Republic of China era: A hundred-year-old still practicing martial arts? Is that right?

"Tap! Tap! Tap!"

A sudden, urgent knocking sound rang out, making the door tremble.

The curtains were half-drawn, and clothes were scattered haphazardly along the edge of the bed. The lingering ambiance of the interplay of yin and yang still hung in the air.

Bai Yu'er's hair was disheveled, her body was limp and weak, and she was immersed in extreme relaxation and exhaustion.

She was already exhausted, both physically and mentally, from Wang Erniang's brutal treatment. Now, with her defenses down, she collapsed completely onto the bed.

Hearing the knock on the door, she sat up abruptly, her face tensing, the flush fading considerably. She hurriedly grabbed a garment and draped it over herself.

"Oh no, it must be Wang Erniang who's still angry and has returned with her men."

Getting out of bed, Bai Yu'er hurriedly pulled two thick wooden sticks from under the bed, handing one to Lin Ji, who had just put on his clothes, her voice trembling slightly:

"Old Lin, take this for self-defense. That shrew Wang Erniang is ruthless. If she really comes back, she probably won't let this go this time."

Lin Ji weighed the wooden stick in his hand and found it to be quite heavy.

As he flipped through the book again, his youth flashed back ten years, and Lin Ji felt a surge of strength coursing through his body. Ordinary shrewish women in the marketplace could do nothing to him.

Moreover, with the confidence given by the martial bone, what is there to fear even if that tigress attacks again?

However, with a man and a woman alone in a room, the atmosphere inside was ambiguous. If they were caught together, it would confirm the fact that Wang Erniang was "having an affair."

Even though Lin Ji had lived for a hundred years and possessed a remarkably calm temperament, he couldn't help but frown slightly, a hint of helplessness at being caught in the act appearing on his face. Lin Ji's brow furrowed slightly, and then he thought:

Hmm... they're definitely having an affair now.

Bai Yu'er hurriedly straightened her clothes, tidied her messy hair behind her ears, and rushed to the door with slightly unsteady steps, pulling open the latch.

"ah!"

Bai Yu'er exclaimed in surprise.

"Bang!"

The wooden stick that was about to be smashed fell to the ground.

Lin Ji frowned and looked up.

The group of Wang Erniang that the two had anticipated did not appear.

Doorway.

There stood a boy who looked about fourteen or fifteen years old.

The boy had fair skin and a slender build. He wore a dark blue, coarse cotton stand-up collar Zhongshan suit, and his black, narrow-legged trousers were stained with mud at the hem, and appeared to have a tear in them.

The lines of the man depict the boy's eyebrows and eyes in an extremely handsome way.

However, at this moment, the boy's handsome face was covered in bruises, his mouth was covered in scabs, and he had multiple abrasions on his face. His eyes were gloomy and heavy as he looked into the room.

"Little New Year? Didn't you say you'd be back on Sunday? Why are you back today?" Bai Yu'er's heart tightened, and she instinctively stood in front of the door, trying to block out the mess inside.

Her face was flushed, her hair was disheveled, her clothes were in disarray, and her eyes were filled with panic.

"I...I lied to my husband..."

Bai Xiaonian, who was already quiet and reserved, pursed his lips into a thin line, lowered his head, and mumbled an "Mmm".

Seeing the shocking injuries on Bai Xiaonian's face, Bai Yu'er felt a tightness in her chest and couldn't help but reach out to touch the boy's swollen cheek.

"Hey sis, what happened to your face? Did you get into a fight?"

"It's nothing, sis! I just got a minor scrape during a martial arts sparring session! It's nothing serious!"

Bai Xiaonian instinctively dodged backward, his eyes slightly raised as he looked at the red and swollen handprint on Bai Yu'er's face.

at once!

The boy's anger surged:

"Sis, who beat you up like this?"

As soon as he finished speaking, Bai Xiaonian's gaze suddenly shifted, passing over Bai Yu'er and heading straight into the dimly lit room.

The curtains inside were half-drawn, and the lingering warmth of their passionate encounter hadn't completely dissipated.

An old man with disheveled clothes stood in front of the low bed.

A lone man and woman, a closed door, disheveled clothes, and a hint of panic in the older sister's eyes.

at once!

The words "caught in the act" flashed through the boy's mind.

Bai Xiaonian lowered his gaze and landed on Bai Yu'er's disheveled temples, his heart filled with complex emotions and he was speechless.

He looked up at the old man inside the house again, his bloodshot eyes almost spitting fire.

The usual taunts and ridicule from the scions of noble families in the martial arts hall suddenly pierced Bai Xiaonian's ears like needles.

"His sister was a prostitute..."

"It's shameless of you to use money earned from prostitution to learn martial arts at a martial arts academy..."

"Hey, we've been classmates, shouldn't we go and help them out?"

