Chapter 66 Gu Ye (ETL) Part 2
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Chapter 66 When enemies meet, their eyes turned red
At this moment, Old Master Yu and Elder Tang came to the hall together, and everyone stood up. Old Master Yu came over and saw Gu Ye at a glance. The old man took a deep breath, and the smile on his face was a little stiff.
Gu Ye quietly shifted a little behind Yu Ze. He kept looking at Old Master Yu’s expression nervously, feeling that the other party was not in a good mood. A thought suddenly popped up in his heart, would Old Master Yu be angry and point at his nose, and tell him loftily, “Laozi don’t want to eat at the same table with you, get out!”
When Yu Ze saw that the fearless Gu Ye getting scared by his father like this, he looked helpless. At the same time, Old Master Yu came directly to Gu Ye and asked in a good-tempered manner, “Can I sit here?”
“Ah? Yes, yes,” Gu Ye said awkwardly and added, “But this table is for the younger generation, it’s not appropriate for you to sit here.”
“It’s just a formality, no need to mind it so much.” Old Master Yu sat down directly next to Gu Ye and said with a smile, “You should sit down too. Everyone, sit down. There are no outsiders today, everyone should be happy to celebrate Old Tang’s birthday. Let’s forget about seniority and background, just be happy.”
After Old Master Yu said this, everyone sat down. Elder Tang said disdainfully at the side, “If people don’t know, they would think you are the master of this home. Why are you acting like the host?”
Old Master Yu asked back with a smile, “When you come to my house, don’t you treat it like your own home too? When have you ever been polite?”
Elder Tang was just joking, and the two smiled at each other. The atmosphere became lively all of a sudden, only Gu Ye was still stiff.
Old Master Yu asked Gu Ye in a good-tempered manner, “What do you like to eat? Come to my house some other day and I’ll have someone prepare your favorite dishes.”
Gu Ye turned his head to look at Yu Ze in confusion. Your dad is different from what I imagined, has your dad turned crazy from the sadness?
Yu Ze signaled with his eyes to say, stop making trouble, talk properly.
Gu Ye turned around and smiled stiffly, “I’m not picky about food, anything is fine.”
“How can that be? You must have some preferences, right?”
Gu Ye laughed dryly, “Then… let’s eat meat.”
“Okay, my chef makes good ‘Buddha Jumps Over the Wall’. You can come to my house to eat when you are free. I’ll ask him to make it in advance. By the way, which of my paintings does your father like? You can take whichever you want.”
Old Master Yu’s attitude shocked Gu Ye so much and he shook his head like a rattle, “No, no, you have already given me several items already.”
Old Master Yu grabbed Gu Ye’s hand and said with a smile, “It doesn’t matter, it’s not difficult for me to write the calligraphy anyway. Tell your father to come and sit with me together when you are free. I can write whatever he likes.”
Everyone present saw that and felt like Old Master Yu, who had been aloof all his life, was particularly weird today. His attitude towards Gu Ye… seems flattering?
Gu Ye looked at Yu Ze stiffly, his eyes asking for help. President Yu, is your father really normal? This is not scientific! He will have no grandchildren in the future, you know?!
Yu Ze drank water expressionlessly and did not respond.
And so Gu Ye thought about it to himself as he nervously picked up the teacup and drank the water. He drank more water when he was nervous, so the cup of water was quickly finished.
Old Master Yu turned to look at Yu Ze, “Why are you standing there? Fill it up.”
Hearing that, Gu Ye’s fingers trembled. Yu Ze poured him water and said, “Here.”
But Old Master Yu was dissatisfied, “Don’t be so fierce!”
Yu Ze: “…”
Gu Ye quickly defended Yu Ze and said, “He’s not fierce, he’s just like that.”
Old Yu continued glaring at Yu Ze when someone suddenly said, “Old Tang, your eldest disciple is here.”
The atmosphere instantly became cold, and the smile on Old Tang’s face, who was watching the excitement, faded away. He asked coldly, “Why is he here? Tell him that I’m not dead yet, so there’s no need to rush to the funeral.”
Jing Lianzhong was carrying a gift. As soon as he entered the door, he heard such a sentence, and his face showed a bit of hurt expression unnaturally. He apologized, “Master, don’t be angry, I’ll leave after giving the gift.”
After putting the gift down, Jing Lianzhong knelt on the ground in a serious manner. He kowtowed to Elder Tang before standing up and left. He was already over 40 years old, and there were already a few crow’s feet at the corners of his eyes. This kneeling made Elder Tang sigh with a complicated expression.
An old man next to Elder Tang advised, “Deep inside, you still can’t bear to treat him like this. Why not call him back and persuade him (to change) a few more times?”
Elder Tang said angrily, “Just let him go, I don’t want to see him.”
“After all, you raised him, and he was filial in the past. Can you really watch him persist in his wrongdoings? You don’t even give him a chance to change his ways?”
Elder Tang said coldly, “Tell him, if he still wants to recognize me as his master, he should give up the incoming election as the association’s president and come back to take care of me until the end of my life. That would be the best repayment to me for taking care of him for so many years.”
Receiving the instruction, Xie Cheng ran out after Jing Lianzhong. Gu Ye narrowed his eyes, stood up, and followed him out leisurely.
Seeing that his master was unhappy, Jiang Xu approached with a smile and whispered, “Master, I invited several Peking Opera teachers today. I will ask them to sing a piece for you on the spot later.”
