The Martial Lord of the Troubled World

Chapter 9 Fiancée

"Crack! Crack!"

Fu Juemin seemed to hear the sound of dry firewood burning in a fire, and the delicate, crisp sound of bamboo shoots growing underground on a rainy spring night.

Immediately afterwards, I felt my thighs, calves, and arms swell slightly, and the muscles bulged out slightly, showing obvious growth.

"Is this all the effect of a single attack?"

Fu Juemin was surprised and almost instinctively punched the stake in front of him.

"boom!"

The fist landed on the stake, causing the entire stake to shake violently. The force of this punch was greater than the full-force punch Fu Juemin had thrown before, and this was just a casual punch.

After conducting numerous experiments, Fu Juemin finally concluded that—

"My strength has increased by about 30% compared to before, and my speed has also increased significantly. It seems that the [Attack] attribute is mainly linked to strength and speed."

The experience of gradually improving physical fitness through daily exercise is completely different from the experience of suddenly and dramatically improving it.

Although it was only a 1-point increase in attack, it gave Fu Juemin a feeling of being "reborn".

Fu Juemin had seen Wang Shuisheng train. Wang Shuisheng usually practiced with a 60-jin stone lock. In other words, after the 4-point attack, in terms of pure strength, the gap between him and a Bone Forging Realm martial artist was no longer so obvious.

"Next time we practice, let's see if this guy dares to hold back so much."

Fu Juemin pounded on the wooden stake in front of him, punching it again and again, feeling an urge to call Wang Shuisheng back to continue sparring with him.

Just as they were getting into the swing of things, they suddenly heard a knock on the door.

As soon as he stopped punching and kicking, Fu Juemin turned his head and looked towards the entrance of the training room.

"Master."

A small head cautiously peeked in from outside the door.

"Huaihua, what's up?"

Fu Juemin stretched his muscles and asked casually.

Xiao Huaihua whispered back, "Master Xu has arrived with two Miss Xus. The master and mistress are calling you over."

"The Xu family..."

Fu Juemin frowned slightly, and soon a figure popped into his mind, "Xu Leyi?!"

bedroom.

Fu Juemin stood in front of the huge full-length dressing mirror, slowly fastening the second button on his waistcoat.

The young man in the mirror had handsome features and a dashing figure. Compared to a month ago, he had lost some of his effeminate charm and gained more of a rugged and masculine beauty.

Fu Juemin is very satisfied with his current appearance.

"After building up these muscles, my old suits that used to fit me are now a bit tight, so I have to have them custom-made."

Fu Juemin buttoned up his cuffs, clipped the silver revolver to his waist, then put on his coat and walked out of the room.

Upon descending to the first floor, one immediately sees Fu Guosheng sitting in the reception room, chatting and drinking tea with someone.

Fu Juemin walked up, and the middle-aged man sitting opposite Fu Guosheng, dressed in a purple long robe, with his hair neatly combed and a sandalwood cane inlaid with silver beside him, immediately greeted him warmly: "Lingjun, you've finally arrived."

"Uncle Xu."

Fu Juemin greeted the other party politely with a smile.

Xu Shirong was a few years older than his father, Fu Guosheng, and was also a prominent figure in the business community of Luanhe County.

The Xu family also started out in shipping and textile manufacturing, but their business was far smaller than the Fu family's. Many of their businesses relied on the Fu family's support, so they had always been quite obsequious to them. Over time, the two families became long-time "family friends." Just two years ago, with Xu Shirong's strong encouragement, a marriage was arranged between the two families—Fu Juemin and Xu Shirong's eldest daughter, Xu Leyi. In other words, the person in front of her was Fu Juemin's "future father-in-law."

“I passed through Hongzhou last month and found a 20-year-old black-leaved stone tiger, which I brought here today.”

As soon as Fu Juemin sat down on the sofa, Xu Shirong immediately took out a beautifully packaged box and handed it to him with a smile, saying, "This stuff nourishes yin and moistens dryness, and is most beneficial for recovery after injury."

