Chapter 474 - 8: Playmate

Lu Qianqian had taken over from her father to teach Zhu Ju Martial Arts. Initially, she had thought she could just come by every three to five days and pass the time.

But now, she came every single day.

"Hmph..."

Watching Zhu Ju effortlessly lift a two-hundred-plus-jin stone and toss it several meters away, Lu Qianqian’s expression couldn’t help but change slightly.

"Young Master Zhu is truly remarkable. You’ve been practicing Martial Arts for less than a month, yet you’re already on the threshold of Grade Entering."

"In a little while, you should be able to take a Secret Medicine and become a Ninth-Grade Martial Artist."

Although reaching the Grade Entering stage wasn’t difficult, Zhu Ju’s pace of Cultivation had truly exceeded her expectations.

’Could it be...’

’...he’s a genius too?’

"Mm." Zhu Ju flexed his wrists, a satisfied look on his face.

"I may not have practiced Martial Arts before, but I’ve been taking all sorts of Spiritual Medicine since I was a child. My physical constitution is not bad."

"Right now, I’m just tapping into that potential. It’s nothing special."

"Besides..."

"I feel a strong affinity for the Dragon Elephant Force and the Giant Spirit Fist. Every time I practice, I can feel myself getting stronger."

"So that’s how it is." Lu Qianqian’s face showed sudden understanding.

"At Young Master Zhu’s age, if you can achieve Grade Entering within the year, you’d still be considered a young genius."

Zhu Ju smiled without replying and continued to practice the Fist Technique with slow, deliberate movements until his forehead was beaded with sweat.

The Giant Spirit Fist was extremely profound. After grasping the Fist Intent, it stimulated the Physical Body, allowing one to grow a bit stronger with each repetition.

It was mainly his strength!

Other aspects like speed didn’t show much obvious improvement, but his strength was advancing by leaps and bounds. No wonder it was called Giant Spirit.

This feeling of constantly getting stronger was intoxicating.

After working up a sweat, taking a sip of iced plum soup was the most pleasant feeling.

"Miss Lu."

Lying back on a plush chair and savoring the fresh fruit being fed to him, Zhu Ju spoke slowly.

"Will you be dining here again today?"

"I’m imposing on Young Master Zhu." Lu Qianqian bowed slightly.

"I can pay."

"Heh..." Zhu Ju waved his hand, dismissing the matter of money.

"Go and prepare."

"Yes, sir."

A servant immediately acknowledged the order and withdrew.

And so, the training platform was occupied by Shuang’er.

"Although the Cloud Step is a basic footwork technique, it’s not simple. Mastering it isn’t so easy." Lu Qianqian adjusted Shuang’er’s posture and form.

"Your movements must be elegant, graceful..."

"This grace isn’t for show. In reality, most Martial Skills, when cultivated to their peak, possess a special charm, like the art of the Painting Saint or the verses of the Poetry Immortal. Even those who don’t understand Martial Arts can feel the difference."

When Zhu Ju had been practicing his Martial Arts, her eyes were vacant and she paid him no mind, yet now she was exceptionally attentive.

From posture to force adjustment, she explained everything in detail.

"Come!"

Lu Qianqian stood with her hands behind her back.

"I’ll be your sparring partner. Let’s test the results of your Cultivation from yesterday."

Shuang’er nodded, tapped her foot lightly, and charged straight for the center.

Lu Qianqian’s figure flickered. She sidestepped to close the distance, took the opportunity to get close to the back of Shuang’er’s knees, and gave a light tap.

"Hah!"

Shuang’er let out a delicate cry, her figure shifting back and forth.

The two of them executed the footwork, flickering back and forth within a ten-foot area like a pair of chasing butterflies.

Their martial practice looked like a playful game.

It was a delight to watch!

Shuang’er was having a lot of fun ’playing’.

She performed the footwork over and over, chasing her opponent while also guarding against being touched from behind.

"Alright."

Lu Qianqian came to a halt, a look of delight on her face.

"Shuang’er, your Talent is truly extraordinary! It’s only been a few days, and you’ve already mastered the Cloud Step to this degree. It took me over a month back then."

"Incredible!"

"It’s because Miss Lu is a good teacher," Shuang’er said with a shy smile, quickly running off.

"I’m going to attend to the Young Master."

"Young Master Zhu." Watching Shuang’er bustling about, attending to Zhu Ju’s every need, Lu Qianqian frowned slightly.

"Shuang’er’s Talent is astounding. It’s too much of a waste for her to just be a personal maid. Why not let her become my junior martial sister?"

"My master once said that anyone who can master the Cloud Step within ten days can be accepted as her disciple."

"Oh!" Zhu Ju laughed.

"Is that so?"

