The young man's words reminded Madam Xiao.
"Master..."
Madam Xiao murmured under her breath.
"Huh?"
The young man rubbed his ear.
All that noise had made it hard for him to hear Madam Xiao.
"What did you say?"
"Are you... telling me to go find a master?"
The young man didn't feel all that surprised by what Madam Xiao had said.
People from the older generation still tended to believe in so-called masters.
But where could you find a real master nowadays?
Of course, he didn't know whether there had ever been any real masters.
He only knew that nowadays, "master" was practically synonymous with "con artist."
"Wait here."
After leaving him with those words, Madam Xiao turned and strode away with brisk determination.
"..."
The young man closed his open mouth.
Had she suddenly thought of something?
He felt a little hopeful, but told himself not to expect anything.
He raised a hand to his ear.
"Ugh..."
He let out a heavy sigh.
"Can't you take a break?"
"...Aren't you tired?"
"But listening to you is exhausting."
"This is practically mental torture. It's a form of cruel punishment."
"...Are you really trying to tell me something?"
"Could you please say it in a language I can understand?"
"I..."
Madam Xiao hurried into the courtyard behind them.
Without hesitation, she headed straight for the white plum tree.
Sure enough, after only a few steps, she spotted Xiao Xiao playing chess beneath it.
"Xiao Xiao."
Before she even reached him, Madam Xiao called out.
She quickened her pace.
"Mom?"
Xiao Xiao looked up.
He could tell from her tone that something was out of the ordinary.
"Did something happen?"
"I need your help with something."
Madam Xiao got straight to the point.
She briefly explained the young man's