Li Tiangang grabbed his grandson Li Wenrui's arm in a surge of agitation.
"You must cure him no matter what!"
Li Wenrui winced, gritting his teeth. "Grandpa! Ouch... ouch... ouch!"
Hearing this, Li Tiangang not only refused to let go, but increased his grip. "Did you hear me?"
"I heard you, I heard you! Grandpa, if you don't let go, my arm's going to be crushed!"
Only then did Li Tiangang release his grip.
Li Wenrui rolled up his sleeve to take a look, only to find that the spot his grandfather had just grabbed was already bruising.
He silently bewailed his fate. How could a 98-year-old man still be this strong?
Suddenly, Li Wenrui remembered something.
Ah, right. He had forgotten that his grandfather was a master of the Vivid Force.
Let alone bruising his arm, snapping his thigh bone would be effortless.
When they were kids practicing martial arts with their grandfather, he used to tell them that practitioners were divided into different levels.
Based on their level of skill, these were divided into three tiers: Vivid Force, Dark Force, and Transformation Force.
Some people also called them External Force, Internal Force, and Transformation Force.
At first, none of the brothers believed it, but after seeing their grandfather shatter a half-meter-thick slab of marble with his bare hands, they believed it without a doubt.
Back then, they even daydreamed about growing up to become Vivid Force masters just like their grandfather.
Yet fate played tricks on them; they simply weren't cut out for martial arts.
This was why everyone in the family obeyed their grandfather.
On one hand, his seniority demanded respect.
On the other hand, when their grandfather threw hands, literally no one was a match for him.
Even his eldest grandson, who worked as a police officer at the Public Security Bureau, couldn't last two rounds under his grandfather, let alone anyone else.
Did you dare disobey him?
Disobedience meant a beating.
......
Crack!
Another sound of snapping wood rang out.
A short distance away, Chen Muye had just snapped another calf-thick tree.
Just as Chen Muye was about to target another tree,
Li Wenrui hurriedly shouted to stop him. "Stop chopping! Destroying public property means you have to pay for it."
Only then did Chen Muye stop.
Earlier, while practicing his punches, he had accidentally struck a wrist-thick sapling.
To his surprise, the sapling snapped under a single palm strike.
Chen Muye knew this was the explosive power unleashed after his Xingyiquan leveled up.
Thrilled, he wanted to test just how powerful his Xingyiquan was now.
So he struck at a neighboring calf-thick tree.
Miraculously, that calf-thick tree snapped as well.
Chen Muye's confidence skyrocketed instantly.
With this kind of combat prowess, what was there to fear from thieves in the future? One for every punch, a pair for every two!
Nearby, Li Tiangang glanced at Li Wenrui, turned to Chen Muye, and said, "It's fine, Xiao Chen, keep going. Don't worry about paying for damages."
Hearing Grandpa Li say this,
Chen Muye tested the waters. "Grandpa Li, then I'll keep going."
"Go ahead!" Li Tiangang wanted to see to what extent Chen Muye had mastered the Vivid Force.
"You got it."
Chen Muye walked up to a tree as thick as a thigh and threw a palm strike.
Swish! Swish!
This time, the tree didn't snap; instead, it shook violently.
The trunk rebounded, striking Chen Muye's wrist.
"Ow!"
Chen Muye felt as though his wrist had been smashed with a sledgehammer.
A searing, tearing pain shot through it.
"Aishibal!"
Chen Muye raised his wrist to take a look.
The wrist was swelling up at a visible rate right before his eyes.
Seeing this, Li Tiangang strode forward immediately, with Li Jiangtao close behind.
Li Zhengjun, Li Wenrui, and Li Shengxue also stepped forward.
"Xiao Chen, are you alright?" Li Tiangang asked with concern.
Chen Muye cupped his swollen right wrist with his left hand. "Should be fine. I heavily injured two of its offspring, and it only managed to swell my hand up—totally worth it!"
Li Tiangang glanced at Chen Muye's swollen right hand. "Quick, quick, hurry to the hospital and get that checked out. Shengxue, find someone to pay the fine."
With that, he grabbed Chen Muye's arm and headed toward the hospital.
Li Shengxue: ......
......
......
......
Half an hour later.
In Li Wenrui's office.
Li Wenrui patiently explained to Li Tiangang, "Grandpa, look, it really is a hairline fracture. This black line right here is the crack."
Chen Muye sat in a chair with his arm in a splint, speechless.
He had thought his hand was just swollen, never expecting a fracture.
The day his Xingyiquan leveled up another two times, he was going to march over and chop that tree down.
Even if he had to pay for damages, he'd chop it!
What kind of high-and-mighty tree dared to hit his wrist?!
Tell Baldy Qiang, I want to cut down some trees!
A tree caught in the crosshairs of Chen Muye will eventually be chopped down!
Yongcheng does not allow such an arrogant tree to exist!
......
Chen Muye looked at Li Wenrui. "Uncle Li, how long will it take for this to heal?"
Li Wenrui replied, "A hundred days for muscles and bones to mend; at least three months. Fortunately, you're young and still growing, so in the future..."
At this point, Li Wenrui trailed off.
Chen Muye had already been given a terminal death sentence by cancer, to be executed in three months—what future was there for him?
Seeing Li Wenrui's expression, Li Tiangang hauled off and smacked him on the back of the head.
"Ow! Grandpa, why did you hit me?"
