Even though that was what Zhang Dan Shui said, he was actually feeling reluctant. He came here in order to be able to catch a glimpse of Nan Hua and possibly asked for more guidance. But since it would be impossible for him to talk so openly with the young lady, he only gave some pleasantries to Old Master Nan.
After talking a bit, he excused himself.
Old Master Nan rubbed his beard as he let out a low chuckle. "To think that there'll be a day I'll see something like this."
"Father?" Nan Si Qiao asked in confusion. She thought that it was just a normal meeting with the official who wanted to see him, but was there something she didn't know?
Of course, Old Master Nan would not explain to his daughter about this matter.
"It's nothing. Where are the brats?"
"Ah Kuai and Hua'er are playing Go again." Nan Si Qiao's tone was helpless when she said this. It seemed that the two of them had grown an addiction to play Go ever since they departed. These two always stayed to play Go and refused to do any other activities.
"As for Ah Luo and Ah Si, they are playing at the back courtyard."
Playing…
Sparring would be a better term.
Looking at the sound of metal sword clashing from time to time, Old Master Nan could guess that the two of them were busy fighting. They were all trying to make sure that they would not lose against each other by continuing to fight.
Old Master Nan chose not to care that much. Since they arrived at the evening, they only have a short time to rest before it was time for dinner. Afterwards, he berated the boys to rest.
"You shouldn't burden yourself too much too, Father," Nan Si Qiao reminded.
Old Master Nan snorted. "I'm fine. Hua'er come with me."
"Wait, I want to come with Hua'er!"
"Go and rest!"
"But…" Nan Luo was about to protest more when he saw Old Master Nan raised his walking stick. He quickly shut his mouth and dashed away without any hesitation. There was no way he wanted to get spanked for no reason when they were outside like this.
Feng Ao Si and Feng Ao Kuai also tactfully went back when they saw that their grandfather was not in the mood to entertain their antics.
"Hou Liang, guard the entrance."
"Yes, Master."
Nan Hua looked at Old Master Nan and tilted her head. "Grandfather, is there anything wrong?"
"That brat Shui comes to look for you. How much time do you need to stay in this city?" Old Master Nan asked softly. His gaze turned tender as he raised his hand and caressed the young girl's head. If only it was possible, he wanted to be the one to take care of this matter, but he knew that his little granddaughter had an idea on her own.
One that might be different from him.
His granddaughter didn't hide this matter from him, so the little tricks Zhang Dan Shui used was clear in his eyes. But of course, he couldn't possibly let that young man met Nan Hua openly. That would be the same as putting Nan Hua's reputation on the stake.
He would never allow that.
His granddaughter was so precious!
Nan Hua tilted her head. "One day is enough. Grandfather, I want to sneak out."
Sneak out….
Old Master Nan's lips twitched when he heard what Nan Hua said. If she wanted to sneak out, it was very easy for her to do so without alarming him. Since she had purposely told him this time, did she not want him to worry about her. He sighed.
"Are you sure you'll be fine to sneak out alone?"
"I'm not weak, Grandfather." Nan Hua looked at her grandfather. She had shown most of her skills that could be accepted by her grandfather during her training with Hou Lin. Those familiar skills only required an extremely short time for her to master once more.
The only problem was her lack of strength because of her small body. Her stamina also hadn't increased as much as she wanted to, but she was being patient because she knew that training took time. There was no such thing called instant result. However, those were not a big problem as long as she was careful enough to not charge head on.
Old Master Nan was still worried, but he noticed the gaze on Nan Hua's eyes. He sighed once more. "Alright, be careful."
"Yes, Grandfather."
Looking at the young girl's back, Old Master Nan wanted to speak more but in the end, he chose not to. His granddaughter had her own ideas and as her elder and grandfather, he decided that it would be best to let her be. If she ever needed him, he would be ready to help.
He simply waved his hand. "Follow her."
Swish!
Nan Hua returned to the room that was assigned for her to change into a set of black dress. It wouldn't do her good if she chose to wear eye catching dress when she was going out.
"Miss, are you going out?" Xiao Yun noticed Nan Hua was not sleeping as she asked from outside.
"Guard the door."
"Yes, Miss."
Xiao Yun waited for more noise but heard nothing. She knew that Nan Hua must have left and even if she was inside, Xiao Yun wouldn't be able to detect her miss in the slightest bit. It was already hard enough for her to sense Nan Hua when the latter was changing clothes just now.
'How long would it take before I can be more useful for Miss?' Xiao Yun lamented in her mind but said nothing.
Swish!
In the darkness, Nan Hua paused for a moment and looked at the shadow who was following her from behind. Her expression was cold. "Don't interfere and just watch."
"Yes, Miss," Hou Lin replied respectfully.
After saying that, Nan Hua departed into the darkness. When they first came to Heng Xing City, she had taken the chance to take a look around through the window. The city might be big but the condition was extremely poor. It was not much different compared to the other villages nearby.
Nan Hua paid no heed to it and only traveled without making any noise towards one direction. She stopped in front of a clothing shop.
Tep!
As she walked in, she could see two other people who looked like they were buying clothes. The cloth in this store looked fairly better than what Nan Hua saw most people were wearing. It quickly told her that this store would not earn much revenue here but each person who buy would grant them a lot of money. A rather high end shop if one should say.
The shopkeeper saw Nan Hua and smiled brightly when he saw her. He could clearly see that she was a noble family. Even though she was wearing black dress and also a veil that covered her face, an experienced person would be able to tell that they were made of expensive material.
"Miss, is there anything I could help?"
"I'm looking for the night fall."