024 Time to Nourish the Body (Please follow and vote for recommendations.)
Money, wealth, status, beautiful women—all these things, when he achieved the extraordinary, came as easily as reaching out his hand. Chen Anquan was no saint, merely an ordinary man, and he had no desire to become one. All he wanted was to be himself, always.
“What’s this?”
Chen Anquan’s gaze fell upon a weed growing from the earth. Oval-shaped leaves, a long flower spike—it was plantain. He knew this herb; it had properties to clear heat, relieve diuresis, detoxify, and cool the blood.
“Should I start taking traditional medicine to replenish myself?”
Long-term physical training imposed a tremendous burden on the body, depleting his energy and blood excessively, and the subsequent supplementation was insufficient. How could one expect endurance to last forever?
Chen Anquan decided to make three more runs back and forth. If his attributes didn’t improve, he would call it quits for the day and start foraging for herbs in the mountains tomorrow.
He studied medicine; there was no need for him to buy remedies from a pharmacy. Wasn’t it better to dig for herbs himself?
Once again, Chen Anquan lifted the heavy stone, feet stamping the ground, sending a cloud of dust into the air behind him. He himself moved like a leopard chasing its prey.
After about ten minutes of running, an unexpected wave of fatigue slowed his steps. This exhaustion was not simply a lack of stamina—it felt more like a depletion, as if his bodily functions were declining.
He laughed at himself. “Looks like I really am spent!”
When he reached his destination, he found he had taken twenty-five whole minutes. This was his worst time yet.
After a brief rest, he carried the stone back again. This time, it took him twenty-six minutes—he had actually regressed.
Chen Anquan knew he couldn’t continue training today; otherwise, he’d use up even what little reserve he had.
He walked the rest of the way home.
“Superman!”
Just as he was about to open the door, a familiar voice called out behind him.
A little boy appeared, looking at Chen Anquan with awe and respect.
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Chen Anquan was somewhat surprised; this little rascal no longer called him uncle but had switched to Superman.
“Why do you call me that?”
“I just asked grandma, and she said you can harvest three acres of land in a single day!”
Chen Anquan smiled. This boy probably didn’t even know how to harvest rice, so how could he understand how extraordinary it was to finish three acres in a day?
He continued opening the door, not bothering to answer.
Seeing his uncle remain silent, Chen Xinwu pressed on, “Grandma told me that the best harvester in our village, Lazy Li, can only manage one acre a day. You’ve done two more than him. How could you not be Superman?”
Chen Anquan paused in his action. His speed far exceeded that of ordinary people—three times faster, in fact. It could no longer be described as normal; calling himself “Superman” seemed apt.
It was like Usain Bolt’s world record for the hundred-meter dash at 9.27 seconds; the second-place runner could also break ten seconds, so the gap wasn’t huge. But Chen Anquan was running the equivalent of a hundred meters in six or seven seconds—unreachable for any human.
He opened the door and said, “Come in! Help me with some chores.”
“Alright!”
Chen Xinwu agreed cheerfully.
As soon as he stepped into Chen Anquan’s old house, he saw the brand-new refrigerator and sterilizing cupboard in the main hall, his eyes widened, “Superman, why did you buy so many appliances and furniture?”
“I’ll be living here for a while.”
“Then you could stay at my place! Grandma cooks for us anyway.”
Chen Anquan couldn’t be bothered to answer the boy. Staying for a day or two made him a guest; staying longer made him a parasite, and the hosts would want to throw him out as far as possible.
He walked into the kitchen, took out the new chopping board, washed it clean, and placed it on the counter. The so-called counter was a large table he had salvaged from his second uncle’s old furniture.
At that moment, Chen Xinwu followed him in, bouncing along. Seeing Chen Anquan preparing to cook, he said, “Superman, let me help you.”
“Wash all these vegetables for me,” Chen Anquan pointed at a large bag of assorted produce and meat on the floor.
With Chen Xinwu’s help, things went much faster.
An hour later, dusk had begun to settle.
On the old dining table in the hall, there was a plate of braised fish, a platter of greens, a big bowl of minced pork and bitter bamboo shoot soup, a plate of braised eggplant, and a dish of spicy diced chicken.
“Xinwu, go call your grandpa and grandma over.”
“Alright!”
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Chen Xinwu grinned and dashed outside, disappearing into the darkness in moments.
Chen Anquan had already told his aunt yesterday not to cook dinner tonight; he was treating everyone.
Ten minutes later, his aunt and four others arrived.
His cousin Li Anzheng had three children: Chen Xinwu was the eldest, followed by a son and a daughter.
As soon as his aunt stepped over the threshold, her eyes landed on the four dishes and the soup on the old table, and she was instantly stunned.
The presentation could rival that of a hotel chef.
Usually, dishes that looked good tasted good too.
None of them acted like guests; they picked their seats, sat down, and began eating with their chopsticks.
During the meal, Chen Xinwu deliberately placed a large piece of braised fish in Chen Anquan’s bowl, smiling as he said, “Superman, you must eat more and nourish yourself!”
“You’re getting cheeky!” His aunt reached out and pinched Chen Xinwu’s nose, “Call him uncle, not Superman. Why don’t you call him Ultraman?”
Chen Xinwu pushed her fingers off his nose, “I want to call him Superman. Ultraman is light; uncle hasn’t turned into light yet, so I can’t call him Ultraman.”
His aunt was annoyed by his cheeky words and grabbed his ear, “Do you understand what it means to respect your elders?”
Chen Xinwu frowned, “Fine, fine, I’ll call him uncle, alright?”
His aunt let go, looked at Chen Anquan, and smiled apologetically, “Kids don’t know any better, Anquan, don’t mind him.”
“It’s all right,” Chen Anquan was not bothered at all. At this point, Chen Xinwu was practically his little fan, and he couldn’t help but be pleased.
During the meal, Chen Anquan introduced a business opportunity to his second uncle.
His second uncle’s main job was farming; on the side, he helped others build houses and could handle some plumbing and electrical work.
He asked his uncle to help install a water pipe, running directly from his uncle’s house to his own, with the meter set up at his own doorstep. He would pay for the materials and give his uncle two hundred for installation.
Such a good deal, his uncle gladly agreed.
Just then, the previously quiet Chen Xinwu suddenly spoke up, “Uncle, watching you cook just now looked so tiring. Since you practice martial arts and train every day, shouldn’t you buy some supplements?”
Chen Anquan was surprised. He looked across at Chen Xinwu, who was eating heartily, and couldn’t help but marvel at the keen observation children possessed.