Everyone in the Mu Family Hall fell silent for a long while.
At last, Mu Yuan's voice came from the top of the hall.
"Did you all understand what that meant?"
Mu Jiang and the others looked toward Mu Yuan. They all knew what their clan leader meant.
He meant the Young Master of the Lu Family's behavior.
The Young Master of the Lu Family had clearly come to break off the engagement, yet in the end, not only had he failed to do so, he had even stood up for Mu Xue. What kind of move was that? No one understood it.
It was far beyond anything they had expected.
They hadn't been mentally prepared at all.
Otherwise, they wouldn't have been so passive when questioning him.
Mu Jiang spoke up.
"It really is hard to understand, but one thing is absolutely certain: the Lu Family was supposed to come and break off the engagement."
Mu Yuan found another chair and sat down, then said,
"Exactly. Everyone thought so, even the Lu Family Members.
"But look how things turned out. Heh.
"I'd only heard that the Young Master of the Lu Family was flashy and unreliable. Seeing him today was truly... an eye-opener."
"He was arrogant to the extreme, conceited to the extreme, and ignorant to the extreme. His stupidity will get him killed sooner or later," Mu Ze said.
His voice was low. They really had been furious just now.
Mu Yuan smiled faintly.
"Stupid? But in my eyes, he's very clever. It was as if he knew from the start that I couldn't make a move against him, and that I'd have to accept his challenge.
"Maybe it's because he's the Young Master of the Lu Family."
Mu Jiang didn't dwell on that. Instead, he asked,
"So what do we do now? The Lu Family clearly came to break off the engagement, but not only did they fail to do so, they also stood up for Mu Xue. They even declared that if the Mu Family didn't want to raise Mu Xue, the Lu Family could raise her."
Mu Ze also looked at Mu Yuan, waiting for an answer.
Mu Yuan leaned back, smiling.
"Of course, we'll do as Young Master Lu said. Spread the news, and even spread the fact that Young Master Lu questioned us to our faces. Don't fake anything.
"Young Master Lu wants to make a name for himself, so let's oblige him.
"Whatever the outcome, if the Lu Family wants to break off the engagement again, they won't be able to just send someone over like they did today.
"And if the Lu Family doesn't bring it up again, then we lose nothing either.
"Mu Xue's betrothal gifts will only grow more substantial."
"What about Mu Xue?" Mu Jiang asked tentatively.
"Just make sure Mu Xue is satisfied. In fact, we must make sure she's satisfied," Mu Yuan said with a frown.
Lu Shui left the Mu Family with Zhen Wu and Zhen Ling. He simply kept walking ahead, while Zhen Wu and Zhen Ling were frantic with worry, yet there was nothing they could do.
If their young master hadn't acted so strangely all the way there, they might have already questioned him.
Wasn't he just making a mess of things?
But when they remembered how Lu Shui had acted on Floating Sky Island, how he had stood up for them instead of running away as he should have, they couldn't bring themselves to question him.
Of course, what had struck them most deeply back then was his declaration: "I stand here. Who gave you permission to look down on me?"
That had frightened them too.
So they were even less inclined to question him. All they could do was fret.
Lu Shui left the Mu Family's grounds and stopped in a patch of woods.
Zhen Wu and Zhen Ling were puzzled. Why had their young master suddenly stopped?
But before either of them could ask, Lu Shui spoke.
"Zhen Wu, This Young Master is tired. Find a wooden stool for This Young Master to sit on."
Once they had left the Mu Family, Lu Shui felt he couldn't hold on any longer.
Mu Xue had scared him.
Zhen Wu didn't understand, but he still took a chair out of his Storage Magic Treasure. Of course he had one.
Lu Shui sat down. His legs were a little weak.
Zhen Wu and Zhen Ling could see it, of course. It seemed their young master had been frightened by the Mu Family Patriarch.
That Aura really was imposing. Given their young master's cultivation, it was already impressive that he had held on this long.
Zhen Wu asked,
"Young Master, should I call the clan leader and report this?"
Lu Shui thought it over. This really was a big deal, so it would be best to report it to his father and give them some time to prepare.
He'd return later.
He just didn't know what he'd be facing when he got back.
At least he wouldn't die, so he supposed he'd come out ahead.
If he'd broken off the engagement just now, he'd definitely have died.
Mu Xue was a powder keg. He couldn't count on her to be reasonable.
In the end, Lu Shui simply nodded.
Seeing that Lu Shui agreed, Zhen Wu and Zhen Ling exchanged a glance. Then Zhen Wu took out his phone and called the clan leader.
Lu Gu had nothing to do that day. His wife wasn't in the mood for anything, so even if he had something to do, he'd have to set it aside.
So he could only accompany her on a walk.
"Do you think our son has broken off the engagement yet?" Dongfang Liyin asked worriedly.
Lu Gu checked the time and said,
"He should be about done by now. If you're really worried, call and ask."
"Why don't you call and ask for me?" Dongfang Liyin said, looking at Lu Gu.
"Fine, I'll call and ask," Lu Gu said helplessly.
Hearing that, Dongfang Liyin secretly smiled to herself.
But just as Lu Gu took out his phone, it started ringing.
Dongfang Liyin leaned closer and asked,
"Who is it?"
"Zhen Wu." Lu Gu frowned. "Zhen Wu answers to the Third Elder. If something's up, shouldn't he be telling the Third Elder?"
Dongfang Liyin grew worried too. Zhen Wu and Zhen Ling had no reason to tell them if the engagement had been broken off successfully.
Which meant something might have happened to their son.
Lu Gu answered without hesitation.
He put the call on speaker.
Zhen Wu's voice soon came through.
"Clan leader, it's Zhen Wu."
Lu Gu didn't ask about Lu Shui right away.
"Are you at the Mu Family's place already?"
"Yes, clan leader. We've already left," Zhen Wu said.
Lu Gu immediately asked,
"Did everything go smoothly at the Mu Family's place? Did the young master cause you any trouble? Did he act willfully? Was he rash? Did he use his status as the Young Master of the Lu Family to mock the Mu Family?"
There was a moment of silence on the other end. Then Zhen Wu's voice came through.
"He did, clan leader. The young master was indeed a little high-profile with the Mu Family."
Lu Gu and Dongfang Liyin's faces darkened at those words.
"Was the young master hurt?"
Zhen Wu quickly answered,
"The young master is fine. He wasn't hurt. It's just... just that there was a small problem with the direction his high-profile behavior took."
Dongfang Liyin and Lu Gu didn't understand. What did that mean?
So Lu Gu could only ask Zhen Wu to explain.
"Tell me what happened with the broken engagement."
Zhen Wu naturally didn't hide anything. He gave a rough account of what had happened during the attempt to break off the engagement, taking a few minutes and adding nothing to the story.
After hearing it, Lu Gu and Dongfang Liyin were dumbfounded.
He'd failed to break off the engagement, then stood up for Mu Xue and questioned and insulted the Mu Family to their faces?
That was being high-profile?
That was arrogance and conceit beyond measure. He had ground the Mu Family's face into the dirt and trampled it mercilessly.
Had their son become this "outstanding"?
And what had their son taken the Lu Family's instructions for?
A passing breeze?
At last, Lu Gu said,
"Bring the young master back safely. Don't let him run off.
"I'll speak to the Third Elder. You don't need to report to him."
"Thank you, clan leader." That was exactly what Zhen Wu and the others had been afraid of.
It was a relief that they didn't have to report it now. As for returning, they would definitely be punished once they got back.
There was no escaping that.
Before you continue