Chapter 109 - 109: 109, [Sir: Out of Sight, Out of Mind]
As mentioned before, the gentleman is called so because he liked this title.
He had a twin brother, and due to some special circumstances, they could not determine which of them was born first. But they both wanted to be the elder brother of the other, hence, the gentleman took a liking for the title
“gentleman”.
Over time, everyone began to call him by this name.
Anyone familiar with the gentleman knew he was easy-going without any airs, but if they had to mention a flaw in his character, it was his vanity.
Okay, he was extremely vain!
The gentleman was casual about most things, except for looks, where he tended to get a little jealous.
—He did not like men who were too handsome.
Take Yan Li, the founder of the Demon Sect, for instance. Despite his charisma and outstanding temperament, due to his handsome appearance and the elegant demeanor bred from his swordsmanship cultivation, he became the least liked disciple among all of the gentleman’s disciples.
On the other hand, his third disciple, Zhuge Lai Fu, who was considered crude, was always kept close by the gentleman.
Then you have Shen Yan. The reason he was able to occupy the position of Sect Master was not just because he had the highest cultivation base, but also because he was fierce looking and ugly, even completely hairless. The gentleman found this very acceptable.
Therefore, upon laying his eyes on Lu Xun for the first time, the gentleman couldn’t help but furrow his eyebrows, uttering, “Hmm?”
If he were to express his feelings at this moment more bluntly, it would be— what the heck is this?!
Lu Xun, who was innately blessed with a charisma of 10, wouldn’t necessarily proclaim himself the most handsome man in the world, but he was sure that he was among the top.
Perhaps there were others who could rival him in terms of looks, but there certainly wasn’t anyone better looking than him.
Therefore, his face and his unique disposition directly touched the gentleman’s sensitivity.
This look seemed to be offensive.
Everyone bowed respectfully to the gentleman, and Lu Xun tried his best to show the most appropriate courteous smile.
He thought his smile was beautiful and perfect, and no elder would dislike it.
The gentleman felt increasingly irritable.
He placed both his hands behind his back, his white robes standing out among all the black robes. He first asked his second senior sister, “Xiao Man, have you made any progress during your recent meditations?”
“Yes… Yes, I have,” she lied.
Oddly enough, she originally came to the bamboo grove for meditation, but once Lu Xun started bringing meals to the grove three times a day, she became accustomed to his daily chatter, as well as the lively atmosphere he brought along. She even felt a bit… uncomfortable when he wasn’t up the mountain!
Upon hearing this, the gentleman nodded, then looked at Mao Nanbei, reaching out his right hand to rub her cat ears, but was avoided by Mao Nanbei.
“Eh, not even the gentleman is allowed to pet you?” Lu Xun suddenly felt balanced.
The gentleman awkwardly retracted his right hand but didn’t seem to mind.
“Next, it should be my turn,” Lu Xun thought to himself.
To his surprise, the gentleman’s gaze turned to Little Lim Chan standing next to Lu Xun.
“This is Lin Chan, Little Junior Brother’s disciple he found down the mountain. Gentleman, may she stay in the Small Study as well?” Mao Nanbei fluttered her big eyes and launched her charming attack.
She quite liked Lin Chan. If the gentleman disagreed, then… then she’d let him pet her head!
“Eh, a natural sword embryo? Not bad at all, you may stay,” the Gentleman responded with a grin.
However, what he truly thought was: “Should I keep this little girl here and throw this irritating boy off the mountain?”
That doesn’t seem too bad…
At this moment, Lu Xun started to sense something amiss, but he couldn’t exactly put his finger on it.
The gentleman waved his sleeves and took the lead, strolling upward in his unusually lively and flamboyant manner.
With the exception of the second senior sister who was confined to the bamboo grove, everyone quickly followed him.
Third brother, Zhuge Lai Fu, came over to Lu Xun, inexplicably patted him on the shoulder and then sighed a little.
