“Dad, one step at a time!” smiled Cheng Xiao Xiao, she looked around the courtyard and said, “We should upgrade our house if dad is going to have disciples. We can’t keep living in this hut, it’s getting a little bit embarrassing.”
“What’s so embarrassing about it? Nonsense!” smiled Cheng Biyuan. Taking a look at his own house, he sighed, “Yeah, this house is a bit crude. Sorry to have you guys put up with it for so long.”
“Ye, it’s all in the past. All we need is to re-build another house, then we can live in a nice place!” smiled Mrs. Cheng tenderly.
The little ones all looked happy, their bright eyes full of hope. After all, the hut was not only crude, but also a bit on the small size. It hasn’t been all that comfortable.
Cheng Xiao Xiao thought for a bit and said, “Dad, since Patriarch Liu asked you in person, you will have to accept them no matter what. I say anyone with average talent, you just accept them as your disciples by name; anyone who has exceptional talent, you take them on as formal disciples. After all, we will need disciples sooner or later. This will save us the hassle to recruit from the outside. It might as well be the villagers that we are familiar with.”
“Xiao Xiao is right, we are quite short handed. Right now we can still handle it on our own, will be tough as time goes on.”
Cheng Biyuan agreed with his daughter’s suggestion. Thinking about their days in the future, he smile deepened. Then he asked, “Xiao Xiao, Patriarch Liu also said mentioned that the villagers can’t really afford tuition. The best they could do is to send over animals they have hunted in the future.”
“So they are asking us to support their children?” frowned Mrs. Cheng, looking a little unfriendly, “Not only are we teaching them to cultivate and practice martial arts, we have to take care of their room and board also? This is a bit…”
She was right, Cheng Biyuan didn’t know what to say. He had expected her reaction which was why he chose to discuss this in front of his daughter.
Cheng Xiao Xiao looked at her father and then glanced at her mother. She found it funny that her father was afraid of her mother.
“Mom, we no longer need to worry about food on table and roof over head. Feeding another several dozens won’t be an issue at all!”
“But they are just taking advantage of us!” slipped Mrs. Cheng, letting her true feelings out.
Cheng Xiao Xiao couldn’t help but to giggle at her mother being petty. And so did the three young ones. Cheng Biyuan didn’t dare laughing at his own wife, but one could tell from his look that he was trying very hard to hold it in.
“Mom, don’t worry. It won’t be easy to take advantage of us. You see how we are planning to build a new house now? We will have the villagers over to help out, and all we had to do are to provide them with meals but no pay. As for your disciples and students, once they’ve joined us, they will have to listen to us, much like the structure of a large family or a sect. We won’t be taken advantage of, we will only benefit from this!”
“Xiao Xiao is right, don’t sweat over the small stuff. All these are necessary if we want to found our own sect!”
Soon as Cheng Biyuan finished, Mrs. Cheng looked very unhappy, staring at him, she said, “Save it. Xiao Xiao was the reason all these are happening, nothing to do with you!”
“You, you are being unreasonable!” Cheng Biyuan struggled to find his words.
The young ones started laughing all over again. Cheng Xiao Xiao didn’t want her parents to keep fighting so she diverted the subject, “Dad, mom, since we are planning to build a house, we should plan it out thoroughly. We should also looked building living quarters for your disciples. As for your students, we will just have them come over in the day time and go home at night. Willow is not that far from us anyway!”