Why do I have so many masters?

Xi Dingzhou, Huifeng Teahouse.

Second floor, private room.

The teahouse was a place of serenity, and the private room was even more elegantly arranged: a touch of sandalwood fragrance, half a cup of scented tea. Seated by the window was an exceptionally handsome young man, his lips perennially curved in a smile, his eyes gentle, quietly observing the street scene below.

Someone knocked on the door from outside.

The young man diverted his gaze and responded indifferently,

"Come in."

The wooden door opened, revealing a pretty young girl standing outside. With a respectful demeanor, she took light steps inside, first curtseying, then softly said,

"The maid has seen Master Yu."

Her voice was soft and reserved, adhering to etiquette from beginning to end; she never once raised her eyes towards the young man.

Master Yu did not look at the girl either. He casually picked up a jade-green teacup from the table and said indifferently,

"How is the miss today? That man... has he been disrespectful to her?"

The girl pursed her lips and replied,

"Today, the miss brought along quite a few people, but only left Sister Yan’er behind. All others were sent back, even Butler Wu couldn’t stay there."

Master Yu’s eyebrows rose in slight surprise.

Butler Wu had been following the ’old master’ since his youth. His cultivation was exceptionally pure, and he had personally dispatched over a hundred martial artists in his time. He was also capable of being tough yet subtle in his dealings and seldom suffered losses. Yet this time, he had been compelled to return to the estate.

How could he not be curious?

The young man’s fingers slowly stroked the teacup, pondering for several moments before he spoke,

"Tell me everything that happened today."

The girl respectfully replied with an affirmation, organized her thoughts, and narrated everything she had witnessed that day to the young man before her. This included the part where Tan Yurou teased Wang Anfeng, without any omission.

The problem mainly arose because Wang Anfeng was unfamiliar with the young girl and had suffered a disadvantage as a result. These maids had been with Tan Yurou for at least five years and were accustomed to their mistress’s quirky temperament. It was not hard to see that what happened today was their young mistress playing a trick on that soft-spoken young swordsman.

Her soothing and unhurried voice echoed in the room.

Master Yu listened quietly to her story, only frowning slightly when he heard about Tan Yurou telling Wang Anfeng to ’comb his hair and apply makeup’, showing some displeasure, but he did not act on it. After she finished, he bent his right index finger and gently tapped it on the table. After a moment, he suddenly chuckled,

"The young miss still has such a childish temperament, unchanged after all these years..."

"You may go now."

The girl gave another curtsey, then turned and walked away. She had only taken a few steps when an object tracing a soft arc landed perfectly in her embrace—a weighty silver tael.

The maid paused slightly in her step.

Behind her, Master Yu raised his hand to sip his tea and said casually,

"I remember your mother needs to change her medicine every seven days, and you probably don’t have enough money."

"Take it."

The maid pressed her lips together, turned to give the young man a deep bow, then slowly left.

The wooden door closed gently, and the room was once again occupied by only the young man.

Wearing plain clothes, he lifted the teacup, his expression as tranquil as water, the quiet scene like a still painting. Suddenly, a laugh broke the silence from the side,

"Who would have thought, the Poisonous Bee Master Yu could show such kindness."

"It is quite an enlightenment for this one."

Accompanying these words, a person emerged from behind the room’s folding screen, tall and slender, smiling, with a fine complexion, marred only by a pair of upward-slanting eyes that disrupted the overall air, giving him a serpentine discomfort.

The young man didn’t look at him and simply drank his tea, responding indifferently,

"Every person has more than one side."

The newcomer paused, then chuckled dismissively, sat down casually, and had a sip of tea before shaking his head and sighing,

"It seems that the old tiger is seriously ill and has become quite rash in his actions. It’s even more ridiculous that Tan Yurou is squandering her grandfather’s painstaking efforts." Discover hidden tales at novelbuddy

"As the maid said, today that girl even went as far as to repeatedly make a fool of that young man."

"Such conduct upon a first meeting—anyone would be annoyed in their heart, let alone a young expert who has caught the old tiger’s eye."

"Remember, every martial artist certainly has their pride."

"This foolish woman seems somewhat clever, but is actually naive and contrived, having already squandered the young man’s goodwill. Even though the expert will protect her now for the sake of his own reputation, afterward, don’t expect any more connection between the two."

The martial artist seemed to find this amusing, laughing as he said,

"The old tiger’s plan to foster goodwill between the young expert and Tan Yurou through this incident is likely to fail. Hahaha..."

Master Yu’s expression remained calm as he replied,

"If so, all the better."

The martial artist across chuckled again, looked at the young man, and said,

"However, are you truly going to protect the life of such a woman who overestimates her own intelligence?"

Master Yu said simply,

"Of course."

"But her foolishness and shortsightedness are likely to cause you trouble in the future."

