Chapter 26: 026 I Listen to the Young Master

Fei Yinghuan left very soon, setting off up the mountain with Hu Mengtai to study in seclusion at the academy halfway up the slope.

Only Zhao Han, Fei Ruhe, and the page boy Fei Chun remained.

Fei Ruhe was eleven this year, probably over-nourished, growing up tall, burly, and fat. With that build, it would be a waste not to train in martial arts — he was perfectly suited to be a general; all the famous generals of old were men of great girth and broad backs.

The page boy Fei Chun, by contrast, had rather delicate, handsome features, having inherited his parents' excellent genes — his father had been the eldest young master's page boy, his mother had been the old madam's maid, their looks having undergone strict selection.

When master and servant stood together, Fei Chun looked more the young master, while Fei Ruhe seemed exactly like the attendant.

Seeing that Fei Yinghuan had gone far, Fei Ruhe suddenly gave a cold laugh, crossed his arms over his chest, and half-squinted his eyes as he looked contemptuously at Zhao Han.

This young master was clearly no fool; he simply had not put his mind to his studies.

Obsequious before his father, among the children he was likely a little tyrant — only he bullied others, no one else dared bully him.

The school was still in session; Fei Ruhe had been called out midway through.

Zhao Han smiled and reminded him, "Young Master, it is time to return to the study hall."

Fei Ruhe kept sneering in silence, waited a long while with no movement, then suddenly turned his head and pursed his lips at the page boy.

The page boy Fei Chun finally caught on and barked sternly, "How dare you! Kneel and kowtow to the young master at once! Do not think that because the eldest young master shields you, you can do as you please — here at the Holding Pearl Private Academy, the young master is your master! Also, I am the senior page boy, you are the junior page boy; from now on you will obey me!"

Zhao Han put on a frightened expression and asked, "Young Master, is it truly so?"

"A young master is a young master, a page boy is a page boy," Fei Ruhe raised his fist and threatened, "From this day forward, you will obediently listen to me. If Father asks, you will say that I study very diligently, only unfortunately I am too stupid and learn slowly. Father ordered you to supervise my studies and even said you could beat me — you had best not take that seriously. If you do not believe it, go on, try hitting me once…"

The words had barely finished when Zhao Han kicked out with one foot.

Fei Ruhe's tonnage was too great, and Zhao Han dared not use full force, so he was not kicked down on the spot. He staggered back two steps and steadied himself, looked down at the footprint on his chest, and said incredulously, "You actually dare hit me?"

Zhao Han, with a puzzled look, countered, "Young Master, did you not just tell me to listen to you?"

Fei Ruhe said angrily, "I did not truly mean for you to hit me!"

Zhao Han said, "But I took it as true."

Fei Ruhe raged, "Is there something wrong with your brain?"

Zhao Han suddenly cocked his head, his manner like that of a simpleton: "I carried out the young master's order and struck the young master — what is wrong with that?"

It seemed there was indeed nothing wrong, yet Fei Ruhe was nearly bursting with internal injury from rage.

The page boy Fei Chun hastily reminded him, "Young Master, this scoundrel is toying with you!"

"Of course this young master knows that, do I need you to tell me?" Fei Ruhe flew into a fury, his face red and neck thick, raising his fist as he advanced on Zhao Han. "You're asking for a beating!"

This fellow had definitely trained; his lower body was extremely stable, and his punches had form — he went straight for Zhao Han's face from the start.

Zhao Han raised an arm to parry; the bones ached fiercely from the blow. The little fatty's strength was immense!

Another punch came smashing in; Zhao Han sidestepped to dodge while simultaneously striking at his soft ribs.

Fei Ruhe neither dodged nor evaded, withdrawing his arm to wrap around Zhao Han's wrist while his other hand also swiftly grabbed, attempting to directly seize Zhao Han and wrestle him down.

Zhao Han hurriedly retreated to break free, then immediately turned and ran.

They were not even in the same weight class; only a fool would fight body-to-body — first kite him and walk the dog a bit.

"Don't run!"

Fei Ruhe furiously gave chase, the two of them running one after the other around the pavilion.

Fei Chun had no good intentions; not only did he stand watching the show, he also poured oil on the fire: "Young Master, this scoundrel is toying with you, kill him with one punch!"

After two laps around the pavilion, Zhao Han turned and ran toward Fei Chun, leaping into the air and kicking straight at his solar plexus.

"Don't you come over here… Oww!" Fei Chun was watching the fight from the far bank when he suddenly took a charging kick, fell backward onto the ground, all four limbs in the air, only feeling his chest tight and breath short, unable to get up.

Fei Ruhe, chasing behind, shouted, "We two are dueling, what are you hitting him for?"

"Too noisy, an annoyance!" Zhao Han said as he ran.

Fei Ruhe shouted again, "If you've got the guts, don't run, fight me once!"

"Catch me first if you've got the skill!" Zhao Han still intended to keep walking the dog.

The two chased each other, running another lap around the pavilion; Fei Ruhe's stamina was surprisingly abundant.

"Coming again?" Fei Chun had just barely managed to climb up when he saw Zhao Han charging this way again, and was so frightened he turned and fled.

"Fight me, stop chasing him."

"Right, stop chasing me!"

"I'll chase him, you stop running if you've got the guts."

"Scoundrel, you're the one who should stop running if you've got the guts!"

"Go fight each other, just stop chasing me, all right!"

"..."

Fei Ruhe chased Zhao Han, Zhao Han chased Fei Chun, the three of them circling the pavilion, until in the end no one knew who was chasing whom.

