Chapter 67: Light of Hope

Taking a burly man who had not eaten for two days to have dinner is an experience not everyone can have.

Arthur ate one of the Whopper triple-patty burgers from Burger King and was full. But the Whopper burger in Mike's hand looked like a mini-burger, and Arthur didn't notice that Mike's hands were so big.

Mike ate five Whopper burgers in one gulp, drank two large cups of soda, and then ate three boxes of fries.

"As an athlete, I can't overeat and drink, so this is all I'll have."

Mike finally rubbed his stomach with a sense of regret, then said with emotion, "It's been a long time since I've had fast food because I have to maintain a healthy diet as an athlete. I can't indulge myself."

Arthur didn't say anything, he just wanted to know why he had to take care of Mike's eating and living.

Mike cleaned up the trash on the table, putting it in the tray, and then hesitantly picked up the trash Arthur had made and threw it away. Then he sat back down in front of Arthur and asked seriously, "It's been two days since I showered, can I take a shower at your place?"

Arthur could already smell the body odor and nodded, saying, "Okay, let's go. I'll buy you two sets of clothes, and the cost will be deducted from your salary."

Mike was still shirtless, but as Arthur glanced down, he noticed that Mike was wearing a pair of AJ shoes. However, since Arthur didn't know much about sneakers, he just casually said, "Nice shoes."

"Of course, AJ zero, over two thousand dollars."

Arthur was about to get up when he paused and looked at the flashy green sneakers on Mike's feet, asking in amazement, "How much?"

"Over two thousand US dollars, a limited edition. I don't like green, but there weren't many sizes that fit me, so I just wore these."

"Huh, a zero-dollar purchase?"

"No, not that."

"Hmm? You can afford it?"

Mike shrugged and said, "If you dress well to try on shoes and then just run away, who can catch you? Plus, I left the old shoes behind, so how can you call that a zero-dollar purchase?"

"Oh, fuck you..."

"..."

After buying Mike two sets of clothes, one sportswear and one formal wear, and also getting him some toiletries, Arthur had to take Mike back to the office, as Arthur himself was still sleeping on a mattress.

Mike had to sleep on the floor, as Arthur wouldn't share a room with him. But for Mike, having a roof over his head and a sofa to sleep on was a luxury, as a street vagrant-in-training, he couldn't have high demands.

The next morning, Arthur went to the gym and found that Mike had already arrived earlier, standing at the entrance and watching Mike swinging 40-pound dumbbells like a windmill. Hesitating for a moment, Arthur went back and got his gun, holstering it under his arm.

"Hey, have you taken your meds?"

Mike, drenched in sweat, glanced sideways at Arthur, gripping a dumbbell in each hand.

Arthur had already made up his mind - if Mike's eyes looked off, he would draw his gun, and if Mike came towards him, he would shoot.

"Boss, you even have a gym, not bad."

Although he was just doing some routine exercises, he was also training for strength. But Arthur had no intention of deliberately training his muscles or shaping his physique.

"Hmm, have you taken your meds?"

"I have."

After hearing Mike's answer, Arthur walked over to the dumbbell rack and picked up a 15-pound one, starting to swing it. Then he felt that Mike's gaze seemed a bit off.

Mike's gaze was a common sight in the gym, a slightly mocking expression, and out of politeness, he didn't dare to mock out loud. But Mike's speed suddenly increased a bit.

Glancing at his scrawny arms, Arthur silently put down the dumbbell and stepped aside.

Mike looked up and smiled, "Perhaps you should warm up first. I'm almost done with my warm-up. By the way, can I get a pair of 70-pound dumbbells? The ones here are too light."

Arthur was deeply resentful and said, "Well, as an athlete, you do need to train your strength, but you don't have to train your muscles just for looks, right?"

"That's right, so I'm just doing some warm-up exercises. When I train my muscles, I won't be using such low weights. My current main training method is running, and I also want to increase my fat content, combining speed and strength, explosive power, not just muscle training."

Whatever, just boast away, Arthur thought angrily, putting on a pose is nothing.

The gym can't be stayed at anymore, and absolutely can't come with Mike, if it wasn't for Mike's mental issues, Arthur would have chased him out, but now, Arthur has no choice but to leave himself.

However, the drive within him wouldn't go away, couldn't just leave like this, once Arthur got to a spacious area, he stretched his limbs, and suddenly let out a roar.

"Ah!"

A fierce shout, startling Mike.

Arthur took a ready stance, then swooshed, and started doing somersaults on the spot.

Although not a martial artist, Arthur can do 12 consecutive somersaults on the spot in one breath.

After doing 10 somersaults in one breath, Arthur did a big split on the spot, laid down, did a fishtail stand, and then went through a series of long fist techniques.

