APSIL -Chapter 31 Having Met a True Gentleman

Watching the elderly man poke around the room—looking here, glancing there, even flicking a finger against the dark wooden table to hear how it sounded—Zhang Shou couldn’t help but think of Zhu Ying on the day she had first arrived.

Although their ages couldn’t have been more different, they shared the same curiosity. The young lady had examined everything she saw, as if every ordinary tool found in the countryside was worthy of careful study.

On the way here, Zhang Shou had tried to learn more about the old man’s background.

Unfortunately, the fellow’s lips were as tightly sealed as those of his own mother and servants.

The only thing he had admitted was that his surname was Ge.

Everything else he said ranged from heavenly legends to earthly nonsense, so Zhang Shou simply addressed him as Old Master Ge.

“By the way,” the old man suddenly asked, “I still don’t know your honored name, young man.”

“My surname is Zhang.”

After a slight pause, Zhang Shou smiled.

“Since Old Master Ge refuses to reveal his full name, then as a junior, I’ll simply follow your example and keep my own insignificant given name to myself.”

Old Master Ge froze for a moment before glaring dramatically.

“I’ve lived to such an old age, and you won’t even humor this old fellow?”

“Hmph! Do you think I’m senile? If I go ask around the village, do you think I won’t learn your full name?”

He waved his hand impatiently.

“Forget it, I won’t argue with you.”

His eyes wandered around the house once more.

“I don’t see anyone else here. Don’t tell me you live here all by yourself?”

Zhang Shou had already thought the old man possessed the mischievous temperament of a child.

Now he was even more convinced.

As for that final question…

He didn’t need to think to know what had prompted it.

The old man had judged him by his appearance.

He could understand Zhu Ying, a pampered noble lady, doing such a thing.

But he hadn’t expected an old man with one foot already in the grave to do exactly the same.

Unable to suppress a smile, he asked in return, “Do you think I ought to be some immortal who never soils his hands with household chores?”

Old Master Ge dusted off his sleeves and sat down confidently.

“The world has never been fair.”

“Otherwise, why would even the imperial examinations favor handsome men?”

“The court chooses imposing, dignified scholars as champions—not hunchbacked bald men.”

He pointed at Zhang Shou.

“I refuse to believe someone with a face like yours knows how to light a stove or cook a meal.”

“So there’s no way you live alone.”

The moment he finished speaking, Zhang Shou merely chuckled.

Then he turned around and walked straight outside.

The old man blinked.

Realizing what Zhang Shou intended to do, he immediately sprang to his feet and hurried after him.

He watched as Zhang Shou entered the kitchen.

With practiced ease, he placed dry firewood into the stove.

He lit the kindling with wood shavings.

He fed the flames with more wood while blowing steadily through the fire.

Then he washed rice, placed it into the pot, and began preparing dinner.

Every movement flowed naturally.

As though he had repeated them hundreds…

No—

Thousands of times before.

Only after Zhang Shou finally paused did the old man clear his throat awkwardly.

“You’ve got such a handsome face.”

“Even if you live in the countryside, surely people should volunteer to help with chores like these.”

“Doing them yourself is simply a waste.”

“When this old man was young and devastatingly handsome, I never even had to ask. Countless people took care of my food, clothing, housing, and travel.”

Zhang Shou merely smiled without answering.

After drying his hands, he picked two fresh cucumbers from a basket, washed them clean, and began slicing them into perfectly even strips with astonishing knife skills.

Old Master Ge continued following him around, unwilling to give up.

“I’m only saying this because seeing you reminds me of myself in my younger days.”

“It’s admirable for a man to be self-reliant.”

“But priorities matter.”

“No matter how well you cook, are you planning to become a chef someday?”

“And even if you’re good at farming, what can one person’s strength accomplish compared to improving farming methods or building irrigation systems?”

“Take your current situation.”

“Living here all by yourself really isn’t as good as…”

Zhang Shou patiently allowed the old man to ramble on.

Only when he reached the words “isn’t as good as…” did Zhang Shou finally interrupt.

“Actually…”

“This isn’t my home.”

“And I don’t live alone.”

“My mother and three elderly servants are all at home.”

Old Master Ge, who had been exhausting himself trying to persuade the handsome young man to cherish his youth, instantly choked on his own words.

A moment later, embarrassment turned into irritation.

He wanted to lose his temper.

Yet the words wouldn’t come.

Because he suddenly realized…

Zhang Shou had never actually claimed this was his own house.

The young man had merely responded to his prejudice—that someone so handsome couldn’t possibly know how to fend for himself—with undeniable proof.

The old man snorted awkwardly.

“So this isn’t your house.”

“Yet you brought me here anyway.”

“And you’ve casually used someone else’s rice and vegetables.”

“I suppose the owners must be close friends?”

“They are.”

Zhang Shou nodded with a smile.

After seasoning the cucumber strips with salt, vinegar, and sesame oil, he continued, “My own home has guests staying these past few days, so there isn’t enough room.”

“When I return home, I’ll have someone bring over more food.”

“I trust Old Master Ge won’t mind.”

The house belonged to Qi Liang.

Nowadays, Qi Liang not only served as the senior disciple at Gentle Breeze Hall during the day, but often stayed there overnight as well, just in case those noble youths caused trouble.

As a result, his own home stood empty.

Compared to the other village homes, it was undoubtedly the most suitable place for this elderly visitor who claimed to have come seeking a hidden master.

