Beauty and the Bodyguard

Lin Yi had always thought of the Art of Dragon Mastery solely as something that made his body stronger, something for the betterment of his self- he’d never considered the possibility that it allowed him to provide restorative effects to others.

Lin Yi wasn’t about to doubt Yazi’s words- that had to be the case if even the guy in the jade said it.

He took a deep breath as he pressed his right hand precisely on the old man’s dun point, starting the Art of Dragon Mastery chant…..

The energy within Lin Yi seeped out, and a sudden flow of packed energy streamed into the old man’s body through his dun point.

Lin Yi was taken aback at the amount of energy the man was sucking in- was this one of those life absorbing techniques from wuxia novels? The old man’s dun point was pulling at Lin Yi’s energy so much that his heart darkened; Lin Yi couldn’t help but feel his energy leaving his body rapidly.

Although, the energy the old man’s body was taking didn’t amount to anything when compared to Lin Yi’s total energy reserves. The energy he’d lost was like a hair off a bull’s back- insignificant.

The old man, on the other hand, seemed to be regaining a stronger heartbeat, and the white paling his face faded as well. It took but a while before the old man was breathing slowly and stably again.

“That’s it?” Lin Yi never expected his training to yield restorative effects this powerful.

“You dreaming, Mister Lin Yi? You’ve just restored him to his regular state- you’d have to be at least on the third or fourth stage to cure his disease completely! I did some research on the Art of Dragon Mastery, too: it’s merely for the strengthening and betterment of the body, that’s it! Don’t start thinking you can cure any illnesses now!” Yazi said in Lin Yi’s mind.

_So that’s how it is!_ Lin Yi, however, wasn’t startled or disappointment at the realization at all- it seemed from Yazi’s words that he’d be something like a god at the late stages, especially taking into consideration the things he was already capable of at the first stage!

“Darling, look! Your dad’s looking better now, he’s really better now! His breathing’s normal now, too!!” Huiru exclaimed excitedly as she pointed at the old man on the ground.

“Hmph!!” Tianyi pushed his wife to the side, still very pissed at her. The woman was yelling at Lin Yi just a while ago- people say women change their faces (attitudes) faster than they could turn the pages of a book, and his wife was the most classic case of that stereotype. “How’s my dad, young man?”

“He should be fine, for the most part.” Lin Yi said faintly. “He shouldn’t need to visit the hospital anymore- I reckon he’ll be awake a bit later.”

“Really? Thank you, friend! Thank you!!” Tianyi said sincerely as he exhaled in relief. His father would’ve probably been dead if Lin Yi hadn’t turned up……

Tianyi didn’t even dare to touch the old man when he had first collapsed- he didn’t want to worsen his condition in any way before the ambulance arrived. Lin Yi had given the okay after saving him, however, and Tianyi wasted no time in bending down to his father, intending to pick the old man up.

The old man opened his eyes at that moment, his voice hoarse and faint at the same time as he spoke. “Help me up……”

“Dad! Let me!” Huiru said sweetly as she walked over and reached a hand out towards the old man.

Unexpectedly, however, the old man flung the woman’s hand aside with a cold hmph. He’d collapsed onto the floor, but he still had some level of consciousness left in him during the whole ordeal- he’d heard the attitude this woman put on display, even going as far as framing someone else!! The old man thought of that behaviour as extremely despicable.

“Dad, I……” Huiru blinked in shock, and was about to say something else when Tianyi shot a glare her way.

“Dad, what do you need?” Tianyi asked as he got his father off the ground, only to see that his old man was trying to walk over to where Lin Yi was.

“Help me over there to the little boy- I want to thank him!!” The old man said, evidently aware of who’d been responsible for saving his life.

The old man’s passion touched Lin Yi, and he found himself taking a liking to the man instantly. He didn’t mind the guy calling him little boy in the slightest- he was probably as old as Old Lin back home, and calling Lin Yi a little boy wasn’t out of place at all.

“It’s fine, mister. I just happened to pass by.” Lin Yi said with a smile.

“I see, I see!” The man was looking a lot healthier than before already- angina pectoris wasn’t a long lasting illness, after all. “You’ve saved this old man here today, and I won’t forget that. Tianyi, get the humble boy’s phone number, we must make sure to repay him!!”

“Sure thing, dad.” Liu Tianyi said as he turned to Lin Yi- Lin Yi had heard the old man’s words already, and there was no need for him to be repeating anything.

“It’s okay, I don’t need any repayment- just letting my friend leave is fine.” Lin Yi said faintly, evidently not caring much for rewards; he was a youth with a high salary, after all, and money wasn’t really an issue at the moment. He’d helped the guy to let Xinyan off the hook, too, in the first place.

Tianyi’s face reddened once more upon hearing the words- he shot a furious glare at Huiru before turning back to Lin Yi. “I really do apologize, my friend… Don’t put yourself at the same level with my wife, this thing had nothing to do with your friend in the first place. She can leave anytime she wants.”

“Haha…” Lin Yi smiled in response before turning to the old man. “Well, I’ll be taking my leave then, mister! Don’t worry about a reward or anything, it’s fine- Take care of yourself!”

“I understand, kid, I understand.” The old man said, clearly very approving of Lin Yi. “I can see you’re not someone who lacks money, judging from the car your little girlfriend there drives- it’s fine, I’ll do this. Tianyi, give my phone number to this young man here! Kid, do give me a call if you ever visit Yanjing on holiday- I’ll greet you personally!”

“Ah, sure!” Lin Yi nodded, not intending to stubbornly reject the old man’s good intentions. As for Yanjing…… He’d been there before, yes, but not on holiday… Did he even have time to be touring other cities, even?

Tianyi, on the other hand, was quite stunned at the old man’s attitude- his father was never one to warm up to people this easily, especially a random kid they’d just met a couple moments ago! The guy did save his life, but still… His dad had said the words, however, and Tianyi wasn’t about to make any objections. He pulled out his own business card before writing his father’s phone number down on it, handing it to Lin Yi in one gesture.

Lin Yi took over the card and slipped it into his pocket without looking too closely at it. The old guy didn’t seem to mind, but Tianyi seemed to be shaking his head internally. After all, there were hordes of people who’d wished to get their hands on that number.

An ambulance sounded not too far away- it’d been only twenty minutes since the whole thing had started- it wasn’t slow at all, especially when it was a business district it had to drive into.

“Dad, the ambulance’s here- should we go for a checkup?” Tianyi said carefully after hearing the siren.

“Why would I do that when I’m all recovered?” The old man rejected swiftly. “I know my body best- the hospital isn’t gonna do me any good.”

*[Long Taos]: side characters in Chinese operas who perform acrobatics and fight scenes

*[12.47 to 13.07]: don't ask me about the tree sap