Fu Jie is definitely not lucky

"You're really lucky." The girl commented, "Elder Dayu doesn't usually take in disciples."

Lucky? Why didn't he feel lucky at all?

This just had to be the biggest lie!

If anything, he was the most unluckiest man alive!

"You must have a lot of potential to catch his eye."

Potential? He had potential, alright!

He had a great potential in being a trouble magnet. Fu Jie didn't want to join a sect or anything! All he wanted to do was to find the crimson dragon and get the crimson gear so that he can go back home!

"Can I ask you a question?"

The girl nodded enthusiastically, "Ask me anything you'd like. I was tasked to help you settle in."

"This place... Where is it?"

"Huh?" The girl chuckled as she responded, "How come you don't know where we are?"

"..." When Fu Jie saw the girl laughing at him, he somehow felt offended. This was too much! She was laughing at him for asking a valid question! They had basically kidnapped him and brought him here so of course, he didn't know where they were! Did he ask something wrong?!

"Maple passion pavilion."

"..." Fu Jie had a lot more questions, but he was sure that the girl would laugh at him if she heard those questions.

She had given him a name of the place, but it was useless since he had never heard of such a place.

In the end, he decided to keep his questions to himself and concluded that it was probably the name of the sect he was forced to be a disciple of.

He picked up the spoon and decided to stuff his mouth with food to hide his embarrassment of being so clueless. He lifted the mask slightly and it was enough to let him eat, it wasn't comfortable but it was enough. If Kakashi sensei from Naruto could do it, so could he!

"That's him?"

"A white mask."

"So it's really true?"

"He doesn't look that strong."

"He defeated them with a single blow! He might not look like it but it's better to stay away from him."

Fu Jie could clearly hear all the whispers.

Did these people really think they were being quiet or were they doing it on purpose?

Fu Jie ignored them skillfully and continued to focus on the soup that tasted rather bland.

"Could the other rumor also be true?"

"It's questionable."

"There's no way Elder Dayu would have taken him in if it wasn't true."

"So he really is...?"

Fu Jie's ears perked up to eavesdrop on their conversation. Although they were simply gossiping, Fu Jie could still collect some info.

"But he looks so old."

Fu Jie choked on the soup he was drinking as he heard this.

Old?!

Just how in the world did he look old?!

More importantly, what the hell were they talking about?!

"There is no way."

"Elder Dayu is a young achiever. He might be a lot older than he looks."

"That's true."

"So he really is...?"

Really is what?? Complete your sentence!

What were they talking about?

Fu Jie never knew he liked freshly cooked gossip so much. The more he heard, the more his curiosity on the topic rose to know what the topic was.

"So if we remove the mask... Do you think they'll look alike?"

...

Eh?

"I'm sure they look alike."

"Maybe that's why he's wearing a mask. They look identical to each other so he had to wear a mask to hide his true identity."

"Damn it! This is getting interesting. Elder Dayu has never had a scandal before!"

"I can't believe it."

"It's really true!"

Fu Jie couldn't help but curse at his heart.

Just what in the hell was this scandal?!

Fu Jie didn't look to be fazed from the outside but on the inside, he was completely invested in this gossip that he didn't know the topic of.

"So he entered as an inner-core disciple just because of his family relations with Elder Dayu? As expected, when related to a lion, you'll naturally be raised as a lion cub."

Fu Jie calmly drank the bland soup as he wondered what rumor these guys were talking about.

Maybe they thought Xiao Jingyi and Fu Jie were brothers?

"But for Elder Dayu to have such a son, it's certainly shocking."

"Pfft-" The soup that Fu Jie was getting ready to gulp down, came back out and was sprayed onto the face of the girl who sat in front of him.

...

Fu Jie's eyes went wide as he heard the last comment.

They really thought Fu Jie was that bastard's son...?!

The girl closed her eyes and through gritted teeth, she spoke, "This young brother is really..."

