Chapter 83
Chapter 83
Gu Liuxian said, “Speak freely.”
Hua Wuhuang said, “Elder Lu came to my home today to propose marriage, and the wedding date has been set for next month. But I am still cultivating in the Tianwen Sect. If I marry Elder Lu now, then in the sect we will be both husband and wife as well as master and disciple. It would make things very inconvenient… I humbly ask Grandmaster to step in and have Elder Lu postpone the wedding!”
After hearing him out, Gu Liuxian nodded.
Although the Tianwen Sect had no explicit rule forbidding romance, cultivators valued a mind free of distractions. Relations between men and women could easily tarnish the sect’s reputation…
He had already warned Lu Yin before not to openly engage in a master-disciple romance.
He had not expected Lu Yin to be so impatient that he would run straight over to propose marriage!
Gu Liuxian pondered for a moment, then said, “This matter is indeed improper. Had Lu Yin discussed it with this old man beforehand, I would certainly have stopped him.”
Hua Wuhuang said, “Grandmaster is wise!”
Gu Liuxian said, “You need not worry anymore. I will go find Lu Yin myself and order him to move the wedding date to three years from now. Once you have left the Tianwen Sect, he may make arrangements for the marriage then.”
“This disciple thanks Grandmaster!”
Moved, Hua Wuhuang kowtowed in gratitude.
The stone weighing on his heart finally dropped.
Gu Liuxian nodded approvingly. “No need to thank me. You are a good child, one who knows how to consider the bigger picture.”
Seeing that Hua Wuhuang’s matter had been settled, Ye Piaoling hurriedly put on a beaming smile as well.
“Grandmaster, this disciple also has a request!”
When Gu Liuxian saw that slick smile on her face, he guessed she was up to no good.
His expression immediately darkened, and he said gloomily, “What do you want?”
Ye Piaoling choked. “…”
Just look at how fast Grandmaster’s face changed. A moment ago, he had looked at Hua Wuhuang with the gratified expression of an elder. The second it was her turn, it was like the calm before a storm!
She had not even opened her mouth yet, and the old man was already about to get angry.
Ye Piaoling knew very well that if she directly asked for a reduced sentence, not only would he refuse, she would also be in for a scolding…
Her eyes shifted slightly. Ye Piaoling decided to play the relationship card and said with an ingratiating smile, “Grandmaster, there is something I have always wanted to tell you.”
Gu Liuxian asked with a stern face, “What is it?”
Ye Piaoling said, “Actually, the first time we met, I thought you looked especially like my maternal grandfather.”
Gu Liuxian: “?”
Ye Piaoling said, “My maternal grandfather, as in my grandpa on my mother’s side. You are as kind and amiable as my grandpa, and you even look like him… We must be related somehow!”
Gu Liuxian: “???”
Ye Piaoling said, “Um, I have already been cleaning the library for half a month, and I know I was wrong. I will definitely change from now on! Grandpa, look, could you maybe stop making me clean starting tomorrow?”
“…”
Only then did Gu Liuxian finally understand her true purpose.
So this little brat was trying to escape punishment…
“Absurd!!!”
Gu Liuxian immediately pointed at her nose and cursed, “Day after day, you refuse to do anything proper and only think up crooked tricks! Do you think claiming kinship with this old man means you do not have to clean the library? If you put this cleverness of yours to proper use, you would have become one of the top disciples long ago!”
Ye Piaoling said, “Grandpa, please calm down…”
Gu Liuxian snapped, “Shut up! I am not your grandpa!”
Ye Piaoling: “…”
Gu Liuxian said, “I will make this clear today: you must clean the library for the full month. Not one day less! If after one month you still show no remorse, then you will keep cleaning! For a year!”
Ye Piaoling’s smile froze on her face, turning into teary misery.
Now she was really depressed…
She had long known the old headmaster was biased against her, but she had not expected his prejudice to run so deep that even playing the family card was useless.
The two disciples left the quiet room.
Hua Wuhuang let out a sigh of relief.
With Grandmaster stepping in, he would not have to bow in marriage to a man.
Ye Piaoling, on the other hand, was dejected. “Sigh. Grandmaster really isn’t kind or amiable at all.”
Hua Wuhuang comforted her, “It’s fine. With me helping you with your homework, you won’t be punished to stand again.”
Ye Piaoling said, “I’m worried that Grandmaster’s first impression of me was already bad. It definitely won’t get better in the future. What am I supposed to do for the next three years?”
Hua Wuhuang said, “As long as you stop provoking him, he won’t make trouble for you.”
Ye Piaoling grumbled under her breath, “How did we end up with such a weird old man as headmaster? He’s rigid, bad-tempered, and impossible to talk to…”
The two chatted as they slowly walked back along the small path beneath the shadows of the trees.
By now, the sky had already darkened. The disciples and cultivators living in the sect had all returned to their rooms, and only sparse lamplight dotted the surroundings.
Suddenly, a furtive figure dressed in black night clothes flashed past outside the woods.
Hua Wuhuang tugged Ye Piaoling and said in a low voice, “Look!”
Ye Piaoling looked over, her eyes widening in surprise.