Rural Beauty 1047, Main Text 1047, Solo Encounter 1047 Chapter Solo Encounter Wait a minute! Huazi, who was leading twenty or so young men from Yingzhao Village toward the canteen, suddenly called out. (_&&_) Huazi halted his advance and turned back to see Zhou Yaqian, who was facing away from him. He noticed that she was now looking at a group of twenty or thirty men who had gathered nearby without realizing it. Frowning slightly, Huazi stepped over to Zhou Yaqian and asked, "Qian, what's wrong? It's just twenty or thirty young guys—myself and Lengzi can handle them easily..." Just as Huazi was getting into his stride, Zhou Yaqian suddenly pulled him aside and pointed toward Lu Yun. "Look—this is Lu Yun. I've been treated unfairly because of him. That's precisely why I called you all here—specifically to find him. Now that Zhang Ning from the canteen isn't showing up, we have no choice but to target him and bring Zhang Ning out of the shadows." "Tuzi furrowed his brow, puzzled, "Isn't this a bit overkill? We just split the group—send one group straight into the canteen to find that girl Zhang Ning, and the other group to take care of this young man Lu Yun. Xiao Qian, you don't think we'll be outmatched simply because they have more people, do you? Rest assured, our specialty is the Eagle's Claws technique. If it weren't for the precaution—especially since that stocky man has already drawn his weapons—we wouldn't need these iron poles at all..." Tuzi was still about to speak when Zhou Yaqian suddenly interrupted, "Tuzi, this isn't as simple as you think. That stocky man is actually skilled in martial arts. Two visitors from outside came recently, and I believe even our village elders might not be able to hold their own against those two. Though Black Zhang Yi has been injured, look at the woman behind her—she's one of our school's teachers, with a pair of iron palm techniques that sent one of the two outsiders right back. Think about it—how could we possibly stand a chance against them?" Huo Zi had already noticed Iron Xinlan standing behind Zhang Yi. At first, he merely thought she was just one of the staff helping out at the canteen. But when Zhou Yaqian mentioned that this woman, already in her forties or fifties, handled her tasks with skill surpassing even the village elders, Huo Zi felt a sudden surge of anxiety. He turned to Zhou Yaqian and asked, "What now, Yaqian? If the opponent has such a capable assistant, aren't we just wasting our time here?" Wasting our time? Probably not! Zhou Yaqian gave a cold smile and said, "Have ten people guard the entrance to the canteen. The rest of us should all go after Lu Yun. Hmph—Lu Yun has a close relationship with Zhang Ning, the one who's been treating me unfairly. As soon as we capture Lu Yun, she won't be able to stay hidden any longer." The implication in Zhou Yaqian’s words could not have been clearer—she intended to seize Lu Yun and use him as leverage to pressure Zhang Ning. Hu Zi, eager to devour Zhou Yaqian, was naturally sharp-minded. As soon as Zhou Yaqian finished speaking, Hu Zi swiftly dispatched personnel, dividing about twenty men and women from the E Jing village into two groups—one group stationed at the entrance of the canteen, the other quickly moving toward Zhou Yaqian’s side. Zhou Yaqian had thought well, yet she overlooked one point: since Zhang Ning could assist Lu Yun, he would surely do so this time as well. Dispatching ten people to block the canteen entrance and prevent Zhang Yi and his team from coming to aid was nothing short of dreaming. Not only would those ten people not be sufficiently committed to withstand iron palms from Lan, but even Zhang Yi himself might not be able to hold them off—let alone Zhang Ning, who had yet to arrive on the scene. Upon seeing the determined stance of the other side, Lu Yun immediately grasped Zhou Yaqian’s strategy. If this situation had occurred just a few days ago, Lu Yun would certainly have retreated in panic, fleeing at the first sign of trouble. But now, though his Dream-Entering Fist technique had not yet reached its full maturity, it was no longer the fragile, easily defeated version he had been just a few days prior. Lei stepped forward to block Da Peng, yet in his gaze toward Lu Yun, there was a touch of concern. Watching Lu Yun approach on his own, Hou Zi, who had been eager to impress Zhou Yaqing all along, suddenly widened his eyes and whispered, "Qing, does this guy really intend to take on all of us alone?" Zhou Yaqing scoffed. She knew well Lu Yun's capabilities—she could easily overpower him with just one hand. "With his current skills, I could easily knock him out. It's just that he's so full of tricks; I can't quite figure out what he's up to." "What then? Should we just charge in and fight him head-on?" Hou Zi asked, his eyes fixed on the steadily approaching Lu Yun. Zhou Yaqing shook her head. "No need to