“Old Master, please don’t be angry. Didn’t I already come?”
The Old Master immediately blew his top.
“Come? So what if you come? Does that mean I’m not allowed to say a few words? You, not visiting for two years is one thing, but not even sending a single letter! What’s this? Am I, this old man, so unwelcome to you? If you don’t want to see me, then don’t come at all!”
With just a few words, he managed to ignite the Old Master’s fury.
Xu Ping’an hurried forward and supported the Old Master’s arm.
No matter how healthy he usually appeared, the Old Master was after all eighty-eight years old, nearly ninety.
If he got sick from anger, Xu Ping’an would regret it deeply.
“Yes, yes, yes, it’s my fault. I absolutely won’t let it happen again. If I can’t come in the future, I will definitely send letters. Will that be acceptable?”
“One letter a month!”
“Ah? Old Master, isn’t that a bit too frequent?”
“Hm?!”
“Uh~ fine, fine, one letter a month it is. I promise to send one every month, how’s that?”
Wan Ji Cang glared at Xu Ping’an and snorted coldly. Only then did his anger subside.
Seeing the Old Master like this, Xu Ping’an suddenly regretted it.
He’d just added more work for himself out of thin air.
One letter a month—too frequent. Why did it feel like the Old Master really considered him his son?
“Master Wan… this time you came back, why didn’t I see Uncle Wan?”
“Uncle Wan? That’s your big brother!”
“Uh~ okay, but why didn’t I see big brother?”
Xu Ping’an twitched the corner of his mouth.
Well then, Uncle Wan was already close to seventy; even calling him ‘Uncle’ was a stretch.
But the Old Master actually made him call him ‘brother’ outright.
Forget it, at this age, just call him whatever.
After all, Old Master Wan wasn’t around, so calling out a few times wouldn’t matter.
“That bastard went to Liangzhou… it’s been three months with no news. Just like you, a good-for-nothing!”
“Uh~ maybe I should leave then?”
“Leave just after you arrived? Do you think this is a brothel?!”
“Cough cough Old Master, Master Wan, please watch your words…”
Goodness, if the Old Master had any other profession, he’d probably get beaten for speaking like this.
“You’re impossible! Bring out two ladlefuls from that jar over there and have a drink.”
“Old Master, it’s this late already, and you still want to drink?”
“What?! Can’t I drink? Mind your own business!”
“All right, all right, I’ll drink.”
Xu Ping’an silently walked to the big jar, opened the lid, and immediately smelled a faint sour fragrance of Wumei mixed with strong wine aroma lingering nearby.
He picked up the wine ladle hanging on the jar’s side and took a wine pot from beside it.
Two ladles exactly filled one pot of wine.
It was hard not to think… this jar must have been here for nearly two years.
Xu Ping’an furrowed his brow and took a deep breath, then carried the pot back to Wan Ji Cang and set it down.
“Pour it yourself! Do you expect me to serve you wine too?”
“All right.”
Xu Ping’an smiled and nodded, pouring a cup for the Old Master first, then one for himself.
“Wait! You tell me what’s in this wine before you drink it!”
Is this… a test?
Xu Ping’an nodded and lowered his head to smell the Wumei wine, instantly recalling dozens of medicinal ingredients in his mind.
Setting down the cup, he looked up at Wan Ji Cang.
“This wine contains…”
He listed dozens of ingredients in one breath, without a single mistake.
Wan Ji Cang stroked his beard and closed his eyes, listening attentively.
When Xu Ping’an finished reciting all the ingredients, the Old Master finally nodded with satisfaction.
“You’re not bad. Two years have passed, yet your medical skills haven’t declined one bit.”
“That’s because you taught me well, Old Master. Otherwise, how would I have this skill today?”
Although Xu Ping’an could learn from other places, having a mentor plus system support made the learning much faster.
A good horse is always around, but a good trainer is rare.
A year under a good teacher is worth ten years of solitary training.
“This is wine I brewed three years ago. Normally, it should be best after aging for one year.”
Wan Ji Cang raised his cup and looked at the dark blue-black Wumei wine inside.
This wine was probably brewed especially for Xu Ping’an.
But the wine had been left for two years longer because the Old Master himself had been left waiting.
“Master Wan often thinks of me, but I’ve been like this… truly unworthy. I owe you an apology with this cup.”
Xu Ping’an raised the cup and drank it all at once.
As soon as the wine hit his mouth, the sharp-tongued Old Master spoke again.
“Hmph! You use wine I brewed with care to apologize to me? You really know how to play the game. No losses, huh?”
If this were anyone else, Xu Ping’an would have been tempted to punch him.
