"Huang Xujie asked someone to deliver this to you," Xie Yujia said while observing Hao Ren's facial expression.
Hao Ren's face was emotionless as he knew this trouble was eventually going to come to him. However, he didn't expect it to happen this soon and this direct.
"What's this?" Zhao Jiayi took the note from Hao Ren's hand as he felt something odd was going on.
After he read the note, he shouted angrily, "F*ck! He really dares to cause trouble! Ren, don't be scared. I will call a few of my guys to go with you tonight!"
"Shhh!" Xie Yujia immediately stopped Zhao Jiayi and told him not to shout. She then turned to Hao Ren and said, "I think I know why he is trying to talk to you. However, this thing between you and him can be fixed. Why don't I come with you tonight so that I can explain it peacefully to him and we can resolve it as quickly as possible?"
"It will be alright. Let's wait until tonight and see," Hao Ren took the note back from Zhao Jiayi and ripped it into pieces. Then, he threw it into the garbage bin behind the classroom.
Xie Yujia got more anxious when she saw Hao Ren's calmness as she thought Hao Ren might do something irrational. She asked tentatively, "You and Su Han's relationship... isn't like the rumor, right?"
She wasn't sure about the answer to her question. Since last time Zhao Yanzi came to school for the Athletic Games, Xie Yujia was more convinced that Hao Ren had a special relationship with Su Han. However, deep down, she still believed that Hao Ren wasn't the type of person who was capable of stirring up trouble. After all, he seemed like an honest guy.
Especially after his performance at the Athletic Games, she had an entirely new appreciation for Hao Ren. She thought he was down to earth, brave, and also very humble.
No matter what, it was her responsibility to make sure no one would take this opportunity to cause trouble, especially since Huang Xujie wasn't only the son of the Deputy Mayor but also a troublemaker at school. If Zhao Jiayi and the others were to start a fight with Huang Xujie, they would be the ones suffering more losses.
"Su Han is my distant cousin. The necklace she gave me was purely a gift," Hao Ren replied.
Xie Yujia was relieved. "How stupid was I am to think that Su Han is Hao Ren's girlfriend?" she thought.
"Alright. I will come with you tonight and clear things up with Huang Xujie," she said.
"There is nothing to clear up," Hao Ren's words suddenly turned tough, "When facing a guy like Huang Xujie, the more you let him bully you around, the more arrogant he becomes. Do you think telling him that nothing is going on between Su Han and me is going to solve this problem? Because he wants to be with Su Han, nobody can be close to her? Because he is the son of the Deputy Mayor, the entire school has to listen to him?"
Xie Yujia was speechless after hearing Hao Ren's series of questions.
In the end, Hao Ren packed his bag and stomped out of the classroom without saying whether he was going to go.
"Ren, I will go with you tonight!" Zhao Jiayi ran out of the classroom and called Hao Ren.
"We will go too!" Cao Ronghua and Zhou Liren both added.
"Go my *ss. I didn't say I'm going to meet him," Hao Ren said.
Zhao Jiayi thought Hao Ren felt powerless and said, "Don't be scared! I will call a dozen of my guys! If Huang Xujie dares to fight us, we will fight back!"
"Don't stir up more trouble. I will fix my own problems. If I go just because he had told me to, that will be like me paying him respect," Hao Ren replied.
"If you don't go, he will think you are afraid of him!" Zhao Jiayi said emotionally as if he wanted to start a fight.
"He lost in the long-distance race against me, so he is the one who should be embarrassed. Why should I be scared of him? If I am really scared of him, I wouldn't even compete against him in the first place!" Hao Ren said.
"Yes! Screw that son of a b*tch. Let him wait on the field alone. What can he do about it!" Cao Ronghua agreed.
The four of them went to the cafeteria for lunch and then went to class as usual. Most of the courses in the second year were foundational courses. The schedule was busier as there was less free time between classes. After having experienced retaking failed courses during the first year, Hao Ren and his friends didn't dare to skip class again.
After finishing Programming and C Language class in Academic Building D, all the afternoon classes were over. Like always, they were about to go to the Internet Cafe and play some games, and then have dinner at the Hongji Square before their night class – Principles of Marxism Philosophy.
"You guys can go without me, I have something to do," Hao Ren said to the guys after they walked out of the classroom.
"What's going on? If you are not coming, how are we going to team-up and play the 3C tactic?" Zhou Liren complained as he had been planning his 3C tactic during classes.
"Anyways, I have something to do. You guys go have fun!" Hao Ren waved at them and walked towards the opposite set of stairs to prevent Zhou Liren coming to get him.
"Alright, let's go! It's fine if he is not coming!" Zhao Jiayi said to guys as they all started walking down the stairs in excitement.
