As a master, why should I "pay my respects" to my eldest senior brother?

Cheng Qian and Han Yuan were both confused, but the master was still trying to explain, "Don't worry, your eldest brother is quite careless himself, so you don't have to be afraid of him. Just act like your master."

Wait, what does “like a teacher” mean?

In short, Master Mu Chun successfully transformed the thin mist on the two little disciples' heads into a thick paste.

After passing the mountain gate, several Taoist boys came towards us following the sound of the clear water.

The Taoist boys were as young as seventeen or eighteen, and as young as thirteen or fourteen. All of them had handsome features, like a group of golden boys under the thrones of gods, their clothes fluttering in the wind.

Not to mention the stunned Han Yuan, even Cheng Qian, who had been quite proud of himself all the way, subtly felt a little ashamed.

Because of this feeling of inferiority, Cheng Qian spontaneously took defensive measures. He subconsciously tightened his face, straightened his back, and firmly hid his curiosity and lack of knowledge.

The leading Taoist boy saw Master Mu Chun from afar. Before he even arrived, he had already started laughing and said in a rather casual manner, "Where has the master been traveling this time? Why do you look like a fugitive? Hey, where did this little prince come from?"

In his mind, Cheng Qian broke down every word of this cordial greeting, but was unable to dig out even an ounce of respect from it. It was as if the Taoist boy was not greeting him as "Master" but as "Uncle Han from the neighboring village" or something like that.

Master Mu Chun didn't take it seriously, and even showed a somewhat silly smile on his face. He pointed at Cheng Qian and Han Yuan and said, "My new disciple is still young. Please help him settle down."

The Taoist boy smiled and asked, "Where will we settle down?"

"Take this to the South Courtyard," Master Mu Chun pointed at Han Yuan casually, and then he lowered his head as if intentionally or unintentionally, and met Cheng Qian's upward gaze. The young boy's pair of distinct black and white eyes showed innate restraint, as well as some imperceptible panic in the unfamiliar environment.

The frivolous smile on Master Mu Chun's face suddenly disappeared. After a moment, he pointed out Cheng Qian's destination in an almost solemn manner: "Let Cheng Qian live in the Bian Pavilion."

"Bian Ting" is not a pavilion, but a small courtyard in a very remote location, which gives a sense of seclusion. On one side of the courtyard wall, a stream passes silently, and on the other side is a large bamboo forest. It is extremely quiet.

The bamboo forest seems to be quite old. Even the passing breeze can dye it a green color. The whole yard seems to be in a sea of ​​bamboo, the green is so pure and pure.

There are two eternal lamps hanging at the gate of the courtyard, also engraved with talismans, but much more exquisite than the "heirloom" of the Cheng family. The halo of light is soft, and the wind cannot blow it away, and people walking by will not be startled. One on the left and one on the right, quietly and remotely sandwiched in the middle is a door plaque with the words "Qing'an" inscribed on it.

It seems that the word "Fuyao" was written by the same person as Yamaguchi.

The Taoist boy who led Cheng Qian was named Xueqing. He was about the same age as Cheng Qian's eldest brother. Xueqing was neither tall nor short, neither fat nor thin. He looked pretty if you looked closely, but his facial features were a little dull. He was the most inconspicuous one among the Taoist boys. He was also taciturn and didn't seem to like to show off.

"This is the pavilion on our mountain, also called Qing'anju. I heard that the headmaster used to live here, and later it was vacated and used as a dining hall." Xue Qing explained gently, "Third Uncle, do you know what a dining hall is?"

Cheng Qian actually didn't quite understand, but he still nodded as if he didn't care, and followed Xue Qing into the courtyard. In the middle of the courtyard was a small pond about ten feet square. There was a talisman engraved on the black elm tray below, which must have some fixed function - the water in the pond did not flow or move, but was frozen and motionless.

But when he got closer and took a closer look, Cheng Qian discovered that it was not a pond but a rare large gem.

The stone was neither jade nor emerald. It felt cool to the touch, dark green with a hint of blue, and had a cold and deep tranquility.

Cheng Qian had never seen such a rare object before. Even though he didn't want to look like a country bumpkin, he couldn't help but stare at it in amazement for a moment.

