School Beauty's Invincible Martial Expert

"I definitely would," Xiao Han nodded and said, "If I were in their place, I'd also find a way to cause trouble, find a way to break down my competitors. After all, their legitimate existence and the fact that they're snatching away one's business is an insult to oneself. No one would be willing to accept that."

Yang Lu smiled and then said, "Really? Then we must be prepared to guard against them!"

On the surface, they smiled, but inwardly, everyone was serious. No one wanted the operations of the restaurant to be disrupted, and they certainly didn't want the restaurant to be involved in any troublesome matters. Once the restaurant was disrupted, it would definitely affect the restaurant's operations and its image—this was inevitable.

During the National Day holidays, in addition to being busy at the restaurant, Xiao Han had been pondering what kind of performance to put on at the department's evening party. He had been racking his brains over this for days and yet, despite thinking long and hard, he couldn't come up with anything. He could only helplessly shake his head.

On the third day of the National Day break, Xiao Han unintentionally walked past the storefront of a Guzheng store. The elegant sounds of the Guzheng, akin to the rhythm of 'high mountains and flowing water,' deeply attracted Xiao Han. Compared to the elegance of a piano, the sound of the Guzheng was a kind of scholarly sound, a wonderful rhythm, a beautiful note.

An indigenous treasure with a Chinese heritage.

Xiao Han stood at the entrance, listening to those wonderful sounds.

Not until the music ceased did Xiao Han come out of that enchanting rhythm; he opened his eyes. Before him, a girl in a white long dress, her hair up, revealing a fair neck and a tall figure, displayed an innocent smile. So beautiful it seemed surreal, as if she had stepped out of a painting.

With red lips and white teeth, clear brows, and beautiful eyes, she had the aura of a fairy and yet did not lack the realism of a mortal.

Seeing the girl, Xiao Han was immediately stunned.

He had never thought he would meet her here. He had searched for her tirelessly among the crowds, yet there she was, in a place with dwindling lights.

The girl bowed slightly to Xiao Han and then turned to board a black sedan parked by the roadside, which quickly drove off. That stunning figure, those stunning features. Yet unexpectedly, when meeting again, it was still such a fleeting encounter.

"Ah..." Xiao Han hurriedly chased after her.

But the car had already driven far away, and Xiao Han stopped in his tracks, watching the car gradually disappear from his view, staring blankly ahead, motionless. Xiao Han let out a sigh, unable to help but lament, "Alas, really without grievance or affiliation. Every meeting lasts no more than three seconds."

However, Xiao Han quickly entered the Guzheng Music Store.

"Sir, how may I assist you?" a woman greeted Xiao Han.

"Who was that girl just now?" Xiao Han curiously asked.

"This..." The woman looked at Xiao Han with some wariness, seemingly puzzled by why he would ask such a question.

"I'm just asking, that's all," Xiao Han said awkwardly. "Also, I'm thinking of learning the Guzheng here for a few days. What are the tuition fees like?"

"At our place, if calculated by the lesson, it would be two hundred yuan per lesson!" Hearing of potential business, the woman immediately brightened and said, "What do you think? Interested?"

"Yes," Xiao Han nodded.

The woman immediately laughed.

This was Xiao Han's first time touching a Guzheng. Beyond learning the basics of Guzheng knowledge and its rhythm, Xiao Han was soon able to play some simple scores—relatively simple ones. Yet, for a newcomer, this was already quite a remarkable feat, and Xiao Han had achieved it with apparent ease.

After a day's practice, Xiao Han took eight consecutive lessons.

The Guzheng teacher was somewhat exhausted. If it weren't for Xiao Han's extraordinarily rapid progress, the teacher probably wouldn't have wanted to continue on.

"Xiao Han, you have impressive talent," the nearby female teacher earnestly said. "You might consider seriously learning the Guzheng!"

"Elder Chen, aren't I already studying it seriously?" Xiao Han asked with a smile.

"No, what I mean is, you should consider joining the profession!" The female teacher smiled. "You could consider taking examinations and then reaching a professional level. That way, you could truly work in the Guzheng industry, not only earning a living but also passing down the art."

"Elder Chen, this is just a hobby for me," Xiao Han responded with a smile. "If one were to turn someone's hobby into a profession, it would be the annihilation of that person's passion."

"I don't think so," the female teacher shook her head, then said, "If one can turn a hobby into a profession, that's the luckiest thing in life. Many people's jobs are not the things they are most interested in. I think that's a tragedy."

"To each their own," Xiao Han replied with an easy smile.

Seeing Xiao Han say this, the female teacher didn't insist further, after all, Xiao Han had his own thoughts, and everyone has their own aspirations. To each their own; everyone has different ambitions. How could one force another to do something?