Xie Yujia, who just walked out of the classroom, looked at the stairs on both sides and decided to follow Hao Ren.
The 'thing' that Hao Ren said he had to do was actually to find Su Han at her office. Because of the interrogation, Hao Ren missed his chance to cultivate last night. Fortunately, there were no classes in the afternoon after 4 PM today, so Hao Ren could cultivate in Su Han's office for two hours to make up for yesterday's time.
After crossing two bridges between the tall Academic Buildings, Hao Ren entered Academic Building F where all the teacher offices were. He walked up the stairs to the fourth floor and went towards Su Han's office. Along the way, Hao Ren had no idea Xie Yujia was secretly following him.
When Hao Ren knocked on the door and entered Su Han's office, Xie Yujia was shocked, and there were no words to describe her feelings.
"You were being followed, and yet you had no idea," the moment Hao Ren closed the door, Su Han, who was wearing a purple chiffon skirt with floral patterns on it, said with her eyes closed.
"Oh?" Hao Ren was slightly shocked. He opened the door and looked into the hallway, but he didn't see anybody there.
"Close the door, she is gone already," Su Han said lightly and opened her eyes.
Hao Ren was perturbed as he closed the door, turned around, and looked at Su Han.
Su Han was wearing a long purple chiffon skirt. The U-shaped neckline presented her sexy clavicle curve and plump chest lines.
Because she was sitting cross-legged, her long beautiful legs were right in front of Hao Ren's eyes. Even her toes and glittering pink nails could be clearly seen.
Also, the room was filled with a slight smell of incense which was very comforting.
Su Han pointed at the window, and the closed curtains started to open up by itself. The green color and the peacefulness of the school appeared in front of Hao Ren's eyes, and the bright light wiped out all the dubious vibes in the room.
"Look at the nice view outside of the window instead of staring at me," Su Han's slightly opened her lips and said.
Hao Ren's face turned red as he quickly moved his eyes away from Su Han's long pretty legs. "I have only practiced half of the Spirit Concentration Scroll that Elder Lu gave me. I hope Su... Sister Su can guide me," he said.
"Huh," Su Han nodded, "let me hear you recite the Spirit Concentration Scroll."
Hao Ren thought about it for a moment and started reciting it, "The road to earth and heaven, is wide, thick, high, clear, peaceful, long, and infinite. The sun, stars, moon are the things of the world. Containing the seas and rivers, yet they never leak. Everything is contained..." like reciting a poem back in middle school, Hao Ren recited everything he remembered in one try. He then looked at Su Han and waited for the next instruction.
"That's it?" Su Han asked.
"That's it," Hao Ren replied.
"So, Lu Qing only gave you the first chapter of the Spirit Concentration Scroll. No wonder you haven't made any progress after you have been cultivating for so long. That old guy, saying he would take care of everything, yet so careless," Su Han complained quietly. She then said to Hao Ren, "I am going to read the next two chapters of the Spirit Concentration Scroll to you, listen carefully."
"Whether or not the validation is real, instead of guessing, open it and show it, or close it up entirely. Those who open it feel sympathy. Those who close it differentiates it sincerely. Whether to stay or to leave, it starts with one's ambition…"
"Such as yin and yang, like circle and square. If there is no shape, the circle is the way. If there is shape, the square is the problem. Nothing is pre-determined. If things go wrong, the wrong path was chosen. Things aren't always right; feelings and integrity are forgotten..."
Sun Han's voice was clear and crisp and was lovely to listen to. Like a chain of pearls, each pearl was a word that came out of her mouth. Hao Ren sat down peacefully and listened carefully as he concentrated and memorized every single word.
Almost 20 minutes had passed, and Su Han finished reading the last word of the Spirit Concentration Scroll. She asked Hao Ren, "Have you memorized all of it?"
Actually, Hao Ren wanted Su Han to read it all over again. Not because he couldn't remember, but because her voice was so lovely that he wanted to hear it again.
However, he knew Su Han wasn't someone he would want to mess with. He was fortunate that she was willing to guide him already. Therefore, Hao Ren wouldn't dare to push his luck. If she found out what he was trying to play tricks, he would be the one to die first.
"Yes, all memorized," Hao Ren answered honestly.
"Alright then, you can start cultivating by yourself," Su Han said coldly and started cultivating with her eyes closed again.
If she didn't think Hao Ren was hard-working, she wouldn't spend all this time reading the basics of the Spirit Concentration Scroll to him patiently. Instead, she would've smacked all these cultivation techniques into his brain and have gotten it over with.
However, she didn't know that even though Hao Ren did not have the second or third chapter of the technique, he had almost gotten to the second level of the Concentration Cultivation Techniques by touching the stone monument at the Taoist Temple and communicating with the earth and heaven.
