75 Frailty (2/2)
”It used to be very costly,” Qi Shaoqiu said with a smile, ”but in the last ten to twenty years, we've benefited from large-scale Chinese herbal medicine cultivation. Now that herbal medicines are increasingly cheaper, the most costly medicinal ingredient is now the cheapest.”
Roland was even more curious now. ”Then just how expensive was it back then?”
”I heard from my grandpa that back when he was in his teens, before the foundation of PRC, eating a bowl of noodles with Chinese medicine would consume six to seven days of food for our family of five.” Qi Shaoqiu sighed deeply and said, ”In the past, the saying that the poor learn to read and only the rich learn martial arts was not a joke. Now that living standards are good, everyone can fill their bellies, but not many people are willing to learn martial arts anymore. The status of martial artists is also increasingly getting worse.”
Roland really wanted to say that since the Song Dynasty, the status of martial artists didn't rise. However, he naturally wouldn't foolishly say these words.
At this time, the girl had also finished eating. She put down her bowl and said to the four youngsters, ”You guys wash the bowls, I'm taking your junior brother to the storehouse to pick out some things for learning martial arts.”
The four youngsters murmured in agreement.
Meanwhile, Roland pointed at himself. ”Me? Junior brother?”
”Yes, you,” Qi Shaoqiu said with a smile. ”You're now the little junior brother.”
”What age is this, that's out of fashion.” Roland felt somewhat gauche at this appellation.
However, the girl on the side said, ”Do you find it gauche when people call each other senior sister or junior brother in college?”
”I wouldn't feel that way.”
”Then it isn't.” The girl stood up and said, ”Follow me.”
”All right, junior brother it is.” Roland stood up and followed behind the young girl.
The two left the kitchen, wound around the perimeter wall, and headed toward the back of the large shed.
Following behind, Roland smelled a light fragrance in the air; it was a little like the smell of osmanthus flowers.
Roland quite liked osmanthus flowers, so he habitually sniffed a few more times.
At this moment, while leading the way, the girl asked, ”Why do you want to learn miaodao techniques? Isn't your boxing pretty good?”
Roland couldn't possibly say that he wanted to learn the techniques of a weapon in order to guard himself from warriors or bandits at a close proximity in a game. He pondered for two seconds before replying, ”It's just that I feel learning boxing has its limits—against people with weapons, the chance of coming out victorious isn't large.”
”My brother said that he probably can't beat you if he doesn't have a weapon. This means that normal people can't defeat you even if they have a weapon.” The girl stopped, turned around, and looked Roland in the eyes. ”You absolutely have no need to learn miaodao techniques.”
Roland also looked into her eyes. Her eyes were truly beautiful, like two black glass gems.
”Senior Sister doesn't seem to be welcoming me to learn miaodao techniques.”
The girl was startled for a moment. Then she turned around, began walking slowly again, and said, ”I don't know miaodao techniques, so don't call me your senior sister. I'm just worried that your passion is just a passing fancy. After a few days, your mind might take a turn—you'll feel that the tuition is too expensive and not want to learn, then have us give you a refund. My brother is proud and arrogant; on the surface he's all smiles, but he's actually quite sensitive and frail. He finally got a student after waiting for such a long time. If you leave, he'll definitely be quite upset.”
”Don't worry, I won't leave until I've mastered it,” Roland said casually.
”I'm just saying, nowadays there aren't many youngsters who can endure hardships.” The girl's voice gradually lowered. ”In the past, there were at least twenty distant and close relatives that learned sword techniques from my older brother. Now, only four remain—they wouldn't even learn if it was for free.”
Roland continued to speak in a casual tone. ”I really will continue learning.”
The girl stopped once again and looked at him. ”Really?”
Roland really wanted to say that even if he stopped learning, he wouldn't have them give him a refund. However, the expression in the girl's eyes was quite serious—stubborn with a trace of pleading, a faint light flickering in their depths—and all of a sudden, Roland swallowed the words he'd meant to say.
”Really.”
His tone was still casual, but it held seriousness and sincerity.
The girl gazed at Roland for a while and then said, ”I'll believe you for now, but if you really stop learning halfway through, I'll hate you forever.”