School Beauty's Invincible Martial Expert

"Exactly!" Xiao Han nodded, "You go back and think about it carefully."

"Okay!" Li Dapang rode away on his motorcycle, zooming off once again.

As soon as Li Dapang left, Xiao Han's phone rang. It was Chen Zihan calling. Seeing this name, Xiao Han couldn't help but reminisce about that beautiful girl. In a way, his relationship with Chen Zihan had already become that of boyfriend and girlfriend. However, Xiao Han always felt a sense of insecurity, perhaps because Chen Zihan was just too outstanding.

Maybe it was because his own family background truly wasn't a match for Chen Zihan's.

"Xiao Han, happy New Year!" Chen Zihan's sweet voice came through.

"Zi Han, happy New Year," Xiao Han replied with a smile, "Are you in Lincheng?"

"Yes!" Chen Zihan nodded, "It's so lively here. Grandparents, uncles, so many people. It's really bustling."

"Is that so?" Xiao Han felt especially envious when he heard this. He envied not only the beauty of a family but also a family where grandparents were still present. He had never met his own grandparents since he was born. A few years ago, his father had died in a car accident. Almost every holiday season was bleak and quiet. Xiao Han was very envious, "I really envy you."

"Hehe..." Chen Zihan, completely unaware of Xiao Han's inner coldness, asked, "Xiao Han, where are you now? Have you reviewed your lessons these days? Don't forget your studies, I'll be back in a few days and then I'll come to find you."
Explore new worlds at empire

"Alright!" Xiao Han nodded.

After chatting for a while, Xiao Han hung up the phone.

As he approached the doorstep, Mother Xiao was chatting with some neighbors. Mother Xiao was wearing a brand new jacket today, glowing with happiness. It seemed as if she had some good news. Xiao Han walked over, and Mother Xiao quickly smiled, "Xiao Han, you're back?"

"Mom, what's the happy occasion?" Xiao Han asked curiously.

"Tonight, your eldest uncle has invited us for dinner," Mother Xiao said, "Xiao Han, get ready, and we'll head over later."

"Ah?" Xiao Han was startled, "Why would the eldest uncle suddenly invite us for dinner?"

Xiao Han's eldest uncle was over fifty years old, and his son had already established a family and career. There hadn't been much contact for many years, not even during the holidays. Now, on the first day of the lunar new year, that the eldest uncle had suddenly invited them for dinner puzzled Xiao Han.

"Since he invited you, just go," Mother Xiao smiled, "The contact has been cut off for so long; it's time to reconnect. Otherwise, you might not even recognize each other on the streets later."

"What does that matter?" Xiao Han snorted coldly, "Have you forgotten their attitude during my father's funeral?"

"Oh, those are things of the past, why bring them up now?" Mother Xiao glanced at Xiao Han, then said, "Your eldest uncle has called to invite us. Let's just go. It's the right thing to do to accept the invitation. Let's let bygones be bygones."

"Fine." Xiao Han nodded.

At 5:30 pm, Mother Xiao and Xiao Han took a bus from Fuxing Community to the eldest uncle's home.

Xiao Han's eldest uncle, Xiao Minghua, had a son named Xiao Zhicheng. Xiao Minghua's family was in a decent financial position, owning a small supermarket in LJ City that provided a sufficient income to support the family with some savings to spare, making him one of the wealthier members of the Xiao family clan. Xiao Zhicheng, however, was an academic failure, graduating from a third-tier college.

After struggling for a year in another city, he moved back home and later, with much effort from Xiao Minghua, married, settling one of his father's major concerns.

The bus took several turns from the entrance of Fuxing Community and finally reached the entrance of the eldest uncle's residential complex.

This was an older residential area with a guard booth at the entrance, but there was no guard. People came and went freely into this area.

The entrance was crowded with people chatting together, as everyone was free during the New Year's celebrations, so they gathered to play. The children played with firecrackers, adult men gathered to gamble, and women chatted in small groups.

"Oh, isn't that Big Sister Xiao?" Suddenly, a voice called out.

"Ah, is that you?" Mother Xiao looked up and saw a familiar figure. She walked over excitedly, took the person's hand, and said, "A'Xiang, it's been so many years. I didn't expect to run into you here. It's truly rare."

"Exactly!" A'Xiang nodded quickly, "Big Sister, we haven't seen each other for almost five years, right?"

"Yes!" Mother Xiao nodded.

"Going... to your big brother's home?" A'Xiang asked.

"Yes!" Mother Xiao nodded, "It's been many years since we last visited. They invited us, so here we are."