The young man nonchalantly poured more tea and replied,

"A naive woman is for the best."

"Regarding troubles, it is a man’s responsibility to bear them for a woman."

The martial artist across seemed surprised and scoffed,

"Jianghu is vast, with endless storms. Can you really protect her for a lifetime?"

The young man set down his teacup, gazing at the man before him, he said indifferently:

"Then a lifetime it will be."

"The old master is now shutting himself away from the world; he has entrusted everything to me. I’ve created a very good opportunity for you."

The martial artist across him adjusted his mood and said with a smile:

"That old tiger is saying that Tan Yurou is going for a half-month stay, but we can guess that in no more than seven days’ time, we’ll see things settled."

The young man shook his head and said indifferently:

"No."

The teacup was set on the table, rippling the tea within incessantly.

The young man spoke.

"After five days."

........................

That night.

Wang Anfeng had been made a fool of today, but due to concerns about news of Meng Yuexue, he did not react with anger. Instead, he actually went to cook a meal for Tan Yurou, bringing it to her room, but when he spoke and acted, he always kept at least three steps away from the young girl.

He was determined that once he got news of Meng Yuexue, he would immediately set off, never wanting to see the girl before him ever again in this lifetime.

Just looking at her gave him a headache.

According to something one of his masters had once said, if you can’t beat them, can’t yell at them, at least you can still run away from them.

Tan Yurou seemed not to notice the young man’s indifference beneath his calm demeanor. Looking at the bright moon in the sky and then at Wang Anfeng, she appeared slightly shy and said softly:

"Young Master, Yurou is tired..."

Wang Anfeng’s mouth twitched slightly as he said stiffly:

"The young lady please wait."

"I will go fetch the zither."

Tan Yurou bowed in gratitude, watching the young man leave, and chuckled softly, interest shining in her eyes. The girl named Yan’er by her side watched Tan Yurou.

Having served her for six years, she was well aware of the young lady’s temperament.

After a thought, she said softly:

"Miss seems to be quite interested in Young Master Wang?"

Tan Yurou was taken aback for a moment, glanced at Yan’er, then quickly averted her gaze like a thief, her face turning red as she fiddled with the hem of her clothing and murmured:

"Where, where..."

"Yan’er, you got it wrong."

Yan’er chuckled lightly and did not press further, now slightly understanding the purpose of the young lady’s show of strength today.

The miss had never suffered hardship.

The way she expressed liking someone or something was problematic...

So that was it.

Just then, Wang Anfeng came out with the wooden zither. Naturally, it wasn’t Master Jiang Shouyi’s long zither, but the one Yan’er had brought. After tuning the strings, he began to play. He had only played a few notes when Tan Yurou suddenly blushed and interrupted:

"Young Hero, may I request a different piece?"

Wang Anfeng’s hand paused slightly, and he nodded:

"Certainly."

Tan Yurou timidly requested:

"Then please play ’Ambush from Ten Sides’ for me..."

"I’ve loved jianghu tales since I was young, but strict family rules prevented me from experiencing jianghu life. To be able to feel that sentiment through the music would be wonderful."

After speaking, her face lit up with anticipation, much like those sheltered young ladies who were curious about the outside world.

Wang Anfeng looked at the young girl in front of him and sighed inwardly.

She was just a young lady ignorant of the hardships of the outside world.

Why bother taking her to task?

With that thought in mind, he began to play anew.

The piece was best performed on a pipa, but it was not infeasible on the guqin—though it lost some vigor and grandeur, it gained an additional desolate and mournful charm. Tan Yurou and Yan’er went inside to the side room, and shortly thereafter, the girl in white, carrying a basin of water, left, apparently having finished washing up.

Wang Anfeng frowned slightly, turned his back to avoid looking at that room, and continued playing.

Inside the wooden house.

After sending Yan’er away, Tan Yurou’s expression seemed to relax.

The previous shyness and timidness dissipated, her gaze becoming clear as she soothingly stroked the cat, conveying a sense of tranquility. On the table nearby were the dishes Wang Anfeng had made at her request. Although they had cooled somewhat, the taste was not significantly diminished; their aroma was tantalizing.

Yet she hadn’t touched a single bite, instead bending down to place a bowl of food on the floor, letting go of the white cat, which eagerly consumed the meal, purring contentedly.

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Meanwhile, she returned to the bed, retrieved a hidden compartment from her jewelry box, which contained a white flatbread, as large as a platter and bland to the point of severity, but rather filling—one alone could satiate a man. Made entirely of flour, it could last a long time without spoiling, making it the preferred sustenance for the street laborers.

Moonlight fell through the window, the white cat feasting contentedly on the ground, with the scent spreading throughout the room.

Tan Yurou nestled in a corner of the bed, quietly and carefully eating the white flatbread she had secretly brought along.

Not a crumb fell to the floor.

PS: First update...