"Huang Xujie asked someone to deliver this to you," Xie Yujia said while observing Hao Ren's facial expression.
Hao Ren's face was emotionless as he knew this trouble was eventually going to come to him. However, he didn't expect it to happen this soon and this direct.
"What's this?" Zhao Jiayi took the note from Hao Ren's hand as he felt something odd was going on.
After he read the note, he shouted angrily, "F*ck! He really dares to cause trouble! Ren, don't be scared. I will call a few of my guys to go with you tonight!"
"Shhh!" Xie Yujia immediately stopped Zhao Jiayi and told him not to shout. She then turned to Hao Ren and said, "I think I know why he is trying to talk to you. However, this thing between you and him can be fixed. Why don't I come with you tonight so that I can explain it peacefully to him and we can resolve it as quickly as possible?"
"It will be alright. Let's wait until tonight and see," Hao Ren took the note back from Zhao Jiayi and ripped it into pieces. Then, he threw it into the garbage bin behind the classroom.
Xie Yujia got more anxious when she saw Hao Ren's calmness as she thought Hao Ren might do something irrational. She asked tentatively, "You and Su Han's relationship... isn't like the rumor, right?"
She wasn't sure about the answer to her question. Since last time Zhao Yanzi came to school for the Athletic Games, Xie Yujia was more convinced that Hao Ren had a special relationship with Su Han. However, deep down, she still believed that Hao Ren wasn't the type of person who was capable of stirring up trouble. After all, he seemed like an honest guy.
Especially after his performance at the Athletic Games, she had an entirely new appreciation for Hao Ren. She thought he was down to earth, brave, and also very humble.
No matter what, it was her responsibility to make sure no one would take this opportunity to cause trouble, especially since Huang Xujie wasn't only the son of the Deputy Mayor but also a troublemaker at school. If Zhao Jiayi and the others were to start a fight with Huang Xujie, they would be the ones suffering more losses.
"Su Han is my distant cousin. The necklace she gave me was purely a gift," Hao Ren replied.
Xie Yujia was relieved. "How stupid was I am to think that Su Han is Hao Ren's girlfriend?" she thought.
"Alright. I will come with you tonight and clear things up with Huang Xujie," she said.
"There is nothing to clear up," Hao Ren's words suddenly turned tough, "When facing a guy like Huang Xujie, the more you let him bully you around, the more arrogant he becomes. Do you think telling him that nothing is going on between Su Han and me is going to solve this problem? Because he wants to be with Su Han, nobody can be close to her? Because he is the son of the Deputy Mayor, the entire school has to listen to him?"
Xie Yujia was speechless after hearing Hao Ren's series of questions.
In the end, Hao Ren packed his bag and stomped out of the classroom without saying whether he was going to go.
"Ren, I will go with you tonight!" Zhao Jiayi ran out of the classroom and called Hao Ren.
"We will go too!" Cao Ronghua and Zhou Liren both added.
"Go my *ss. I didn't say I'm going to meet him," Hao Ren said.
Zhao Jiayi thought Hao Ren felt powerless and said, "Don't be scared! I will call a dozen of my guys! If Huang Xujie dares to fight us, we will fight back!"
"Don't stir up more trouble. I will fix my own problems. If I go just because he had told me to, that will be like me paying him respect," Hao Ren replied.
"If you don't go, he will think you are afraid of him!" Zhao Jiayi said emotionally as if he wanted to start a fight.
"He lost in the long-distance race against me, so he is the one who should be embarrassed. Why should I be scared of him? If I am really scared of him, I wouldn't even compete against him in the first place!" Hao Ren said.
"Yes! Screw that son of a b*tch. Let him wait on the field alone. What can he do about it!" Cao Ronghua agreed.
The four of them went to the cafeteria for lunch and then went to class as usual. Most of the courses in the second year were foundational courses. The schedule was busier as there was less free time between classes. After having experienced retaking failed courses during the first year, Hao Ren and his friends didn't dare to skip class again.
After finishing Programming and C Language class in Academic Building D, all the afternoon classes were over. Like always, they were about to go to the Internet Cafe and play some games, and then have dinner at the Hongji Square before their night class – Principles of Marxism Philosophy.
"You guys can go without me, I have something to do," Hao Ren said to the guys after they walked out of the classroom.
"What's going on? If you are not coming, how are we going to team-up and play the 3C tactic?" Zhou Liren complained as he had been planning his 3C tactic during classes.
"Anyways, I have something to do. You guys go have fun!" Hao Ren waved at them and walked towards the opposite set of stairs to prevent Zhou Liren coming to get him.
"Alright, let's go! It's fine if he is not coming!" Zhao Jiayi said to guys as they all started walking down the stairs in excitement.
