"Huh?" Shangguan Bei was stunned. "Stand up? How could I possibly stand up?"
Lu Chen elegantly retorted, "How do you know you can't stand up if you don't try?"
"Okay!" Shangguan Bei bit her lower lip, bracing herself on the sofa with her hands, trying to use her waist strength to move her legs down first. This wasn't difficult; her waist had enough strength.
However, Lu Chen slapped her hands away, saying calmly, "No, you can't do it like that. You have to rely on the strength of your legs. If you twist your waist, that's cheating!"
Shangguan Bei gritted her teeth, stopped her waist movements, and strained to move her legs to the ground. However, although her legs had regained some strength, they were almost completely immobile.
No matter how hard Shangguan Bei tried, her toes would only twitch a few times. But this was already quite an achievement; before the treatment began, her toes couldn't move at all.
"It's really impossible!" Shangguan Bei looked at Lu Chen, tears welling in her beautiful eyes.
Lu Chen, however, remained unmoved, saying calmly, "This is one of your training exercises for today. If you can't move your legs off the table and onto the floor, then you're not allowed to eat, shower, or sleep! Anyway, as long as I have time, I'll stay here with you until you can move them."
His words were firm and resolute, making it clear to Shangguan Bei that she couldn't disobey.
She could only bite her lower lip, enduring immense grievance, and desperately try to move her legs.
Little by little, with each effort, Shangguan Bei miraculously discovered that her legs were slowly moving to the edge of the table. She was both surprised and delighted, and couldn't help but look at Lu Chen.
Just now, her eyes had held a hint of resentment, as if Lu Chen was just torturing her, but now, it was clear that wasn't the case. Right, Brother Chen must be doing this for her own good; why would he be torturing her like this?
Two slender, white legs were almost touching the ground.
Lu Chen watched, a smile playing on his lips.
He saw that Shangguan Bei was drenched in sweat, as if she had just been pulled from the water. Her clothes clung to her curves, making her appear even more alluring. Especially her delicate face, which was covered in beads of sweat.
He felt a pang of sympathy, grabbed a few tissues, and reached out to wipe the sweat from Shangguan Bei's forehead and face.
Shangguan Bei looked at him sweetly, "Brother Chen, thank you."
"It's good that you don't blame me."
Lu Chen scratched his head and said earnestly, "Whether it's soaking you in medicinal water, applying ointment, or giving you a massage, it's all using external force to open your blood vessels. The most important thing isn't these; they only serve as a guide. The most important thing is the power you generate yourself—that's the source."
"Only when your source energy is activated can it continuously provide sufficient blood and qi circulation to your opened meridians. Otherwise, what's the use of relying on external force to open them? You can't rely on external force for your whole life. Besides, this is also the key to helping you break through your psychological barriers, letting you know that you can move forward, and ultimately, to truly move forward!"
Shangguan Bei listened, her face full of faith and admiration.
She said sincerely, "Brother Chen, you're amazing! You're the best man I've ever met!"
Lu Chen chuckled, although he felt a little undeserving inside, his outward expression was: Oh well, I'm just that amazing!
Thinking about it, he shouldn't feel guilty. If it weren't for him, his supernatural healing abilities wouldn't have had a chance to shine!
He gave Shangguan Bei two thumbs up: "You're great too! Keep going, you're almost there!"
"Okay, I'll do it!" Shangguan Bei shouted. With that shout, she simultaneously pushed her legs outwards. With a soft thud, her feet touched the ground.
Instantly, Shangguan Bei yelled, "I did it!"
Her face flushed with excitement, and she looked at Lu Chen with elation: "Brother Chen, I did it! I did it!"
As she spoke, she turned to the side, transforming into a gentle, adorable little bird, and flew into Lu Chen's arms. Her body trembled. Clearly, she was incredibly excited.
Lu Chen smiled happily, but he calmly pushed Shangguan Bei away. He said sternly, "This is only the first step. Next, you need to take the second step, which is to stand up. And then, the third step is to walk!"
Shangguan Bei stuck out her tongue. "This task seems so difficult, Brother Chen. Can I rest for a while?"
"No!" Lu Chen's face hardened again, and he said, enunciating each word clearly, "Strike while the iron is hot!"
Shangguan Bei stuck out her tongue. "Okay, I'll listen to Brother Chen."
Then, she used her hands to support herself on the sofa, mostly relying on the strength of her legs to stand up. She did manage to stand up, but she couldn't straighten her legs before she plopped back down.
Just like a toddler learning to walk.
"No, I'm so tired..." Shangguan Bei was almost crying again. "Brother Chen, just let me rest for a bit."