He put down the cup with a scowl, somewhat angered by the Old Master’s words.
“Old Master, even though I haven’t come in two years, I’ve apologized and repented. I promised to send a letter every month. Can we just put this behind us now?”
“Hmph!”
The Old Master didn’t reply, just gave a cold snort. But it seemed the matter was closed.
Xu Ping’an sighed.
“Ah… Old Master, you don’t know, I might have run into some bad luck this year. I was struck by the Taohua Curse. Since the third day of the lunar new year until now, I haven’t had a moment’s peace.”
“Taohua Curse? Sounds like you fell into Taohua Alley! Covered in rouge and perfume… it’s making my nose hurt!”
Taohua Alley—the famous red-light district in the City of Zhaoge.
The name was elegant, but… a bit of rouge smell was understandable, given Xu Ping’an had been out partying almost every night for the past half-month.
Who wouldn’t pick up some rouge scent with such a lifestyle?
But the Old Master was as sharp-tongued as ever, never missing a chance to tease.
“Old Master, although I do have some rouge scent on me, it’s very high-quality. Definitely won’t give you a headache.”
Xu Ping’an smiled mischievously in his heart but explained seriously.
Wan Ji Cang’s expression immediately darkened.
“Good! You dare go against me over a woman? I don’t believe any woman’s rouge can be ‘high quality.’ Did you spend a fortune buying a Flower Queen? Or did you marry into some Miss Liu’s family? Come! Let me have a look!”
“Heh~ well… it’s not marriage by status, nor a Flower Queen, but really not vulgar.”
“You say! I don’t believe you actually married a princess!”
“Well, Old Master, hold your horses.” Xu Ping’an suppressed a smile.
“Old Master, I’m married. My wife is the Flowing Cloud Sect Master.”
After speaking, Xu Ping’an immediately got up and went to the Old Master’s side.
Wan Ji Cang suddenly flew into a rage upon hearing this!
“What?! You actually got married?! Without even telling me?! Don’t you know, the three great sins of filial piety are none other than ‘no heirs’! You, you…”
The Old Master was stunned, his narrow eyes wide open.
“What did you say? Who did you marry?!”
“Old Master, you can’t tell anyone about this. My wife asked me to keep it secret. I’ll bring her to meet you tomorrow.”
“You… you really married that… that…”
Xu Ping’an was quick as a flash, instantly pulling out a Silver Needle from his Medicine Box and pierced seven needles into the Old Master’s head.
Suddenly, the old man snapped back to reality.
Gah!
The Old Master twitched and his pupils returned to normal.
He looked at Xu Ping’an with disbelief, then turned, raised the cup, and downed the wine.
Turning back to Xu Ping’an, he pinched his own thigh hard, wincing in pain, his beautiful beard trembling.
“Not dreaming?”
“Of course not. Tomorrow I’ll bring her here for you to meet. No matter what, this place is my second home. She’ll pay respects to you then.”
“No, no, no! That won’t do! No way!”
The Old Master’s sharp tongue was finally gone.
It seemed the title of Flowing Cloud Sect Master was really effective.
Xu Ping’an chuckled quietly. He had never seen the Old Master so flustered.
Suppressing a smile, Xu Ping’an calmed himself.
“How could that do? She’s my wife, so she must pay respects to her elders. Or… I can have her kowtow to you?”
“How could that be! That’s…”
Wan Ji Cang was about to object when he suddenly noticed something was off.
The little bastard’s lips were already twitching upwards uncontrollably.
After a moment, a furious roar echoed through the Hall of Ten Thousand Harmonies.
“Get out of here, you damn brat!!!”
Xu Ping’an fled in a mess, just two steps out the door when a wine cup flew behind him and smashed on the ground with a crash.
“Get out! You bastard, how dare you fool me! I’ll beat you to death today, you good-for-nothing!”
The Old Master, beard flaring, eyes blazing, chased after him, not even wearing his cloth shoes, holding the Family Law…
A nearly two-meter-long rattan stick!
Xu Ping’an had seen what a beating with that stick looked like and was terrified, turning swiftly, flowing like lightning, two strides to the gate, then jumped into the carriage.
“Go quickly! If you don’t leave now, you’ll get beaten!”
The driving Little Eunuch was still stunned, just about to ask, when an old man with disheveled hair and bloodshot eyes charged out wielding a two-meter rattan stick.
Terrified, the Little Eunuch didn’t dare ask and whipped the reins, speeding away.
The carriage was already far off, but the Old Master’s loud curses could still be heard.
“You damn brat, stop right there! Even if you run into the Royal City, I’ll still beat you up today!!”
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