Zhao Yuanhang raised his thumb and said, "Gao Liang! You really have it! Even that old stick-in-the-mud gave in—only three classes a week! That's awesome!" "Gao Liang! How about we practice playing the piano together sometime?" Li Tianpei extended the invitation. "I'd love to invite Gao Liang to play basketball with me!" Fan Weizhe also warmly offered. "I don't want to race with you anymore! Let's go out and meet girls—what's the saying? 'A man who isn't romantic is nothing!' " Zhao Yuanhang said with a bright smile. "NO, NO, NO!" Gao Liang shrugged and waved his hands, saying, "I'm not interested in any of these. Let's try something fresh and exciting—how about taekwondo?" "Taekwondo?" Zhao Yuanhang said, still a bit shaken by Gao Liang's shoulder throw the day before, "We three aren't really good at it!" "Shall we go to a taekwondo studio sometime and try it out? I'll teach you all—fully on my tab. How does that sound?" Gao Liang said "Great! Solid! Let's go!" Zhao Yuanhang, Fan Weizhe, Zuo Tianpei, and Gao Liang clapped hands in enthusiastic agreement. At the Tianwaiyou Tian Sports Hall, Gao Liang was teaching some fundamental taekwondo movements, while Zhao Yuanhang, Fan Weizhe, and Zuo Tianpei were all beginners and performed rather poorly, leaving Gao Liang quite frustrated. So he said, "You three team up and attack me together. If you can knock me to the ground, you win. Deal?" Zhao Yuanhang gave a subtle glance to Fan Weizhe and Zuo Tianpei, testing their coordination. The three formed a ring, encircling Gao Liang at the center. Zhao Yuanhang then shouted, "Onward!" As he spoke, the three launched their attacks—Zhao Yuanhang charged straight at Gao Liang with a solid punch to the head, Zuo Tianpei delivered a double palm push from behind, and Fan Weizhe executed a side kick from the side. Together, they aimed to subdue Gao Liang. Yet, Gao Liang proved remarkably agile—his head tilted slightly, deflecting Zhao Yuanhang's punch into At that moment, Lu Tianpei's dual palms and Fan Wei Ze's side kick arrived in succession, but Gao Huang had already planned his move. Steadying his footing, he lowered his entire body almost to the ground, nullifying their combined attack. The three of them collided head-on, growing furious and launching a coordinated assault against Gao Huang, who was nearly touching the floor. Yet Gao Huang moved a step ahead—before they even launched their attacks, he executed a standard taekwondo technique. For Zhao Yuanhang, he used the graceful and elegant shoulder throw, sending Zhao flying far away. Zhao's body soared through the air like a bird, landing over three zhang away. Fortunately, he landed on the sofa against the wall, and after the fall, he bounced up over a meter high, prompting Zhao to exclaim in surprise, "Oh my goodness!" He then collapsed onto the sofa, motionless, his face filled with astonishment. As for Fan Wei Ze, it was all handled with punches—strikes landed squarely on his abdomen. If Gao Liang had been a bit more lenient, Fan would have been in agony. Even with the gentle force, it was enough to make him clutch his stomach and moan in pain. For Zuo Tianpei, it was all about leg work—Gao delivered a powerful side kick that sent him soaring into the air, lifting him completely off the ground. After flying three zhang, he fortunately landed softly on a sofa against the wall, facing Zhao Yuanhao, their eyes wide with shock and fear. Both of them had their pants soaked with urine. But Gao Liang remained enthusiastic, feeling quite disappointed and unfairly treated. At that moment, a group of young people came to practice taekwondo—new apprentices of Gao Yong—tall, strong, and physically robust. So he said to them, "Either come one by one or all together. As long as you knock me down, I'll give each of you one thousand yuan—how about that?" The words truly worked. One of the leaders, a tall young man, replied, "I haven't had a match yet—I'll give it a try!" Immediately, he stepped up against Gao Liang, and the two engaged in a fierce contest right in the center of the arena, drawing a large crowd to watch. The tall young man was eager to win and had no knowledge of Gao Liang's background, so he inevitably lost every time. Gao Liang merely dodged and slipped, landing a single punch and a single kick, and within five seconds, the tall man lay on the ground, groaning in pain. "Come on! Whoever knocks me down gets one thousand yuan—I'm serious!" Gao Liang repeated his offer, but