Chapter 119: Stinky Tofu Cannot Serve as the Main Course

“Dong, I need a bit of help from you.” Tan Xue entered, carrying a fruit platter filled with neatly sliced fruit, her slender waist swaying as she walked in.

“Ah, what is it?” Chu Dong was only wearing shorts and hadn’t expected Tan Xue to come by so late. Hastily, he covered himself with the blanket.

At present, Chu Dong’s room resembled a conference room—anyone could come and go freely, and even at night, the door was not allowed to be closed.

“I knew you’d be kind, Dong. Here, have some fruit first.” Tan Xue set down the platter and pinched a cherry tomato between two fingers, popping it into Chu Dong’s mouth.

Chu Dong felt he’d heard those words before. After some thought, he realized Xiao Yu had said almost the same thing not long ago. The two sisters truly were close—speaking with such tacit understanding. But while Xiao Yu was easier to placate, this sister was far more difficult to deal with.

“Can you be a bit clearer? I’m afraid even if I agree, it might be impossible to help.” Chu Dong was cautious.

“It’s nothing major. Lanlan’s family has some trouble; her father insists she must marry next year…” Tan Xue sat down coquettishly, dragging over a chair.

“Isn’t that good? Marry early, settle down early.” The cherry tomato was delicious—sweet and tart, still chilled from the fridge. Chu Dong reached for it himself.

Tan Xue snatched the fruit platter away. “Good? That guy’s supposedly even worse than you… No, I’m not saying that, Lanlan said it. Wait, no, it wasn’t her either. Anyway, he’s not a good person.” She rambled, confusing even herself, ultimately failing to explain properly.

“So, you’re saying he’s about as bad as me? Then I’d better meet him—heroes recognize each other, after all. Birds of a feather flock together. If he’s worse than me, he must be a rare talent.” Chu Dong knew he hadn’t left a good impression on Li Youlan.

“Dong, look at you—so petty, not like a real man. How about this: if you help Lanlan, I’ll let you ‘kiss’ me.” Tan Xue’s voice softened; she was pulling out all the stops, even resorting to the rarely used beauty trap.

“Well…” Chu Dong was tempted. It had been over ten years since he’d had that kind of affection; he was starting to forget how that soft, tender face felt. But thinking of the difficulty of the task, he resisted. “I’ll think about it.”

“Still thinking?” Tan Xue was surprised her ace hadn’t worked and immediately got angry. “Have you forgotten what you owe me? You promised me twice. The little snow team is one promise you’ve fulfilled, but don’t think I don’t know that wasn’t really Aburado. I just didn’t want to argue. But if you try to fool me again this time, I—I’ll tell my godmother you’re bullying me.”

“Okay, okay, I promise, isn’t that enough? Look at yourself—why get so worked up? It’s all your game anyway.” Chu Dong pleaded earnestly. He truly feared this move and had just hoped she wouldn’t bring it up, but in the end, he surrendered.

“Good, that’s much better.” Tan Xue stood up, set down the fruit platter, patted her hands, and started to leave.

“Wait, aren’t you forgetting something? You said I could ‘kiss’ you just now…” Chu Dong hesitated for a long time before finally speaking, lowering his head awkwardly, fingers twisting the corner of the blanket.

“Dream on. Should’ve done it earlier; now it’s expired.” With a toss of her hair, Tan Xue struck a confident pose and slammed the door shut.

“Ah! If I’d known this, I would’ve agreed right then.” Chu Dong lamented deeply, but there’s no remedy for regret in this world; otherwise, he’d have prepared a lot more.

Just as Chu Dong was scratching his head in frustration, the door opened again. He brightened, thinking Tan Xue had changed her mind, but his smile froze.

Xiao Yu, yawning, stood at the doorway with her schoolbag. “Brother-in-law, I got kicked out. Sister wants me to sleep with Sister Xiaoyu. But I’m not close with Xiaoyu, so I’ll just stay here with you. I’m so sleepy…”

The little girl’s eyes were barely open. She dropped her bag and climbed onto the bed. “Brother-in-law, scoot over, you’re taking up so much space…”

Tan Xue had heartlessly kicked her out to find a place for herself to sleep. Chu Dong was furious—so furious he almost cried. His young sister-in-law wasn’t that small; she was fifteen or sixteen. Even though the bed was large, space was limited. Surely they couldn’t cuddle to sleep. What kind of situation was this? Chu Dong shifted to the side to make room, letting the little girl get comfortable. He couldn’t let a child suffer for his sake, even if it made lying on his side difficult.

Xiao Yu fell asleep quickly, undisturbed. Wearing her sister’s oversized pink nightgown, she looked petite and adorable, her peaceful face serene and breathing steady—sleeping soundly.

