Before Lao Fan could finish, the little girl greeted Princess Anle with a cheerful wave, puffed out her chest, and eagerly introduced herself, "Hello, pretty sister, my name is Lin Shuang, and I’m an apprentice to my master. Most people call me Miss Xiaolin, but you’re so beautiful, and I like you too, so you can call me Yaya or little sister, just like my elder sister does, or you can call me little imp, just like my master does."
The princess and her servants were all amused by Miss Xiaolin’s rapid-fire speech; they hadn’t expected such a little girl to have such quick wits.
Princess Anle pressed her lips together and said to Lao Fan with a smile, "So she’s the little apprentice you’ve taken on. No wonder. To be your apprentice, she must be extraordinary."
Surely, she was far better than those from the Capital who were scurrying about, eager to become Lao Fan’s apprentices.
Having such a clever apprentice reflected well on the master indeed.
Lao Fan preened, twirling his beard with pride while his eyes gleamed mischievously, clearly saying "My apprentice is certainly the best."
On the side, Xia He and Qiu Ju exchanged glances and smilingly said to Miss Xiaolin, "Our Madam can call you Yaya or little sister, so can we call you Yaya as well?"
Miss Xiaolin’s eyes twinkled as she nodded vigorously, "You two are beautiful sisters too, and I like you, so of course, you can call me Yaya."
Qiu Ju let out a laugh, it seemed this little girl based her familiarity entirely on how much she favored one’s appearance.
"Yaya," Xia He suddenly pointed at Princess Anle and said, "This is Madam, so you should call her Madam."
As soon as Xia He finished, Princess Anle quickly added, "Or you can call me Auntie or Aunt, whichever you like."
Miss Xiaolin blinked rapidly, looked at Xia He, then at Princess Anle, and shook her head, "This sis-, er, Madam, looks so pretty, and she’s also very young, can’t I call her sister?"
Finally, Princess Anle couldn’t help but burst into laughter. This little girl was clearly not one to ingratiate herself with flattery; whatever she said was truly from her own heart.
Although simple, these words pleased Princess Anle much more than all the compliments she heard while socializing with the Madams and Misses in the Capital.
Lao Fan thumped Miss Xiaolin’s forehead with a flick of his finger and puffed at his white beard, "You wolf cub, why so much nonsense!"
Having said that, he suddenly thought of something and began mumbling to himself, "You’re my apprentice, and she’s my niece. By rights, you two are of the same generation. But Xia Zheng, that bastard, is An Le’s kid, and you’re that brat’s younger sister, so doesn’t that make you of a higher generation than that brat? Should your elder sister call you little sister or auntie in the future?"
Lao Fan’s suddenly convoluted speech left everyone present bewildered, what with all the bastards and brats, and the little sister and auntie talk, just listening to it made their heads spin.
All of a sudden, Lao Fan slapped the table and burst out laughing, "That’s it, you’ll call Anle sister and make that brat Xia Zheng call you auntie, haha, auntie, that’ll definitely make him so angry!"
The princess and her servants, who had just been amused by Miss Xiaolin’s antics, were immediately entertained once again by Lao Fan’s words. After so many years, they found that the old man hadn’t changed one bit.
Xia He and Qiu Ju looked at each other and pursed their lips. Back in the Capital, the old master and the second master were always at odds, bickering or squabbling whenever they met. They had thought that the two would get on better after spending some time alone together, but it seemed their quarrels had only intensified. These two must have been destined adversaries in a previous life, not having quarreled enough, they were at it again in this one.