Li Tiangang wore a stern face. "Didn't you just say you'd do your best to treat Xiao Chen? What's with that expression?"
Li Wenrui inwardly bewailed his fate. "Grandpa, I didn't say I wouldn't treat him."
"And you're making that face while treating him!"
The others stood to the side, not daring to chime in.
Rin-rin-ring!
Right at that moment, Li Tiangang's phone rang.
Pulling out his phone, he saw it was a call from his great-granddaughter, Li Shujin.
His face instantly transformed into a smile. "Shujin, what is it?"
"Great-grandpa, where are you? It's time to come home for dinner, why can't I find you?"
"Oh, Great-grandpa and Xiao Chen are at your second uncle's place in the hospital. Your grandpa, your dad, and your third uncle are all here. We'll be back in a bit, you go on home first."
"Oh, all right then."
After hanging up,
Li Tiangang looked at Chen Muye. "Xiao Chen, come on, let's go have dinner at Grandpa's place."
"Grandpa Li, there's no need, I can just go back and grab a bite."
"What kind of nonsense is that? If I hadn't told you to keep going, your hand wouldn't be like this. You're coming to my house to eat, otherwise Grandpa won't be able to sleep from guilt tonight."
"Well... alright then."
Li Tiangang's tone was resolute, leaving Chen Muye with nothing more to say.
The group went downstairs to the parking lot.
Li Zhengjun drove a Toyota.
Li Wenrui drove an Audi.
Li Shengxue was much more extravagant, driving a Rolls-Royce.
Grandpa Li brought Chen Muye into the Rolls-Royce, with Li Shengxue acting as the chauffeur.
Twenty minutes later, the vehicle entered an upscale residential compound.
They took the elevator up to Li Zhengjun's apartment.
Grandpa Li lived with Li Zhengjun's family.
Today, because of Chen Muye, Li Jiangtao, Li Wenrui, and Li Shengxue had also come over to freeload a meal at Li Zhengjun's place.
Since the old man hadn't told them to leave, none of them dared to slip away on their own.
Entering Li Zhengjun's home,
Chen Muye's biggest impression was how spacious it was.
It was a large flat.
Judging by the width of the living room, the indoor floor area must have been at least five hundred square meters.
Calculated by Yongcheng's real estate prices, an apartment like this would cost nearly ten million, if not more.
It's great to be rich! Chen Muye couldn't help sighing inwardly: If he skimped a little, Tiedan could live at his place for twenty years, and he'd be able to afford a home like this.
Hearing the commotion, Li Shujin walked out from the dining room.
"Great-grandpa, grandpa, dad, second uncle, third uncle."
The elders nodded affectionately, clearly doting on this junior.
"Xiaojin's grown taller again," Li Jiangtao chuckled.
Li Jiangtao usually lived with Li Wenrui's family, but he doted on this granddaughter immensely.
"Grandpa, hurry and come sit down."
"Alright."
Li Shujin walked up to Chen Muye and, seeing him in a splint, asked with concern, "Classmate Muye, what happened to your hand?"
Chen Muye smiled. "Hehe, nothing much."
Li Shujin looked different today compared to yesterday.
Her hair was styled in large, bouncy curls.
On top, she wore a denim jacket paired with ultra-short denim shorts, exuding the aura of an ice-queen boss lady.
Chen Muye hadn't expected her style to be so versatile, pulling off the sweet-and-fiery look to perfection.
He just wondered if her future poses would be just as versatile.
......
Without asking further, Li Shujin led Chen Muye to the dining room.
Li Tiangang beckoned to Chen Muye.
"Come, Xiao Chen, sit here next to me."
"Okay."
Chen Muye obediently sat down beside Grandpa Li.
"Don't be shy. When we're done eating, I'll have Xiaojin drive you back."
"You got it, thanks in advance."
"Eat, eat."
The dishes on the table were extremely lavish.
When it came time to pick up their chopsticks, however, Chen Muye found himself in an awkward spot.
With his right hand injured, he couldn't hold chopsticks.
And he wasn't left-handed either.
He had no choice but to pick up his soup bowl and pretend to drink soup.
Grandpa Li noticed his awkwardness.
He turned his gaze to his great-granddaughter, Li Shujin. "Xiaojin, Xiao Chen's hand is a bit inconvenient. You feed him."
As soon as those words were spoken,
everyone's gaze instantly converged on Chen Muye.
There was confusion, incomprehension, and above all, shock.
Who present didn't know that Li Tiangang doted on Li Shujin above all others?
Back when Li Zhengjun injured his hand on a mission and couldn't eat, Li Tiangang had never once made Li Shujin feed her own father.
Yet now, Li Tiangang was actually telling Li Shujin to feed Chen Muye.
Didn't that mean Chen Muye held an even higher status in Li Tiangang's heart than his own biological grandsons?
For a moment, the grown men couldn't help feeling a twinge of jealousy.
......
Li Shujin was very sensible.
The moment her great-grandpa gave the order, she immediately put down her chopsticks. "Okay."
Chen Muye hastily refused, "Th-that won't be necessary, Grandpa Li, I can just manage something simple."
Li Tiangang said firmly, "Nonsense, people would laugh if word got out. You come to Grandpa's house for dinner and leave you starving? Not on my watch."
Chen Muye was somewhat troubled. "Well... alright then, thank you so much, Classmate Shujin."
Li Shujin smiled. "You're welcome."