"Ha ha……"

A surge of humiliation and rage erupted within the young man. His eyes turned bloodshot, and he could no longer hear any explanation. He roared so loudly that Bai Yu'er's ears rang.

"You old pervert, what did you do to my sister?!"

Bai Xiaonian pushed off the ground with his feet, his waist suddenly sinking, and a powerful punch, still somewhat immature, aimed straight at Lin Ji's face.

"Xiao Nian! No! You've misunderstood!"

Behind her, Bai Yu'er was so frightened that her soul almost left her body, and she hurriedly raised her hand to stop him.

But her movements were nowhere near as fast as Bai Xiaonian's, who had trained in martial arts.

In the blink of an eye, the boy's fist was already in front of Lin Ji.

Lin Ji's eyes flickered slightly as he watched the fist hurtling towards him.

Within his sea of ​​consciousness, the martial spirit resonated, and a golden light suddenly appeared.

Bai Xiaonian's punching stance, the path of his punches, and the flaws in his moves were like lines drawn out in a painting, already reflected in Lin Ji's eyes.

Weird!

Just a second before Bai Xiaonian threw his punch.

In his mind, he could clearly predict the trajectory and force of the punch.

Almost subconsciously.

Lin Ji slightly raised his right hand and casually grasped Bai Xiaonian's wrist.

He twisted his wrist slightly, and his thumb pressed precisely on the nerve endings on the inside of Bai Xiaonian's wrist.

"Well!"

Bai Xiaonian groaned, his body instantly losing strength, and his fist went limp.

What?!

The room was so quiet you could hear a pin drop!

Bai Xiaonian's face was filled with disbelief, his eyes fixed on Lin Ji.

He had practiced his martial arts for three years, but an old man had subdued him with ease.

Lin Ji was also taken aback.

Is the Book of Reversing Fate really that powerful?

The boy was both shocked and angry, and raised his fist to strike again.

"Xiao Nian, stop! You've misunderstood!" At this moment, Bai Yu'er finally rushed up, tightly hugging the boy's arm, her eyes reddening with anxiety: "Grandpa Lin saved me!"

"Today, Wang Erniang brought her brothers to cause trouble. If it weren't for your Grandpa Lin saving me, I would be dead here today! You child, you attacked me without even knowing what happened! Apologize to Grandpa Lin right now!"

Bai Xiaonian's fist froze in mid-air as he stared blankly at the clear handprint on Bai Yu'er's face, then glanced at the messy state of the room.

A mix of embarrassment, guilt, and awkwardness welled up inside him, causing the boy's cheeks to flush red. He spoke in a low, hesitant voice, finally managing to squeeze out a sound after a long pause:

"I'm...I'm sorry, Grandpa Lin, I misunderstood you."

Well, it's not really that much of a misunderstanding...

Lin Ji silently scoffed for a moment, then nodded slightly, released his grip on the boy's tendons, and smiled faintly:

"It's alright, I understand the young man's protectiveness of his sister."

"But in this cannibalistic world, hatred is a knife if you keep it in your heart, and a target if you wear it on your face."

"It's just like peeing; you have to hold it in really hard to shoot it far, otherwise, like an old man like me, you'll end up with water dripping from your shoes in the wind, haha!"

The words may be rough, but the principle is sound. Lin Ji had said all he wanted to say and had no interest in continuing to preach. Saying these two more words was just a spur-of-the-moment thing.

Upon hearing this, Bai Xiaonian was momentarily stunned.

Seeing her younger brother's dazed expression, Bai Yu'er couldn't help but feel a pang of heartache and gently patted his back.

Her fingertips had just touched the boy's clothes.

"hiss--!"

Bai Xiaonian arched his body abruptly as if he had been branded with a hot iron.

"Oh! What's wrong?"

Bai Yu'er was startled and quickly withdrew her hand.

"No...it's nothing," Bai Xiaonian stammered, shaking his head.

Lin Ji's sharp eyes swept across Bai Xiaonian's face.

A fine layer of sweat appeared on the boy's forehead from Bai Yu'er's touch, and his body trembled slightly.

That wasn't from being scared; it was from pain.

Lin Ji couldn't help but sigh inwardly.

"The poor study literature, the rich study martial arts!"

In this world, it's incredibly difficult for children from poor families to rise above others through martial arts!

Every member of that martial arts school is either from a prestigious family or, at the very least, from a wealthy one. How could a poor kid like Xiao Nian, who has no money or power, not be ostracized and bullied?

However, Lin Ji did not expose it.

"Alright, it's rare for you two siblings to get together, have a good chat, this old man will head back now."

Lin Ji was unwilling to stay in this awkward place, so he turned around and walked away.

"Old Lin, wait a minute, I have a birthday gift for you."

Bai Yu'er suddenly spoke up.