With no choice, Chu Dong covered her with a blanket, put on a shirt, and took his bedding to nestle on the living room sofa.

Early the next morning, Luo Feiyu woke Chu Dong.

“Why are you sleeping here? Kicked out?”

“No way! Who’d dare kick me out? I just fell asleep watching TV too late.” Chu Dong, unwilling to be teased, slowly got up. “What time is it?”

“Six.” Luo Feiyu smiled faintly. She tidied the living room—though she refused to be a maid, she couldn’t help herself when seeing disorder.

“Six?” Chu Dong looked up. “It’s still dark. I’m going back to sleep a bit.” He hugged his blanket and returned to his room.

Xiao Yu was still asleep but had sprawled widely, probably because the bed was too big. She’d drawn a half-circle, lying crosswise.

Chu Dong gave her a gentle slap on her pert little bottom, but she didn’t wake—only curled up tighter. With no alternative, he covered her again and lay down at the foot of the bed.

He had no idea when Xiao Yu woke to go to school; he himself slept until past ten. It was only because Tan Xue couldn’t bear to see him like that and dragged him up.

“Please, let me sleep a little longer.” Chu Dong closed his eyes, already knowing who it was, covering his ears and turning over, hoping to continue sleeping.

“Get up. Today’s the day for your checkup—to see how your recovery is going. I’ll design your training plan based on your condition. Today is your last peaceful day. After this, you’ll enter the Devil’s Training Camp, with me and Lanlan as commanding officers. If you slack off or are lazy, you know what happens—my godmother is always waiting for my call.” Tan Xue pinched his nose, refusing to let him sleep.

“What camp? Training?” Chu Dong, exhausted, could only sit up, eyes still half-closed.

“We’ll talk later. First, the checkup. Hurry, five minutes to get ready. We leave at 10:20 sharp.” Tan Xue tossed him clothes and turned to leave.

Chu Dong glanced at her. Tan Xue was still in pajamas. He knew well enough—five minutes to get ready, and leaving by eleven would be good enough.

Just as expected, after getting up, washing, and tidying, he smoked a cigarette, watched a dull talent show, and stared at the digital clock on the wall.

Chu Dong hadn’t eaten breakfast and was starting to feel hungry when Tan Xue and Li Youlan emerged from a room.

Luo Feiyu was going too. Once Chu Dong’s checkup was done and showed no issues, she planned to leave. She’d been here for days and was a bit bored. Tan Xue rarely took care of Chu Dong herself, and Chu Dong behaved well, making her feel her presence here was pointless. Still, the regret and guilt hadn’t quite faded. But she thought, there would be time in the future.

Accompanied by three beautiful women, Chu Dong went to the Development Zone Hospital for his checkup. Unexpectedly, his constitution was extraordinary. Except for his ribs needing more rest, other bruises had mostly healed, especially on his face. What once looked like permanent scars was now barely noticeable.

Seeing the results, Tan Xue finally relaxed. After bidding a reluctant farewell to Luo Feiyu, she drove Chu Dong and Li Youlan back to the villa.

As soon as they entered, she grabbed a pointer she’d found somewhere and struck a commanding pose.

“Dong, from now until the next month, you’ll be completely under our control. During this time, you’ll study four major subjects: chess games, classical literature, calligraphy and painting, and archaeology—nearly a hundred topics. Passing the assessments means you’ve completed the first phase.”

“What?” Chu Dong’s head nearly exploded. This was only the first phase? What about the rest? Wasn’t this going to kill him? “You’re torturing me while I’m still recovering? If I were healthy…”

“If you were healthy, martial arts would come first. I’ve found ten secret manuals and collected modern popular boxing guides. You can study them slowly later. For now, the first task is chess.”

Tan Xue was enthusiastic. “We’ll start with checkers. Checkers has a long history…”

“Xue’er, my grandfather can’t play checkers.” Li Youlan interrupted Tan Xue’s lesson. “I know you’re good at it, but my grandfather doesn’t know how.”

“Really? Checkers is so much fun. Next time I’ll teach your grandfather. Well, then we’ll learn Gomoku—it’s…”

“Xue’er, you should rest. If you mention animal chess or anything like that again, I’ll go crazy.” Li Youlan was exasperated and begged her to stop.

“Oh, none of those games your grandfather knows? Am I just too talented?” Tan Xue was pinned on the sofa by Li Youlan, praising herself.

When Li Youlan turned, she noticed Chu Dong, who had been standing, was now crouched on the floor, head lowered, as if about to sleep again. She was furious. “See? I told you the bastard is useless—like stinky tofu that can’t be the main dish, but you didn’t believe me. Look at him!”

*End of excerpt.*

Your message, even if just a comma, will inspire the author. Please cheer them on!