“I knew it.”

Old Master Ge grunted.

“With skin as smooth as yours, you certainly don’t look like someone who struggles day and night just to survive.”

Seeing Zhang Shou preparing to leave, however, the old man suddenly grabbed his sleeve with surprising speed.

When Zhang Shou turned around, Old Master Ge grinned.

“Food and lodging aren’t important.”

“A hot meal and somewhere to keep out the wind and rain are enough.”

“This old man isn’t picky.”

He lowered his voice conspiratorially.

“To tell you the truth…”

“I’m a tutor and adviser employed by an important noble household in the capital.”

“Until I meet that hidden sage living in the mountains, I have no intention of returning.”

Zhang Shou paused before shrugging.

“That so-called hidden master only managed to fool those noble young men from the capital who trail after Miss Zhu of the Duke of Zhao’s household like lovesick bees.”

“Miss Zhu came to the countryside seeking peace, yet they still chased after her.”

“She grew annoyed.”

“So she merely played a trick on Young Master Lu.”

“Who knew the rumor would grow so wildly after being passed from one person to another?”

“Oh?”

Old Master Ge looked at him meaningfully.

A faint smile appeared at the corners of his mouth.

“So Miss Zhu came to the countryside simply because she found the capital troublesome?”

“Not because she has a fiancé living here?”

“Whether she has a fiancé or not depends upon a written marriage contract.”

“Rumors without proof don’t count.”

Zhang Shou casually steered the conversation elsewhere.

Seeing the old man finally release his sleeve, he cupped his hands politely.

“Please rest here for now, Old Master Ge.”

“I’ll return shortly.”

After watching Zhang Shou stride away, Old Master Ge stroked his carefully maintained beard.

The young man’s manners had been elegant.

His conversation refined.

Yet he performed tasks normally left to servants with complete ease and without the slightest trace of embarrassment.

The old man slowly looked around the room.

Then…

The distinguished elder, who had appeared dignified despite his shameless antics, suddenly strode toward a crude bookshelf tucked into one corner.

Without asking permission, he began flipping through its contents.

Fortunately, he handled every book with exceptional care.

His hands moved astonishingly quickly.

Within moments, he had examined more than half the shelf.

Finally, he discovered a thick oil-paper bundle.

Humming softly to himself, he carried it to the table and opened it.

Inside lay several handwritten notebooks.

He casually picked up the first one.

The moment his eyes fell upon the first page…

They lit up.

“Heh!”

“No matter how crafty you are, you can’t fool this old man’s sharp eyes…”

He paused.

“…No, that’s not right.”

“At most, you’re a modest gentleman as gentle as polished jade.”

“You weren’t lying.”

“Calling you crafty would be unfair.”

“You tell the truth and still manage to be this difficult to deal with…”

He clicked his tongue repeatedly.

“You’re even more remarkable than I was in my youth.”

“How in the world did you come up with these questions?”

“My efforts weren’t wasted after all.”

He carefully examined every notebook, distinguishing newer handwriting from older entries.

After silently calculating roughly how many years they covered, he memorized what he needed.

Then he wrapped them neatly in the oil paper once more and returned them to the bookshelf exactly as before.

Stretching lazily, he dusted off his hands.

“This old man has countless matters to attend to.”

“Since you’ve told me the hidden master I came seeking doesn’t exist—that he was merely a fraud and a false reputation—then I shouldn’t linger here.”

“We’ll meet again another day!”

When Zhang Shou returned with A-Liu carrying a food box…

The only thing waiting for him was a bold, wildly flowing note pasted upon Qi Liang’s front gate.

It read:

“I came in haste, and I depart in haste. Having met a true gentleman, this journey was not in vain! I leave one hundred copper coins to cover the cost of the meal. This old man takes his leave—we shall meet again someday!”

At the bottom…

The single character “Ge” had been written with extraordinary vigor and elegance.

Zhang Shou couldn’t help shaking his head.

What an utterly willful old man…

He came.

He left.

Without leaving behind so much as a cloud.

Then another thought occurred to him.

His gaze swept the surroundings before he walked directly to the bookshelf.

The village was so honest that people hardly bothered locking their doors.

Everyone knew everyone else.

Especially in a household as poor as Qi Liang’s.

Qi Liang had simply wrapped the notebooks Zhang Shou had him practice in with oil paper and left them on the shelf.

After only a brief glance, Zhang Shou spotted the clue.

Qi Liang had once proudly told him that he always placed a single strand of hair beneath the oil-paper bundle.

If anyone moved it, the hair would fall away immediately.

Back then, Zhang Shou had nearly laughed.

“Qi Liang, you’d make an excellent spy…”

Now…

The hair was gone.

There was no doubt.

Old Master Ge had examined the notebooks.

And judging by how hurriedly he had left afterward, it was almost certainly the problems inside that had prompted his sudden departure.

A tutor employed by some noble household?

What nonsense.

What distinguished family or great aristocratic clan would tolerate such an eccentric retainer?

With that utterly free-spirited temperament…

The old man himself was probably someone of considerable status.

The more Zhang Shou thought about it, the more amusing it seemed.

Without realizing it, the worry weighing upon his heart gradually disappeared.

Now that someone like Old Master Ge had already found his way here…

Others surely would as well.

Next time, they wouldn’t be nearly so easy to brush off.

Since Zhu Ying had already thrust him into the spotlight…

He might as well remain there.