"Keep going and make more progress," Master Li encouraged, then said, "Choose an auspicious day, and then let me know which day it is."
"Yes!"
"And also... you..." Master Li paused slightly before continuing, "Take the Sword Servant with you. After all, he’s an Eighth Grade, and can help you with some things right now."
Li Yuan glanced at the extremely excited man in gray, and with a solemn salute, said, "Junior Martial Uncle Zhou, please take care of me in the future."
The man in gray was stunned for a moment, then angrily looked at Master Li, shouting "Ah, ah, ah" about something.
Master Li slapped the armrest and said, "Damn it, if you want to be a Sword Servant, I’ll let you be! But I have to explain who you are to my apprentice, don’t I? Otherwise, would he dare to accept you? Use your brain!"
The man in gray was full of anger.
Master Li laughed and said, "Why get angry? Get lost quickly! You’ve been here with me for so long, you finally can leave. Get lost!"
The man in gray heard the insult but didn’t get angry again. Instead, he took a deep breath, slightly bowed to Master Li, and cupped his fists, though he couldn’t speak.
Master Li waved his hand and said, "Why waste words? Get lost, I’ve been tired of you for a long time!"
After saying this, his voice softened slightly, and he called out, "Yuan’Er..."
"Teacher."
"Don’t call him Junior Martial Uncle, he doesn’t like it. He even wanted me to keep it from you, but I couldn’t help but say it.
Now... just go with him, treat him as a Sword Servant. If it’s awkward to call him Sword Servant, give him a name."
"This..."
"Think of a name."
"Then... how about Zhou Shuang?"
"Might as well call him Junior Martial Uncle, that name won’t do."
"Then... Zhou Cang?"
"Zhou Cang? This name..."
Li Yuan saw Master Li deep in thought and quickly said, "I’ll think of another."
He wasn’t as virtuous as Second Master, and indeed Zhou Cang wasn’t fitting, so he said, "Then... Zhou Yi, or Zhou Jia?"
Master Li looked at the Sword Servant, but the Sword Servant remained silent.
Master Li said, "Then call him Zhou Jia."
On the other side, the Sword Servant nodded.
Li Yuan shouldered the Horse-Cutting Blade, slung diagonally across his back, the tip just touching his calf.
He left the Black Market with Zhou Jia.
Gradually moving away...
Growing distant.
Master Li’s rocking chair still creaked, yet it carried a sense of unexplainable loneliness and relief.
Snowflakes misted over, covering the ground for miles.
By the South City Lake, the top of the black-roofed boat was already covered in a light white layer.
Zhou Jia followed respectfully behind him, head lowered, body bowed, his graying hair flailing wildly in the northern wind, as if everything and everyone around were irrelevant to him, except for this young man in front of him.
"Old Zhou?" Li Yuan suddenly said.
Zhou Jia stopped in his tracks and looked up.
Li Yuan asked, "You’ve been in the Black Market all these years?"
Zhou Jia nodded.
Li Yuan asked, "Following me, what do you want to do?"
Zhou Jia thought for a moment, pressed his right hand on the knife at his waist, and wrote in the snow with the scabbard: Raise horses, accompany, fight, guard the home.
Li Yuan said, "The owner of Hengwu Restaurant is my wife, but no one is looking after Hengwu Restaurant. If I let you go to the restaurant, how would you feel?"
His thoughts were clear, he wanted to expand his influence and had to grow Hengwu Restaurant.
The expansion of interests inevitably brings danger. If there wasn’t enough power to secure this foundation, too much profit would be the root of trouble.
Hengwu Restaurant lacked someone to hold down the fort. Before Zhou Jia was injured, he was a Seventh Grade talent, his skills almost catching up to Sect Leader Tie. Even now, being injured, his strongest combined skill still reached "90," which was already more powerful than Zhao Chunxin, sufficient to defend Hengwu Restaurant.
"How about it, Old Zhou? Hengwu Restaurant is very important to me, I need to rely on it to accomplish things," Li Yuan continued.
Zhou Jia bowed and cupped his fists, nodded, and wrote again: "I’ll go check the stables."
Li Yuan pondered, the stables were at the back door of the restaurant, and should there be intruders at night, the back door would be the first to bear the brunt, so he nodded and said, "Then I shall leave it to you, Old Zhou."
...
"Hey, hey, hey? Young Master Li brought someone back, said to be arranged to feed the horses and manage the stables in the future?"
"Who is it?"
"It’s a young bloke, but his hair’s gone completely gray, seems like... seems like he’s a mute."
"Huh?"
...
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