Lu Chen said seriously, "Training is cruel, Bei Bei. Now is the time to take advantage of your high energy and push forward in one go. You must have perseverance, otherwise, even if you don't give up completely, you'll definitely fall back several steps. You should feel very tired now, but there's a warm current flowing through your legs, right? Keep going!"
"Okay!" Shangguan Bei gritted her teeth and straightened up forcefully.
A miracle happened again. This time, Shangguan Bei really straightened up completely, both legs upright. But then, she swayed a few times, lost her balance, and fell forward.
Luckily, the ground was covered with a soft carpet, so the fall wasn't too serious. However, her little pert bottom was raised high, making Lu Chen's heart itch, and he couldn't help but reach out and pat it.
"Come on, keep going, you're almost done with the second step!" he encouraged.
Shangguan Bei's heart pounded after being spanked, a sweet feeling welling up inside her. Gritting her teeth, she braced herself against the carpet and the nearby coffee table, and slowly, actually managed to stand up.
She really stood up!
Although her legs trembled, she had finally stood up. Shangguan Bei was overjoyed, on the verge of tears, but quickly covered her mouth, managing to calm herself.
She turned to Lu Chen, excitedly exclaiming, "Brother Chen, I really stood up!"
Lu Chen said calmly, "Of course, I knew you could stand up. I believed in you, and I believed you could walk out of there. Come on, now it's the third step, take your first step after all these years!"
Shangguan Bei looked back, glancing ahead, and felt a pang of guilt. "I...I'm afraid I really can't. Brother Chen, my legs are trembling so much, I'm afraid I'll fall."
As she spoke, her legs trembled even more violently, her body involuntarily leaning forward, her hands reaching out as if to squat down. However, Lu Chen immediately shouted, "Go for it! Even just two steps will do! Hurry!"
Shangguan Bei had developed a habit of obeying Lu Chen. Hearing his shout, she, who was about to collapse, suddenly found the courage to straighten up and take a step forward with her left foot.
It was actually half a step, but it was already quite an achievement.
"Good, Bei Bei is great! Second step, hurry up and take it!" Lu Chen clapped his hands and shouted.
Shangguan Bei seemed to have received tremendous encouragement. She gritted her teeth and suddenly took a large half-step, several centimeters longer than her previous step.
But she couldn't hold on any longer; her legs felt as weak as dough.
With a thud, she collapsed onto the carpet, panting heavily. Large beads of sweat clung to her rosy cheeks.
Her heart pounded like a drum, and for a few seconds, she felt as if she had fainted. When she came to her senses, she saw a thumb standing straight up, close to her face.
Shangguan Bei slowly reached out a hand and grasped that thumb tightly. She moved it to the side, revealing a smiling face.
That face made her feel incredibly warm, comfortable, and comforted.
But for some reason, her nose stung, and she burst into tears.
The person smiling at her was, of course, Lu Chen. He had already walked to Shangguan Bei's side and knelt down beside her. He wasn't surprised at all that Shangguan Bei was crying so hard. She hadn't walked for years, confined to a wheelchair, and had seen countless doctors, but had never been cured.
And now, after more than a week of treatment, she could actually walk!
Shangguan Bei cried, gripping Lu Chen's thumb tightly. She gripped it so tightly that Lu Chen felt a little pain. He chuckled, stroking Shangguan Bei's head, saying, "Cry, cry! Anyway, these three steps are done, we can take a break for now. Use the rest of your energy to cry. All treatments will continue as usual, but after each massage, you must walk like this. Try walking four steps next time, okay?"
Shangguan Bei grabbed Lu Chen's thumb, her other hand encircling his neck, and suddenly hugged him tightly, throwing herself into his arms. Her fragrant, moist lips pressed against his ear, and she cried, "Okay!"
Then, she clung to Lu Chen with both arms, refusing to let go, burying her face in his shoulder and sobbing.
Lu Chen sighed, wrapped his arms around her waist, and lifted her up. He walked to the sofa and put her down, but she still clung to his neck. Then, those beautiful, red lips pressed against Lu Chen's large mouth.
Lu Chen froze; she was still trying to get away from Shangguan Bei. But her delicate body pressed tightly against him, her breasts bouncing against his chest, sending shivers down his spine.
And what's more, her warm, alluring red lips were pressed against his large mouth.
A beautiful woman's kiss—this was too much for the man to resist, and he finally succumbed. He embraced Shangguan Bei's slender waist, pressed himself against her, and launched his counterattack. Shangguan Bei, who had initially been the aggressor, suddenly became like a frightened bird, slightly trying to pull away.
But she had aroused the man's desire; how could he easily let her go?
Finally, Shangguan Bei abandoned all resistance and aggression, tilting her peach-blossom-like face slightly upward, her cherry lips slightly parted, letting Lu Chen indulge in his wanton advances.
Inside the room, a smacking sound echoed, like someone sucking on an ice cream cone…