Chapter 56: Tender Grass and Toads

"Really? How come I've never heard of it?"

Xu Ying glanced at him skeptically and continued, "Linyi, no matter what, learning an extra skill is always a good thing."

"Teacher Xu is right, Linyi. Don't be afraid of hardship; we are here to accompany you." The girl who had just supported him blinked, flashing a brilliant smile.

Your smile makes the whole world lose its color.

Linyi froze instantly as this sentence flashed through his mind.

A doctor once said that a smile could heal people, a claim Linyi had always sneered at.

It wasn't until today, when he saw this smile, that he realized the doctor's words were not without reason.

Shaking the chaotic thoughts from his mind, Linyi explained, "It's not that I'm afraid of hardship, it's just... how should I put it? I'm not a person who likes to jump around, and I just can't do it."

If he had to use one word to describe his personality, it would be... reservedly flamboyant (mian sao).

How could a reservedly flamboyant man perform such a flamboyant thing as jumping around in front of the general public? Once that flamboyant energy is let out, is it still being reservedly flamboyant?

"Maybe you'll find it useful in the future." Xu Ying still hadn't given up on Linyi as a new student, persisting with her encouragement.

Students like Linyi were not uncommon in her dance coaching career. At first, they were just like Linyi—denying themselves, doubting themselves, and thinking they couldn't do it. But through her earnest and patient guidance, they had persevered.

"Linyi, you have to believe in yourself!" the girl with the brilliant smile said to him earnestly.

"Exactly, Linyi, you can't just give up like this!"

"We can all do it, and you're a grown man saying you can't!"

...

The other girls around them also rushed over to comfort and goad Linyi.

Gulp!

Hearing these remarks from the group of beautiful and stunning girls, Linyi's face flushed with shame, and he wished he could find a crack in the ground to crawl into.

"I can do it!" Linyi puffed out his chest, looking resolute, though inwardly he was suffering immensely. Could he possibly admit that he couldn't do it at a time like this?

Hearing Linyi's words, Xu Ying smiled brightly and secretly gave a thumbs-up to one of the girls.

During a break, these girls took the initiative to come over and chat with Linyi. Through the conversation, Linyi learned their names: the sweet-smiling one was Yao Shishi, and the one who had said he couldn't do it was Xu Min, who was reportedly the dance teacher's niece.

Upon learning their relationship, Linyi felt terrible. These two had actually worked hand in glove to back him into a corner!

No wonder she had acted like she swallowed gunpowder earlier, rushing over in a rage to curse him for not being able to do it.

No wonder Zhang Wuji's mother said never to trust a pretty woman, because the prettier a woman is, the better she is at lying!

Liar! They were all liars! The ones right in front of him were big liars!

"Nyah nyah nyah!" Xu Min stuck her tongue out at Linyi triumphantly and made a funny face.

"If you've got the guts, don't run!" Linyi jumped straight up from the ground and chased after Xu Min.

"Hehehe, come and catch me!" Xu Min rolled her eyes, curling her finger to taunt Linyi.

"Could it be that you can't go on anymore? Eww!"

Linyi put his hands on his hips, stared fiercely at Xu Min not far away, and cursed angrily, "Bulls***!"

"Then come and catch me!"

"If you've got the guts, stop right there."

"If you've got the guts, come over here! Go on, come over here!"

How could anyone endure this!

Linyi ran over, gasping for breath.

After a moment—no, three minutes—wait, just over two minutes.

"I can't do it! I really can't do it!" Linyi plopped down onto the ground, waving his hands. He had used up all his energy practicing dance; how could he possibly outrun her?

"Here, take a break and drink some water." Xu Min looked down condescendingly at Linyi, who was covered in sweat, handed him the beverage she was holding, and sat down beside him.

Linyi felt a stir of impulses, but ultimately abandoned the thoughts in his heart.

"Linyi, actually, you're progressing faster than most people." Xu Min turned her head to look at Linyi, saying with a smile.

"We've only been practicing for half a day, and you can already tell?" Linyi remained noncommittal.

"I can observe it from your movements."

"Really?"

"Really."

...

Time slowly passed, and Linyi and the girls shed sweat after sweat.

"Alright, that's it for the morning class," Xu Ying announced, looking at everyone.

"Yay! It's finally over!"

The girls cheered happily and hugged one another.

Thump!

Thump!

"Form is emptiness, emptiness is form! Form is emptiness, emptiness is form..." Linyi chanted silently in his heart.

"Huh? Whose embrace is this? Form is emptiness, emptiness is form..."

"Linyi, do you like it?" Xu Min embraced him and whispered softly in his ear.

Gulp.

Linyi swallowed hard, shifted his gaze elsewhere, and seeing that everywhere else was the same scenery, he closed his eyes, suffered through an inner torment, and feigned hypocrisy, "I don't like it. As you know, I'm not that kind of person."

"What kind of person? Hehe, goodbye!" Xu Min pushed away Linyi's arm and left with a smile.

The other girls also left the dance studio one after another.

"Whew! The pressure is too high!" Linyi wiped away a cold sweat and said with lingering fear.

This Zhao Xin was something else—why on earth did she assign him to practice dance with the girls?

"How is it? Not bad, right?" Xu Ying walked over and asked with a smile.

Linyi glanced at her and immediately averted his eyes again. Do all girls who dance have such great figures?

"Not bad!"

"Really not bad?"

Linyi: Could it be that he misunderstood Teacher Xu's meaning?

"When doing leg presses, my thighs hurt like hell, and tears almost welled up," Linyi thought for a moment before explaining.

"Practice a few more times and you'll get used to it," Xu Ying said, crossing her arms.

"Yeah."

Xu Ying went back to the dressing room to change her clothes, while Linyi went to the single room by himself—he was the one Zhao Xin had crammed into this class.

"Going for lunch together?" Xu Ying, having changed her clothes, saw Linyi in the corridor and asked with a smile.

"Teacher Xu, you're really pretty!" Linyi exclaimed. At this moment, Xu Ying was wearing a demure, elegant dress, her jet-black hair falling like a waterfall straight down her shoulders. Her face carried a faint flush, and her slender, jade-like fingers held a red handbag, making her look like a beauty stepping out of a painting.

"Flatterer!" Xu Ying rolled her eyes at him. "Do you often fool girls like this?"

Linyi: ......

"I really don't! I rarely praise others so sincerely from the bottom of my heart."

"Is that so?" Hearing this, the corners of Xu Ying's mouth turned up slightly.

At the entrance, a man was constantly combing his hair with his left hand in front of a car mirror, holding a bouquet of beautiful roses in his right hand.

Seeing Xu Ying come out, the man's eyes lit up, and he hurried over. "Xiaoying, off work? Let's go get some lunch together. Oh, right, these are roses for you, representing my love for you!"

Xu Ying rolled her eyes in annoyance, grabbed Linyi's arm, and said coldly, "I already have a boyfriend. Please don't bother me anymore in the future!"

A boyfriend?

Linyi was dumbfounded. When did I become your boyfriend? I've become a human shield??

"Stop joking around. Look at the age gap between the two of you."

"This lady likes to eat tender grass, not toads!"