I Can Replicate Martial Arts-Chapter 61 - 45: He Wanqing (2)

There were too many people during military training, so she’d been too embarrassed to ask him more back then.

Unfortunately, after nodding, he just went back to eating his noodles.

That extinguished any thought she had of going over to chat.

The typical path for students from a high school Martial Dao class was to get into a university with a Martial Dao program. If they really couldn’t make the cut, they would opt for a vocational college.

If they couldn’t even get into a vocational college, it just meant their future in the Martial Dao was bleak, and they weren’t cut out for this line of work.

Most students would just give up on the Martial Dao at that point.

But Zhao Rui was different. His grades weren’t bad. It was understandable that he couldn’t get into the Martial Arts Academy at a top-tier provincial school like Dongqi University.

But getting into the Martial Arts Academy of a regular undergraduate university, even a first-tier one, should have been a sure thing for him.

Yet he had actually given up, accepting a reallocation—meaning he chose a non-Martial Dao major.

How was that any different from giving up on the Martial Dao?

Luo Min really wanted to talk to him about this.

"Ha, I guess he realized he has no talent and completely gave up!"

The girl next to Luo Min gave a contemptuous laugh and continued, "But at least he knows his place and didn’t come over to bother you! Most guys would’ve rushed right over the second they saw you say hi."

"What are you talking about!"

Luo Min shot her a look, then muttered to herself in confusion, "It is strange, though. It’s like he doesn’t want anything to do with me. He’s never once spoken to me on his own."

"Ha, so guys like that really exist. Don’t tell me he’s gay?"

"Don’t be ridiculous. At least he’s my classmate."

"Haha, I’ll remember him now."

The girl’s laughter grew even more unrestrained.

...

Now with a Cultivation Technique and an organization, Zhao Rui’s life finally returned to its former state of immersion in the Martial Dao. He promptly moved out of the dorm and into a rented apartment.

He had mentioned this to his counselor, Liu Jie. Considering Zhao Rui’s special circumstances, Liu Jie readily agreed.

When he was about to leave, his three other roommates had rather mixed feelings. On one hand, they were sad to see Zhao Rui go.

After all, with a backer like Zhao Rui around, who would dare bully them?

On the other hand, they wanted him to go. Being near a powerful person is like living with a tiger. Who knew what Zhao Rui’s temper was really like?

They had only known each other for a little over half a month and didn’t really understand each other’s true natures yet. If they accidentally provoked Zhao Rui in the future, wouldn’t they be in for a world of hurt?

Zhao Rui understood. With a simple wave, he bid farewell to his brief life in a university dorm.

Back at his rented apartment, Zhao Rui felt a wave of relief wash over him. He flopped onto the bed, sprawling out and shaking his head from side to side.

’The feeling of freedom is amazing.’

He didn’t know about others, but he definitely didn’t want to live in a shared dorm.

’Unless, of course, it was full of pretty girls.’

After lying on the bed for a while, Zhao Rui rolled over, got up, and went to the kitchen. He was going to cook a nice meal to treat himself.

Having been single for so many years in his past life, his cooking skills, while not on a professional chef’s level, were more than enough to satisfy his own cravings.

"Sweet and sour pork ribs, stir-fried pork with chili peppers, deep-fried shrimp, and scrambled eggs with tomato!"

’Yep, four dishes should be plenty.’

He washed his hands and was just about to start cooking when his phone rang.

Zhao Rui walked into the living room, glanced at his phone, and answered the call.

"Zhao Rui, you’re not living at the university anymore?"

The voice was soft and sweet—definitely a girl.

"Yeah, I rented a place off-campus."

"Oh, that’s great! Can I come visit?"

"Uh..."

"I’ll bring my roommates, okay? We can have a housewarming for you!"

"Alright, fine."

Zhao Rui shrugged. The girl had put it like that; it would be a bit heartless to say no now.

"Okay, then! We’ll head over in a bit. Text me the address."

With that, she hung up.

This girl was Zhao Rui’s classmate, the same one who had fainted during military training. Her surname was He, and her given name was Wanqing, taken from the Tang Dynasty poet Li Shangyin’s line: "Heaven’s will pities the secluded grass, the world of men treasures the clear evening sky."

It was a beautiful name, and she was quite pretty too. Otherwise, Zhao Rui wouldn’t have carried her on his back for several miles.

Since the girls were coming over soon, Zhao Rui obviously couldn’t just make four dishes.

