Chapter 10: Planning for the Future

Not far away, Lu Hanwen noticed Feng Zi's gaze, but merely smiled indifferently:

"I shall make the decision, and I hope Brother Feng will not decline, so as to fulfill Liu Fuhu's sincere intentions."

Feng Zi just watched Lu Hanwen and Liu Fuhu before him quietly, calculating rapidly in his heart:

Lu Hanwen spoke with great gravity and deliberately highlighted the esteemed status of a Martial Master, yet he still keenly caught that one word—

"If"!

These two simple words clearly and undoubtedly proved that the farce before him was orchestrated by Lu Hanwen himself.

"Being generous at others' expense, this Young Master Lu is truly calculating..." Feng Zi sighed inwardly, but he already had an idea.

He reached out, pulled out the production deed for the plow ox, and patted Liu Fuhu on the shoulder with a smile, saying:

"The matter between Liu Zhong and me was just a common verbal dispute, not a major affair; besides, I have already administered a small punishment, so this matter should have been put to rest.

"But since you and Young Master Lu have come to my door in person, it shows your sincerity; if I were to show nothing at all, it would seem rather heartless.

"I will gladly accept this ox as a sign of accepting your good intentions, but as for that land deed... it is somewhat too valuable, so please take it back."

Feng Zi naturally understood that Lu Hanwen had only given him two choices:

To accept this gift was to accept the other party's "good intentions," but it would also thoroughly offend Liu Fuhu—no matter the time, land is always the most important means of production;

But if he were to refuse in words, he would be directly slapping the other party in the face, which would be equivalent to burning the bridge between them!

If Feng Zi were truly an ignorant farmer, he would likely be forced to make a difficult choice between this dilemma.

Seeing that he had accepted the plow ox, Liu Fuhu felt greatly relieved.

And when he saw that Feng Zi had not accepted the land deed as well, but had instead voluntarily taken a step back, Liu Fuhu was even more pleasantly surprised and said repeatedly:

"Many thanks, Young Master Feng, many thanks, Young Master Feng! I will certainly do my utmost in the future to let Young Master Feng see my sincerity!"

This was not an empty promise; the other party was truly thinking seriously about how to repay Feng Zi's "great kindness."

Although Liu Fuhu was a landlord, there were no powerful Martial Artists in his family; in front of Martial Masters like Lu Hanwen and Feng Zi, he was no different from an ordinary commoner.

Therefore, when Lu Hanwen demanded he hand over one-tenth of his land as an apology to Feng Zi, he did not dare to say a word and had to obediently offer the land deed.

This was also why, even though Liu Fuhu knew his second son had a dissolute personality, he could only let this son act recklessly:

Because Liu Zhong was a Martial Artist at the Great Accomplishment realm—

Although in Feng Zi's view, the strength of such a Martial Artist was too weak, a Martial Artist of this realm was already the foundation of the Liu Fuhu family!

Upon hearing this, Feng Zi just nodded slightly: "You may return home now; educate your descendants well, and be humble in your conduct and actions."

Seeing that the matter was settled, Lu Hanwen, who had not expected Feng Zi to handle his test so lightly, was already filled with pleasant surprise.

Seeing Liu Fuhu looking at him expectantly, Lu Hanwen waved his hand casually and said:

"Just as Brother Feng said, tell your sons to keep their tails tucked; if they provoke someone they shouldn't again... I fear they won't even know how they died!"

Compared to Feng Zi, Lu Hanwen's words were quite merciless.

But upon hearing this, Liu Fuhu understood that he had finally survived this ordeal, so he nodded and bowed repeatedly before leaving without looking back.

With the matter here concluded, Lu Hanwen looked at Feng Zi and said with admiration: "Brother Feng, coming from the fields, you possess such wisdom; I admire you."

Another trap!

Feng Zi understood immediately, but he merely waved his hand and said indifferently: "What wisdom... Young Master Lu is truly overpraising me.

"I only know that since the trivial matters are finished, one should be forgiving when possible; one must always value human relations."

Seeing that the other party still wanted to say something, Feng Zi took the initiative to issue a dismissal:

"Looking at the sun, it is already the hour of the sheep (1:00 PM - 3:00 PM); my parents have been busy for half the day and should eat their lunch and rest, would Young Master Lu like to join us for a simple meal?"

Lu Hanwen naturally understood the implication and cupped his hands: "I have disturbed you, please do not take offense, Brother Feng.

"At the Martial Tournament seven days from now, I will certainly have to properly learn from your Fist Technique!"

To this, Feng Zi only replied calmly: "Certainly."

Before the words had faded, a carriage was seen pulling up steadily in front of the courtyard.

Feng Zi sensed that there was a person sitting in the carriage, and judging by their Qi and Blood Power, their strength should also be at the level of a Martial Master!

As for whether the person was Li Shou or a Martial Master from the Lu Family, that was not a trivial matter he should care about.

The coachman jumped off the carriage and hurriedly opened the door, and Lu Hanwen walked up quickly.

Before boarding, the other party turned around and cupped his hands toward Feng Zi:

"Brother Feng, we are of the same generation and share a mutual understanding; calling each other 'Young Master' and 'Brother' is truly a bit distant, why not address each other by our names?"

After probing for so long, only this sentence was a sincere expression of friendship!

Upon hearing this, Feng Zi immediately cupped his hands: "Very well, Brother Hanwen, we shall fight with all our might when the time comes!"

Lu Hanwen was also very pleased with this answer and likewise cupped his hands: "I ask that Brother Feng Zi please do not hold back!"

Having said that, the two looked at each other and smiled.

Immediately, Lu Hanwen turned and boarded the carriage.

Watching the carriage gradually move away, Feng Zi let out a long breath, as if to expel all the exhaustion in his heart:

Understanding this way of playing the game did not mean that he enjoyed engaging in power struggles with others—

Rather than wasting his energy on such things, he would rather throw a few more punches!

But that was an impossible thing.

Feng Zi understood that if he were all alone, he could ignore such trivial matters and focus his mind entirely on the world of the Martial Dao.

But he had family; as a person of flesh and blood, Feng Zi had a conscience, and he would never allow his family to fall into crisis because of his own momentary gratification.

"Zi'er...?" Just as he was lost in thought, Feng Fu's hesitant voice came from the side.

Hearing this, Feng Zi suppressed the thoughts in his heart and looked at his father with a smile: "Dad, what is it?"

Looking at the yellow ox he was leading and recalling the scene of Feng Zi communicating calmly with Young Master Lu, Feng Fu always felt that this scene was truly too beautiful...

So beautiful that it felt like a dream from which he would wake up the next moment.

Feng Zi naturally understood his father's thoughts; he smiled, took the reins from his hand, and comforted him:

"Don't worry, Dad, these are all real. I have already become a Martial Master; our family's life will only get better and better!"

"A, a Martial Master? Zi'er, you aren't lying to me, are you?" Feng Fu's lips trembled as he grabbed Feng Zi's shoulders, filled with both surprise and trepidation.

"What is real cannot be false, and what is false cannot be real; you can just set your heart at ease!"

Having said that, Feng Zi looked toward Feng Mu, who was leaning against the doorframe and was equally incredulous, and said:

"Mom, you take Dad back into the house to rest first. Once I've tied up the ox, we'll have our meal."

Upon hearing this, Feng Mu finally came to her senses, agreed, and led Feng Fu back into the house.

Feng Fu walked very slowly with an incredulous, silly grin on his face, muttering: "Good, truly good; my Zi'er has really cultivated true ability..."