081 Junior brother

"Esteemed host, this young friend is..."

　　The magistrate forced a grimace that barely passed for a smile.

　　Though the times had changed, seeing his former host still made him tremble inwardly, his mouth dry and his heart racing.

　　The esteemed guest referred to as the "host" followed the magistrate's gaze towards Ayan, his eyes reflecting a hint of warmth as his weathered hand gently caressed the boy's head, speaking in a soft tone, "His nickname is 'Ayan'."

　　Hearing his teacher call his name, Ayan shifted his attention from the pastry in his hand, blinking in confusion as he looked at his teacher, seeming to question why he was being called. The elder man smiled, gesturing towards the magistrate, and replied, "Not calling you, but your curious senior brother."

　　Ayan tilted his head, glancing at the magistrate and then at the elder, before finally looking at the pastries on the plate, his eyebrows furrowed lightly.

　　Having lived with Ayan for two years, the elder had grasped his way of thinking to some extent, saying, "Your senior brother doesn't like these sweets, and neither do I. So, these are all yours, no need to share."

　　Hearing the title, the magistrate inwardly smirked.

　　Calling the elder "host" was merely a token of his past sentiments, but he hadn't expected this old fellow to exploit it, giving him the advantage of having a convenient junior brother. Speaking of "junior brother," he vaguely felt that this child named Ayan wasn't very bright.

　　At least, not as sharp as ordinary children.

　　The magistrate appropriately showed concern.

　　"Host, is Junior Brother here...?"

　　He pointed to his own head, implying a loss of intellect?

　　"Ayan is fine!"

　　Speaking of Ayan, the elder's demeanor suddenly changed, and between the lines of his weathered face, one could even faintly see the sharpness and intimidation of the past, which made the magistrate feel uneasy. At the same time, he secretly scolded himself for being so weak. After all, this old man in front of him was nearing the end of his days. What was there to fear?

　　The so-called sharpness seemed only to be his illusion. When the elder looked at Ayan, there was infinite tenderness in his eyes. He sighed heavily, patting Ayan's head, "He's just unlucky, born with a mental illness that sets him apart from ordinary children."

　　The magistrate: "???"

　　For a moment, he thought his ears were playing tricks on him.

　　Did his host just say someone was born with a mental illness?

　　"But, this child isn't..."

　　Which family's child with a mental illness could wield a spear at the age of six, possessing innate martial prowess, and break the leg of a grown man?

　　That unfortunate gatekeeper was still lying in the servants' courtyard.

　　The elder knew what he was about to say and said calmly, "Ayan may have a mental illness, but he's not foolish. He just has cognitive problems. He can learn what he needs to and understand without issues. Coupled with his excellent martial arts talent, it's not surprising that he can wield a spear."

　　And because of his cognitive issues, he was even more focused and diligent than normal people. He never complained or slacked off in the training tasks assigned by the elder, doing exactly what was required, one hundred percent focused and committed, naturally yielding excellent results.

　　The elder disliked others looking at Ayan with strange eyes.

　　Especially those who once had a tenuous master-disciple relationship with him—like this magistrate. Because, that would only prove that his former normal student was not as good as Ayan, who had a mental illness.

　　The magistrate sneered inwardly.

　　What "unknown forces"? It was probably related to Zheng Qiao. Even if Zheng Qiao hadn't thought of this enemy for the time being, his lackeys might have—after all, the most vicious critics of Zheng Qiao in those days were the chief censor and the deputy chief censor, the latter of whom was soon to step down as the host, making them the two biggest loudmouths in Xin Guo.

　　The deputy chief censor could at least cover up his insults with the excuse of "official business", while the host directly bombarded Zheng Qiao and the Emperor with all kinds of vulgar language, casually picking out any phrase that could make experienced veterans blush and laugh. The whole court of civil and military officials was not surprised.

　　Even thinking it should be like this.

　　The elegance and amiability of literati were absent in him.

　　This host had dared to negotiate with enemy countries on the border and, in the midst of negotiations, could pick up a low table and smash the envoy's head, then lead troops to sweep through the small countries of the northwest. This also led to the capital being filled with hostages sent by various forces and the inner court of Xin Guo being filled with X consorts sent by various small countries.

　　The Chǔ concubine from the Chǔ country...

　　Seemed to be the last "trophy"?

　　It was heard that the fall of the three heroes of the Chǔ country was also due to the efforts of this woman, which could be considered an impressive record. No wonder the magistrate was so afraid—even though this old lion was already in his twilight years, with loose teeth unable to bite his prey, his aura as the king of beasts still remained.

　　Zheng Qiao hadn't thought of taking revenge for the time being.

　　But his lackeys might not have.

　　The magistrate naturally belonged to one of those lackeys.

　　However, he didn't dare to turn against his host.

　　Feasting and wining, he treated the two as poor relatives who had come to enjoy the autumn wind. After the banquet, he ordered someone to withdraw two hundred taels of gold from the warehouse and send it to the guest courtyard. The elder lifted the red silk covering and glanced at the plate of gold ingots brought up, his eyebrows raising slightly.

　　Gatekeeper: A watchdog. 

　　Host: Similar to the titles "Master Tian" or "Master Host" used by Qushan.