Captured By The Cold Detective (BL)-Chapter 419: Owed Favor

As usual, Mu Yuze found his master meditating in the inner hall. He had always instilled into his students that a peace of mind was the greatest weapon one could wield in a battle, and it was mainly due to that iron tempering that Mu Yuze found his personality grow to resemble a calm and serene lake more and more, albeit all of this teaching seemed to evaporate into thin air once he came face-to-face with He Juan.

He went up to the man to pay his respect, bowing his head, "Good afternoon, Master."

"You are here," Song Yin stated lightly with a nod. He opened his eyes and a flash of surprise crossed his features once he caught sight of He Juan, though he swiftly concealed it in the next second. "...XIU, you have returned," he remarked in greeting as he rose to his feet.

"Mr. Song," He Juan showed a reserved smile. "It’s been a long time. Thank you so much for taking care of Mu Yuze."

Mu Yuze looked at them back and forth, puzzled. For some reason, he could sense sparks flying between the lines of the two men’s eye contact, but he just could not put his finger to it. Over the past year, he had come to realize that Song Yin and He Juan were distant acquaintances at most. Although unspoken, Mu Yuze could discern that his master did not seem to have a very favorable opinion of He Juan, most likely due to the man’s identity and reputation.

Recalling this fact, his body moved to stand in front of He Juan before his mind could process it, taking a protective stance.

He Juan was both amused and flattered to see his little bunny’s subconscious action, and he could not help but reach out to ruffle the boy’s hair. "Didn’t you say that you want to show me how much you have improved this year? Go and get changed."

"But..." Mu Yuze was not reassured to leave the two men alone.

"What?" He Juan laughed, his silver eyes crinkling in mirth and delight. "Do you think that we will fight?"

In front of them, Song Yin let out a snort in response, causing Mu Yuze to blush. That’s right, both of them were level-headed adults who looked like they would not bat an eyelid even when the sky came crashing down, so what reason did Mu Yuze have to worry that a scuffle would break out between them?

Embarrassed for his oversight, he stammered out, "I–I will be back!"

He rushed to the locker room as if he had wind under his feet and got changed in record time. ’Get a grip on yourself, Mu Yuze!’ he chided himself mentally. This was a chance he had been waiting for, and he must not mess it up!

When he arrived in the training hall clad in his wide-legged pants and white jacket tied around the waist by a brown belt, he found that Song Yin and He Juan had already been waiting for him.

Leaning over the wall, He Juan’s silver eyes lit up at how suave the boy looked in his uniform, and he mouthed at him, "Fighting!"

Mu Yuze clenched his fists and took a few deep breaths to calm himself. He did a few simple stretches on the spot to warm up his muscles. After that, he went to stand in front of Song Yin, slid his left leg behind him and angled his body into the basic stance, both arms raised in a defensive position.

Both master and student’s eyes clashed in midair and time seemed to slow down in a crawling pace. Seconds ticked by as they measured each other, and without a warning, they started to exchange blows!

Mu Yuze could no longer count how many times he had sparred with Song Yin. All of the martial arts techniques he displayed today had come from the man’s teaching, but at the same time he was also constantly seeking ways to improve himself in order to beat his master. Alas, it did not erase the fact that they were extremely familiar with each other’s patterns and movement, thus for the first few minutes, no one got the upper hand. 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝒆𝔀𝒆𝙗𝓷𝒐𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝓶

Mu Yuze crossed his arms in front of him to block a straight punch from Song Yin, then he retreated a few steps, droplets of sweat trickling down his cheeks as he measured the man in front of him with a razor-sharp gaze.

"Good," Song Yin remarked with a faintly pleased look, before starting another round of attack.

Mu Yuze fought back with the ferocity of a wild cub. Eventually, he got lost in the rhythm of punching, blocking, kicking and dodging. The surroundings faded away as all of his attention was fixed on the opponent in front of him.

As the fight went on, he found his strikes became cleaner, faster and sharper, but still well controlled. It was as if he had entered the zone where his limbs became the extension of his mind. Such a phenomenon had never happened to him before. Even Song Yin showed a surprise look upon sensing the subtle shift in the boy’s attacks.

He only snapped back to his senses once Song Yin retreated a few steps and announced, "We will stop here today."

Mu Yuze wiped the sweat on his chin and bowed deeply, "Thank you for your guidance, Master!" His chest was still heaving, his blood roaring and every fiber in his body buzzing with the rush of adrenaline. Even as Song Yin took his leave, he still found it hard to get down from the high as though he was drunk on the sensation of waltzing on the edge of a sharp blade.

"Bravo..." He Juan started to clap with genuine awe and pride on his face. "That was excellent, Xiao Ze! You’re so awesome!"

Mu Yuze shifted his gaze to him and for a split second, his visage seemed to overlap with the event from more than a year ago, when he took Mu Yuze to go bowling for the first time then proceeded to shower him with praises every time he got a strike. It was the first time Mu Yuze ever had so much fun, and it was all thanks to He Juan, who always treated him with kindness and supported him in everything he did.

Heart thundering inside his ribcage, Mu Yuze parted his lips, "Juan-gege..."

"Hmm?"

"You still owed me a favor, remember?" He asked, and He Juan raised a surprised brow. "Last year, you claimed to be my uncle in front of Teacher Wei, and then you told me that you will make it up for me. I didn’t know what I wanted to ask of you back then, but now I do."

"Come to think of it, I did say that," He Juan laughed, not expecting Mu Yuze to bring this up all of a sudden. If the boy had not reminded him, he would have totally forgotten about this. Who could have guessed that Mu Yuze had kept it in mind all this time? He was secretly petty and liked to harbor grudges, wasn’t he?

He Juan straightened up from the wall he was leaning on, a curious smile hanging on his lips as it was very rare for the boy to request something from him. "Okay, what do you want? Gege will definitely give it to you!"

Mu Yuze took a deep breath to steel himself for what he was going to say.

"Spar with me," he said, eliciting a surprised look from the other. "Just one round. And most importantly, do not go easy on me."