Tang Lao’s expression eased and he smiled again, “Okay, this is good, I like it.”
…
Following behind Xie Cheng, Gu Ye saw the ugly expression on Jing Lianzhong’s face after hearing his master’s words. He stood on the steps at the door with his hands behind his back, smiling, “President Jing, let me give you a reading. You will not be the next president, whether you give up or not.”
Jing Lianzhong looked gloomy and coldly at Gu Ye. Gu Ye had just made trouble in the association, and the whole mystic society knew that their association did not follow the rules. The saying that ‘they help whoever gives more money regardless of right or wrong’ had spread, making them seem inhuman in the society. Now they met as enemies, and his eyes were red.
“Gu. Ye.!”
Jing Lianzhong gritted his teeth as he spat out the name, wishing he could chew Gu Ye to pieces, but he was a patient man after all. With a sneer on his lips, Jing Lianzhong said in a deep voice, “Goodbye.”
Gu Ye curled his lips, “Goodbye!”
After seeing Jing Lianzhong off, Xie Cheng said with a gloomy face, “My master hasn’t been as happy as today for a long time, and yet he came to spoil the fun. The association is already in disarray, and many people are dissatisfied with him. Today he came to see Master, in fact, was to ask for forgiveness, so that the people in the society will give him face for the sake of the master’s feelings.”
Gu Ye said lightly, “Since you understand it, how can the people present not understand it? It’s just that he is the eldest disciple of Master Tang, and was raised by Master Tang. The relationship of more than 40 years is no different from that of his own son. Master Tang is also a sentimental person, so the most miserable one is Master Tang.”
Xie Cheng pinched his forehead tiredly, and suddenly asked, “Gu Ye, how many years does my master have left to live?”
Gu Ye frowned, not expecting the carefree Xie Cheng could be so sensitive to notice. He said regretfully, “He will probably encounter a big hurdle during the Chinese New Year. If he survives, he can live for another 3 years. If he doesn’t, then…”
“Has my master known about it?”
“From his reaction, he should know.”
Xie Cheng nodded, put away his cynical attitude, and said solemnly, “Life and death are determined by fate. All I can do is to fulfill my filial piety.”
…
After the meal, Elder Tang and several old gentlemen asked several young people, “Do any of you want to be the president of the Xuanshu Association?”
Old Master Yu also asked Gu Ye, “Do you want to be the president?”
Gu Ye laughed, “Do you think I would like to take on that kind of responsibility? I’m so lazy.”
Hearing that, Old Master Yu immediately made the decision and declared, “We don’t want to be the president.”
Elder Tang’s mouth twitched. He had favored Gu Ye before because he was a strong-willed person. Someone would rather break than bend, young and easy to train. Before this, Old Master Yu also thought that Gu Ye was suitable and had always been on the same front as him. Now that Gu Ye said he didn’t want to, he immediately followed Gu Ye’s decision.
The other young people also shook their heads. Times like this, this burden is not easy to take. The upper echelons of the association have become profit-oriented, and the relationships are complicated. Even if they get promoted to be the president, it will be an empty shell/rank/position.
Elder Tang looked at Gu Ye again, “Little friend, do you really not want to try it?”
Gu Ye smiled, “No, I’m so frivolous, it’s not suitable.”
Elder Tang advised, “Just do it for the sake of justice. We old people here still have some connections. It’s not as difficult as you think.”
Gu Ye’s mouth curved slightly as he asked, “Elder Tang, actually I think that the association does not need to exist anymore. You are so old, why do you still bother? It’s better to take care of yourself in old age.”
When Gu Ye said this, many old people looked unhappy, but Old Master Yu stood on Gu Ye’s side. Everyone with a discerning eye could see that Old Yu doted on him more than his own son. Everyone felt uncomfortable, but they were all holding it in.
A young man spoke out as a reminder, “Gu Ye, you are young and may not know that this Xuanshu Association was founded by Elder Tang when they were young. If it is gone, Elder Tang’s hard work will be gone.”
Elder Tang sighed and said dejectedly, “Actually, Gu Ye is right. I am old and I always think of many things in the past. It is better to disband it.”
“Elder Tang!”
“Old Tang, don’t rush to draw conclusions. There is still a while before the election. Let’s discuss it again.”
Gu Ye suggested seriously, “If you really don’t want to disband it, but you feel a headache when you see it, why not just hollow it out? Train those young people well as they are the foundation for passing it down. Those old-fashioned old men should stay in the association to take care of their old age. As for those upper-level people who are greedy for money and can’t distinguish between right and wrong, they should be mentally prepared because they may have already violated the law.”
Everyone present was confused and didn’t understand what Gu Ye meant.
Gu Ye declared with a smile, “I am happy to make Xuanshu Association a mess, and then Xie Cheng will come to clean up the mess.”
Xie Cheng was stunned when his name was mentioned, “Me?”
Elder Tang also frowned, “Xie Cheng is not good, this kid doesn’t know anything about schemes.”
“The less scheming, the better. He is sincere so young people like to play/work with him. If you have no objection (about my plan), then how to cause trouble will be my business.”
Yu Ze, who had been silent, raised his eyes at this time and said lightly, “I will help him.”
When these words were said, the expressions of the people present became complicated. The ending of the Xuanshu Association was determined.
Gu Ye: The weather is cold, let the stupid association go down!
Raw word count: 6800 (whole chapter)
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