My older brother said I'm invincible.

Chapter 7 Once you leave, you must not mention your teacher's name.

A cool breeze was blowing in the early morning.

Duan Niang got up early, brewed the medicine, and walked anxiously into the inner room.

Young Master Jiancheng is young and has never managed a household on his own. He is still at a relatively carefree age, but this time, he has done something really out of line.

How could Sanlangjun's physique withstand such a strain?
"Duan Niang!!"

Li Xuanba's voice interrupted Duan Niang's thoughts. She looked up and saw that Li Xuanba was already standing in the room. He was shirtless and was visibly thin, with his ribs clearly visible. It was as if he was wearing a layer of skin on his bones, with no flesh visible at all.

What surprised Duan Niang was that Sanlangjun, who was in so much pain last night that he couldn't get out of bed, looked so energetic today.

"Hey! Why are you up?!"

Duan Niang exclaimed in surprise and quickly stepped forward.

"Lie down! Lie down!"

With one hand, Duan Niang lifted this 'natural warrior' and carried him to the bed in an instant, steadily and safely, without spilling any medicine from her other hand.

Li Xuanba sat on the bed, extremely excited. He waved his hands, "Duan Niang, I'm fine, look, it doesn't hurt at all!"

Duan Niang stood there stunned for a long time, then pinched Li Xuanba's leg again, "Does it hurt?"

"It doesn't hurt! It doesn't hurt at all!"

"I'm just hungry, my stomach keeps growling!"

"Oh, okay, okay, I'll get the food right away."

After helping Li Xuanba get dressed, Duan Niang brought out breakfast. The meal was quite plentiful, though not much, but with a variety of dishes, including chicken, vegetables, fruits, and meats.

Li Xuanba ate heartily, swallowing quickly, which frightened Duan Niang so much that she kept bringing him soup, afraid he would choke.

Before long, Li Xuanba finished eating. He patted his stomach and asked, "Is there any more?"

Duan Niang was still somewhat bewildered. "Yes, yes, I'll go get some more."

After finishing his meal, Li Xuanba began preparing for tomorrow's examination.

If Teacher Zheng says he'll test him, he definitely will; he never lies.

Due to his health condition, Li Xuanba used to spend his days reading indoors. His residence had few other things, but the most books were.

Li Xuanba sat in the study on the left side of the dormitory, holding a pen in one hand and turning the pages of a book with the other, beginning to think about how to answer Zheng Shi's question tomorrow.

After a long time, during which time Duan Niang came in several more times, and seeing that Sanlangjun was indeed unharmed, she did not disturb his studies.

"Son."

Just then, they heard voices outside. Li Xuanba had just put down his pen when two people walked in together. Duan Niang followed behind them, whispering something.

Li Xuanba quickly got up.

"Big brother!"

One of these two men was Li Jiancheng, and the other was Physician Wang from the mansion.

Before Li Jiancheng could even answer, Doctor Wang had already come to Li Xuanba's side and began to examine his body, pinching his legs, grabbing his arms, listening to his chest, and then asking Li Xuanba to open his mouth and stick out his tongue for careful observation.

After struggling for a long time, Dr. Wang finally stood up, his face filled with shock.

Dr. Wang has been watching over Li Xuanba since birth, and he knows his physical condition best. Based on yesterday's situation, Dr. Wang judged that Li Xuanba might not even be able to lift his head today, and he even prepared various pain-relieving medications in advance.

I brought Li Jiancheng here early this morning to stop his outrageous behavior and stop tormenting Li Xuanba.

But how come this kid is completely unharmed?

Not only can I get up, but I don't even feel any pain?
Li Jiancheng laughed heartily.

"See, Your Highness? I told you long ago that Xuanba is no ordinary man, but a born warrior. You didn't believe me, but now you do, don't you?"

Dr. Wang couldn't refute it. He hesitated for a moment, then said, "Even so, we can't go too far. After all, Sanlangjun's illness isn't fully cured, and I really don't want him to take any risks."

"How about this, from now on, you can come and check every other day. If there's anything wrong, I'll have him stop. Is that alright?"

Dr. Wang had no choice but to agree.

Li Jiancheng also gave Li Xuanba a few instructions, telling him not to be impatient and to take it slow.

After that, Li Jiancheng hurriedly left. He had many things to do, but unfortunately, the things he remembered were fragmented and incomplete. He only remembered the general outline of many things and didn't know where to start, which was truly frustrating.

Li Xuanba once again focused his attention on his studies, becoming quite engrossed in them.

