Chong’er felt a little dazed. He did not know why this person was acting this way. They did not seem to know each other, so he could not understand why the man was being so kind to him upon their first meeting.
Yu Qing, who had received the copy of the slave registration, also clearly sensed that something was off. He questioned, “What exactly do you want to do?”
Zhou Xinyuan replied, “If you cannot handle it, let the Zhong residence people take you to sort it out. It is only restoring her freedom. It will not cost you anything.”
Yu Qing was not asking about that. He had never intended to keep Chong’er anyway, and whether Chong’er was free or not made no difference to him. The problem was that he did not know what this little martial uncle suddenly intended by doing this on a whim.
However, with Chong’er present, some questions were awkward to ask. After hesitating, he could only give a sound of agreement to show he understood.
Only then did Zhou Xinyuan speak to Chong’er. “How about it? It is not excessive for you to call me Master now, is it?”
Chong’er trembled with fear and unease. He did not know how to respond and kept glancing at Yu Qing’s expression.
This was easy to handle. Zhou Xinyuan smiled slightly, turned back to Yu Qing and said, “She does not understand. Come, teach her how to perform the simple master acceptance ritual.”
Yu Qing said with a helpless smile, “Are you really doing this?”
Zhou Xinyuan frowned. “Where did you get so many fussy habits?”
Fine. Yu Qing pointed helplessly and instructed, “Chong’er, since this person has good intentions and you will not lose out, it is still better than following Xu Fei as a servant for life. At least it is a way out. Just accept it. Kneel and kowtow three times, present a cup of tea, and call him Master. That will do.”
Chong’er did not dare to aim so high. But under Yu Qing’s repeated sideways hints and Zhou Xinyuan’s constant encouraging looks, he finally knelt before Zhou Xinyuan with unease. He kowtowed three times honestly. When he raised his head, he saw that Yu Qing had already taken the initiative to hand him a cup of tea and signalled for him to present it to Zhou Xinyuan.
Chong’er naturally obeyed. He held the tea with both hands and said timidly, “Master, please drink the tea.”
Zhou Xinyuan glanced back at the table and realised it was the insect-brewed tea he had refused earlier. He tilted his head to look at Yu Qing, only to see Yu Qing standing with both hands folded over his belly, staring up at the roof.
His throat moved slightly. Zhou Xinyuan then reached out to accept the tea. He closed his eyes and took a sip as if tasting poison, before handing the cup back. “Rise.”
Chong’er quickly took the cup and stood up, then obediently placed it back on the table.
Slap! Zhou Xinyuan suddenly swung his fan and struck Yu Qing hard on the backside, making Yu Qing jump and roar, “What are you doing?”
Zhou Xinyuan pointed his fan at Chong’er. “From today onwards, she is your junior martial sister. You are not allowed to bully her anymore.”
Chong’er lowered his head. His large eyes looked somewhat uncertain.
“It is junior martial brother, junior martial brother!” Yu Qing was almost roaring while holding someone’s ear. Calling a man junior martial sister, did he want to disgust him to death?
Swish! Zhou Xinyuan opened his fan and shook it in his hand. “Fine, junior martial brother it is. Be happy with whatever you like. All right, I should not stay here long. I will take my leave first.”
Yu Qing immediately said, “Martial uncle, where are you staying? Give me an address so I can contact you if anything comes up.”
Zhou Xinyuan did not say where he was staying. He reached inside his outer robe. Several tiny bells the size of cardamom seeds hung from his waistband. He removed one and handed it to Yu Qing. “You know how to use it. I will stay in the capital for a few more days. Within the capital area, you can contact me anytime.”
The moment Yu Qing received the bell, joy appeared on his face. He recognised at a glance that it was modelled after the bells on the Linglong Tower. He had not seen this little bell for many years. He only remembered seeing the grand martial uncle use it when he was small. Now that he saw it again, he could confirm that the little martial uncle’s sound character formula listening range had reached a new level.
He removed the cotton stuffed inside the bell, held it and shook it gently. A crisp, pleasant “ding-ling” sound rang out. The sound was not loud, but it had a strong, resonant quality.
“You must hurry and handle the matter. She is currently Ah Shiheng’s servant. You can now help her remove the slave status. If you delay, this Ah Shiheng of yours will seem heartless.” Zhou Xinyuan left these meaningful words of reminder and departed. He tapped Chong’er’s shoulder with his fan. “Chong’er, will you not see your master off? You do not need to watch his face. He will be your senior martial brother from now on.”
Chong’er answered submissively. He did not dare to think of the cheap benefits the man mentioned. In short, he obediently saw the guest out.
Yu Qing also caught the deeper meaning in the little martial uncle’s words. The owner of Chong’er’s slave registration was the real Ah Shiheng. Some things he could handle now might not be possible later. He immediately put away the bell and followed them out. After parting ways with the two, he made inquiries along the way and soon found Steward Li, who was discussing matters with the residence’s stewards.
“Young master-in-law.” The group of stewards all bowed in greeting.
This form of address made Yu Qing’s teeth ache, but for now he could only endure it. He beckoned Steward Li aside for a talk.
After understanding his intention, Steward Li looked startled. “You are looking for Mister Ming?”
Yu Qing said, “Yes. I must thank him in person. Please, Uncle Li, help me find him.”
Steward Li waved his hand. “No, Mister Ming has already left. You do not need to say it. The Zhong residence also wanted to find him to express thanks. But the Liu residence where Mister Ming taught said that Mister Ming went there yesterday, submitted his resignation, and left the capital. He said he was returning to his hometown to care for his elderly mother and would take the metropolitan examination again in three years or something like that.”
“He left?” Yu Qing was shocked and pressed, “When did he leave?”
