Tang Guihua started the car and slowly took to the road, heading towards Hongyun Town.
After getting off at Tang Guihua's door, Luo Yang took Hong Jiaxin back home for a quick visit to bring the clothes they bought for his brother and parents and also to securely put away a backpack full of money.
He hadn't yet opened a bank account, so during the day, he could only carry cash with him when going out.
Back at home, after chatting with his family, he learned that the four new fish ponds had been dug out and would soon be ready for raising fish. However, the problem of diverting water from the river hadn't been solved, and the ponds would dry up in winter.
After a short stay at home, Luo Yang again took Hong Jiaxin to Tang Guihua's house.
The bathtubs purchased in the county town had already been delivered, right to Tang Guihua's house, two of them in total; one for Tang Guihua, and the other for An Yuying. An Yuying's bathtub would be placed at Qin Piao's house, and Luo Yang still needed to carry it back himself.
When Tang Family heard that Luo Yang had helped to get the tea shop back, they were extremely pleased, treating him like a great benefactor. They offered him both tea and cigarettes, showing him the utmost hospitality.
There was just one detail that Tang Guihua didn't tell her family about—that Lin Guofa was very likely seeking revenge against her and her little brother. She kept silent about it to avoid frightening her parents.
While everyone was chatting in the living room, Tang Guihua called Tang Dexing into the room and whispered, "I've talked it over with Niu Zai, you should go and apprentice under him."
Tang Dexing was surprised and said, "Sister, I haven't considered apprenticing under him yet."
For one, he usually lived in the county town and wasn't aware of Luo Yang's extraordinary skills, and secondly, he was slightly older than Luo Yang, and he felt it might be somewhat embarrassing to take Luo Yang as his master.
"I told you to do it, just do it." Tang Guihua urged.
"Sister, it seems to me that you and he might be..." Tang Dexing smiled mysteriously. "Could it be that you two are... and he will become my brother-in-law?"
At this, Tang Guihua's pretty face blushed.
"Without him, not to mention not getting the tea shop back, that usurious loan alone would have been enough to make us cry." She spoke seriously.
"Sister, you've always been very picky when it comes to choosing a boyfriend. Have you really decided on Niu Zai..." Tang Dexing was just curious and wanted to clear things up.
"What's wrong? He is much more capable than you are."
As she spoke, Tang Guihua also recounted how they had beaten up Lin Guofa at the bar's doorstep.
After hearing this, Tang Dexing realized the situation was quite serious; Lin Guofa could seek revenge on them anytime when they were out, and he couldn't help but worry.
"If you apprentice under Niu Zai and can learn his skills, you won't need to fear Lin Guofa. Niu Zai made an exception for me; otherwise, he wouldn't have agreed to accept you as a disciple so easily." Tang Guihua said earnestly.
"Sister, I'll listen to you and apprentice under him. But sister, should I call him brother-in-law in the future?" Tang Dexing asked for guidance.
At his words, Tang Guihua's pretty face turned even redder.
...
...
After the siblings had discussed it, Tang Dexing went out to pay his respects to Luo Yang as his new master. The ceremony was simple; Tang Dexing poured half a cup of white wine and knelt down to offer it, and Luo Yang accepted it.
After staying for more than half an hour at Tang Family's home, Luo Yang carried the bathtub to Qin Piao's house.
It was only when he saw Luo Yang single-handedly lift the bathtub, almost 200 pounds in weight, that Tang Dexing realized he truly had genuine skills.
Luo Yang carried the bathtub to Qin Piao's house without breaking a sweat or turning red; he did it with ease, as if the bathtub were made of paper and effortlessly lifted.
Ever since True Qi was present in his body, Luo Yang could easily lift objects weighing two or three hundred pounds.
Since Qin Piao's bathroom could not accommodate the large bathtub, it had to be placed outside the bathroom door. Hong Jiaxin's bathtub was smaller but still could not fit in the bathroom.
Luo Yang asked, "Do you have a big pot to boil Traditional Chinese Medicine in?"
Qin Piao laughed and said, "Yes."
As she spoke, she took out a large aluminum pot from the kitchen which was about 40 centimeters in diameter and 25 centimeters high, enough for boiling Traditional Chinese Medicine. Enough for one person at a time.
Hong Jiaxin, eager to see the effects of a medicinal herb bath, volunteered to be the first one to boil the Traditional Chinese Medicine. It would take at least half an hour before the water boiled and was ready for a bath.
All three beauties wanted to take a medicinal bath, which meant they would be busy for an entire evening.
Tomorrow was Sunday, and An Yuying didn't have to work. Qin Piao had already quit her job at Zhu Li's. She didn't have to work at the bar the next evening, so staying up late and sleeping during the day was not out of the question.
They put the Traditional Chinese Medicine into the aluminum pot, filled it with water, and heated it on a coal stove.
Afterwards, Luo Yang went upstairs to read. There was a new big bag of books, including both arts and sciences. He picked one up at random and opened it to read intently. He didn't need to understand it; he just memorized the content in his mind first.
As a perennial underachiever in school, this was a universal impression.
The three beauties saw Luo Yang looking seriously at his books and couldn't help but giggle. Especially Hong Jiaxin, a genuine academic top student, couldn't help but ask when she saw Luo Yang flipping through the pages quickly.
"Luo Yang, are you really reading or just pretending?" Hong Jiaxin laughed.
"Class President, of course I'm really reading. When I finish these books, I'll tutor you. I guarantee you'll get great scores," Luo Yang said confidently.
At this, all three beauties burst into laughter.
An underachiever tutoring a top student was something unprecedented in history.
Hong Jiaxin roughly knew Luo Yang had a good memory, but she didn't realize his memory was frightfully powerful. Being able to read ten lines at a glance and never forgetting what he saw was Luo Yang's ability.