"Is it really enough?" Jiang Xiuyun's face still held an incredulous expression. She remembered Lin Feng as a child spending over 30,000 yuan to collect cards of all 108 characters from the Water Margin. His annual toy expenses also amounted to tens of thousands. In her memory, it seemed her son never had enough money.
"Son, if you don't have enough money, you must tell me. Don't do anything illegal because of money," she warned.
Instead of being happy about Lin Feng's change, Jiang Xiuyun was somewhat worried. Is my son acting out of defiance towards his father by refusing money? If that's the case, and he runs out, what outrageous thing might he do?
Lin Feng now truly understood the importance of reputation. If reputation had a physical height, mine, along with my integrity, would have surely plummeted into the Mariana Trench.
"Mom, don't worry, I won't do anything silly. I used to be frivolous with money, but I promise, I won't be from now on. Relax, if I really lack money, I'll definitely call you. HEH HEH, after all, you're my mom."
There was no choice. The only thing Lin Feng could do now was work hard to restore his image. It's not easy to become a decent person after being a troublemaker!
Still doubtful, Jiang Xiuyun eventually believed Lin Feng's words. As she was about to leave, she remembered something and asked, "Right, son, you're not dating, are you?"
Lin Feng was suddenly overwhelmed. "Why do you suddenly ask that?"
"This is a big deal, son. Don't mess around. Girls these days are easily deceived; you're not allowed to go preying on them."
"ER…" Lin Feng was flabbergasted. What does she mean by 'preying on' girls? Does she really think her son lacks integrity? For Mom to actually say such things… Is she really my birth mother? Lin Feng felt utterly speechless.
Seeing her son's crestfallen face, Jiang Xiuyun laughed. "What I mean is, you're not at a suitable age for dating. You're still in high school; talk about dating when you get to college. Right now, your most important task is to study hard and improve your grades."
Seeing his mother about to lecture him again, Lin Feng said, "Mom, what era is this? Do you really think dating and studying must conflict? As long as it doesn't affect studies, why can't one date?"
Jiang Xiuyun was taken aback by his words and said sternly, "Doesn't affect your studies? Son, with your grades, is there even any room for them to be affected? If you can score 500 points and get into a third-tier university, I won't care if you date, and I'll even give you a dating allowance."
"HEH HEH, Mom, you said it!" Lin Feng had been waiting for this. He immediately broke into a grin, as if his scheme had succeeded.
Jiang Xiuyun looked at her son and laughed dismissively, thinking to herself, You're currently scoring just over three hundred points and you don't study diligently. It'd be a miracle if you could score 500.
However, Jiang Xiuyun didn't want to discourage Lin Feng, so she still nodded kindly. "Alright, alright, your mom remembers. If you can score 500 points, you can do whatever you want. Even if you want the stars from the sky, Mom will pluck them down for you."
...
After seeing Jiang Xiuyun off, Lin Feng returned to his room and calmed down.
When it was time to choose between the science and arts streams, he was originally in the science stream. Later, when he couldn't keep up, he heeded the call of "If you're not good at science, opt for literature instead," and transferred to the arts stream. However, even in the arts stream, he was still at the bottom.
He always ranked first in every exam—an impressive statement, originally. Unfortunately, adding the words "from the bottom" made it utterly foolish.
Currently, Lin Feng's total score was only just over three hundred points. His history and politics scores were barely passing, considered his strongest subjects. Chinese and geography followed, while math and English were a complete mess.
With such grades, improving quickly was as hard as ascending to heaven. Moreover, for this to happen to Lin Feng, if word got out, probably no one would believe it.
Having been reborn, Lin Feng was quite confident about his English and Math, and his geography grades weren't bad either. After a comprehensive calculation, although scoring an outrageously high score was basically impossible, he felt that achieving 500 points wouldn't be too stressful.
Therefore, after careful consideration, he wasn't worried about his studies for the time being. Instead, it was matters of his physical stamina and constitution that made him feel like dying.
He was a cultivator before. The Martial Arts he cultivated primarily focused on cultivating Inner Strength, much like a Taoist life-nourishing cultivation technique. When a person's power is developed to its extreme, their meridians and acupoints are strengthened and transformed, generating an aura of power. When this is applied to their strength, it increases attack power and can even injure someone without physical contact. This is what's known as Inner Strength.
Lin Feng mainly cultivated Inner Strength, which was divided into nine levels. He had originally cultivated to the impressive fourth level, but now, he couldn't feel any Inner Strength generated in his body. Therefore, he could confirm that he hadn't even stepped through the gateway of cultivation yet.
As the former number one expert of the White Wolf Troop, the "Wolf King" Lin Feng, whose name alone made people tremble with fear, he absolutely could not tolerate being transformed into a good-for-nothing with a combat value of 0.
So, without any hesitation, Lin Feng decided to increase his physical training and improve his constitution as quickly as possible.
Having prior cultivation experience, Lin Feng knew that after strengthening his constitution to a cultivable level, he could enter the initial stage of cultivation through special meditation and methods for clearing the meridians and bones.
And he still remembered several sets of Martial Arts forms in his mind. When the time came, practicing them again would surely allow him to enter the first level of Inner Strength. At this stage, supplemented by impressive fist techniques and Martial Arts, dealing with ordinary Sanda experts and boxing masters would still be more than enough.
...
On Saturday morning, just as the sky began to show the first light of dawn, Lin Feng got up.
If anyone had seen this, their jaws would have dropped. The profligate young master Lin Feng is actually getting up early? Has the sun risen from the west?
He changed into shorts, a tank top, and sneakers, had a quick bowl of noodles on the street, and then started jogging.
Running definitely couldn't be done in the bustling city center. Fortunately, the place he lived wasn't far from the riverside, so Lin Feng ran directly towards it.
There was a patch of woods by the river. Lin Feng jogged at a steady pace along the edge of the woods, facing the river breeze.
In the morning, in these woods, one could occasionally encounter people out for a morning run. Other than that, it was quiet, with only the sound of the river water lapping.
"HUH?"
After running a few miles, Lin Feng saw a figure from behind and immediately froze.
On a rock by the riverside sat a figure with long hair draped over her shoulders, wearing a short-sleeved blue blouse and a long white skirt. A beautiful girl was by the river, holding a book, reading in the morning as if no one else was around.
Are there really people in this world who love studying this much?
Watching the striking silhouette, Lin Feng curiously walked closer. When a man sees a captivating figure from behind, he becomes very conflicted.
There's an impulse in my heart, a desire to see this person's face, hoping to behold a peerlessly beautiful countenance. But at the same time, another voice in my heart objects: 'Forget it. This is definitely a "back-view killer." Better to preserve the mystery. Why look at an unsightly face and ruin the beautiful image in your heart and your mood?'
Of course, the outcome would always be that curiosity wins, and he ends up looking at the woman's face.
Lin Feng caught a glimpse of the woman's profile and could already confirm that this was genuinely a beautiful woman. That oval face, flawless and fair, was captivating.
Isn't this… However, just looking at this profile, Lin Feng felt an increasing sense of familiarity.
"Lin Feng?"
People often have a keen sense when they are being stared at. The girl sensed Lin Feng's direct gaze and subconsciously turned her head. Upon seeing Lin Feng, a surprised expression appeared on her face, and she smiled and greeted him.