Chapter 16: The School Beauty's Invitation [Monday, Please Vote for Recommendation]

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After setting aside the matter of receiving a huge sum of a million, Ge Dongxu once again laid out yellow talisman paper on the table, prepared the cinnabar ink, and began to write talismans.

This time, Ge Dongxu only wrote thirty talismans before he set down the brush, as the nature's spiritual energy in the county town was thinner than at Baiyun Mountain, he still hadn't fully recovered the mana he spent yesterday, and couldn't continue.

None of the thirty talismans were successful, but Ge Dongxu did not get discouraged. Although not a single talisman was successful, he had slightly improved his proficiency in talisman writing. As long as his mana could become more concentrated, the success rate would definitely increase.

"If I persist, one day I will reach the realm my master spoke of, 'when the talisman follows the heart, and with a stroke of the brush a talisman is formed,'" Ge Dongxu's eyes revealed a firm gaze, then he collected all the discarded yellow talisman papers and threw them into the trash can.

That day, apart from going out at noon and in the evening to resolve the problem of hunger and to deliver the monthly rent to Cheng Yazhou, Ge Dongxu didn't leave again. He spent the whole time in his room meditating and reading.

The books Ge Dongxu read the most were on physics and chemistry, as he had a special interest in them. He believed that Taoist studies analyze and interpret the world and the universe through Tai Chi and the Two Instruments, the Four Symbols, and the Eight Trigrams, whereas physics and chemistry analyze the world and the universe from another perspective. The former views the universe as a whole for analysis, while the latter starts from the analysis of specific parts. This was similar to the relationship between traditional Chinese medicine and Western medicine.

Traditional Chinese medicine talks about the Yin Yang and Five Elements and views the person as a whole. Therefore, the treatment of illness isn't just for the symptoms, but from a holistic differential diagnosis. Western medicine tends to treat the symptoms directly, such as treating the head for a headache and the foot for foot pain. Both have their advantages and disadvantages. Of course, in Ge Dongxu's view, traditional Chinese medicine regards the condition from a holistic perspective, which is a layer higher than Western medicine. But in terms of effectiveness, Western medicine is often quicker and more direct.

Regardless, Western medicine has a lot to offer as a reference for traditional Chinese medicine. Just as Ge Dongxu believes that natural sciences are greatly referential for his cultivation path, this is why he is particularly interested in physics and chemistry, hoping to find inspiration for his cultivation.

In the meantime, Cheng Le Hao had come up several times and saw that Ge Dongxu had begun studying even before school started. Although he couldn't help but complain, deep down he greatly admired Ge Dongxu. After going downstairs, he even picked up a book to read for a change. This scene was just witnessed by Wu Xiaojuan who came upstairs to clean, which made her so happy that she kept telling Cheng Yazhou downstairs that renting the house to Ge Dongxu was a good decision.

Although the spirit energy in the county town was much thinner than at Baiyun Mountain, making cultivation progress almost imperceptible, Ge Dongxu still persisted in cultivating during the period of the midnight hour and the next day's Mao Hour.

The next day was Monday, and it was also the day to report to Changxi No. 1 Middle School.

Because she saw her son take the initiative to study yesterday, Wu Xiaojuan believed that Ge Dongxu played a big role in this. Therefore, when Ge Dongxu came downstairs in the morning, she insisted on having him join them for breakfast, persuading him, "You are at the age when you grow the most. You should really sleep more, but to get into a good university, you will have to wake up early and sleep late. So, in the future, you should have breakfast here with me. This way, you won't have to take time to find a breakfast place outside, and it might save you a few minutes of sleep as well. Anyway, it's only a few buns, eggs, and porridge in the morning, so it's not too much trouble."

Ge Dongxu, after all, was a young man with a thin face, and with Wu Xiaojuan insisting and Cheng Le Hao not giving him a chance to speak, forcefully seating him at the dining table, he found it even harder to refuse. He could only continuously express his thanks and then joined Cheng Le Hao's family for breakfast.