"You probably don’t realize just how good Shuang’er’s Talent is." His nonchalant attitude displeased Lu Qianqian, and she forced herself to suppress her annoyance as she said:

"If she dedicates herself to Martial Arts, there’s a high chance she could reach the Seventh Grade, or even... become a Sixth-Grade Martial Artist!"

"By then, the entire Lu Family will be honored because of her!"

"Oh!" Zhu Ju raised an eyebrow.

"So Shuang’er’s Talent is really that good?"

"That’s right." Lu Qianqian nodded seriously.

"Let me take her with me."

"Young Master Zhu, you don’t lack for a single maidservant. Give her freedom, and in the future, she could become a great asset to the Zhu Family."

"Heh..." Zhu Ju chuckled, straightening up from his plush chair.

"No wonder Miss Lu has been coming to my mansion every day. It turns out teaching me was just a pretense; your real goal was to scout my maidservant."

"Shuang’er, what do you think?"

"Me?" Shuang’er looked bewildered, then said:

"Whatever the Young Master says, I will do."

"Haha..." Zhu Ju laughed heartily.

"Good Shuang’er!"

"You’ve been by my side for so many years, I can’t bear to let you go. I think things are just fine as they are."

"Mm." Shuang’er nodded.

"The Young Master is right."

"Zhu Ju!" Lu Qianqian’s face flushed with anger.

"You can’t just ruin Shuang’er’s bright future for your own selfish reasons."

"A bright future?" Zhu Ju shook his head.

"If you and your master truly cared about Shuang’er’s future, why didn’t you come yourselves to show your sincerity?"

"Forget it."

"There’s no point in talking if we can’t see eye to eye. I won’t keep you any longer, Miss Lu. See our guest out!"

"You..." Lu Qianqian clenched her fists. Seeing the Zhu Mansion guards approaching, she could only stamp her foot in frustration.

"Surnamed Zhu, we’ll see about this!"

...

「The next day.」

"My young master is not home today."

"Not home?"

Having the door shut in her face, Lu Qianqian asked unhappily:

"Where did he go?"

"How would a servant like me know?" The old gatekeeper shook his head.

"It’s not the place of servants like us to ask about the Young Master’s whereabouts."

*

*

*

Drunken Fragrance Residence.

This was one of the most famous art houses in Taiyuan Prefecture.

For those with refined tastes, one could admire the dance of beautiful women, the songs of Actors, and the harmony of zithers and lutes.

And for those who were more direct, the establishment also had guest rooms where one could find a hidden beauty.

"Brother Zhu!"

"Young Master Zhu!"

"It’s been a while since we’ve seen you..."

A few young men about Zhu Ju’s age greeted him with loud laughter, winking and nudging each other.

"I hear you’ve been practicing Martial Arts lately. How’s that going?"

"It’s alright." As one of the ’rich second generation’ among Taiyuan Prefecture’s youth, Zhu Ju naturally had no shortage of rowdy friends. He smiled at the question.

"Brother Wang is an expert who has already achieved Grade Entering. You’ll have to give me plenty of pointers."

"Pointers, my ass!" Wang Rui said with a look of disdain.

"A Ninth-Grade like me is just someone piled high with resources. I’m fine for bullying commoners, but I’m completely out of my depth in a real fight."

"But Grade Entering is easy; it’s climbing higher that’s hard. Without Heavenly and Earthly Treasures worth thousands in gold, you can only rely on bitter Cultivation. With a lazy temperament like mine, I can forget about ever achieving anything in my life."

As he spoke, he shook his head repeatedly.

It was true they were rich kids, but they were only minor rich kids. Their family’s money was far from enough to splurge on Heavenly and Earthly Treasures.

"Come."

Hek Yongzhang gestured with his hand.

"Sit!"

"The Drunken Fragrance Residence has a new batch of women today. I heard they’re the female relatives of an official from Kangzhou who got into trouble. Never mind their looks for a moment—their hands have never touched coarse water, so at the very least their skin will be pink, tender, and smooth."

"They must be really... moist!"

"Haha..." Wang Rui laughed loudly, then paused and asked:

"I heard that the Li Family’s daughter is among them this time?"

"She is." Hek Yongzhang nodded, his expression complicated.

"Back when the Li Family married their daughter off to Kangzhou, we even went to see her off. Who would have thought that after all this time..."

"...she would end up in a place like this."

Zhu Ju, Wang Rui, and Hek Yongzhang were all around the same age, from families of similar means. They had played together since childhood and were birds of a feather. However, as one could tell from the original Zhu Ju’s personality, although they were lazy and loved to have fun, their fundamental characters weren’t bad. Or perhaps it was better to say that these minor rich kids didn’t have the kind of backing needed to be truly arrogant and domineering.