Xue Qing said, "I don't know what this thing is, but we all call it the Pure Heart Stone. The headmaster found it for me. He used to use it as a cushion when he was fasting and copying scriptures. With it as a cushion, this courtyard is much cooler in the summer."

Cheng Qian couldn't help but point at the talisman on the elm tray and asked, "Brother Xueqing, what is this talisman used for?"

Xue Qing seemed to have not expected Cheng Qian to be so polite to him. He was stunned for a moment before answering, "Third Master, please don't embarrass me - this is not a spell."

Cheng Qian glanced at him, and Xue Qing strangely read a bit of restrained doubt in his eyes. The boy's eyes seemed to be able to speak, and compared with the other one picked up by the leader, he looked even more meticulously crafted.

Xue Qing didn't know how to describe it. He could actually see that the kid didn't come from a high-class family and might not have read much. However, he seemed to be trying hard to portray himself as a gentleman, but his acting was so forced. His every move was stiff, as if he didn't know what face he should use when interacting with others.

Simply put, it's a bit of pretentiousness - and pretentiousness without much of a target or object to imitate.

Generally, people who act pretentiously are inevitably a little annoying, even if they are just children. But for some reason, Xue Qing did not hate Cheng Qian. Instead, she felt a little pity for him, so she answered in a slow and gentle voice: "Third Uncle, Xue Qing is just a poor servant who takes care of the daily life of the headmaster and the younger uncles. The way of spells is broad and profound. People like us who don't even know the basics can only hear a few words from the headmaster and come back to imitate him. Why don't you go ask the headmaster or my family...your eldest brother."

Cheng Qian keenly heard the words "my home", and then thought of the attitude of these Taoist children towards the master, which was more affectionate than respectful, and he became more and more confused.

Xue Qing quickly took him to familiarize himself with the furnishings in Qing'an Residence, hurriedly helped him wash off the dust from the journey, changed him into decent clothes, and cleaned him up inside and out, then led him out again.

Cheng Qian maintained his image of not showing his fearlessness while asking Xue Qing indirectly about who his senior brother was. He learned that his senior brother's surname was Yan, Yan Zhengming, and he came from a wealthy family.

How rich and noble is this? Cheng Qian was confused by this part - he was a poor child and had no concept of "rich and noble". The so-called "rich and noble" people he had seen were only the likes of Mr. Wang at the head of the village. Mr. Wang married a third concubine at the age of sixty. In Cheng Qian's opinion, he was already extremely rich and noble.

I heard that when Yan Zhengming was seven years old, he ran away from home for some trivial reason and was picked up by their cunning... and scheming master, who recognized his talent.

The old swindler used his eloquence to successfully lure the eldest senior brother, who was still young at the time and had no idea of ​​the dangers of the world, into his sect and made him the founding disciple.

However, the family was naturally anxious when the young master of the Yan family was lost. They went to great lengths to find Yan Zhengming, who had gone astray. It was unknown whether Young Master Yan had been drugged by Mu Chun or simply did not want to learn well, but he seemed to be possessed by a ghost and refused to go home, insisting on staying to practice with his master.

This young master had been spoiled since childhood. The Yan family certainly couldn't bear to see their darling son suffer with a makeshift troupe of charlatans. After several unsuccessful attempts to negotiate, they had no choice but to compromise and paid to support the sect, just as if they were raising a troupe of actors for the young master to play with.

There are many kinds of cultivation sects in the world today, but there are very few genuine and upright sects or evil sects among them. Most of the sects spread across Kyushu are fake sects.

Cheng Qian calculated in his mind that a sect like the Fuyao Sect, which has a wealthy family to support it and can survive with some dignity, can probably be called a "poultry sect."

Therefore, he understood that their eldest brother was not only the eldest brother, he also served as the "sect's breadwinner", "sect's financial backer" and "Fuyao Sect's founding disciple" and many other roles. Naturally, he was the sect's top boss and even the master had to curry favor with him.

As for the top man himself - Cheng Qian would know once he saw him, he was a prodigal son whose name was hard to describe.

