And damn it, he still took it and ate it, and got caught red-handed by his master!
The past is too painful to recall; it brings only heartache and tears.
"So you didn't dare," Doctor Gu snorted lightly, "In the end, you still have objections."
Liu Zhiyuan: This is so hard for me.
He realized that his master treated him the same way he treated his son, and suddenly, it seemed like he realized something.
“Master,” he tentatively softened his tone, “I’m just a little unaccustomed to it. My junior sister is so young, not much younger than Yuzhu. I can’t help but treat her like my own little girl.”
With the sudden appearance of a younger junior sister, Liu Zhiyuan always had the illusion of being from a different generation.
To this day, he still can't understand why his rigid and stubborn master would accept such a young girl.
The shock of this incident left him stunned for several days.
“You’ll get used to it,” Liu Yuzhu comforted him with empathy. “It took my son several days to accept it too.”
Doctor Gu, realizing he had also been adjusting for several days, softened his heart. "There's more to this than meets the eye. I'll explain it to you in detail when we have time later."
As he spoke, he looked his apprentice up and down with disdain, "Go back and tidy yourself up, don't embarrass me."
He looks even worse than when he first arrived; it's unbearable to look at.
“Master asked me to go with you,” Liu Zhiyuan said with delight. “I’ll go back and freshen up right away. I’ll be there soon. Just wait for me.”
He was genuinely afraid that the two of them would abandon him and leave.
His experiences over the past few days have made him completely disillusioned with his position.
"Yuzhu, go and lend a hand. Your father is clumsy and can't do it."
"Master, I still need to pack my things."
"I'll do it."
"Alright!"
His tone sounded reluctant.
"Hurry up, don't waste time, or you'll miss breakfast."
Upon hearing the word "breakfast," Liu Yuzhu immediately perked up. "Don't worry, Master, it won't delay your meal."
After saying that, he jogged to catch up with Liu Zhiyuan.
As soon as the three arrived at the Huang family's house, a light rain began to fall, just in time to keep them dry.
"Master, senior brother, junior nephew," Xiao Wu ran over excitedly, "You've arrived?"
"Run slowly, be careful not to fall," Doctor Gu said with a kind smile. "Have you finished the homework I assigned yesterday? There will be a test later."
“I’m done,” Xiao Wu straightened his back, his face full of confidence. “Don’t worry, Master, I’ve memorized it all. You can test me anytime.”
This appearance exudes an aura of self-assurance and confidence.
"well!"
After the master and disciple finished speaking, Jiang Nuan looked at Liu Zhiyuan knowingly, "This is your eldest disciple, Xiao Wu's senior brother?"
"To my shame, this is my good-for-nothing eldest apprentice," Doctor Gu pulled the man over, "Quickly greet your aunt."
Aunt?
Liu Zhiyuan looked at his master in disbelief. "Master, you're not joking?"
He actually called a woman who looked more than ten years younger than him... "Auntie!"
"What are you laughing at? Don't you even know what time it is?"
“But this isn’t appropriate, my disciple is so old…”
I really didn't have the face to call someone more than ten years younger than me "auntie".
"What's inappropriate about it? I'm on equal footing with Madam Jiang. What else should you call me if not 'Auntie'?"
"Just call me Madam Jiang," Jiang Nuan quickly said after understanding. "Auntie is not appropriate, just call me Madam Jiang."
She has no blood relation to the child, and suddenly has a nephew who is older than her. Please forgive her for being unable to accept it.
“That won’t do,” Doctor Gu frowned. “It’s against etiquette.”
In his heart, no matter how old his eldest disciple was, he could only be a junior in front of his fellow disciple's mother.
“That’s not right,” Jiang Nuan forced a smile. “Xiao Wu is Xiao Wu and I am me. We each have our own perspective.”
“What Lady Jiang says makes sense,” Liu Zhiyuan said, but still gave a junior’s bow. “I also think it’s best for each of us to discuss our own perspectives.”
Although they couldn't bring themselves to call her by her name, they treated Jiang Niangzi as a kind of elder.
After all, she was his junior sister's mother.
Seeing this, Doctor Gu's expression softened considerably. "Alright, as long as we keep that in mind."
As long as the eldest disciple understands his duty, these formalities are unnecessary.
Although he was old-fashioned, he was not pedantic.
“That’s exactly right,” Jiang Nuan smiled easily. “There aren’t so many rules in the countryside, so you can do whatever you want.”
"Thank you for your understanding, Madam Jiang," Liu Zhiyuan said gratefully, then took out two brocade boxes. "Since this is our first meeting, I have prepared some gifts for you. I hope you will not find them offensive."
The Huang family has fourteen members, and each member has one.
Women wore pure gold headdresses, men wore fine jade pendants, and children wore longevity locks. The fifth child's was even more special, consisting of a book of soup recipes with various annotations.
Those annotations were written by Liu Zhiyuan long ago, after countless days and nights of consulting various classic texts.
He poured countless hours of effort into it.
Doctor Gu also knew these things.
Seeing his apprentice take out such a precious item, his usually indifferent eyes softened a little.
"Xiao Wu, keep this safe. Your senior brother spent a lot of time compiling this. You must cherish it."
“Master is right,” Liu Yuzhu whispered in Xiao Wu’s ear, “My father treasures this medical book. In the past, I was punished by kneeling for two hours just for touching it.”
"Xiao Wu, quickly thank your senior brother," Jiang Nuan said softly, "He gave you his life's work."
"Thank you, Senior Brother." Xiao Wu bowed respectfully in thanks.
"Senior brother just did what he was supposed to do," Liu Zhiyuan patted the little girl's head, "Don't worry about it."
"Senior brother..."
Just as the atmosphere was about to reach its peak, Madam Xie came over with a cup of tea.
"Dr. Gu, have a cup of tea to rinse your mouth. We'll eat in a little while. I made millet and red date porridge today; I'm sure you'll love it."
"Second Sister-in-law, Master loves chive dumplings, could we make some together?"
Upon hearing this, Doctor Gu spoke softly, "Master is not picky about food; he can eat anything."
He never said that, but when he encounters food he likes, he can't help but eat more.
To notice something so subtle shows that his little apprentice truly cares about him.
Sure enough, girls are the best; they're so thoughtful.
Unlike his eldest apprentice, who, if he knew he was eating more than usual, would definitely think there was something wrong with his spleen and stomach.
Then I brewed myself a pot of medicinal soup.
"Then let's have chive dumplings, Xiao Wu likes them too."
"Xiao Wu, people who don't cook can't be picky eaters," Xie said jokingly. "If you want to eat chive dumplings, you'll have to come and help out."
“Okay, Xiao Wu can wash vegetables and start a fire.”
"However, you must learn from Doctor Gu."
"Master," Xiao Wu turned his head expectantly, "can I finish lighting the fire before I start learning?"
Why is it necessary to light a fire?
"Xiao Wu wants his master to eat chive dumplings."
"Your filial piety is commendable," Doctor Gu nodded, his eyes crinkling with laughter. "I promise you this time, but this will not happen again. Remember, diligence leads to mastery, while idleness leads to ruin."
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