With a loud thud, Arthur glanced sideways to see Mike frantically picking up the dumbbells that had fallen to the ground.

Doing somersaults and punching while wearing a gun is a bit inconvenient.

Slowly getting into a fist-clenching stance, Arthur sighed lightly, looked at the awestruck Mike, and confidently nodded, "You keep practicing, I'm done."

"Wait!"

Mike walked over with an awestruck expression, and before Arthur could decide whether to draw his gun, Mike suddenly grabbed his arm.

Too fast, the speed was too fast.

It's a bit late for Arthur to draw his gun now, so he can only feel extremely frightened inside, but maintain a calm expression as he says, "What?"

"You are a Huaxia person, Huaxia people truly know kung fu!"

Calming down inside, Arthur nodded and said, "Not everyone knows kung fu, basically... most of us do."

"What do you think about me learning martial arts? I can't play football anymore, I'm also good at basketball but not at the NBA level, many people suggested I try fighting, what do you think about me going to do MMA? But I don't have money to afford a coach, can you teach me kung fu?"

"Let go of my hand first."

Mike released his grip on Arthur's arm as if shocked.

Arthur nodded and said in a fist-clenching gesture, "For us Huaxia people, we practitioners of martial arts should greet like this."

Mike immediately made a fist-clenching gesture.

"No, the other way around."

After correcting Mike's hand gesture, Arthur said calmly, "You're a bit old to start learning martial arts, but you still have a chance to become a fighting expert, we'll see how you do. If you want to learn martial arts, first go online and learn what it means to respect the teacher and the way. I may not be able to personally teach you, because what I practice is... confidential, but I'll try to find someone to train you in the future, provided you perform well."

Mike's eyes lit up with hope.

"I'll perform well! How should I perform?"

Arthur thought for a moment and said, "Consistent good performance is key, but someone is coming to apply for a job soon, you go take a shower, take your medicine, put on a suit, and stand behind me as my bodyguard, what we want is presence, do you understand presence? Yes, what we want is respect, got it?"

"Got it, got it, I understand!"

Wanting to pat Mike's shoulder but it was too high, Arthur patted his arm and said indifferently, "Keep practicing."

Arthur left and glanced back to see Mike standing alone in the gym, he finally heaved a sigh of relief and then went out to the lawn to do some punches.

Next, it's time to wait.

In that suit, Mike did have a presence, an absolute presence, especially with that gaze, it would have an effect, too bad the suit didn't fit quite right, just lacking that little touch.

It was already 9:30 am, but Grant still hadn't arrived, Arthur was getting a little impatient, and just as he was about to make a call, Mike in the reception area suddenly burst into his office, urgently saying, "He's here! He's here!"

Mike then rushed back out, Arthur quickly sat up straight, pretending to casually flip through a document on his desk.

Rustling the papers, Mike knocked on the door, then pushed open the glass door to the chairman's office, using a steady and very charming male voice, "Boss, the scheduled guest has arrived."

Arthur looked at the person next to Mike.

A tall, bulky man, over 1.8 meters, with long, flowing curly hair and a drooping mustache, in his thirties, a white man who seemed to make people feel a bit uncomfortable, carrying a large bag in his hand.

"Grant."

With a simple self-introduction, Grant threw the bag he was carrying on the ground and sat down directly in the chair in front of Arthur. First, he swept his hair back, and then said, "I hope I don't have to partner with that big black guy, right?"

Arthur's heart skipped a beat, but fortunately, Mike had left, otherwise, there would already be a fight in his office now.

John was right, this guy was dislikable, really dislikable.

Seeing Arthur's displeased expression, Grant stroked his mustache and said indifferently, "Okay, I won't call him that in front of him. Now tell me, how do I sign the contract?"

Arthur spread his hands and said, "You..."

Grant waved his hand and said, "Let me show you my equipment."

Grant slapped a certificate on the table with a snap, then a second one, and a third one.

"Firearms license, registered security, military discharge certificate, buddy, hurry up and sign the contract if you agree, if not, I'll leave."

Grant opened the bag and said, "Rifle, handgun, bulletproof vest, night vision goggles, all my equipment, the key is that my equipment is all legal."

At this time, Mike came in with two cups of coffee and put them down in front of Grant with a smile.

Grant picked up the cup in a casual manner and smiled at Mike, "Thank you."

After taking a sip of the coffee, Grant frowned and said, "This coffee tastes terrible."

If the cup had been filled with sulfuric acid instead of coffee, Arthur might have splashed it in Grant's face, but he held back his anger and said, "You will follow my orders, or you're fired. If you can start tomorrow, fine, if not, you can leave now."

Grant didn't seem to care and said, "I can tell you're a rookie, but that's fine, as long as you pay me, I'll listen to you. I'm a qualified veteran, what time do I start work tomorrow?"