He rummaged through the vegetables he’d bought that day. There were still plenty left. He picked out a few more to make it eight dishes in total and started cooking.

It was Saturday and there were no classes. He Wanqing and her three friends arrived at Zhao Rui’s place half an hour later.

They had made a special trip to the supermarket beforehand, buying some fruit and prepared foods.

"Ta-da! Look, we brought duck wings, duck necks, grilled sausages..."

The moment he opened the door, He Wanqing giggled and held up the food they’d bought.

"You really didn’t have to bring anything! This is too formal," Zhao Rui said with a smile as he took the plastic bag from her.

"Of course we had to! Whoa... Zhao Rui, you can actually cook!"

As soon as He Wanqing and the others stepped inside, they were hit by a fragrant aroma.

When they saw the ribs still simmering in a pot and a delicious-looking dish sizzling in the wok, they were pleasantly surprised.

"I just whipped up something simple so we don’t have to eat out," Zhao Rui said with a smile.

"I wouldn’t want to eat out anyway! Let me try some."

"Me too! Ouch, it’s hot..."

The girls all picked up their chopsticks to try the deep-fried shrimp Zhao Rui had just finished making.

"This is delicious!"

"Zhao Rui, you should just get with our Wanqing already. That way, we can come over for free meals in the future," one of the girls said bluntly.

He Wanqing’s face instantly flushed pink. She shot back reproachfully, "What nonsense! Can’t you just shut up and eat?"

"Ooh, Wanqing’s blushing! Hehe! Hey, stop tickling me, that tickles!"

The two girls immediately started roughhousing.

After messing around for a bit, the four girls started helping Zhao Rui out.

Washing vegetables, chopping ingredients, washing fruit, setting the table—they divided the tasks quite clearly.

With helpers, the cooking speed increased significantly. In just an hour, a full table of dishes was ready.

Zhao Rui and the girls sat down at the table, raised their glasses of beer for a small toast to celebrate his new place, and then started eating.

"Zhao Rui, do you know any other guys like you? Good at Martial Arts, a great cook, and caring?"

One of the girls, her cheeks already flushed from the beer, mumbled with a pout.

"If you put it that way, then no, I can’t think of anyone!" Zhao Rui said with a laugh.

"Then what am I supposed to do?"

"Too bad!"

"No way! Wanqing, just give Zhao Rui to me!"

"If you say that again, I’m not talking to you anymore!"

He Wanqing was clearly embarrassed, and her tone was tinged with annoyance. After all, a joke like that is fine once, but it starts to get old if you keep repeating it.

"I was just kidding. Do you have to be like that?"

The girl pouted, seemingly not understanding why He Wanqing was angry.

"Let’s eat, let’s eat! Have some more ribs. You can’t get this many ribs in a serving at the university cafeteria."

Zhao Rui smiled, quickly cutting in to break up the girls’ conversation.

The girl who had spoken earlier pouted even more.

Zhao Rui couldn’t help but glance at He Wanqing, a hint of amusement in his eyes.

Seeing his gaze, He Wanqing puffed out her cheeks in exasperation and let out a playful sigh.

Although there was a small hiccup, it didn’t disrupt the meal. Within a few sentences, the girls had made up and were back to normal.

After eating and resting for a bit, Zhao Rui didn’t let them stay much longer and personally walked them back to the university.

Since they’d had a little to drink, he was a bit worried about them.

Under the warm autumn sun, a gentle breeze brushed against their slightly tipsy cheeks, bringing a rosy flush to them.

The four girls walked arm in arm behind Zhao Rui, talking and laughing.

Every now and then, they would crack a joke, sparking a round of crisp, giggling laughter.

After seeing the girls back to their dorm, Zhao Rui turned around and headed straight back to his apartment.

Before he even got home, a WeChat message from He Wanqing arrived: "I won’t bring them with me next time."

"Okay."

Zhao Rui’s reply was simple and direct.

...

For the following week, Zhao Rui focused on diligently practicing the Prajna Palm. By now, he was just starting to get the hang of it.

One day, he was consulting Wang Zhe about a variation in one of the Prajna Palm’s techniques when Zhang Kui came rushing over from the direction of the main hall.

He called out to Zhao Rui from a distance, "Teacher Wang is looking for you!" 𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺

Upon hearing this, Zhao Rui quickly excused himself from Wang Zhe, then hurried over to join Zhang Kui. They walked side-by-side toward the main hall.