“Little Junior Brother, if you ever feel a bit hard-pressed, don’t hesitate to come see your Third Brother for a drink.” This burly dark-skinned man blurted something out of nowhere, lip-synching without making a sound. It took Lu Xun a long time to figure out what he’d said.
At this moment, he was in suspense and urgently wanted to know what went wrong.
After reaching the Small Study on top of the mountain, the master looked at Lu Xun again and then turned his head and walked into the house.
—Out of sight, out of mind!
Third brother, Zhuge Lai Fu, took a deep breath of the fresh air from the back mountain, looked at Lu Xun and then said to him, “Little Junior Brother, I am going to cook something for everyone in the kitchen. Would you like to give me a hand?”
Lu Xun instantly nodded and entered the kitchen with Third Brother.
From Mao Nanbei’s description of Third Brother, Lu Xun had gotten some idea of what kind of man he was.
He had an extremely good temper, was passionate about the Culinary Path, loved exploring new things, but had a bit of a forgetful nature.
Generally speaking, he seemed like a good-natured person, but these were Mao Nanbei’s feelings. Lu Xun thought he needed to have more contact with third brother before making a judgement.
Once they were in the kitchen, Lu Xun started, “Third Brother, I’ve been cooking for our two senior sisters in the past while, using the kitchen’s appliances. I hope you don’t mind.
“Oh? Can Little Junior Brother cook?” Zhuge Lai Fu asked.
“Just a little bit, mainly just because I love it,” Lu Xun replied casually, yet seriously.
This reply struck a chord with Third Brother, who loves cooking but is not very good at it.
Yes, indeed! The most important thing is that he loves it!
As Lu Xun helped out in the kitchen, he began chatting with Third Brother casually, and they quickly bridged the gap between them.
Zhuge Lai Fu thought that Little junior brother was a fun person, the teacher’s favorite kind of student, only he was too good-looking… impeccably good -looking.
Actually, Lu Xun wanted to ask Third Brother why the master’s attitude toward him was a bit different, but he was careful and didn’t think it would be a good idea to ask directly. Instead, he made a few “words stuck in his throat” faces.
As Mao Nanbei said, Third Brother was indeed a kind and simple-minded man.
Seeing Lu Xun hesitate to speak, he took the initiative to say, “Little Junior Brother, are you wondering about the master’s attitude?”
Lu Xun nodded, startled. Were they really talking about the Master like this? Was that ok?
For the Great Cultivator, wouldn’t this very close distance make it easy for him to overhear everything they say?
It seemed like his thoughts were read clear once again by Third Brother, “As long as the master is not here, Little Junior Brother, don’t feel obliged to avoid too much. The master rarely senses the surroundings, he thinks it would be boring to live like this.”
“So that’s the case…l wish Third Brother to enlighten me.” Lu Xun said to Zhuge Lai Fu.
Zhuge Lai Fu didn’t answer right away, first, he started cooking. His cooking moves puzzled Lu Xun. He couldn’t figure out what kind of divine dishes Third Brother was trying to make. Was it alright to mix all these seasoning together?
With his broad rough hands, he dumped his innovative seasonings into the pot after a quick mix. After organizing his thoughts, he told Lu Xun a white lie:
“Little Junior Brother, you really don’t need to worry. The master treats every disciple very well. It’s just… it’s just that you, Little Junior Brother, are so talented and so handsome. The master may be a bit stricter with you. So, don’t think you are treated specially, all is the master’s arduous heartfelt effort.” “Why don’t I believe what I heard?” Lu Xun grumbled inwardly.
Zhuge Lai Fu also felt his words lacked conviction, then had a brainstorm, and added: “In the beginning, the master’s attitude toward Eldest Brother was also different than it was to us, it was especially…strict.”
“Oh! So this was the case!” Lu Xun thought to himself.
“Could it be that the master thinks I can reach the same level as Elder Brother?” He couldn’t help nodding deeply, and all of a sudden felt that there was some logic in Third Brother’s words.
Inside the room the master, of average height, average looks, and average temperament was changing from one white robe to another in front of the copper mirror, becoming more irked with each look…
Should he do something?