Fu Juemin glanced at Fu Guosheng, and seeing that Fu Guosheng did not react, he accepted the gift without hesitation. "Thank you, Uncle Xu. You've gone to so much trouble."

"Why are you so polite to me?"

Xu Shirong smiled and waved his hand, then carefully looked Fu Juemin up and down, and couldn't help but say, "Lingjun seems to be even more robust than before."

"These days, he's been neglecting his duties, spending all his time learning martial arts from the family's boxing instructor."

Fu Guosheng blew on the tea in his hand and said calmly.

"Learn martial arts?"

Xu Shirong was taken aback for a moment, but quickly smiled and said, "Learning martial arts is a good thing. The physical strength you build now will be the foundation for your family's future prosperity..."

"If you speak up for him like this today, he will definitely become more and more unscrupulous in the future."

Fu Guosheng shook his head and sighed softly, while Xu Shirong laughed heartily.

Fu Juemin sat in the living room for a while, but was soon "sent away".

Fu Juemin, carrying the mysterious stone tiger given to him by Xu Shirong, casually strolled into the garden, which turned out to be a "meeting place" for women—three adults sat chatting at a small table under the shade of a tree, while two children, led by servants, ran around the garden.

Fu Juemin narrowed his eyes and slowly walked over.

"Lingjun! Over here, over here..."

From a distance, among the three people under the tree, a graceful woman in a cheongsam stood up and waved to him with a smile.

The other two also looked at Fu Juemin.

Fu Juemin stepped forward and called the woman "Stepmother," then called out to the other two, "Leyi, Xinyi."

The girl with the oval face and trendy wavy hair on the left quickly and shyly replied softly, "Brother Lingjun."

The man on the right simply lowered his newspaper slightly and greeted him casually, "Young Master Fu."

—The one on the left is Xu Xinyi, and the one on the right is his fiancée Xu Leyi.

Fu Juemin didn't mind Xu Leyi's cold attitude. He smiled and sat down next to the group, then looked at the two Xu sisters' outfits for the day.

Xu Xinyi was dressed in a crimson cheongsam dress, embroidered with butterflies and magnolias, and her neck and hands were adorned with various beautiful jewelry, a typical look of a wealthy young lady.

Xu Leyi, on the other hand, was dressed in a trendy outfit of an ivory white silk shirt and black high-waisted trousers, with a large green bow tied at the collar and a gold Parker pen pinned to her chest, looking every bit the modern female student.

Fu Juemin glanced at the newspaper that Xu Leyi had been holding.
His expression gradually became a little strange.

Foreign-language newspaper?
These days, it's quite rare for a woman to be able to read a newspaper, especially one entirely in a foreign language.
Fu Juemin couldn't help but think of some things about his fiancée. It was said that Xu Leyi had made a fuss about going abroad to study but failed. So she ran away to Shenghai to study at university for two years. She was only forcibly "invited" back this year by Xu Shirong's people.

Judging from this, Xu Leyi has "learned" quite a lot at Sheng Hai Metropolis, and she has a "new look" about her.

Fu Juemin patiently listened to Xu Xinyi and his stepmother Lin Wanrong chatter on and on about perfumes, jewelry, clothes, and movie stars in the garden for a long time. He also played a game of three-person cards with them for a while. When he got really bored, he suggested going horseback riding in the backyard.

"Several warmblood horses, courtesy of Jose, have recently arrived at the stables in the backyard."

Xu Xinyi was the first to clap her hands in agreement. She seemed to really enjoy being with Fu Juemin. Whenever they chatted, no matter what Fu Juemin said, Xu Xinyi was always the first to quiet down and listen attentively to him.

Lin Wanrong, the stepmother, also smiled and agreed.

Xu Leyi, however, didn't even look up when she heard that the others were going to do something else. She turned a page of her newspaper and replied indifferently:
"Not interested in."

(End of this chapter)