rush. Let's first see what tricks he's playing." The previous time, it was precisely because of Lu Yun that the delicate and well-cared-for Zhou Yaqing had suffered a crushing defeat at Zhang Ning's hands. That humiliation had become a nightmare for her—ever since, she had been determined to see Lu Yun broken beyond recognition. Lu Yun smiled and stopped a few steps away from Zhou Yaqian, joking, "Qian姐, what's the plot here? You've brought so many people over?" Zhou Yaqian snorted, saying, "Lu Yun, how long have you been pretending to be clueless? Just two days ago, you and Zhang Ning from the canteen humiliated me. Now I've brought people to settle the score—am I afraid? If you are, then bow three times to me, and I'll immediately forget this whole thing happened." Faced with Zhou Yaqian's bold and assertive tone, Lu Yun only chuckled and took another two steps before saying, "Qian姐, last time it was purely a misunderstanding. Considering Zhou Quan's face, we just let it go. Who knows, maybe one day Zhou Quan comes back, and then we'll still be family, won't we?" Zhou Quan! As soon as she heard the name Zhou Quan, Zhou Yaqian grew furious. She, a young, unmarried woman, had been treated so casually by Zhou Quan for such a long time. Though she hadn't spared Zhou Quan much money during their relationship, that sum paled in comparison to the value of her body. It wasn't until Zhou Quan simply vanished without a word that she had even considered reaching out to Lu Yun, let alone being publicly humiliated by Ning Hao. The more she thought about it, the more she resented him. Seeing Lu Yun's cheerful demeanor only intensified her anger. She sneered, "Who's even related to you? Let's cut the chatter. Miss Grandmother has come here today specifically to settle scores—Huzi, go!" Huzi, like a fierce watchdog by her side, immediately charged at Lu Yun upon hearing her words. With only Lu Yun present, Huzi was more than capable of pummeling him senseless. The other dozen or so people gathered behind him merely watched, as if enjoying a spectacle. "Wait a moment." "Seeing Hu Zi charge forward, Land Yun suddenly raised his hand and barked out. At the last few steps away, Hu Zi instinctively halted, eyes wide as he shouted at Land Yun, 'You little scamp! You dare to bully my little Xiao Qian? Are you really getting tired of life? You've got something to say? Fine! My fists are itching—no time for small talk!' Land Yun remained calm, chuckling, 'Huh, Hu Brother, you're right. As the saying goes, 'enemies should be resolved, not left unresolved.' Between me and Miss Qian, there's only a minor misunderstanding—there's no need to go all out like this...' 'Nonsense! If you've bullied our little Qian, you've bullied me too. We in the E Jing Village have a tradition—either I'll give you a good beating to settle the score, and at the same time bring out that shy, timid fellow hiding in your room and make him share the fun with me, or else, in front of all the students, I'll have you kneel three times before Miss Qian, publicly admitting you're a complete fool. That's that.'" "Hubei truly lives up to his name—his voice is astonishingly loud. Even students watching from a distance could hear him clearly, murmuring to one another in hushed tones. 'Man, the people from Yingzha Village are no ordinary folk!' said Da Peng, who immediately grew furious and raised his leg of the chair, ready to engage Hubei in a fight. Lu Yun slowly turned his head and smiled at Hu Zi, saying, "Hu brother, this person has pride, just like a tree with bark—when so many people are watching, if I truly agree to your request, I'll never have the face to stay at this school anymore. Look, shall we move to a more private place and discuss it thoroughly?" "Discuss?" Hearing Lu Yun's humble tone, Hu Zi felt his pride deeply satisfied. This was the perfect moment to showcase himself in front of Xiao Qian—perhaps with her delighted, today would even be the day he and her did something special. With this thought, Hu Zi grew even more confident, laughing heartily, "Nonsense! If you don't comply exactly as I said before, I'll make sure to—well, you know what I mean!" Before Hu Zi could finish speaking, Lu Yun suddenly interrupted, smiling and asking, "So, it's a matter of giving you a beating, then?" "Exactly!" Hu Zi replied firmly. A one-on-one match, or a group assault? "Lu Yun smiled and asked. "Come on, to take down a kid like you, we'd need a group attack? I could handle you myself—so much so that you'd never know who your mom is!" Hu Zi said, eyes narrowed. Lu Yun nodded: "So it's a one-on-one then? Though I'm not sure if you can make the final call—what will be the outcome?" Hu Zi frowned, glanced back at Zhou Yaqian. Though he had no trouble defeating Lu Yun, this was about avenging Yaqian's honor, so he still had to decide. ... Rural Beauty 1047, Main Text 1047 – One-on-One Battle Updated!