Xie Yujia, who just walked out of the classroom, looked at the stairs on both sides and decided to follow Hao Ren.
The 'thing' that Hao Ren said he had to do was actually to find Su Han at her office. Because of the interrogation, Hao Ren missed his chance to cultivate last night. Fortunately, there were no classes in the afternoon after 4 PM today, so Hao Ren could cultivate in Su Han's office for two hours to make up for yesterday's time.
After crossing two bridges between the tall Academic Buildings, Hao Ren entered Academic Building F where all the teacher offices were. He walked up the stairs to the fourth floor and went towards Su Han's office. Along the way, Hao Ren had no idea Xie Yujia was secretly following him.
When Hao Ren knocked on the door and entered Su Han's office, Xie Yujia was shocked, and there were no words to describe her feelings.
"You were being followed, and yet you had no idea," the moment Hao Ren closed the door, Su Han, who was wearing a purple chiffon skirt with floral patterns on it, said with her eyes closed.
"Oh?" Hao Ren was slightly shocked. He opened the door and looked into the hallway, but he didn't see anybody there.
"Close the door, she is gone already," Su Han said lightly and opened her eyes.
Hao Ren was perturbed as he closed the door, turned around, and looked at Su Han.
Su Han was wearing a long purple chiffon skirt. The U-shaped neckline presented her sexy clavicle curve and plump chest lines.
Because she was sitting cross-legged, her long beautiful legs were right in front of Hao Ren's eyes. Even her toes and glittering pink nails could be clearly seen.
Also, the room was filled with a slight smell of incense which was very comforting.
Su Han pointed at the window, and the closed curtains started to open up by itself. The green color and the peacefulness of the school appeared in front of Hao Ren's eyes, and the bright light wiped out all the dubious vibes in the room.
"Look at the nice view outside of the window instead of staring at me," Su Han's slightly opened her lips and said.
Hao Ren's face turned red as he quickly moved his eyes away from Su Han's long pretty legs. "I have only practiced half of the Spirit Concentration Scroll that Elder Lu gave me. I hope Su... Sister Su can guide me," he said.
"Huh," Su Han nodded, "let me hear you recite the Spirit Concentration Scroll."
Hao Ren thought about it for a moment and started reciting it, "The road to earth and heaven, is wide, thick, high, clear, peaceful, long, and infinite. The sun, stars, moon are the things of the world. Containing the seas and rivers, yet they never leak. Everything is contained..." like reciting a poem back in middle school, Hao Ren recited everything he remembered in one try. He then looked at Su Han and waited for the next instruction.
"That's it?" Su Han asked.
"That's it," Hao Ren replied.
"So, Lu Qing only gave you the first chapter of the Spirit Concentration Scroll. No wonder you haven't made any progress after you have been cultivating for so long. That old guy, saying he would take care of everything, yet so careless," Su Han complained quietly. She then said to Hao Ren, "I am going to read the next two chapters of the Spirit Concentration Scroll to you, listen carefully."
"Whether or not the validation is real, instead of guessing, open it and show it, or close it up entirely. Those who open it feel sympathy. Those who close it differentiates it sincerely. Whether to stay or to leave, it starts with one's ambition…"
"Such as yin and yang, like circle and square. If there is no shape, the circle is the way. If there is shape, the square is the problem. Nothing is pre-determined. If things go wrong, the wrong path was chosen. Things aren't always right; feelings and integrity are forgotten..."
Sun Han's voice was clear and crisp and was lovely to listen to. Like a chain of pearls, each pearl was a word that came out of her mouth. Hao Ren sat down peacefully and listened carefully as he concentrated and memorized every single word.
Almost 20 minutes had passed, and Su Han finished reading the last word of the Spirit Concentration Scroll. She asked Hao Ren, "Have you memorized all of it?"
Actually, Hao Ren wanted Su Han to read it all over again. Not because he couldn't remember, but because her voice was so lovely that he wanted to hear it again.
However, he knew Su Han wasn't someone he would want to mess with. He was fortunate that she was willing to guide him already. Therefore, Hao Ren wouldn't dare to push his luck. If she found out what he was trying to play tricks, he would be the one to die first.
"Yes, all memorized," Hao Ren answered honestly.
"Alright then, you can start cultivating by yourself," Su Han said coldly and started cultivating with her eyes closed again.
If she didn't think Hao Ren was hard-working, she wouldn't spend all this time reading the basics of the Spirit Concentration Scroll to him patiently. Instead, she would've smacked all these cultivation techniques into his brain and have gotten it over with.
However, she didn't know that even though Hao Ren did not have the second or third chapter of the technique, he had almost gotten to the second level of the Concentration Cultivation Techniques by touching the stone monument at the Taoist Temple and communicating with the earth and heaven.