Suddenly, Zhao Han grabbed the railing and used the momentum to flip into the pavilion.

Fei Ruhe hurriedly slowed to a stop and also wanted to climb over the railing to enter, but halfway up he suddenly saw darkness before his eyes.

It was Zhao Han, standing on the long bench inside the pavilion, looking down from above and abruptly kicking out, leaving a footprint on the young master's face.

Press the advantage without mercy!

Zhao Han swiftly followed with two more kicks, kicking Fei Ruhe dizzy and seeing stars.

He had figured it out — this young master was thick-skinned and tough-fleshed, not so easily damaged.

Fei Ruhe shielded his face with both arms and retreated, wanting to first open some distance.

Zhao Han vaulted over the railing to pursue, kicking at his completely unguarded lower abdomen, the pain making Fei Ruhe hurriedly clutch his stomach, once again exposing his fat face.

"Bam!"

One punch over, and nosebleed streamed down.

Fei Chun stopped ahead, panting heavily, and cried out in alarm, "You… you… huff… you have the gall of a dog… huff… to actually beat the young master till he bleeds!" Suddenly, the wretch turned and ran again, terrified, "If you're beating the young master, then beat the young master, why are you chasing me again? Oww!"

Zhao Han abandoned Fei Ruhe, chased the page boy and beat him ruthlessly all the way, beating him until the wretch simply stopped fleeing, crouched down with both hands over his head, and endured it rigidly.

Fei Ruhe finally caught his breath, clutched his nose, and roared, "You bastard, I'll kill you!"

"Come on then—catch me and you can hit me all you want," Zhao Han taunted.

And so they were at it again, chasing around the pavilion. After two laps, Zhao Han vaulted back inside.

Fei Ruhe, far less nimble and afraid of repeating his mistake, only dared stand outside the pavilion and shout, "Come out here!"

"Haha, you come in!" Zhao Han laughed with pure delight.

Fei Ruhe stamped his foot in fury, circled halfway around, and dashed into the pavilion—whereupon Zhao Han immediately vaulted the railing and went back outside.

Fei Ruhe was practically exploding with rage. He howled, "Get in here!"

Zhao Han laughed, "You come out!"

Fei Ruhe said, "This young master absolutely refuses to go out!"

Zhao Han ignored him, turned, and chased after Fei Chun instead.

"Wuwuwuwu…"

Once caught, Fei Chun actually burst into loud wails and sobbed out his grievance: "You fight with the young master—so why do you always end up beating me? Aiyo, stop hitting me! Brave hero, spare my life!"

Fei Ruhe stood inside the pavilion and demanded, "Yes, why do you hit him?"

Zhao Han answered with righteous conviction, "You're hard to hit; he's easier. Of course I pick the soft persimmon to squeeze. Can't you figure that out yourself?"

It made such perfect sense that Fei Ruhe was left utterly speechless.

Fei Chun hugged his head and lay flat on the ground, shouting through the beating, "Young master, save me! This brute is going to beat me to death!"

Fei Ruhe, thinking with remarkable clarity, said, "If I go save you, he'll just run off again, circle the pavilion, and come back to beat you some more. Since you're getting beaten anyway, I might as well save my strength."

"The young master is brilliant—exactly the right reasoning!" Zhao Han exclaimed in admiration.

Fei Chun, beaten to the point of tears and snot, sobbed, "How about none of us hit anyone anymore, alright?"

"No!" Fei Ruhe immediately vetoed the proposal.

"The young master says no, and I obey the young master," Zhao Han said, continuing to punch and kick.

Fei Chun wailed, "Wuwuwu, young master, he listens to you—quick, tell him to stop! If this goes on I really will die."

Fei Ruhe's head was now throbbing painfully, and he had been worn completely out of any temper. He stamped his foot in frustration and said, "Stop fighting, stop fighting—cease at once!"

"I obey the young master." Zhao Han promptly helped Fei Chun up and, with the utmost solicitude, said, "Brother Fei Chun, where are you hurt? Shall I rub it for you?"

Fei Chun's face was already bruised and swollen. He forced out an ugly smile and said, "Many thanks for your concern, brother. I'm not hurting anywhere."

Zhao Han said cheerfully, "Young master, Fei Chun says he's not hurting anywhere. It seems I really do know how to hold back. After all, we're family brothers—can't damage the harmony. Next time we fight, I'll hit him just the same way."

"No more fighting, no more fighting, there won't be a next time," Fei Chun said hastily. "A fight brings acquaintance—from now on we're all good brothers."

Listening to his two study companions going back and forth, Fei Ruhe was now more amused than angry. He pointed at Zhao Han and said, "You're an interesting fellow—quite to this young master's taste. I'll take you on as my study companion."

Zhao Han instantly transformed into a shameless flatterer: "The young master possesses boundless strength and martial skill beyond compare—I too am filled with the deepest admiration!"

Fei Ruhe was extremely pleased by this. He laughed heartily and said, "Let's go, we'll amuse ourselves in the bamboo grove. I can see you've got some ability—from now on, you'll practice martial arts with me every day!"

Zhao Han pointed toward the classroom. "Young master, lessons are still in session in the study hall."

"What lessons?" Fei Ruhe said impatiently. "I've finally gotten out—would I walk right back into the trap?"

Zhao Han said, "Then I'll make a note of it: today the young master skipped class."

Fei Ruhe flew into a rage. "You're asking for a beating!"

Zhao Han pressed his lips together in a smile.

Fei Chun was so terrified he trembled. His face crumpled and he said, "Y-young… young master, let's just go study. Practicing martial arts tomorrow is soon enough."

(End of chapter)