"Why would you go to such an ungrateful person?" A'Xiang replied irritably, "Everyone knows Xiao Minghua is no good. I advise you not to go. It might just be a setup!"

"Let it be, after all, he is Xiao Han's eldest uncle!" Mother Xiao smiled and said, "They called us first, how could I refuse? Besides, when Xiao Han gets married, we ought to have some relatives, right?"

"Ah, big sister, you're too kind-hearted!" A'Xiang sighed and said, "If it were me, I would only consider going if they knelt down and begged me."

After a brief catch-up, Mother Xiao continued walking into the community with Xiao Han.

The feud between Xiao Minghua and Xiao Han's father was primarily over a house in the community. Originally, this property belonged to Xiao Han's father, Xiao Jianguo. However, Xiao Minghua, in collusion with Xiao Han's uncle and aunt, did everything they could to wrest the house away.

That year, the battle over this house exhausted Xiao Han's parents and led to endless disputes. They almost came to blows with the eldest uncle's family. However, in the end, Mother Xiao chose to endure silently and backed down. Since they wanted it, let them have it. It was just an old house, after all, no need to fight and steal. No need to be the talk of the town.

Since that incident, Mother Xiao and Xiao's family siblings had completely cut off contact, except for appearing during Xiao Jianguo's funeral. And their presence only escalated tensions.

At the funeral, Xiao Minghua even demanded openly to split Xiao Jianguo's compensation.

Xiao Minghua's behavior immediately crossed Mother Xiao's line. At the funeral, she clashed with Xiao Minghua right there, and it turned into a huge mess. Claiming his seniority in the family, Xiao Minghua sued Mother Xiao to split his younger brother's compensation. However, after the court's investigation, the judgment went in favor of Mother Xiao.

Not only did Xiao Minghua lose the case, but he also lost his reputation and even his money. His disrespect made many in Wangjiang District aware of his character.

Thump thump thump...

Upon reaching the third floor, Mother Xiao knocked on the door.

"Coming, coming!" A woman's voice came from inside.

Shortly after, a woman in her fifties opened the door, dressed in a black long down jacket, her face rosy and well-maintained, looking much younger than Mother Xiao, who was in her forties. She was taken aback when she saw Mother Xiao, and her initially smiling face immediately turned somber. She frowned and looked at Mother Xiao, saying, "You're here?"

"Sister-in-law, happy New Year." Mother Xiao, also looking slightly awkward, hurriedly handed over the gifts she brought.

"Come in!" The sister-in-law glanced at Mother Xiao and then turned to walk inside, visibly disregarding the gift Mother Xiao brought and entered directly.

Mother Xiao quickly followed inside, and Xiao Han did too, seeing everything. Honestly, Xiao Han had no real concept of his eldest uncle and other relatives because they rarely visited each other. The only memory Xiao Han had was the trouble his uncle caused several years ago at the funeral, which left a deep impression. Thus, he had a strong dislike and hatred for his uncle's family.

Inside the living room.

A bald man, dressed in a brand new black suit, his face flushed, clearly having had quite a lot to drink at noon and still not sober.

"Big brother, happy New Year," Mother Xiao said as she entered, looking somewhat uneasy.

"Oh, you're here?" Xiao Minghua saw his sister-in-law and nephew come in, just waved his hand and greeted, "Come in and sit. It's quite cold outside, isn't it?"

Mother Xiao sat down on a chair nearby, while Xiao Han took a seat on the sofa.

"Xiao Han, you haven't greeted your eldest uncle for the New Year yet." Mother Xiao glanced at Xiao Han.

Xiao Han remained silent, bowing his head to play with his phone.

Xiao Minghua smiled, waved his hand, and said, "No worries. Xiao Han is prepping for university entrance exams this year, right?"

"Yes!" Mother Xiao nodded and laughed, "He's doing well, his recent exam results were good. He should be able to get into a good university."

"Ah, there are so many university students these days." Xiao Minghua laughed and then said, "What does it matter if you get into a university? Still can't find a good job or earn a high salary, right? It might be better to start working right after high school. By the time others graduate, after three or four years of hard work, you would have achieved something."

"That makes some sense." Mother Xiao didn't argue, as Xiao Minghua was her elder brother, and she was just his sister-in-law. Moreover, Mother Xiao was a staunch believer in the value of education and a strong proponent of it.

"I called you here to discuss something," Xiao Minghua said, shaking his legs.

"What is it, please tell me," Mother Xiao said.

"It's nothing big," Xiao Minghua laughed and said, "A few months ago, I went to the school to inquire. I heard Xiao Han's grades aren't promising, ranked last in his class. So, I've been wanting to discuss with you about letting Xiao Han start working with me after he graduates from high school?"