Early in the morning, Old Yao got up from his bed and slowly walked into the courtyard.
The water vat was already filled, and the ground of the courtyard was swept clean, but Chen Ji was nowhere to be seen.
Old Yao looked up at the crow perched on the apricot tree, and the crow pointed its wing toward the gate.
His gaze followed the corridor to the outside of the clinic, where he saw Chen Ji holding a long bamboo broom, sweeping the stone path in front of the clinic.
Yesterday was the Double Ninth Festival, and Anxi Street was littered with dogwood and garbage, but the area in front of the Taiping Clinic was spotless.
He asked in confusion, "What time did this kid get up?" The crow cawed once.
"The third watch of the Yin hour? He really got up earlier than the rooster," Old Yao muttered as he looked around.
"He’s so efficient with his work that I can’t even find a reason to scold him."
The crow cawed again.
Old Yao nodded, "He’s indeed sensible… You don’t have to keep praising him in your own way. I know what’s going on."
He walked to the gate and glanced sideways at Chen Ji, saying, "You’re so diligent that it’s making me a bit uneasy. Today’s not even your turn to work, so why did you do all the chores?" Chen Ji leaned on the large bamboo broom and smiled, "I had nothing else to do anyway. This is my home too, so keeping it clean feels good."
Old Yao looked at Chen Ji suspiciously, "You were so polite to me yesterday, but today you’re acting all familiar. What’s going on?" Chen Ji replied, "There has to be some change, right?"
Old Yao was silent for a long time before asking, "What are your plans regarding She Dengke?" Chen Ji continued sweeping as he answered, "I can’t really kill him, can I? Master, do you think Senior Brother She is a bad person?" "No." "Right, you don’t think he’s a bad person either," Chen Ji sighed.
"Of course, I’ll remember this incident, but I’m not sure I could actually bring myself to kill him."
Old Yao said calmly, "You’re not a good person, but you’re not a bad person either. People like you might not last long in this world. The legacy of the Mountain Lord might end with you."
As they were talking, the sound of hooves came from the end of Anxi Street.
Old Yao and Chen Ji turned to look and saw a carriage speeding toward them.
The carriage stopped in front of the clinic, and Princess Baili, the little monk, and the young master jumped out.
The young master still had traces of rouge on his face and reeked of alcohol.
The three of them ran into the Taiping Clinic with their heads down, but they didn’t forget to greet Old Yao as they passed, "Good morning, Physician Yao!" "Good morning, Physician Yao!" Princess Baili, who had already run halfway, suddenly turned back and shoved an oil-paper package into Chen Ji’s hands, "Here, I promised you this. See you!" The three of them stumbled into the backyard in a hurry.
The young master shouted, "Little monk, it’s your turn to step on me to climb over… Oh, never mind!" He noticed that a wooden ladder had already been placed against the wall.
He muttered softly, "The toll wasn’t wasted. This kid is quite reliable. He’s definitely one of us in the martial world!"
Princess Baili glanced back at Chen Ji on the street before climbing over the wall into the prince’s residence, "Hurry up! Mr. Wang’s morning lecture is about to start."
Old Yao stared blankly as the three of them climbed into the prince’s residence, then turned to Chen Ji, "Did you put the ladder there?" Chen Ji nodded, "I took their money, so I provided some convenience."
Old Yao said expressionlessly, "With you around, the Taiping Clinic is becoming less and less peaceful."
At that moment, drunken curses could be heard from the end of Anxi Street, "The Red Dress Alley is full of ungrateful people! When I have money, they call me ‘Dog Master,’ but when I’m broke, they call me ‘Liang the Dog.’ Just because I didn’t pay three times, they kicked me out! But now that I’m with the young master, they’re all bowing and scraping!" Another voice grumbled, "Brother, your name is Liang the Dog anyway. They’re not wrong."
"And the young master, they took the carriage back, but they didn’t even think to give us a ride. Plus, they didn’t arrange a place for me to stay."
Liang the Cat suppressed his frustration, "Brother, why don’t you just work steadily for the Liu family? They pay well."
"No way… I have three principles: I don’t help those who drink and slack off, I don’t help eunuchs, and I don’t help those who oppose eunuchs… Those old guys are ruthless, and their hands are even dirtier. I can’t outsmart them."
Chen Ji turned to look and saw the chubby Liang the Cat carrying Liang the Dog on his back.
"Master, do you know Liang the Dog?" Chen Ji asked curiously.
"Yes," Old Yao chuckled, "He’s known in the martial world as the Autumn Wind Blade Master, Liang the Dog."
"Autumn Wind Blade Master? Because he practices the Autumn Wind Blade Technique?" "No, because he likes to freeload everywhere."
Chen Ji was puzzled, "Master, is Liang the Dog an official? Why does he rely on the Liu family?" "Cultivation requires wealth, companions, methods, and land. Just like you need ginseng for your cultivation, martial artists also need medicinal herbs to strengthen their bodies," Old Yao explained calmly.
"Most cultivation paths in the world are the same—they burn through money like water. Without support, you can’t build your own momentum."
"If Liang the Dog is so powerful, why doesn’t he just rob the Liu family?" Chen Ji asked.
Old Yao laughed, "All the resources in the world are in the hands of the government, aristocratic families, Taoists, and Buddhists. A few are scattered in sects like the Luotian Sect. No matter how powerful Liang the Dog is, he can’t withstand a charge from three thousand elite cavalry. The Liu family has over forty thousand elite troops in Yuzhou, and they only take orders from Elder Liu… How many heads does Liang the Dog have to dare rob the Liu family?"
By now, Liang the Cat had carried Liang the Dog closer.
Liang the Dog, still drunk, opened his eyes and pointed at the Taiping Clinic, "We’ll stay here. It’s close to the young master. When he goes out to play, he’ll definitely take me along!" Liang the Cat looked at Old Yao awkwardly, "Sorry, my brother’s talking nonsense."
"I’m not talking nonsense!" Liang the Dog, with his clothes in disarray, jumped off Liang the Cat’s back and swaggered toward the clinic.
Old Yao raised his hand to stop him, "Wait."
Liang the Dog opened his eyes and swayed as he looked at Old Yao.
After a long while, he exclaimed in surprise, "Physician Yao… An old acquaintance! Even better, we’ll stay at Physician Yao’s place!" Old Yao remained silent.
Chen Ji was a bit nervous.
He had seen Liang the Dog’s blade skills before—that one perfect slash that cut through Lin Chaoqing’s hat, not a hair more or less.
He was worried that if Old Yao rejected this official, he might cause trouble and hurt his master.
But before he could think of what to do, Old Yao glanced at Chen Ji and then said slowly to Liang the Dog, "Staying at the clinic isn’t impossible, but you have to teach my disciple how to use a blade. If you teach him well, the Taiping Clinic will not only let you stay but also provide your meals."
Chen Ji was stunned.
Was this really his stingy master?
Liang the Dog laughed and teased, "Physician Yao, you run a clinic. What does your disciple need to learn blade skills for? Is business so bad that you want to create some injuries?" Old Yao said unhurriedly, "Just teach him. The rest is none of your concern."
Suddenly, Liang the Dog became serious, "Old man, I’m drunk, but I’m not stupid. The Liang family’s blade techniques are not to be passed on to outsiders."
Old Yao said calmly, "I’m asking you to teach blade skills, not your family’s blade techniques."
Liang the Dog thought for a moment, then burst into laughter, "Deal! Let’s go, Liang the Cat, we’ve got a place to stay. Let’s find something to eat first! Teaching some blade techniques is nothing. There’s no blade technique in this world that I, Liang the Dog, can’t teach!"
(End of Chapter)