Martial Cultivator

Before Xie Nandu left, Chen Chao had already wiped away his tears. He then sat with Xie Nandu under the eaves, waiting for his two silly disciples to formally acknowledge him as their master.

Originally, when Chen Chao had taken in Yu Qingfeng, he had already accepted his kneeling ceremony. Given his temperament, that alone would have sufficed. But He Liang had yet to officially bow and acknowledge him as his master.

Chen Chao thought for a moment and decided that before leaving the Divine Capital, he might as well settle this matter properly.

Since it was a formal discipleship ceremony, there had to be at least some rites. The previous time with Yu Qingfeng did not count, so now, the two youths would do it together.

Each holding a cup of tea, the two young men knelt before Chen Chao and Xie Nandu, waiting for their master to speak.

Chen Chao looked at the two disciples, who had vastly different personalities, and felt genuine happiness in his heart. He smiled and said, “Just as we agreed before, Qingfeng will be the senior disciple under me, and He Liang, you’ll be the junior disciple for now. But you two won’t be the last, I might take in another junior disciple or even a junior sister in the future.”

Yu Qingfeng chuckled. “That’d be great! When the time comes, I’ll personally teach Little Junior Sister.”

He Liang added, “Then I’ll help Senior Brother.”

Chen Chao laughed it off.

After a brief silence, Chen Chao said softly, “The three of us becoming master and disciples, it’s all fate. But fate is an unpredictable thing. It could last a lifetime, half a lifetime, or maybe just three to five years. When the day comes that our fate truly runs its course, we should part ways on good terms. If, one day, either of you feels that I’m not a good master, that I’m in the wrong, and you want to leave - then leave. Even if you don’t acknowledge me as your master anymore, that’s fine. “But there’s one thing I need to tell you both in advance. If we go our separate ways, I can accept that, and I won’t stop you. But after we part, if either of you ever does something harmful to Great Liang, even if you so much as kill an innocent civilian, then don’t blame your master for showing no mercy. I’ll hunt you both down and put an end to you myself.”

Chen Chao’s voice was calm, but what he said did not seem quite appropriate for the occasion.

Yu Qingfeng could not help but complain, “Master, who says this kind of thing during a discipleship ceremony?”

He Liang also looked at Chen Chao with a bit of grievance. “Yeah, Master, hearing you say that makes me want to cry.”

He was not just saying it, in reality, He Liang’s eyes was already welling up with tears. All that talk about parting ways and fate running out really made him sad. How could he ever renounce such a good master?

Chen Chao smiled and said, “I was just saying. In my heart, I still think that since we’ve become master and disciples, it’d be best if we stayed that way for life.”

Yu Qingfeng nodded, and He Liang quickly wiped his tears and nodded as well.

“Since you’ve entered my tutelage, you should at least follow some rules. The most important rule for us is the laws of Great Liang. Remember, do not kill indiscriminately, and do not take pleasure in killing.” ”As for the rest, I’ve always been an easygoing person. Even though we are master and disciples, there’s no need to rigidly adhere to formalities all the time. You can be more casual with me normally. But there is one thing you both must remember, your master is not someone who can be easily bullied anymore. However, if anyone dares to bully your Mistress, you should know what to do.”

Chen Chao glanced at his two disciples.

Yu Qingfeng grinned. “Got it! If anyone dares to bully Mistress, I’ll be the first to rush in and twist their head off!”

But He Liang thought for a moment before curiously asking, “Master, what if it’s you who bullies Mistress in the future?”

That question completely stumped Chen Chao.

He turned his head and looked at Xie Nandu.

Xie Nandu was trying hard to hold back her laughter.

Chen Chao pulled a straight face. “How could I ever bully your Mistress?”

He Liang muttered under his breath, “Well, you never know...”

Chen Chao rubbed his forehead, saying rather helplessly, “If that ever happens, then you can help your Mistress.”

However, Chen Chao quickly thought of a possibility and asked, “What if your Mistress bullies me?”

The two young men exchanged a glance, then simultaneously laughed and said, “Then we’ll just watch Mistress bully Master!”

Chen Chao was speechless, while Xie Nandu burst out laughing.

Afterward, Chen Chao took the two tea cups from the young men and took a sip, and only then did they give tea to Xie Nandu.

With that, the simple ceremony was over.

But at this moment, the two young men both stretched out their hands, smiling as they said, “Master, red packet.”

Chen Chao froze for a moment, his expression turning a little awkward. He had not even thought of this, and certainly had not prepared anything.

Fortunately, Xie Nandu quickly took two red packets out of her sleeve and handed one to each of them.

“Thank you, Mistress!”

The two said in unison, but simultaneously stuck out their tongues at Chen Chao.

Chen Chao sighed, feeling a bit helpless. It seemed clear now that these two little brats would definitely be siding with someone else in the future.

But it did not really matter, Chen Chao was not worried.

Xie Nandu stood up, laughing softly. “You two, make sure to learn well from your master. But remember, learn the craft, not how to be a person.”

“That’s right, what your Mistress say... Wait, what do you mean by ’don’t learn how to be a person’?!”

Chen Chao glanced at Xie Nandu and felt a bit wronged.

Xie Nandu did not say much. She simply ruffled the two young men’s hair and glanced at their clothes. They were both still growing, and their clothes had already become a little short. She said, “I’ll have someone come take your measurements later and make a few new sets of clothes. Your master might be good at fighting and killing, but when it comes to taking care of you, you might not even get enough to eat your fill.”

Yu Qingfeng chuckled. “Isn’t that what Mistress is here for?”

He Liang, on the other hand, smiled shyly and simply said, “Thank you, Mistress.”

Xie Nandu did not say much more. After a few last words of advice, she left. Though the academy had officially placed Zhou Gouqi in charge, much of the work still fell on Xie Nandu’s shoulders.

Moreover, she had already begun lecturing, making her the youngest female tutor at the academy.

Chen Chao suddenly grinned. “You two should go sit in on some classes at the academy when you have time. Studying more is always a good thing.”

He Liang looked a little worried. “Master, but Senior Brother and I aren’t academy students. Wouldn’t it be inappropriate for us to go?”

Chen Chao shook his head. “What’s there to be afraid of? Your Mistress is a tutor at the academy. Who would dare say anything? Besides, do you think they’d dare to hit you? They should at least take a good look at whose disciples you are.”

“But you two need to practice your talking skills. If you get mocked or scolded and end up cornered, make sure to talk back. As long as they don’t get physical, I can’t step in to help you guys.”

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