"Ah!" Fu Jie used his sleeve to wipe her face carefully and it seemed to anger her even more as she opened her eyes and grabbed his hand as she glared at him.

"I'll take care of it. Why don't you sit down?"

Fu Jie took a minute to register the words in his mind before he listened to her and sat back down on his seat.

Suddenly, the whole food hall was silent as they looked at the girl who stood up and walked away. When she returned, she was dripping water as she walked over to sit down on the seat.

"???" Fu Jie looked at the girl in worry as he asked, "Did someone bully you? Why are you soaking wet?"

The girl maintained a friendly smile on her face as she sat back down and responded, "Who dare bully me?"

"Eh?" Fu Jie was a bit confused but he still brushed it off as nothing.

"I just felt like taking a dive in the lake." The girl answered, "It's a hobby of mine. Don't worry about it." She waved her hands and looked down at her food that didn't look so appetizing anymore due to Fu Jie spitting not only on her face but also her food. She held her right hand up, "I don't feel like eating anymore."

The man who had previously come to serve them food came back and took the half-eaten bowl of soup away after having heard the girl's order.

Fu Jie looked at the girl who didn't seem to be hiding anything.

This girl... She was weird and it was even weirder that the rest of the people who were sitting in their own seats were suddenly afraid of her and some even stood up to exit the place without finishing their food.

"I think I forgot to ask." Fu Jie spoke up after having thought about it for a minute, "Who are you?"

The girl tilted her head as she looked at him with a smile that looked to be hiding her anger and annoyance at Fu Jie spraying her with soup, "Luo Lijuan. You must have heard about me." She answered confidently.

"Never heard of that name before." Fu Jie replied shortly.

The girl was a bit taken back to hear this response. She bit her lip in annoyance as she took a deep breath in and decided to properly introduce herself again, "I seem to have forgotten that junior brother isn't from around here." She chuckled, "My name is Luo Lijuan. I'm your senior martial sister. Elder Dayu's best student."

"Huh? Is that a self-proclaimed title?"

"..."

Fu Jie really didn't know when to shut up. His mouth lacked a filter and this girl who was smiling brightly at him seemed to be a bit offended by his sharp tongue.

"It's certainly not a self-proclaimed title," She beamed.

Although Fu Jie nodded his head, he still felt that the girl was a bit too boastful. Who introduces themselves as the 'best student'?

"Junior brother, why don't I show you around Maple passion pavilion?"

Fu Jie glanced at the soup that was almost finished and then back up at Luo Lijuan's face, "Sure! Let me just finish this."

Luo Lijuan nodded and waited for him to finish and when he was done, she pulled him up and took him on the tour she had offered.

When the two had left, the people who were still seated inside the food hall let out a sigh of relief and once again started talking among themselves.

"That was Luo Lijuan, wasn't it?"

"My eyes aren't playing tricks on me, are they?"

"Since when did senior martial sister become so..."

"Patient!"

"As expected! He really must be Elder Dayu's son! Even Senior martial sister Luo is afraid of him!"

"The rumors are true!" Some more people chimed in.

"To think that elder Dayu hid his son for so long... It's impressive!"

"Just like how a cup can't hold water forever, this secret couldn't be concealed forever either."

"I hope he comes back alive. Senior martial sister looked really angry."

"She might break a few of his bones but he'd survive since he's Elder Dayu's son."

.

.

.

It seemed that people were highly concerned for Fu Jie's well-being and had already accepted him as the secret son of Elder Dayu.

"Senior martial sister, where are we going?" Fu Jie asked innocently, completely unaware of the trap he was gladly walking into.

"To train."

"Eh?" Fu Jie was a bit surprised as he asked, "But we just had food."

"Then you can help me train."

"Help you train?"

The girl nodded her head with a smile and Fu Jie had a bad feeling about that smile.

"If you help me train, I'll answer your questions. Sounds good, doesn't it?"

It didn't sound good at all. It sounded like a trap but Fu Jie wasn't going to let his mouth run loose again.