Steward Li replied, “It was said to be yesterday evening.”
Yu Qing asked, “Where is his home?”
Steward Li said, “He is from Zhao Province.”
“Zhao Province…” Yu Qing recalled the direction of Zhao Province in his mind and asked again, “Did he leave on horseback or by carriage?”
Steward Li hesitated. “You are not thinking of chasing after him, are you?”
Yu Qing said, “No, I am just asking. I want to calculate when he will reach home so I can feel at ease.”
“The young master is someone who values old friendships.” Steward Li nodded and stroked his beard in approval. After thinking for a moment he said, “The Liu residence did not specify how he travelled. But with his frail body, he probably could not withstand the jolting of riding a horse, and walking is unlikely. He can certainly afford a carriage, so the chance he left by carriage is very high.”
Yu Qing now had a clear idea. He directly handed over the copy of Chong’er’s slave registration. “Uncle Li, please remove a slave status. Find someone who knows how to handle this and accompany me.”
Steward Li took it, looked, and gave a sound of surprise. “It only came into your name today and you want to remove it today?”
Yu Qing said, “It was given by that person surnamed Xu today.”
“Since it was given with good intentions…”
“Uncle Li, the person was actually requested by me. This Chong’er took care of me all the way to the capital. I promised him that once we reached the capital I would help remove his slave status.”
“Oh, so he showed kindness to the young master. This is easy to handle. I will arrange it right away.”
Yu Qing told him to arrange it first and was about to return to the east courtyard when Steward Li pulled him back. “Young master, there is something I would like to ask.”
Yu Qing said, “Speak.”
Steward Li asked, “Was the guest Young Master received in the east courtyard earlier surnamed Bai?”
Surnamed Bai? Yu Qing was stunned for a moment. He did not know if his little martial uncle used his real name when travelling in the jianghu, so he avoided revealing anything and answered vaguely, “Why are you asking this?”
Steward Li said, “Is his name Bai Cangshui?”
Bai Cangshui? Yu Qing asked tentatively, “How do you know?”
So that was it. Steward Li suddenly looked rather troubled. “How did the young master come to know such a person? When did you meet?”
Yu Qing was puzzled. “I met him on the way to the capital. Why? Is there a problem?”
Steward Li seemed relieved. “It is good that you only just met. Truly, young master, it is better to keep an appropriate distance from this kind of person and not become close. Otherwise it will damage your reputation.”
Yu Qing asked doubtfully, “Is it that serious? From your tone, do you know him? Is he some heinous villain?”
Steward Li said, “Heinous villain is not quite right. I do not know him personally, but Du Fei has seen him. In Yan Province there is a richest woman named Zhao Hongshang. This Bai Cangshui is the male favourite kept by Zhao Hongshang. In plain terms, he lives off her. With the young master’s current status and position, how can you mix with such a person? Now that you have become the top candidate in the metropolitan examination, he comes visiting. His intentions are probably not pure.”
Male favourite? Yu Qing was shocked, then felt it was rather funny. With his little martial uncle’s abilities, did he need to live off a woman? The names were also different, so it was probably a case of mistaken identity. He could not explain his little martial uncle’s true identity to outsiders, so he simply said, “All right, I have noted it.”
After that he asked Steward Li to arrange for someone to wait for him at the main gate first. He himself returned ahead.
When he returned to the east courtyard, he found that Chong’er had already come back first and was tidying up the tea set on the table.
Upon seeing him return, Chong’er immediately stood properly and bowed, looking very reserved. He was no longer wiping tears or crying, but he also did not dare to show any awareness of being a junior martial brother.
The relationship between the two seemed even less close than when they kept a distance before. The scene of him happily bouncing over and calling “Young Master Shiheng” seemed to have disappeared.
Yu Qing casually waved his hand, did not disturb his work, and went straight to his study. After closing the door, he took out the little bell and shook it in his hand, producing a clear ring.
After shaking it for a good while, a low voice finally came to his ear. It was the little martial uncle’s voice. “That is not for you to shake for fun.”
Yu Qing immediately spoke into the air, “Martial uncle, I found out where Mister Ming went. He has probably returned to his hometown…” He roughly relayed what Steward Li had said about the direction and time. “He only left yesterday evening. By carriage he should not have gone too far today.”
The little martial uncle’s voice said, “Then what are you hesitating for? Go chase after him.”
Yu Qing said, “Martial uncle, this matter is difficult for me to handle. The Zhong residence now treats me like a treasure. Wherever I go they send at least two guards to follow me. Also, if Ah Shiheng’s enemies are paying attention, they probably already know about me as Ah Shiheng. It would be inconvenient for me to leave the city and run around.”
There was silence for a while before the little martial uncle’s voice sounded again. “Understood. I will handle it. Also, I say it again, do not bully my disciple!”
Yu Qing was speechless. He was still acting as if it was real. Linglong Temple had always been very strict and selective in accepting disciples. When had it become so casual? However, thinking that it was only a nominal disciple, he could not be bothered to argue. “Yes, understood. By the way, martial uncle, what name do you use when mixing in the jianghu?”
The voice by his ear said, “That is none of your business. Mind your own affairs.”
The voice disappeared after that. Yu Qing called out several times but received no response. He had no choice but to leave the study. He happened to meet Chong’er, who had washed the tea set clean and was carrying it back. He deliberately stepped forward a few paces and blocked Chong’er’s path.
Chong’er bowed humbly. “Young master.”
Yu Qing kept a straight face. “I dare not accept that. You have become my junior martial brother now.”
Chong’er’s face turned red with embarrassment. He still could not figure out what relationship existed between this person and that one. He quickly shook his head. “I will listen to the young master’s instructions.”
Yu Qing asked, “These odd jobs and such work, who will do them in the future?”