means!"

Luo Shu shouted, and as Nephalem rolled up his sleeves, he took off running and disappeared in a flash.

Zhong Hongyu and Fu Feihan stayed behind to tidy up their things and then quickly took their leave.

"Well then, we wish you and your teacher a speedy recovery, and we won't bother you any longer."

Soon, all the F3s left.

Ying Qin Guan had drunk two bowls of soup and eaten quite a bit of fruit, and was now somewhat full. After chatting with Nefertari for a while, he planned to take a nap. However, before he could even lie down, the knocking on the door started again.

dong dong dong.

After three rhythmic knocks, a familiar voice rang out.

“It is I, Jiu Yi.”

Then, the door was pushed open, and the person who came in was Jiu Yi, who had a good relationship with Ying Qin and Guan Naifeitian. He pushed open the door, paused slightly, stepped aside to reveal the person behind him, and added, "My girlfriend is also here."

"Hello, you two. How are you feeling?" Cao Cailan greeted the two of them as she followed behind Jiu Yi. She was the daughter of a wealthy businessman and had been in a relationship with Jiu Yi for some time. Ying Qin Guan would occasionally see her coming to the board game arcade or martial arts arena to look for Jiu Yi. She was the only one of her age in Ying Qin Guan's circle who had found a partner. Ji Fa exclaimed that it was impossible.

"What else can happen? I won't die... Wait, what are you holding in your hand?"

Nephalem answered Cao Cailan, and at the same time, his words made Ying Qin Guan notice what Cao Cailan was holding in her hand. It was a food box, and the smell emanating from it gave Ying Qin Guan a vague sense of foreboding.

"This?" Jiu Yi said with a "you guys better be moved" look, "I heard you two were injured, so I went to ask Ye Qu for advice. She said this is good to drink and even sent us the recipe. So I made two servings of soup. This soup is called Jade Jujube Soup... Drink it while it's hot."

Nephalem smirked and exclaimed dramatically, "Oh dear... I really want to drink it too, but I just went out yesterday and got caught and brought back. My condition is getting worse, so I'm afraid I can't drink it. What a pity! But there's nothing I can do, so I'll just give them all to Ying Qin Guan. It's only two portions, not much, after all..."

"Drinking soup is such a wonderful thing!"

Chapter Three: Are You Happy?

Nephalem, you tricked me!

Ying Qin Guan had already drunk two bowls of soup and several fragrant tassels, and was already somewhat full. Although drinking two more bowls wouldn't be a problem, drinking the same thing repeatedly, especially the better one first and then the worse one, would make the food lose its original meaning.

But now that things have come to this, it's hard for Jiu Yi and his girlfriend to refuse their kind offer.