63: Taking in disciples

Taking in disciples

Qin Yan turned to Lu Yaran, "Are you satisfied now?" Qin Yan asked.1

Lu Yaran gritted her teeth.

Xi Yaohua's face twisted with regret. He couldn't believe that Qin Yan had turned so outstanding after his rejection. In front of Qin Yan, Qin Muran seemed somewhat dull.

Qin Muran felt Xi Yaohua's change of emotions and lowered her head. Her eyes flashed with hatred.

Qin Mufeng tried to soften the atmosphere, "Since Yan Yan is the topper this time, then this celebration is more needed. Don't you think so, Dad?"

Qin Yicheng nodded at Qin Mufeng's suggestion.

Qin Yan looked at the others and saw their hateful and regretful expressions. She did not want to spoil her remaining good mood so she said to Qin Mufeng, "Brother, let's celebrate next time. Today I am really tired. So, I'll excuse myself."

Qin Mufeng saw his sister's haggard state and nodded, "Okay, Yan Yan, you go and rest."

Qin Yan smiled at him and returned to her room.

After Qin Yan left, no one was in any mood to celebrate. So after some formal talk, everybody dispersed.

*

The next day, Qin Yan picked up her school bag and returned to the school for the evening self-study session.

"Big boss!" The break had just begun but Han Jun and his group was already in front of Qin Yan's desk, speaking passionately, "Big boss, now that we have fulfilled the condition of coming in top 100 of the grade, shouldn't you fulfill your promise as well?"

Qin Yan looked at the boys and sighed.

"Big boss, you've got to teach us some skills this time! We are ready!" the boys said with determination.

Qin Yan did not fend off the guys' request this time. Keeping her smile, she put on a stern expression. "You really want to learn from me?"

Hearing that Qin Yan was agreeing explicitly, the boys nodded without a second thought. "Yes, definitely!"

They had answered so quickly that it seemed as if they were afraid of Qin Yan regretting in the next second.

"Alright, I'll teach you." Qin Yan blinked, no longer wearing any hint of a smile.

She, Qin Yan, had never taken in a disciple whether it was her past life or the current one.

The boys had been calling her big boss all this time, but she had never reacted to it formally. Even when they acknowledged her as their master, she did not react.

Today, she wanted to make an exception.

There was a moment of silence from Qin Yan as a sense of belligerence slipped out of her. When she looked at Han Jun and the other three, her tone was strict without an inkling of humor. "As my disciples, I'll train you and make you an expert. Before it happens, you're not allowed to complain no matter how tiring and torturous it is. You can only swallow whatever exhaustion and suffering you go through!"

"You can refuse now if you're no longer up for it. If you quit halfway, I'll let you find out how close you are to death."

Qin Yan's briefing was not to crack a joke. She only wanted to announce a warning – Once they entered the business, there was no way out; even if they were on the brink of death, they would have to finish themselves.

Furthermore, as her disciples, they would have no right to stand on the same frontline as she did if they could not even take a little hardship.

She would never take in incapable weaklings!

As the guys listened to Qin Yan, their eyelids kept throbbing. They knew that Qin Yan was someone who wouldn't go back on her word.

Nonetheless, they clenched their fists, looked at each other and told Qin Yan resolutely. "We can do it!"

"Good." Qin Yan smiled and told them, "I'll see you in the field at four in the morning tomorrow then."

"Huh? Four?" the boys were dumbstruck.

The sun had not even risen yet at four in the morning.

Qin Yan sent a glare to the boys, causing them to shut up immediately.

*

The next morning.

A slight breeze rustled the leaves making them fall to the solid ground one by one. The sun was beginning to rise, waking the tired sleepers.

One could hear the chirping of the birds, parrots and pigeons were flying from one branch of a tree to another. 

Qin Yan was training the boys in the field. They had no foundation of a martial artist but Han Jun was rather flexible, seemingly from his training in judo and taekwondo.

Qin Yan made them run around the field. She was not training them to become professional fighters.

She only wanted them to become someone who could defend themselves and counter-kill an attacking enemy if they were to be pursued by any.

After the drill in the morning, the boys were thoroughly worn out but they kept their previous promise, not a word of grumble was heard.

All of them left the field to go to the classroom only when it was ten minutes to six.

*

The first lecture was to be delivered by the homeroom teacher, Wang Zhongyan.

Teacher Wang entered the class and started teaching as usual. When it was 15 minutes before the lecture was to be over, he stopped.

"Students, I have something to announce," Wang Zhongyan uttered loudly.

All the students of Class Four looked at him with face full of questions.

Wang Zhongyan cleared his throat and announced, "A month later, National Brain Challenge will be held in Beijing University. Almost all the prestigious schools of the country participate in this challenge."

He continued, "Everybody else of Grade 12 knows about this competition, but since you all were uninterested in studies until now, I didn't announce it in class. Moreover, the school also didn't consider our class for participation in this competition."

"But since this term, your results have shot up and Qin Yan has secured full marks in mid-term examination, the school has specially proposed for Qin Yan to participate in this competition."

"Also all the students who were placed in top ten of the grade will go to Beijing next month for the competition. This includes three from our class, Qin Yan, Qiao Qing and Han Jun."

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