Chapter 615 — The Chu Family Patriarch

In truth, Gu Mengyao had left General Weiwu crouching at the foot of the stairs to guard against burglars, not against Wei Zhao — though at first it had been for Wei Zhao's benefit, that was no longer necessary now.

Gu Mengyao had seen through Wei Zhao completely; she wouldn't even let him escort her upstairs, and she had half hoped he might secretly sneak up to peek, which would at least prove how irresistible she and Xiaoshu were! Yet Wei Zhao simply refused to go up!

It was a somewhat twisted way of thinking, but that was how the young lady was when she grew obstinate. What made Tang Zhi so special? The young lady's proud self-esteem had taken a severe beating!

It was hardly the first time Wei Zhao had carried Shen Yushu, and he felt no burden about it; he slung her up and headed straight upstairs. As he passed General Weiwu, the beast indeed slipped aside without so much as a bark, head lowered, not even daring to look at Wei Zhao.

Gu Mengyao gave a little snort and shot Wei Zhao a glare. She simply could not fathom why Wei Zhao wasn't afraid of General Weiwu.

In fact, her suspicions had been aroused once before, when she'd had Wei Zhao go upstairs to hook up a network cable. Why else would he have been able to get to the second floor, unless General Weiwu held no terror for him?

Then, a few days ago, Wei Zhao had brought General Weiwu along and sent the beast to search for her — that had deepened her suspicions even further! Ordinarily General Weiwu obeyed no one but Uncle Qing; even Daddy couldn't command him. How had Wei Zhao managed to get the beast up the mountain?

Uncle Qing hadn't come up with them at the time; only Wei Zhao had reached the cave. And General Weiwu had clearly been so terrified by Wei Zhao that his fur stood on end and he fled to seek refuge with his mistress — Gu Mengyao could see that much!

Wei Zhao gave a hollow laugh, made no reply, and quickly went upstairs.

"Once you're on the second floor, no wandering eyes — follow me!" Gu Mengyao led the way, bringing Wei Zhao to the door of a room. She pushed it open and had him carry Shen Yushu inside.

The pink bedroom was warm and cozy, its walls plastered with pretty little flowers, and some plush toys sat at the head of the bed.

Wei Zhao laid Shen Yushu on the bed, but before he could so much as look around, Gu Mengyao shooed him out of the room.

Wei Zhao shrugged, a little regretful. Still, few people likely ever set foot in the young lady's boudoir — he counted himself among those she trusted.

Since Gu Mengyao had forbidden him to look around, Wei Zhao naturally wasn't about to sneak a peek on his own. He left her room and went downstairs, cleaned up the pile of vomit Shen Yushu had left beside the sofa, and returned to his own room.

Wei Zhao first called Old Man Wei, reporting on his doings in Songshan City. There was, of course, good news as well: he had advanced, having risen to the early stage of the Mystic Rank.

The old man kept to his same lukewarm manner — no congratulations, no particular comment, only an instruction to stay on at the Gu household. Yet at the very end he said to Wei Zhao, with a weight of meaning: "If the chance comes, make contact with the Gu family's patriarch."

"The Gu family's patriarch? Uncle Chu? Or Uncle Chu's father?" Wei Zhao asked, slightly taken aback.

"His father." Old Man Wei, for his part, made no riddle of it: "Make contact if the chance arises. If it doesn't, don't force it — a chance will always come."

"Huh?" Wei Zhao found the old man's words oddly jarring. Was it some sort of Zen koan, with a hidden barb inside? Still, he committed it to memory.

"Heh, it's nothing." Old Man Wei smiled faintly. "Boy, you didn't call me out of the blue just to give a situation report, did you? As I recall, you don't make a habit of reporting unless something important comes up."

"There is indeed a small matter." Wei Zhao said, "Old man, that nerve-stimulating medicinal solution I used when I trained in the past — do you still have any?"

"I believe there's some left. Why, you have a use for it?" Old Man Wei asked.

"Yes, I have a use for it. Two friends of mine have some nerve problems," Wei Zhao said. "Or you could give me the formula and I'll brew up a batch myself."

Wei Zhao had never studied this nerve-stimulating solution before; it was of no use to him, and rather difficult to prepare.

"If you brew it yourself, I expect a few of the ingredients won't be easy to come by — I grow those myself," Old Man Wei said. "I have some finished solution here. If you need it, come and fetch it."

"I'll have Ergoudan bring it over," Wei Zhao said. "I'll give him a call in a bit."

"That works too." Old Man Wei was hardly stingy about such things — they were, after all, trifles of no consequence. Back when he'd been training Wei Zhao, he'd mixed the stuff up a whole vat at a time.

Wei Zhao had first thought of mailing the medicinal liquid by courier, but the matter was too important; he feared something might go wrong along the way. Better to have Ergoudan deliver it in person — and besides, Wei Zhao missed his childhood friend.

All these years Wei Zhao had never had a fixed abode: it was mission after mission, with no place to call home. And every time he went back, Ergoudan would listen wide-eyed as Wei Zhao described the dazzling world outside, longing to go out and see it for himself — but Wei Zhao had never had the chance to bring him along.

Ergoudan's family was very poor. In truth, the whole village where Wei Zhao had lived was far from wealthy. The only ones who could be called well-off were the village chief's family, who owned a fishpond, and the widow Wang's at the head of the village, who ran a snack stall and a general store — and then there was Wei Zhao's family.

Of course, Wei Zhao's family lived off the money he earned weaving straw hats and straw sandals. Wei Zhao was deft with his hands and quick at his work; though many in the village did the same trade, his daily output was four or five times theirs. How could they not be well-off?

And in fact, that "well-off" amounted to being able to afford a laptop and to treat oneself now and then at Widow Wang's snack stall.

Wei Zhao had no idea where the money from all those years of missions had gone, but the old man never mentioned it, and Wei Zhao never asked. Their bond was closer than father and son — he wasn't about to quibble over such things.

By comparison, Ergoudan's family was truly poor: they lived off the land, and couldn't even afford a telephone. Ergoudan had always wanted to leave the mountains and see the world beyond, and Wei Zhao had promised him that when the chance came, he would show him what lay outside.

Now that Wei Zhao had settled in Songshan City and had a respectable, stable identity to his name, he naturally remembered that old promise. RO