The two old men seemed to be vying for Li Se's favor, neither willing to yield.
Qiao Guohua was speechless, but he had no objections to what his grandfather said. This was good; at least his relationship with Li Se had become closer.
Towards the end, Wei San even brought out his granddaughter, proudly stating, "I have a granddaughter too, and I think she'd be a great match for Brother Li!"
"Oh, you're shameless and dishonorable, not upholding martial virtue!" Old Man Qiao became a bit angry. He looked at Qiao Guohua and said, "Guohua, go call my granddaughter here!"
Qiao Guohua: "..."
Yalan: "..."
Even Li Se was a little speechless.
Wei Xueru, however, blushed deeply, secretly glancing at Li Se, her heart beating a little faster.
Seeing them confront each other, Old Man Huang was full of disdain. He whistled to himself, thinking that the relationship between his granddaughter and Li Se was progressing very quickly. They were a step behind. But he wouldn't say anything, let them argue.
After Li Se's acupuncture treatment, Old Man Qiao was able to get out of bed. They sat down and had some drinks. Old Man Huang excused himself, as he still had matters to attend to at the Traditional Chinese Medicine Hall.
After a few rounds of drinks, Li Se prepared to take his leave.
"Xueru, see Brother Li off," Wei San busied himself pushing his granddaughter forward.
Wei Xueru was a little shy but followed Li Se out.
Old Man Qiao's eyebrows shot up. He secretly decided to have his granddaughter visit Qingyun City.
As they walked, Li Se noticed the girl kept following him. She was, after all, Wei San's granddaughter, a young lady of status in the outside world. It felt a bit awkward to have her follow him like this, so he said, "Actually, you can go back now."
"You... you think I'm a bother?" Wei Xueru looked a little sad.
"That's not what I meant." Li Se touched his nose and quickly added, "You're a young lady of status. It's a bit of a compromise for you to follow me like this. Besides, you don't need to pay too much attention to your grandfather's words. And I already have a girlfriend."
"You have a girlfriend?" Wei Xueru felt a pang of turmoil. She recalled the beautiful girl she met for the first time. However, outwardly, she maintained a calm demeanor. "She must be very beautiful, right?"
"Yes, very beautiful," Li Se nodded.
Wei Xueru's expression dimmed for a moment, but then the sadness vanished, replaced by a smile. "You don't need to worry too much. We're friends, aren't we?"
"Yes, friends." Li Se let out a sigh of relief. The scene of Wei San and Old Man Qiao arguing had put a lot of pressure on him. He was worried that Wei Xueru was following him out of obligation due to Wei San's words.
Just then, a very handsome sports car drifted to a halt not far from Li Se and Wei Xueru. A very dashing young man stepped out of the car, dressed in a suit, wearing glasses, and holding flowers. He walked towards them.
Upon seeing the young man, Wei Xueru immediately took Li Se's arm and said with a blush, "Pretend you're my boyfriend."
Li Se touched his nose. Alright, he was to be the shield.
"Xueru, who is this?" The young man's brows furrowed slightly upon seeing Li Se, but he maintained a smile.
"My boyfriend, Li Se," Wei Xueru introduced naturally.
"Xueru, I haven't heard you mention having a boyfriend before," the young man maintained his smile.
"Aren't I telling you now?" Wei Xueru replied.
"Xueru, would you introduce me?" Li Se played along cooperatively, putting his arm around Wei Xueru's slender waist and speaking in a gentle tone.
Wei Xueru's face flushed red. "This is Lin Tianrui, the young master of our city's Tianhe Group."
Li Se was surprised. The Tianhe Group was a well-known entertainment company in Qingyun City, having produced many celebrities. He nodded politely, "Hello."
"Hello!" Lin Tianrui still wore a smile and shook Li Se's hand. "Where do you work?"
"Nowhere special, just an ordinary person," Li Se said casually.
Lin Tianrui was taken aback. He had thought Li Se might be a rich young master, but he turned out to be an ordinary person. However, it didn't matter to him. He smiled and said, "In that case, please step away from Xueru."
"Why?" Li Se narrowed his eyes. This guy had been smiling from beginning to end, but it was an uncomfortable smile, indicating that this man was deep and, the more so, the more ruthless he would be.
"Because I like Xueru," Lin Tianrui said with a smile.
"Lin Tianrui, I don't like you!" Wei Xueru frowned. She disliked Lin Tianrui's overbearing nature. He appeared gentle and refined, but he was extremely domineering in his actions and exuded a tough demeanor. She not only disliked such a man but even found him somewhat detestable.
"Did you hear that? My girlfriend doesn't like you, so I won't be leaving," Li Se said, even stealing a kiss on Wei Xueru's cheek. "It's simple for me to leave, unless Xueru asks me to."
This sudden kiss made Wei Xueru's face flush bright red again, and her heart pounded faster.
A flicker of gloom finally flashed in Lin Tianrui's eyes.
"Stop pretending," Li Se glanced at Lin Tianrui. "Isn't it tiring to act like this? You clearly want to make a move, yet you maintain a smiling face. Why bother?"
Despite Li Se's words, Lin Tianrui maintained his smile, but his eyes began to gleam with coldness. He said, "Leave Xueru!"
He repeated the same words, but this time, it was like a command, unquestionable.
"Scram!" Li Se spat out a single word.
Lin Tianrui suddenly threw a punch. His fist moved with astonishing speed, appearing before Li Se in the blink of an eye.
Bang!
Li Se's reaction speed was equally rapid. He met the punch with his own. As their fists collided, a muffled thud echoed in the air.
Lin Tianrui stumbled back dozens of steps, while Li Se remained completely still.
A single exchange of blows had already determined the victor.
Lin Tianrui was somewhat surprised and couldn't help but size up Li Se. He didn't say much, turned, got back into his sports car, and left.
"Li Se, you're so amazing!" Wei Xueru exclaimed in surprise. "Do you know, this Lin Tianrui trained in a military camp? Although he was never officially a soldier, his strength is quite formidable. He was completely defeated in a contest of strength against you!"
Li Se smiled and said, "It was just a bit of clever technique."
In terms of pure strength, Li Se was indeed inferior to Lin Tianrui. However, he had practiced Qi cultivation techniques and, combined with his frequent medicinal baths and training during this period, the power unleashed through Qi cultivation was something Lin Tianrui could not possibly match.