The four words "arrogant, extravagant and debauched" only confirmed the existence of the three words "arrogant", "extravagant" and "debauched". Except that the eldest brother was only fifteen years old at that time and did not have the courage to be "debauched", he was fully qualified for the remaining three words "arrogant", "extravagant" and "debauched".

When Master Mu Chun first brought a pair of clean little disciples to Young Master Yan, the young master was combing his hair - it was not because the headmaster was old and confused and did not know the etiquette and disturbed others early in the morning before they were combing their hair, but because the eldest brother had to comb his hair many times a day.

Fortunately, he is still young and is not afraid of getting bald spots from combing his hair.

To be qualified to comb the eldest brother's hair, first of all, she must be a woman. She cannot be too young or too old, her appearance cannot be ugly, and her smell cannot be the slightest bit unpleasant. She should do nothing all day long except combing his hair and lighting incense. Her hands must be soft and white as jade, without any calluses to spoil the view.

Taoist children like Xueqing were originally servants of the Yan family. A group of them were carefully selected and sent to the mountains to be used by the sect.

The young master does not use Taoist boys for personal matters. I heard that it is because he does not like men very much and thinks they are clumsy. Therefore, all the people who stay in the yard to serve him personally are young girls, making his yard full of colorful flowers all the time.

Before entering the door, Cheng Qian secretly stared at his master's goatee for a long time and came to a conclusion: his master's beard had been combed.

On the way here, Xue Qing said that Master Mu Chun arranged for him to live in Qing'an Ju to let him calm his mind and calm his nerves. Cheng Qian felt vaguely uncomfortable and refused to admit that he was uneasy. Now that he had arrived at his senior brother's residence, he looked up and saw the three words "Gentle Land", and his heart was finally at ease - it seemed that he was not uneasy, but his master was getting old and confused.

Han Yuan on the side acted coquettishly and foolishly, taking ignorance as fun, and asked: "Master, what is written on the door of the eldest brother?"

Mu Chun stroked his beard and read to him. Han Yuan asked again with a stunned look in his eyes, "Does this mean to encourage Brother to be gentler in the future?"

Mu Chun was horrified when he heard this and warned: "You must not let your senior brother hear this."

Seeing that the head of the sect was like a lost dog with its tail between its legs, Cheng Qian and Han Yuan thought in unison, "This is outrageous and disregards moral principles!"

As they thought so, they looked at each other and saw the shock on each other's faces. So they hurriedly followed their master and tucked their tails between their legs, learning the first important skill of their sect - the Tail-Tuck Skill.

In fact, when Cheng Qian first met his senior brother in person, he was shocked.

The man looked young, but he was extremely coquettish. He was wearing a snow-white satin robe with dark patterns embroidered on it that no one could see. Only when the light and shadow changed during his movements did he reveal a hint of brilliance. He leaned against the back of a carved chair like a boneless person, his eyelids half drooped, one hand supporting his chin, and his scattered hair looked like ink.

Yan Zhengming heard the voice and raised his eyelids indifferently. The corners of his eyes were like light ink, long and upturned, exuding a sense of pride and femininity. When he saw his master, he had no intention of standing up. He sat firmly on the chair and asked slowly, "Master, you went out for a trip. What did you pick up again?"

He seemed to be a little younger than the others, and the youthfulness in his voice had not yet faded away. Coupled with a hint of coquettishness, it made it even harder to tell whether I was a man or a woman.

But his mother is so confident that it seems that there is nothing wrong with being neither male nor female.

The head of the sect smiled and rubbed his hands, introducing them: "Oh, this is your third junior brother Cheng Qian, and this is your fourth junior brother Han Yuan. They are still young and ignorant. In the future, as the eldest senior brother, you should help the master and give them some advice."

When Yan Zhengming heard Han Yuan's name, his long eyebrows jumped and his face seemed to twitch. He half opened his eyes and condescendingly glanced at his newly-appointed fourth junior brother, then quickly turned his eyes away as if his gaze had been defiled.

"Han Yuan?" The eldest senior brother seemed dissatisfied and commented slowly, "It is true that his name suits his appearance. It is a bit unfair for him to look like this."

Han Yuan's face had turned pale.

Yan Zhengming threw him aside and turned to Cheng Qian.

"That kid," he said, "come here, let me see him."