In the evening, in the bedroom!
Chen Shouyi moved like a spring, his muscles tensed as one, his steps light as if treading on air, darting forward and backward, left and right. He thrust his sword to the left, then to the right; each strike was fluid and graceful, exuding a unique charm with a peculiar sense of beauty.
His hand was precise and steady, the sword thrusting out like a bullet from a barrel, with his muscles rippling like waves at every strike.
The sword tip pierced through the air, producing a dense sizzling sound.
This was the result of his learning at the tutoring class this month. With increasing proficiency in various forms of sword thrusts, coupled with his gradually refined footwork, his swordsmanship had begun to show its prowess.
This was apparent as his swordsmanship advanced from beginner (proficient 3), which could already be seen to some extent.
At this moment, he suddenly halted from his rapid movements.
He listened intently for a moment, quickly put the wooden sword aside, then promptly sat at the desk, pretending to study a reference book seriously.
Soon, he heard the increasingly clear sound of his parents' footsteps on the stairs.
Then Chen Shouyi heard the door of his sister's room across the hall open.
"Mom, I'm going to the Martial Arts Assessment Center for a test tomorrow!"
Chen Shouyi's ears immediately perked up!
"Why didn't you mention such an important thing earlier? We'll go with you tomorrow," Chen Dawei said excitedly.
"Dad, you don't have to. You guys stick to your plans; my classmate will go with me, and you going would just make me nervous."
"Boy or girl?" Mrs. Chen asked with a hint of caution.
"Mum! Of course it's a girl," Chen Xingyue said coquettishly.
"That won't do, either. You kids wouldn't know how to handle it if something happened. Let your brother go with you, for safety's sake," Mrs. Chen suggested.
Over the past month, Chen Shouyi had changed a lot, becoming increasingly mature and composed, leaving Mrs. Chen more or less reassured.
She then knocked on Chen Shouyi's bedroom door: "Shouyi, come out for a moment."
"Mom, what's up?" Chen Shouyi feigned a puzzled expression.
"Your sister is going for a martial arts assessment tomorrow, accompany her," Mrs. Chen said without suspecting anything. "I'll transfer you five hundred yuan later; you can eat out."
Chen Shouyi glanced at Chen Xingyue, who wore a vaguely disdainful look on her otherwise expressionless face, clearly unwilling to go with him, which stung him slightly, though he didn't show it. "Alright, Mom, I got it," he agreed.
...
The next morning, after finishing his morning exercises in the bedroom, he took a refreshing shower in the bathroom.
As soon as he returned and got dressed, his sister Chen Xingyue burst in in a hurry.
"I knew it," Chen Xingyue said, arms crossed, looking unsurprised: "Are you really going out dressed like that?"
Chen Shouyi glanced at his large shorts and sandals, then at his T-shirt, puzzled, "These were new from Mom just a week ago; I've only worn them once."
This past month, Chen Shouyi grew rapidly stronger, and his old clothes became tight. So last week, Mrs. Chen bought him several sets of clothes from a nearby shop.
"Bro, I'm telling you, with such a sense of style, you'll never find a girlfriend," Chen Xingyue said disdainfully.
Chen Shouyi immediately caught on, "In this heat, you want me to wear a shirt and pants for the sake of appearance? Besides, Mom bought these clothes. Be careful, or I'll tell her."
Chen Xingyue was exasperated, "This outfit is fine for home or a casual outing, but we're going to the Martial Arts Assessment Center. Are you seriously going to dress so casually for such a formal occasion?
I have close friends coming along. When I introduce you as my brother, you might not care, but it's embarrassing for me."
Chen Shouyi's face reddened slightly, but he maintained his composure in front of his sister, "Fine, fine, you choose for me. I'm not fussed."
Chen Xingyue breathed a sigh of relief, finally persuading her stubborn brother.
She immediately opened the wardrobe and soon picked out a pair of sky-blue cropped jeans, along with some faded sneakers. "Put these on."
Being siblings, Chen Shouyi felt no bashfulness with his sister around. He just turned his back, swapped the large shorts for jeans, and put on the sneakers.
