Chapter 4845 — The Deaf Old Maid
The Blossom Guardian · Page 2 of 3
But the East Sea Divine Nun had only two personal disciples, Wang Xinyan and Huang Xiaotao. She normally doted on them as if she feared they would slip from her hands or melt in her mouth, and being girls whose beauty was apt to draw covetous eyes, she was naturally reluctant to let the two live outside on their own. Thus master and disciples had always lived together.
Before Wei Zhao could even trigger the defensive formation, the gate suddenly opened and out came a stern-faced old woman. "Young Hero Lin, is it? The two young ladies have been waiting for you a long while. Please follow me."
Wei Zhao was taken aback for a moment, then quickly nodded. "Yes—thank you for your trouble."
He did not know who this old woman was. Though she appeared dressed as the most ordinary of servants, her aura was utterly concealed and yet the pressure she brought to bear on Wei Zhao, faint and vague as it was, surpassed even that of the great experts of the Western Mountain he had encountered along the way. How could a mere servant possibly be a master of such caliber?
The old woman said nothing. After leading Wei Zhao through several turns, she brought him to a courtyard where glowstones of every hue paved the ground, setting off the already elegant night scene to still more exquisite effect. At the center stood a rustic pavilion, and there Wang Xinyan and Huang Xiaotao sat talking.
"Wei Zhao, you're finally here!" The two women's eyes lit up the moment they saw him. Here, unlike the crowded and prying daylight world outside, they no longer troubled themselves about maidenly reserve, and both flew into Wei Zhao's arms like fledgling doves.
One arm around Wang Xinyan, one around Huang Xiaotao—if outsiders could see the treatment Wei Zhao was enjoying, it would surely have driven every man under heaven green with envy. This was what it meant to be a winner in life, a dream made real.
"Heh, why do I get the feeling you two are both trending toward plumpness?" Wei Zhao teased, in excellent spirits. Though the two looked no different than before and were still slender and trim, the moment he held them in his arms he felt the difference at once—there was decidedly more flesh than before.
"What?!" Wang Xinyan and Huang Xiaotao flushed at the same moment and each gave Wei Zhao a playful swat, coquettishly scolding him. Whatever sort of girl she may be, weight is always one of the topics she cares about most.
Wei Zhao laughed heartily. He did not think for a moment that the two putting on a little weight was a bad thing—on the contrary, if they had grown thin the way Wang Xinyan had been when he first met her, then he would have had good reason to worry that something was wrong! A little more flesh was in fact rather nice: still pleasing to the eye, and more comfortable to hold.
"By the way, is it only you two and Senior East Sea who live here?" Wei Zhao asked instead. Apart from the old maid just now, he had not seen another soul the whole way in.
"That's right. Apart from us and our master, there is only Deaf Maid, who brought you in just now," Wang Xinyan said with a nod.
"Rong Maid?" Wei Zhao was startled and stared in stunned silence. "What is going on? Have I come to the wrong place? Since when did you two turn into Princess Pearl?"
Huang Xiaotao did not catch the reference, but Wang Xinyan could not help laughing. "Not the rong of easygoing—the long of deafness! Did you not notice just now that Deaf Maid cannot hear what others say?"
"Er—so it is." Wei Zhao pinched the bridge of his nose, speechless. Apart from that first sentence at the gate, the old woman had indeed paid him no further heed at all; he had taken her for a dour sort by nature, when in truth she was simply a deaf old maid...