Chapter 21

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On the other side of the wall, the maid named Xiaocui ran all the way, bursting excitedly into the boudoir.

"Miss, you can't imagine who has come to our Zhen family!" Xiaocui exclaimed excitedly.

"Look at you, making such a fuss. It can't be the Son of Heaven coming to our house, can it?"

In front of the dressing table, the peach-cheeked, exquisitely beautiful young lady was combing her makeup in the mirror, completely unperturbed.

"How could the Son of Heaven come to our house? Miss, it's that Second Young Master Yuan, he has come to our Zhen family."

Yuan Fang!

Zhen Mi's delicate body trembled, and her beautiful face suddenly filled with boundless joy.

"He's here, he's really here, how could he come..."

Zhen Mi was filled with joy, momentarily at a loss, hurriedly tidied her clothes in the mirror, and stood up abruptly, lifting her skirt to head out of the boudoir.

Just as one foot had stepped over the threshold, Zhen Mi hesitated.

Even if Yuan Fang had come, her father and elder brother would receive him. How could she rush over in such a hurry and lose her composure?

Zhen Mi hesitated, but in the next breath, her hesitation was replaced by determination.

"I just want to see him again, regardless of what propriety says..."

Zhen Mi bit her red lips, lifted her skirt, and ran to the main hall.

Upon reaching the main hall, Zhen Mi, of course, did not impulsively barge in but peeked through the half-open window.

At this moment, Yuan Fang had just sat down, exchanging pleasantries with Zhen Yi, his sharp eyes scanning the surroundings intentionally or unintentionally.

When his gaze swept over the window, it met Zhen Mi's eyes.

That deep gaze, like a drop of water, splashed into Zhen Mi's heart, instantly causing ripples.

Zhen Mi's breathing quickened, her face flushed, and she hurriedly averted her gaze, not daring to look directly.

She gently pressed her chest, her bosom rising and falling rapidly due to nervousness.

Her heart was both flustered and excited; she dared not look again, only listening to the conversation through the window.

In the main hall.

When Yuan Fang saw that exquisite face, his heart also stirred slightly. After all, he was a young man; how could he not be moved by such beauty?

After a glance, that face had already turned away, and Yuan Fang suddenly felt that the beautiful face seemed familiar, as if he had seen it somewhere before.

"Recently, I've heard that Gongsun Zan is continuously reinforcing his troops in Pingyuan, seemingly planning a major offensive against Qinghe. At this time, why isn't Second Young Master in Ganying leading the troops, but instead has the leisure to come here?"

Zhen Yi's words interrupted Yuan Fang's thoughts, his words subtly hinting at a bit of schadenfreude.

It seemed that Zhen Yi was delighted to see Yuan Fang being attacked by the enemy, or even suffering a major defeat.

"Soldiers will block the soldiers, and earth will block the water; it's nothing serious." Yuan Fang was indifferent, his tone extremely confident.

Zhen Yi's brows furrowed; Yuan Fang's confidence made him feel disgusted.

How could his mental changes escape Yuan Fang's eyes? Yuan Fang sneered inwardly and asked, "What, does Uncle Zhen really hope that I will be defeated by Liu Bei, losing this military strategy competition, so that my third brother can smoothly become your son-in-law?"

Yuan Fang had no pretentious words and directly exposed Zhen Yi's thoughts in front of everyone.

Zhen Yi was taken aback by Yuan Fang's straightforwardness, his face turning awkward.

Even if he thought that way in his heart, he dared not say it openly, so he could only cough a few times and laugh awkwardly, "How could that be? I have always been fair in my actions. Since Lord Yuan has set the rules for the military strategy competition, I naturally hope that my daughter will marry the one with the most outstanding military strategy."

Yuan Fang smiled without speaking, only looking at Zhen Yi with a mocking gaze.

Zhen Yi, feeling uncomfortable under Yuan Fang's gaze, could only lower his head to drink tea, hiding his inner unease.

"This bastard, daring to put on airs in my house, does he really think he's a Yuan family son!"

Zhen Yao was furious in his heart, unable to contain himself, and suddenly stood up, speaking provocatively, "The other day at the Yuan residence, I heard that Second Young Master defeated Young Master Xianyi in one move. I admire Second Young Master's martial arts greatly. Now that I have the chance to meet you, may I have the honor of exchanging a few moves?"

Yuan Fang glanced at Zhen Yao and immediately saw through his thoughts.

This Zhen family's eldest son probably couldn't stand his imposing presence and wanted to defeat him in a martial arts exchange to suppress his momentum.

