Chapter 9: Celebration

Translator: Atlas Studios  Editor: Atlas Studios

After bidding farewell to his senior brother, Wang Bowen, Chen Yiming rode his bicycle home under the intense gaze of Shen Jia.

Wearing the training robes of the Mantis Snake Sword School, he felt more at ease than he had ever felt before. Shen Jia’s flirtatious actions made him understand even more about the influence of the Mantis Snake Sword School.

Being able to handle the reception duties at the headquarters of the school, Shen Jia was naturally a first-rate beauty. Her looks and figure were both top-notch, and her salary was much higher than that of ordinary jobs.

However, when dealing with an official martial arts trainee, she completely let go of her reservations.

On the way home, he passed by the city park square again.

The stage in the center of the square had already been demolished. The students participating in the competition had already left, and the square had once again become deserted.

At the side of the road, a group of students had yet to leave and were still chatting.

The bragging young man was also one of them. He was talking non-stop as he discussed the outcome of the matches with his classmates.

As Chen Yiming rode past them on his bicycle, the golden sword emblem on his training robe attracted their attention and they raised their heads.

The bragging young man was dumbstruck when he saw the golden sword emblem on Chen Yiming’s chest. His jaw dropped as he stared at him, his face an expression of disbelief.

The others, unaware of the cause for his disbelief, just looked envious.

This was their dream.

To become a martial arts trainee, regardless of which martial arts school they entered, was what most high school students yearned to do.

When Chen Yiming’s figure disappeared from the end of the street, the students finally snapped out of their daze.

From the martial arts classes of East Lake City’s First, Second and Third High School, only a few talented students were able to become trainees every year. Occasionally, there would be batches of students with poor performance, and there would be none from Second and Third High.

“What are you being so cocky for? A newcomer who just joined the school will definitely not be as good as our Liu Qingqing,” the bragging youth said coldly.

He was secretly jealous. A student who was not from the top three high schools could actually join the martial arts school, and even acted like he knew nothing in front of him earlier.

A short, fat youth beside him replied, “That’s true. Although he’s much stronger than us, our school’s Liu Qingqing joined the martial arts school several years earlier than him. He’s definitely no match for her.”

After some deliberation, he hesitated and said, “However, the Mantis Snake Sword School’s ranking is much higher than the Flowing Cloud Sword School’s. In a fight… What if it’s another rookie who’s like Jiang Jinshi?”

The bragging young man’s face tightened in embarrassment as he said, “That’s only because Mantis Snake Sword School’s head is powerful. What has that got to do with a rookie like him? Besides, Jiang Jinshi only won against our Liu Qingqing because of the rules of the matches.”

“That’s true.”

The bragging young man could only allow his goddess to be seen as the strongest, and continued, “Even if that rookie had dared to go on stage, the Mantis Snake Sword School doesn’t have the high defense style of the Tongbeiquan School. I think he would have been beaten to a pulp in less than three moves.”

…

“Dad, Mum, it’s me.”

Chen Yiming parked his bicycle outside the house and knocked on the door.

“Coming, coming.”

The sound of a key being inserted into a lock could be heard.

Mother Chen opened the door, and he walked into the house in his training robe with the golden sword emblem.

Mother Chen looked at her son’s brand new training robe and asked in a trembling voice, “This outfit is…”

“I passed. Of the eight applicants, I’m the only one who passed.” Chen Yiming puffed out his chest and proclaimed loudly.

At this moment, he spoke with great confidence in a clear, loud voice. This was the benefit of having achieved a prestigious status.

Hearing this, Mother Chen’s sniffled and said tearfully, “Son, you did well. I didn’t dote on you for nothing, I knew you’d be successful.”

Father Chen coughed and said in a low voice, “Didn’t you just say that our son definitely wouldn’t stand a chance? You’re bluffing if you say you had confidence in him. You were even discussing with me how we should comfort him.”

Being exposed by Father Chen, Mother Chen was very angry and shouted,

“Damn old man, why did you have to say that? It wasn’t easy for our son to become successful. Who talks like that? Hurry and book a table at a restaurant, we should celebrate tonight.”

“Okay, Son, rest. Leave the rest to me.” Father Chen slipped out of the house after he spoke.

Chen Yingying stood quietly by the side and waited for everyone to finish before she spoke.

“Brother, you’re amazing.”

She had been an obedient girl since she was young. She had never competed with Chen Yiming, and she had always given in to her family.

“Ha ha! I may not be good at studying, but I might be good at martial arts. Before this, I was just laying the foundation,” Chen Yiming said cheerfully.

Since a young age, his body’s owner had hardly ever been praised. Not only was his academic performance poor, but he was also unwilling to help out with household chores. It was a rare situation for him to be praised in front of his family, and it made him very happy.

…

In the evening, a banner hung above the main entrance of the East Lake Hotel.

It read, “Congratulations to Chen Yiming for becoming a trainee at the Mantis Snake Sword School.”

This hotel was the largest in East Lake City and belonged to a subsidiary of Dahe Group.

Dahe Group was one of the 23 companies hiring martial artists in East Lake City, and they had always been on good terms with all the martial arts schools. When the restaurant manager heard that a banquet was being hosted for a new trainee at the Mantis Snake Sword School, he generously gave them a huge discount.

Nearly three tables of people had come to the private room on the second floor. There were two tables for Father Chen and Mother Chen’s relatives and friends, and one for Chen Yiming and Chen Yingying’s classmates.

Second uncle Chen Zhipeng stuffed a red packet into Father Chen’s hand and raised his wine glass.

“Big Brother, you’ve taught him well. The Chen family has made a name for themselves. In the future, everyone can rely on Yiming to take care of them.”

Chen Zhipeng worked in the department that managed the city’s archives. He often attended social gatherings and drinking parties, and had a broad outlook. He had always been the announcer for the Chen family.

“No, no. It’s all the child’s own effort. We didn’t help much.” Father Chen also raised his glass and dismissed the claim.

Chgen Zhipeng clinked glasses with Father Chen and continued, “Brother, you’re being humble. We watched Yiming grow up. Since he was young, we could tell that he was different from the other children.”

Chen Zhipeng continued to drink and told Chen Yiming that everyone thought highly of him.

Chen Yiming, who was sitting at another table, frowned when he heard his second uncle’s words.

“This body’s owner is outstanding? Second Uncle sure knows how to talk big.”

From his memories, he learned that after his body’s owner dropped out of school, his relatives were unwilling to let their children interact with him. They were afraid that he would lead them astray.

Second aunt Li Qingping also raised her glass and said to Mother Chen, “Yiming is really capable. If our Shaojie had a tenth of Yiming’s ability, we would be satisfied.”

Li Qingping was an accountant in a company and often attended functions with Chen Zhipeng. She naturally understood the importance of connections and drew Mother Chen into her family’s affairs as if they were biological sisters.

Compared to the tables with the Chen family’s friends and relatives, Chen Yiming’s table was much quieter.

Chen Yiming’s high school classmates ate in silence. No one knew what to say, so they merely exchanged a few awkward words with each other as they handed over red packets.

After dropping out of school for more than a year, he had already drifted apart from his former classmates. They were only classmates from the memories of his body’s owner.

This time, they came over for the celebration mostly because of their parents.

On the other hand, his younger sister’s two middle school classmates were sitting in a corner with Chen Yingying. They were whispering about topics between girls.

Chen Yiming had joined the martial arts school, so he was already a big shot to them. However, they were Chen Yingying’s classmates, so they didn’t have any direct relation with Chen Yiming. Thus, they didn’t feel awkward.