no one dared to step forward. Gao Liang raised his chips to 2,000, and immediately a strong, athletic young man stepped out from the crowd. Zhao Yuanhang, lounging on the sofa and clearly aware of the situation, smiled warmly at Tian Pei—this guy was truly stupid, completely willing to sacrifice himself for money. Fan Weizhe, still clutching his stomach, stuck out his tongue at the young man. The game began—the young man, though not as tall as the others, was noticeably more composed and adopted a defensive strategy, avoiding hasty attacks. This made Gao Liang feel increasingly anxious, so he launched his own attack. Unexpectedly, however, the young man suddenly ran off the stage, drawing loud laughter from the audience. A last-minute retreat—was that really what it meant to be a hero? Gao Liang sneered, thinking how unimpressive these junior opponents were as sparring partners. He then turned to the crowd and said, "Who wants to step in and train with me? I'll reward whoever takes the stage with 3,000 yuan!" Everyone was astonished, yet none dared to step forward. "Me!" A clear, bright female voice broke the quiet of the hall. People turned to see a young woman in a Taoist robe, her long, flowing hair coiled neatly at the back. Since she was facing away from the group, her true face remained hidden. When she turned around, Gao Liang and Zhao Yuanhang, who had been observing, were taken aback. "Ooh! The 'Poor Star'! How come it's you?" Gao Liang chuckled. "Unlucky one! I never expected it to be you!" Gao Ruolan and Gao Liang exchanged glances for three seconds, still tightly clutching their small pink fists. "You should go home! This kind of practice work isn't suited for you—after all, you're not even my match!" Gao Liang spoke with a look of disdain, making Gao Ruolan feel her jaw tighten. She had never encountered anyone speaking to her quite like this before. "Don't think you've got what it takes just because you've shown off—today, I'm not afraid of you at all!" Gao Ruolan clenched her pink fists again and said firmly, "Now, go on—make your move!" With that, High Guang didn't launch an attack—he simply didn't feel like fighting a mere woman. "Are you afraid?" High Ruolan said with disdain, and before High Guang could react, she surged forward with a powerful punch. High Guang was completely unprepared and was sent reeling, his eyes flashing gold stars. He growled, "You're really aggressive!" And then he responded. Yet Ruolan's taekwondo training wasn't in vain. Though she didn't prevail against High Guang, she wouldn't let him win in just a few exchanges. The two locked arms, pulling each other's shirts with growing intensity, neither yielding, drawing cheers and enthusiastic attention from the onlookers. High Guang also didn't intend to unleash his full repertoire—after all, if he truly fought, there would be no one left to compete. He had come today in high spirits and didn't want the encounter to become dull. So he called out loudly, "If anyone can knock me down, I'll reward them with five thousand! How about that?" "Wow! Five thousand!" The crowd erupted into frenzy, for these five thousand yuan precisely covered the annual tuition fee at Tianwai You Tian Taekwondo Academy. Gao Ruolan glanced disdainfully at the crowd—what a bunch of people who cared only about money! And how utterly ungrateful was Gao Liang, this unfortunate one, who thought that mere wealth would suffice. She released her grip on Gao Liang’s collar and said, “Boring!” “You’re the one who’s boring!” Gao Liang retorted, and loosened his hold on Gao Ruolan’s hand. Just as he did, however, his body was suddenly and forcefully pushed from behind, throwing him off balance. He crashed straight toward Gao Ruolan, who had no chance to defend herself and fell with him. Gao Liang’s entire body pressed heavily upon Gao Ruolan’s. This wasn’t the worst part—what truly mattered was that they ended up face-to-face, in close contact. Gao Liang’s lips pressed directly onto Gao Ruolan’s delicate, cherry-red lips, while the fullness of Gao Ruolan’s breasts was firmly pressed against the strength of Gao Liang’s body. A strong masculine scent washed over her, causing Gao Ruolan to breathe rapidly, her heart momentarily stopping, her mind going completely blank. At that very moment, Gao Liang also lost consciousness, only perceiving Gao Ruolan's soft, moist lips sliding against his, emitting a delicate jasmine fragrance that continuously flowed toward his own.