The white rose I picked up cried and said she liked me.

After a brief exchange of pleasantries, Xu Nian and Xu Xi, the brother and sister, followed Zhang Feng into the courtyard.

Large and small unopened duffel bags were scattered on the living room floor, piled up here and there, looking messy and disorganized.

Zhang Feng scratched the back of his head sheepishly and gave an awkward laugh: "Hey, I haven't had time to tidy up in the last couple of days, sorry for the mess."

The two looked at each other and smiled.

They worked together seamlessly. Xu Nian turned and went into the kitchen to clean the stove and prepare the food; Xu Xi rolled up her sleeves and stayed in the living room to tidy up the scattered items.

In a short while, the messy living room became spotless, with the floor and tabletop immaculate. The aroma of food wafted from the kitchen, and several home-style dishes were neatly arranged on the table.

Looking at the tidy house, the steaming dishes on the table, and the two children busy serving him rice and setting the table, Zhang Feng felt a surge of warmth in his chest, his eyes filled with happiness.

The joy of family life is nothing more than this.

After dinner, Xu Xi stayed in the kitchen to wash the dishes, while Xu Nian and Zhang Feng sat on the sofa, chatting while watching the evening news on TV.

"Xiao Nian," Zhang Feng turned his head to look at Xu Nian beside him, "I heard from my daughter that you've been training every day and even learned kung fu, is that true?"

Xu Nian nodded and admitted, "I learned a couple of tricks from a friend a while ago."

Hearing this, Zhang Feng immediately became interested: "To be honest, I've also learned some martial arts. How about we have a spar?"

Xu Nian hesitated, "Isn't this a bit inappropriate?"

His current strength is enough to go toe-to-toe with mercenaries like Long Teng who live on the edge of a knife every day. He was afraid that if he was not careful, he might hurt Zhang Feng, who was just recovering from a serious illness.

Zhang Feng dismissively replied, "What's the big deal? It's just a friendly spar."

"When I was in the army, it was common for my comrades to spar and compete with each other."

"Back in the day, I was just a new recruit. Once, the commander of the next company came to our company with a very capable soldier to challenge us."

"That guy trained at the Shaolin Temple when he was a kid, and he's really good at it. None of the soldiers in our company can beat him, and our commander was so angry he turned green."

"When we saw this, we thought, 'This won't do. We've let them bully us right at our doorstep. What kind of behavior is this?' So we asked our superiors for permission to go and teach that kid a lesson."

"When the commander found out we were new recruits, he quickly stopped us from going up, saying he had already lost face enough and didn't want to lose face again."

"I made a solemn pledge to the commander back then, saying that I would definitely be able to take down that kid, and if I couldn't, he could do whatever he wanted with me."

"When the commander saw our posture, he got excited and let us give it a try."

"And then?" Xu Nian asked with a curious look.

Zhang Feng chuckled and held up three fingers: "Three moves. We'll take that kid down in three moves."

"If the commander hadn't stopped him, I could have knocked that kid's teeth out. That kid never dared to utter another threat, and his commander slunk away with him."

"Later, our leader was overjoyed. He said to me, 'Hey, you really are a genius,' and even rewarded me with two bottles of his privately collected fine wine."

After saying that, the two of them burst into laughter.

Hearing that Zhang Feng possessed such strength and profound skills, Xu Nian no longer hesitated and nodded in acceptance of the invitation to spar.

The two went to the courtyard outside the house and got into position for a friendly sparring match.

Xu Nian lowered his waist and steadied himself in a horse stance, bringing his fists to his chest and straightening his back, staring intently at Zhang Feng opposite him.

Zhang Feng smiled and watched Xu Nian, cracking his knuckles and ankles: "Little Nian, give it your all. I won't hold back just because you're a junior."

Upon hearing this, Xu Nian clenched her fists even tighter.

Although Zhang Feng repeatedly revealed his formidable strength, Xu Nian still decided to only defend and not attack, and only use 50% of her power.

After all, he was his elder, and no matter what, he couldn't win this match. But he couldn't let Zhang Feng realize that he was deliberately throwing the game and embarrassing him. He not only had to let Zhang Feng win, but he also had to let him win to his heart's content.

He was well prepared and on high alert.

In a flash, Zhang Feng launched an attack.

He slammed his foot into the ground, using the momentum to propel himself forward at high speed, and threw a straight punch with his right fist, aiming precisely at Xu Nian's chest.

Xu Nian instinctively pulled her arms together, firmly blocking the punch in front of her chest.

"Bang!"

For a fleeting moment, a look of surprise flashed in Xu Nian's eyes.

This punch, though seemingly powerful, was surprisingly weak, landing on his arm like a tickle, and even less forceful than when Xu Xi and he usually played around.

In contrast, Zhang Feng was far less calm and composed. His fist felt as if it had struck a solid iron plate, leaving it numb and tingling, causing him to hiss in pain.

He seized the opportunity, raised his leg again, and kicked Xu Nian in the abdomen with all his might.

Xu Nian was no pushover either. She reacted almost instantly, slightly turning her body to precisely dodge the kick.

However, Zhang Feng exerted too much force and couldn't control his strength. He immediately lost his balance and staggered forward uncontrollably, about to fall to the ground.

Fortunately, Xu Nian reacted quickly and reached out to support him, thus preventing him from elbowing the concrete floor.

"Hey, good lad." After regaining his footing, Zhang Feng, slightly out of breath, patted Xu Nian on the shoulder and said with satisfaction, "The younger generation truly surpasses the older. Your strength is in no way inferior to mine back in the day."

Xu Nian smiled and echoed his words, "Dad, you were just discharged from the hospital and haven't fully recovered yet. Your two moves just now were swift and precise, hitting the vital points directly. If it were you in your prime, I wouldn't have been able to defend myself; I would have been defeated long ago."

Zhang Feng was overjoyed by these words and immediately burst into laughter.

He was so smart, how could he not tell that Xu Nian was flattering him? Yet he just couldn't resist it.

Which elder wouldn't want to hear more praise and recognition from their younger generation?

After resting for a while, Zhang Feng stood up, rubbed his sore thighs, and said to Xu Nian, "Xiao Nian, I'm going to go for a run. Do you want to come with me?"

"Exercise?" Xu Nian was taken aback. "Dad, you still exercise every day?"

"Yeah, I guess so." Zhang Feng gave a helpless, bitter laugh, his tone tinged with self-deprecation. "My daughter says that my blood pressure, cholesterol, and blood sugar combined are higher than her test scores when she was in school. If I don't start exercising and losing weight, I'll be back in the hospital smelling disinfectant again."

Xu Nian chuckled and nodded, "Okay, Dad, I'll go with you."

It just so happens that he also needs to exercise every day, and he can also spend time with Zhang Feng, so it's a win-win situation.