"Come earlier tomorrow!" The female teacher said with a smile.

"Sure!" Xiao Han nodded.

After three days of practice, Xiao Han had already mastered playing the Guzheng blindfolded, not needing to look at the instrument at all. Although he couldn't play some complex scores, he could easily grasp most of them and, with a bit more practice, had basically no major issues.

In these three days, Xiao Han had also become acquainted with the owner of the Guzheng Music Store and learned the name of that girl, who was called Liu Yiyi. Her name had the allure of a girl from an ancient brothel—those who sold their art but not their bodies. She not only possessed an extraordinary beauty but also exceptional talents.

"Liu Yiyi?" Xiao Han repeated to himself.

"Yes!" the proprietress nodded and said, "That's all I know about her name, but she only comes here to practice and it's rare for her to visit, the last time was two months ago. She was just here the day before yesterday though. But, the girl is indeed beautiful. It's a pity she speaks very little, yet plays the Guzheng so well. I heard her family hired a private tutor for her."

"I see," Xiao Han nodded.

The proprietress didn't know any other information about Liu Yiyi, so Xiao Han just had to accept his bad luck. However, sitting there playing the Guzheng seemed to allow him to feel her heart, to sense her solitary emotions. That kind of deep charm, that feeling of being alone in a bustling market yet completely at ease.

Xiao Han felt what he was lacking was precisely this type of realm that Liu Yiyi possessed.

Only after experiencing a millennium of solitude could one truly understand the feeling of loneliness and play the beautiful sounds of the Guzheng or piano. Xiao Han believed he was no match for Liu Yiyi in playing any instrument. On any musical instrument, once one reached a certain level, it was necessary to infuse one's emotions to make a breakthrough; without it, no progress could be made.

After leaving the Guzheng store, he went back to school.
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Zhang Dagou had found a job delivering meals part-time, making seventy to eighty yuan a day. Over these few days, he had already earned several hundred. Although the salary wasn't high, he was quite happy about it. Moreover, with Zhang Xiaomei's encouragement, he felt even more motivated.

Liu Bin spent his days cooped up in the dorm playing games. League of Legends required ranking up and unlocking new characters. Liu Bin seemed to never be short of money, spending quite a lot on new characters and skins without batting an eye. No one knew exactly what Liu Bin's family did, only that he seemed to have plenty of money.

"Xiao Han, you're back?" Liu Bin turned his head and glanced at Xiao Han.

"Yup!" Xiao Han nodded, holding a few dishes in his hand, and said, "I packed a few dishes from the restaurant; let's eat together."

"Zhang Dagou is still out working," Liu Bin responded, then said, "Should we wait for him?"

"Sure!" Xiao Han nodded.

After a busy day and sweating profusely, Xiao Han took a quick shower and came back. It was 7:30 PM. Zhang Dagou had also returned from outside. Since it was just a part-time job, he could leave whenever he wanted, which gave him a lot of freedom with time.

"Xiao Han, did you bring takeout again?" Zhang Dagou said excitedly, "The food from Hanmen Restaurant is really tasty."

"You eat less today; you snatched my portion yesterday!" Xiao Han said.

Zhang Dagou didn't care about that, hurriedly opening the lunch box and starting to wolf down a large bowl of rice. The food from Hanmen Restaurant was good, tasteful, and the ingredients were fresh and delicious. Most importantly, the chef was very skilled.

Xiao Han ate some, and Liu Bin and Zhang Dagou almost annihilated the food like a whirlwind.

"I'm stuffed!" Zhang Dagou patted his belly.

"Man, you ate two and a half boxes of rice, even a pig couldn't eat that much," Liu Bin retorted without any courtesy.

"Hehe…" Zhang Dagou's lips curled into a sly smile.

Xiao Han cracked a smile and then said, "The guy's been delivering meals all day; it's physical work, not like you sitting in front of the computer all day."

"Exactly!" Zhang Dagou pointed to his tanned face and said, "You see how much I've tanned these past few days!"

"That's your own doing," Liu Bin replied nonchalantly, then said, "Just a few tens of yuan a day and you're willing to run around."

"Of course!" Zhang Dagou nodded.

"How about this, I'll give you a hundred yuan a day to just run around the sports field," Liu Bin looked at Zhang Dagou and asked, "How about it? You willing?"

"No way!" Zhang Dagou immediately refused, then said, "The money I earn is hard-earned but happy. If you paid me a hundred yuan to run around the sports field, who would be willing to do that? When I deliver meals, customers even praise me. You'd probably just curse at me every day."

"Hahaha…" Liu Bin laughed heartily.

Xiao Han took a shower and lay on his bed, the air conditioning in the room very comfortable. Xiao Han was reading a book.