That afternoon—
Su Qingxue, accompanied by Uncle Ye, made her way to Guo Yi's residence with a gift in hand.
"Miss, he's just some countryside Pokémon instructor," Uncle Ye said, frowning slightly. "Why bother delivering it yourself?"
In his mind, it made far more sense for him to return the item.
But Su Qingxue had insisted on going in person, her tone leaving no room for argument.
"You don't understand, Uncle Ye."
Because of how valuable the contents of that paper were, Su Qingxue didn't want to explain too much.
Uncle Ye could only sigh and obediently follow behind her.
Soon, a modest thatched cottage came into view.
And at the sight of it, Su Qingxue's impression of Guo Yi deepened—this man must be a hidden master.
As a Trainer herself, and one who owned a Nidoran♀ no less, she fully understood the value of that page's contents.
If sold to a Trainer raising Nidoking or Nidoqueen, it could easily fetch millions.
And yet this Guo Yi still lived in such a humble dwelling.
Clearly, he's a man of character.
"Student Su Qingxue requests an audience with Teacher Guo."
Standing at the entrance to the cottage, Su Qingxue bowed respectfully, greeting him with the formality due a master.
Inside, Guo Yi's face lit up with delight when he heard her voice.
She finally came!
He turned to Beedrill and said, "Beedrill, go open the door."
Zz-bzz!
Beedrill nodded and moved to open it.
Meanwhile, Guo Yi straightened his posture and composed his expression.
A master must carry himself like one.
When Su Qingxue saw Beedrill wordlessly beckon them inside, she stepped forward and entered the cottage.
But the moment she saw Guo Yi's face, she couldn't help but falter slightly.
She had imagined some reclusive sage—if not elderly, then at least in his fifties.
Yet the man before her didn't seem much older than herself.
For a moment—
Su Qingxue questioned whether the "Guo Yi" who signed that paper and this young man were even the same person.
To be sure, she decided to ask.
"Teacher Guo," she said politely, "are you familiar with the ability called [Hustle]?"
Guo Yi raised his eyebrows, feigning surprise.
"Huh? How do you know about [Hustle]? Just yesterday, I wrote a whole page about that very ability while sitting in the pavilion…"
"Wait—where did that paper go?"
He glanced around the desk, pretending to search.
Su Qingxue stepped forward and handed the sheet to him.
"Is this the one, Teacher? I found it in the pavilion this morning."
Guo Yi took the paper and asked directly, "Did you read what was written on it?"
Before Su Qingxue could reply, Uncle Ye gave a sharp snort. "Of course she did. Otherwise, why would we be here?"
If Guo Yi had been an older man, closer in age to himself, Uncle Ye might have treated him with some courtesy.
But now, seeing he was just a young man, his attitude shifted at once.
So this is the little punk my lady came running here for? he thought, irritated.
Yet Guo Yi ignored the man's rudeness, calmly turning back to Su Qingxue, waiting for her answer.
Su Qingxue, however, bowed deeply at the waist—a full ninety degrees—and spoke with utmost sincerity.
"Forgive me, Teacher Guo. I did read what was on the paper. If there's anything I can do to compensate you, please name your price."
Her gesture shocked even Uncle Ye.
"Miss!" he exclaimed, stunned. It was the first time he'd ever seen her show this level of humility to anyone.
Could this kid actually be someone worth taking seriously...? Uncle Ye couldn't help but reevaluate the situation.
Of course, Su Qingxue's deference wasn't baseless.
She had a very specific goal:
She wanted the rest of the training plan—particularly the parts concerning Nidoqueen.
That knowledge was extremely important to her.
What she didn't expect—
Was that Guo Yi showed not the slightest hint of interest in any compensation.
Instead, he simply smiled and said, "It's fine. You read it, so you read it."
"It's not top-secret or anything. Just don't spread it around, and we're good."
"As for compensation? Forget it."
Guo Yi understood her motives clearly.
If he asked for a price, she'd have the perfect excuse to negotiate for more—after all, who sells only half a product?
But by remaining nonchalant, he left her no opening to push further.
Now it was Su Qingxue who felt unsure of what to do next.
After a long silence—
She drew in a deep breath and spoke bluntly.
"Teacher Guo, I'll be direct."
"I want the rest of what wasn't written on that page. Name your price."
"No matter how much it is—I'll pay it."
Uncle Ye's face twitched the moment he heard her.
Miss, you don't negotiate like this!
You've just laid all your cards on the table!
Now he understood the real reason they were here.
That paper clearly contained something she valued enough to buy, and now she'd made it obvious.
What if the guy takes advantage and asks for the moon?
But his concern turned out to be completely unnecessary.
Because Guo Yi—
Never intended to sell it in the first place.
Are you kidding? If I wanted to sell it, why go through all that effort?
"Heh..."
Guo Yi let out a soft laugh.
"Miss Su, you should head back."
"I'm not selling the rest."
With a wave of his sleeve, he gestured for Beedrill to show them out.
"Then… alright."
"I apologize for the disturbance."
Su Qingxue still wanted to plead her case, but the Beedrill blocking her path made it clear that the conversation was over.
All she could do was turn and leave, quietly disappointed.