護花近衛 - 第4216章 欒博士 - 翰墨軒

"Ku Zhongle?" Yu Zhenyang frowned and thought for a moment before the name finally came back to him. In truth, had he not gone over Wei Zhao's record earlier, he would never have known who Ku Zhongle was—after all, the gap in rank and standing between them was far too great, and under normal circumstances their paths would never have crossed.

"That's right. He is the current senior brother in charge of the newcomers, long established in the Welcome Pavilion, and he has always looked after me. I hope you will consider him, Pavilion Master," Wei Zhao said, pleading on behalf of Senior Brother Bitterhard.

Everything before was mere groundwork; the last sentence was the point. The implication was plain: this was a favor owed.

"Ku Zhongle is indeed capable, but his strength seems to fall a little short, does it not?" Yu Zhenyang said with some hesitation. As master of the Azure Cloud Pavilion he could decide such matters on his own authority, but if Ku Zhongle did not even meet the minimum requirement, it would invite criticism.

"He will soon reach the great perfection of Foundation Establishment—he is on the verge of breaking through even now, any day. This I know for certain," Wei Zhao said with conviction.

In truth, Senior Brother Bitterhard's present strength was nothing more than the middle stage of Foundation Establishment, and his aptitude could only be called middling. Under normal circumstances, waiting for him to break through to the great perfection of Foundation Establishment would take at least ten years, perhaps several decades.

Still, there was nothing wrong with what Wei Zhao said. He could raise a man's strength anyway; if it truly came to it, it was merely a matter of a few hours.

"Then there is no problem." Yu Zhenyang nodded at once. "However, I must first sound out Pavilion Master Shangguan on this. After all, the appointment has to go through the Council of Elders—it is not something I alone can decide."

"Very well. My thanks to you, Pavilion Master," Wei Zhao said with a smile. He had also guessed that this was Shangguan Tianxia's intent, and he trusted that when Shangguan Tianxia heard the proposal had come from him, he would certainly not stand in the way.

"Yes. But in that case, you will have to pick someone to fill Ku Zhongle's former post as senior brother in charge of the newcomers," Yu Zhenyang went on. Normally he would never pay attention to so minor a position; by saying this now, his meaning was to hand the decision directly to Wei Zhao—he might as well do a good turn thoroughly.

"I think Xiao Che would do well. Let it be him," Wei Zhao said, seizing the opening. He had not mentioned Qiao Hongcai or Li Zhengming because Qiao Hongcai was impetuous by nature and unsuited to such a post, while Li Zhengming, on account of his enemies, was set on keeping a low profile and was even less suitable.

"Fine, then Xiao Che it is. Settled." Yu Zhenyang nodded. He had no idea who Xiao Che was; so long as the man belonged to Wei Zhao, that was enough.

"My thanks for your kindness, Pavilion Master," Wei Zhao said gratefully.

"Is there anything else?" Yu Zhenyang asked again.

"..." Wei Zhao was momentarily at a loss for words, thinking to himself that this Pavilion Master was indeed most attentive to him. Then Lu Bianren came to mind, and he said, "Pavilion Master, do you know where Senior Brother Lu Bianren has gone? He was also very kind to me before, but I have not seen him for a long while now."

"Lu Bianren?" Yu Zhenyang was briefly taken aback. He did recall a disciple of that rank, though he was not quite certain. "Him? He has most likely gone out on a mission. I have not paid him much attention. I will ask about it later and have someone inform you."

"Very well. I am deeply grateful for your trouble, Pavilion Master," Wei Zhao said with a nod.

"Is there anything else?" Yu Zhenyang asked on.