Chen Xingyue scrutinized him from head to toe for a good ten seconds before sighing softly, "Your hair... Forget it, there's no time. This will have to do; I didn't have high hopes anyway."
Chen Shouyi felt disgruntled, glancing in the bathroom mirror as his sister pointed it out, noticing his hair had indeed grown a bit long.
...
After breakfast, they took a taxi and arrived at the Martial Arts Assessment Center's entrance within ten minutes.
"Xingyue, over here, over here!"
As soon as Chen Shouyi stepped out, two waiting girls cheerfully called out.
"Didn't I say 8 AM? Why are you here so early?"
"We just arrived shortly!" said a fair-skinned girl in a pink-gray floral dress, smiling softly: "We were having breakfast nearby and decided to drop by."
"Xingyue, you're amazing. If you pass this time, you'll be the first in our class. Can't wait to see Xia Feifei's face; she'll be so unhappy," chirped the other girl, her energy vibrant in a short-sleeve top and shorts.
By then, Chen Shouyi had paid the fare and joined them. Chen Xingyue's face showed a hint of embarrassment, quickly whispering, "Stop it; I'm with my brother!"
"This is my brother, Chen Shouyi," Chen Xingyue introduced as he approached, "These are my close friends, Lu Shuyuan and Zhang Qianru."
"Hello, Brother Shouyi!" cried Lu Shuyuan, the girl in the pink-gray dress, in a crisp voice.
Zhang Qianru covered her mouth to stifle a laugh, echoing the greeting moments later.
The greetings made Chen Shouyi's hair stand on end.
Seeing him momentarily lost, Chen Xingyue silently cursed, pinching him quickly.
"Oh, hi, junior sisters!" Chen Shouyi snapped back to reality, quickly waving in greeting as the pain from his waist awoke him.
Zhang Qianru and Lu Shuyuan exchanged knowing glances, stifling a laugh.
Watching her brother flustered in front of her friends made Chen Xingyue slightly embarrassed. She wiped her smooth forehead, pretending nonchalance, and changed the subject, "It's getting hot outside; let's go in."
The Martial Arts Assessment Center was a five-story building, and the quartet eagerly entered the hall.
Since the Martial Arts Apprentice assessment occurred only once a month, despite the test being half an hour away, inside already stretched a long line.
There were those accompanied by parents, others with friends, and, of course, some alone.
Chen Shouyi's eyesight had improved considerably, allowing him to roughly distinguish the assessors from the companions.
He noticed the examiners were mostly older, many over thirty, while youngsters like him were less than a quarter. For children his sister's age, there were barely two or three, quite rare.
"I'll queue up; you take a rest, don't affect your state," Chen Shouyi said.
In front of Chen Shouyi, the girls appeared well-behaved, but as soon as he left, they began chatting animatedly.
"Xingyue, your brother is so nice, I envy having a brother like that."
"Actually, he's okay!" Chen Xingyue forced a laugh, "He just nags a lot, which sometimes annoys me."
This prompted more admiration from her companions.
Inside, she grumbled to herself: If only you had a brother, you wouldn't think that way.
In childhood, he often bullied her due to being older, something she remembered clearly.
"Does your brother also go to high school?" Lu Shuyuan asked curiously, eyes wide.
"Yes, he's in the third year."
"Which high school?"
"What, you've taken a fancy to my brother?" Chen Xingyue teased, unwilling to answer, feeling awkward about his school.
In Dongning City, there are eight high schools. The first is a provincial key, the fourth and third are somewhat lesser but adequate. The rest, including the fifth where Chen Shouyi attends, are pretty much trash schools.
Lu Shuyuan's fair cheeks flushed, "I just wanted to know him a bit, but since you're so awesome, your brother must be impressive too, right?"
"Yes, yes!" Zhang Qianru, full of spirit, chimed in, "We're all best friends, so your brother's our brother too."
Chen Xingyue wanted to earn some face for her brother, but thought it best not to, as it could easily be exposed:
"His grades… aren't that great. He attends the fifth school. But he works really hard, studying late into the night."
ps: Please give a recommendation.