After breakfast, Ge Dongxu and Cheng Le Hao left together.

"Don't rush off, it's still early. Wait a bit," said Cheng Le Hao, as he pushed a mountain bike from the back door to the front street, glancing at the house diagonally across from them, he pulled Ge Dongxu who was ready to walk along the street towards the school's direction.

"What's there to wait for on the street? Let's talk about it at school," Ge Dongxu said.

"Of course, there's a good reason to wait, hehe, the school beauty hasn't left her house yet!" Le Hao wore his trademark lecherous grin on his face.

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"No way, are you planning to confess to the school beauty on the first day of school?" Ge Dongxu asked exaggeratedly, even though he knew what Cheng Le Hao was thinking.

"That's the school beauty we're talking about! And she's a senior in high school. Confess to her? Am I crazy? I'm planning to follow her from a distance, just to admire her from afar. Forget it, there's no point talking about this boy-girl stuff with a bookworm like you who knows nothing but studying." Cheng Le Hao rolled his eyes at Ge Dongxu repeatedly after hearing this.

"Oh please, 'admiring from afar?' Isn't that just peeping?" Ge Dongxu laughed.

"Peeping my ass, this is what they call 'a fair maiden makes a gentleman's good match!' It's admiration, get it? Don't be so crude, okay? Dong Yuxin is the goddess in my heart!" Cheng Le Hao said disdainfully, as if Ge Dongxu couldn't possibly understand his "noble" feelings.

"Alright, alright, it's admiration. Since you admire Dong Yuxin so much, how about this—I'll introduce you to her when we get to school. It's a bit undignified standing around on the street like this, as if we're trying to chase her." Ge Dongxu smiled as he spoke.

"Go away, get lost, don't disturb me while I'm waiting for my goddess." Cheng Le Hao, obviously not aware that Ge Dongxu knew Dong Yuxin, took his words seriously, thinking he was just mocking him, and straightforwardly shoved him away.

"Alright then, I'll go ahead." Seeing that Cheng Le Hao wasn't listening to him, Ge Dongxu didn't bother to explain further, just shook his head smilingly, and walked toward the school with his backpack, unhurriedly along the street.

About five to six minutes into his walk, a breeze brought a faint, pleasant scent from behind, followed by a bicycle speeding past him. On the bicycle was an attractive figure.

It was the attractive figure of a girl with a ponytail, long beautiful legs, and a youthful rear wiggling on the bike's seat.

Just after brushing past Ge Dongxu, the owner of the attractive figure let out a sudden "Oh!", then stopped her bicycle and looked back at Ge Dongxu.

"It really is you! You're still in Songyang Town!" The owner of that attractive figure was naturally Dong Yuxin; she called out in surprise when she saw it was truly Ge Dongxu.

She obviously thought that Ge Dongxu, coming from a rural area, wouldn't continue to stay in the county town.

"I'm starting school at Changxi No.1 High today, so of course I'm still in Songyang Town," Ge Dongxu smiled and said.

"Ah, you're a new student at Changxi No.1 High! So you're going to Changxi No.1 High to register and start school now?" Dong Yuxin said, her face full of surprised astonishment.

"Yes, senior, you're going to Changxi No.1 High as well, right?" Ge Dongxu asked with a plain and honest smile. Although Dong Yuxin was very beautiful and brimming with youthful vitality, Ge Dongxu was still calm and composed in her presence, not feeling nervous or restrained.

"Yeah, we can go together. What do you say, junior, want a lift on my bike?" Since Dong Yuxin wasn't some icy beauty and was relatively cheerful by nature, she felt more relaxed seeing Ge Dongxu's composed attitude. Moreover, since Ge Dongxu was just a freshman, she felt a natural advantage psychologically. So, when Ge Dongxu called her senior, she patted the back seat of her bike and looked at him with a smiling gaze.

PS: Monday's recommendation tickets are very important, so please don't think it too much trouble to log in and vote. I will try to keep up with three chapters in the morning, noon, and evening this week. Thank you.

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