Seeing the situation, Zhen Yi also laughed and said, "My son has always been fond of martial arts. Second Young Master's martial arts are extraordinary, and it would be a good opportunity for him to receive your guidance."

Upon hearing this, Zhen Mi, who was eavesdropping outside, was startled and couldn't help but look inside, deeply worried about Yuan Fang.

After all, the reason Yuan Fang defeated Yuan Xi that day was because Yuan Xi was too overconfident and caught off guard. In terms of real martial arts, Yuan Xi was actually superior to him.

Zhen Yao, confident in his martial arts being on par with Yuan Xi, had at least reached the post-muscle tempering stage. As long as he didn't underestimate his opponent, defeating Yuan Fang would be easy.

Yuan Fang, however, was clear about their thoughts.

After drinking the tea in his cup, Yuan Fang slowly stood up, facing Zhen Yi, and said calmly, "Since Brother Zhen is so interested, I will accompany you for a few moves. Do you want to compare swords or fists?"

Zhen Yao sneered, "Swords and knives are blind; let's compare fists."

Although Zhen Yao looked down on Yuan Fang, Yuan Fang was still a Yuan family son. If he accidentally injured him during the competition, it would give others a handle.

"Very well, come on."

Yuan Fang stood with his hands behind his back, like a green pine, his expression calm and composed, not taking Zhen Yao seriously at all.

This aura was the same as when he faced Yuan Xi.

Guo Jia, sitting beside him, looked worried and sighed inwardly, "Second Young Master, you're too confident. Although I don't practice martial arts, I know that martial arts improvement doesn't happen overnight. You could win against Yuan Xi last time because you used a trick, but this time..."

Guo Jia shook his head inwardly, turning his face away, as if he couldn't bear to see Yuan Fang's embarrassing defeat.

At the main seat, Zhen Yi's eyes narrowed into a slit, a cold smile curling at the corner of his mouth, ready to see Yuan Fang's humiliation.

Outside the window, Zhen Mi's heart was in knots, her beautiful face filled with worry.

Around the main hall, the Zhen family servants standing by all opened their eyes wide, eagerly waiting to see Yuan Fang's embarrassment.

Amidst the distrustful gazes, Yuan Fang smiled and extended his hand, curling his four fingers towards Zhen Yao, making a very provocative gesture.

Zhen Yao's face changed, and he became furious.

"Yuan Fang, I'll beat you to the ground and see if you still dare to show off in the Zhen family!"

Enraged, Zhen Yao let out a low whistle and lunged forward, his right fist whistling through the air.

This punch was full of power, heading straight for Yuan Fang's face.

The wind from the punch instantly approached.

Yuan Fang's eyebrows furrowed, and his right hand suddenly clenched, the muscles in his entire arm crackling, making his arm seem to thicken by a circle, almost bursting.

"Ha!"

With a deep whistle, Yuan Fang's right fist broke through the wind.

Bang!

The two fists collided, sending out a gust of wind.

Zhen Yao, who had put all his strength into the punch, thought he could knock Yuan Fang back. However, when he hit Yuan Fang's fist, it was like hitting an iron plate.

The rebounding force, combined with the power of Yuan Fang's fist, sent a powerful shock through Zhen Yao's knuckles, causing intense pain as if they were about to shatter. The force pushed him back.

"Fall down!" Yuan Fang shouted, his left fist following like the wind.

Zhen Yao, knocked back and losing his balance, had no way to avoid Yuan Fang's second punch.

With a dull thud, Yuan Fang's fist hit Zhen Yao's abdomen.

This punch was extremely powerful. Zhen Yao let out a cry of pain and flew backward, landing heavily two steps away.

In just two moves, the outcome was decided in a single breath.

Everyone in the main hall was stunned.

Zhen Yi's face was full of shock, almost jumping up. He couldn't believe that his son, who had reached the late stage of muscle tempering, had been knocked down by Yuan Fang, who was only at the early stage of muscle tempering.

Guo Jia, who had initially not wanted to see Yuan Fang's "pitiful state," couldn't help but look up at the sound of the pain. To his surprise, he found that the one lying on the ground was not Yuan Fang but Zhen Yao.

"Impossible, could his martial arts have improved so much in just a month? How is that possible?" Guo Jia was amazed, looking at Yuan Fang with new respect.

Outside the window, Zhen Mi was both delighted and worried.

She was delighted that Yuan Fang's martial arts had greatly improved since a month ago and had not been embarrassed. She was worried that her brother had been knocked down, causing a great embarrassment.

Yuan Fang retracted his stance, returning to his position with his hands behind his back, looking down at Zhen Yao on the ground and smiling faintly, "Brother Zhen, you have my thanks."

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