Of the Li family's children, only Li Xuanba could concentrate on his studies. The eldest son was carefree and liked to make friends with heroes, so he didn't care much about studying. The second son was even worse; he loved martial arts and was brave, and although he was intelligent, he didn't put much effort into it. The fourth son was even worse; he got a headache whenever he saw a book.

Li Xuanba seemed to have figured out how to answer Zheng Shi's question, and he wrote with increasing focus.

"No, no." Suddenly someone spoke up, startling Li Xuanba. He quickly looked up and saw Liu Xuan standing behind him, staring down at the annotations he had written.

Li Xuanba quickly stood up, "Teacher!"

He hadn't even noticed when the other person had entered; their skills were truly extraordinary! His elder brother had found him a master!

Liu Xuan waved his hand, "No need for formalities. Did that Mr. Zheng ask you to write this?"

"Ah, yes, he asked me about the meaning of 'the benevolent find joy in mountains' before, and after I answered, he felt it was not good, so I reconsidered."

"Oh, your writing isn't good this time either."

Liu Xuan immediately gave his evaluation.

Li Xuanba was somewhat surprised, "Teacher also understands Confucian classics?"

"Knowledgeable in Confucian classics??"

Liu Xuan's lips trembled slightly. He wanted to say something, but he held back.

"Well, besides honing my hammer-wielding skills, I also occasionally read scriptures and do some research."

"Teacher, you are truly accomplished in both literary and martial arts! In your opinion, how should I answer?"

Li Xuanba was very humble, and Liu Xuan appreciated his studious attitude. He sat down to the side with a smile and stroked his long beard. "How to answer depends on who that Master Zheng is."

Li Xuanba was somewhat confused. "What does the teacher mean?"

Liu Xuan narrowed his eyes and asked, "Xingyang Zheng?"

“Exactly.”

"That makes things easier. Next time you see him, if he asks you to answer, don't say anything about being as steady as a mountain or being unmoved by external things."

“You should answer him: Nature is everything, everything is nature, morality is nature, nature is morality, people should emulate nature, follow nature, and following nature is following morality.”

Li Xuanba looked completely bewildered.

Liu Xuan said with a smile, "Your teacher is from the Zheng family. The Zheng family follows this path. The specific reasons are not important. The person asking the question is the most important."

"The same question will elicit different answers from different people."

After Liu Xuan finished speaking, he quickly added, "However, there is only one thing: once you leave this door and meet outsiders, you must never mention my name!"

"Especially, you mustn't tell anyone that I'm here teaching you how to use a hammer!"

"If your teacher asks, just say you came up with it yourself. I hate trouble, understand?"

Li Xuanba nodded, then asked hesitantly, "Teacher, is the saying 'The benevolent find joy in mountains' really about this principle?"

"Does it matter?"

"Unless Confucius were to be resurrected, who could be certain what he was saying? And who would agree with him?"

Liu Xuan's face was full of indescribable vicissitudes. "Studying the classics is useless if you just know how to read them. They are only useful when you are doing something. Since the chaos of the North and South, no one cares about their true content or whether they are true or false. As long as they are useful to you, that's enough."

Looking at Li Xuanba, who was standing there dumbfounded, Liu Xuan realized that he had said too much. He quickly composed himself and said, "Let's not talk about this anymore. You can deal with the academic matters later. I brought you a gift!"

"go!"

Liu Xuan led Li Xuanba out the door, where a simple armory was set up, displaying three sets of armor and a strange, square wooden "golden melon hammer".

Li Xuanba's eyes lit up.

He rushed forward eagerly, wanting to take them, but then stopped, and finally carefully stroked the armor sets.

He slowly looked at Liu Xuan, his voice trembling.

"Teacher, is this for me?"

"Yes, here you go. Here, let me put this on you and see if you can handle it."

Liu Xuan put the lightest set of 'armor' on Li Xuanba, which was actually just a strange thing made of two pieces of wood joined together. Li Xuanba took a deep breath, and Liu Xuan then gave him the even simpler wooden hammer.

Li Xuanba, clad in armor and wielding a golden mace, waved it haphazardly a few times.

He looked extremely happy, spinning around and showing off, with tears even welling up in his eyes.

"I always thought I'd never have the chance to wear armor."

"Thank you Master!"

Looking into the little guy's pure, tearful eyes, Liu Xuan couldn't help but smile.

"No need for thanks, just focus on practicing martial arts."

(End of this chapter)