Song Daren led Junior Sister and the new disciple toward the bamboo grove behind the mountain, explaining the sect rules and precepts along the way.
By dinnertime, dusk had already fallen.
The disciples had gathered in the dining hall. Sixth Senior Brother Du Bishu, who was in charge of the meals, brought out dish after dish. Most were vegetarian, with very little meat. Even the few meat dishes had been prepared for the new disciple with Tian Buyi's tacit approval. The disciples took their seats along the right side of the long table, with Song Daren at the head and Zhang Xiaofan humbly at the very end. At the head of the table and across from it stood one large chair and three smaller ones. The three smaller chairs were evidently for Tian Buyi's family, while the extra chair must have been for the Little Junior Brother he had yet to meet.
Du Bishu looked quite young. He had a thin, pointed face and large, triangular eyes, and he seemed shifty and restless, but very clever. After sitting down, he looked at Zhang Xiaofan and smiled. "Little Junior Brother, I'm your Sixth Senior Brother, Du Bishu."
"Sixth Senior Brother!" Zhang Xiaofan greeted him respectfully.
Du Bishu nodded with a smile, then pointed toward the dining hall's entrance. "Little Junior Brother, in a moment, Master, Shiniang, and Junior Sister will come in through there. How about we make a bet?"
Zhang Xiaofan froze. The others at the table all turned to look, grinning.
Fifth Senior Brother Lu Daxin, seated above Du Bishu, laughed. "Sixth, has your gambling itch flared up again?"
Beside him, He Dazhi, with his lean, sharp-featured face, chuckled. "He's gone so long without winning that now he's trying to swindle a child?"
"Even when he swindles children, I've never seen him beat Little Junior Brother!" Second Senior Brother Wu Dayi joked.
"Go on, go on!" Du Bishu waved them away, ignoring the others. Smiling broadly, he said to Zhang Xiaofan, "Little Junior Brother, guess which of the three—Master, Shiniang, or Junior Sister—will step through this door first. You've just joined us, so you can guess first. Don't say your senior brother's picking on you."
From farther down the table, Second Senior Brother Wu Dayi called out, "Little Junior Brother, if you're making a bet, ask him what happens if he loses and what happens if he wins!"
Du Bishu snorted. "Are you worried I'll welch? I, Du Bishu, have made my way through the world with my excellent reputation as a fair gambler. Seventh Junior Brother, if you guess right, I'll chop bamboo for you for ten days. If you lose, you'll wash dishes for me for ten days. How's that?"
Everyone burst into laughter again. Song Daren chided him with a laugh, "Have some dignity."
Seeing his senior brothers' kind smiles and friendly manner, and how none of them treated him like an outsider, Zhang Xiaofan felt a warmth spread through his heart. "All right."
Du Bishu slapped his thigh, instantly brimming with energy. "Little Junior Brother, then tell us: which one of Master, Shiniang, and Junior Sister will come in first?"
Everyone's eyes settled on Zhang Xiaofan. He thought it over. The Azure Cloud Sect placed the greatest importance on respecting one's master, so surely Master Tian Buyi would enter first. He said, "I guess Master will come in first."
Everyone roared with laughter. He Dazhi looked up thoughtfully. "Could it be that Master's coming in first today?!"
Du Bishu was beside himself with glee. "Little Junior Brother, let me tell you: every time, Junior Sister is the first to come rushing in. Ha ha! You'll be washing my dishes in a moment."
Zhang Xiaofan scratched his head and couldn't help laughing too. He nodded. "Yes, Sixth Senior Brother."
Third Senior Brother Zheng Dali, short and burly, laughed. "Sixth, aren't you ashamed of yourself?"
Du Bishu rolled his eyes. "Third Senior Brother, what are you talking about? I didn't force him. A bet's a bet, right, Little Junior Brother?"
Zhang Xiaofan nodded.
Just then, Song Daren said, "Master's here."
Everyone straightened up and stood, facing the doorway to greet their elders. A moment later, Tian Buyi's short, stout figure appeared in the doorway. To everyone's surprise, there was no one behind him!
They all gaped. Du Bishu couldn't help asking first, "Master, where are Shiniang and Junior Sister?"
Tian Buyi glanced at them and said calmly, "Your Shiniang took Junior Sister to Small Bamboo Peak." In truth, he had asked Su Ru to go to Small Bamboo Peak and bring his youngest disciple back.
Everyone turned to look at Sixth Senior Brother with strange expressions.
After dinner, Song Daren took Zhang Xiaofan by the hand. "Little Junior Brother, I'll show you to your room."
They left the dining hall. Night had fallen completely, and a full moon was slowly rising.
After walking for a while, they returned to the corridor where the disciples lived. Song Daren led him to the last room on the right. "Little Junior Brother, the room you woke up in this morning is mine. The other junior brothers live in order along this side. On the left, there are seven rooms; apart from the first one, all the others are empty." He paused and looked at Zhang Xiaofan. "Are you afraid of living alone?"
Zhang Xiaofan shook his head.
Song Daren smiled. "That's the spirit. How can a real man be afraid of being alone? Come on, let's go in."
With that, he led Zhang Xiaofan inside.
"Think he'll sneak off to knock on Master's door in the middle of the night, just like Little Junior Brother?" After clearing away the dishes, Sixth Senior Brother stood with the others, watching Eldest Senior Brother lead Seventh Junior Brother into the last room.
"You think everyone's like Little Junior Brother?"
"Exactly! You can't judge our Little Junior Brother by ordinary standards."
"To put it plainly, he's a little monster."
"Nothing that happens to him could surprise me!" The group chattered and laughed among themselves.
"You all..." As everyone chimed in, Sixth Senior Brother sounded uncertain. "Are you talking bad about Little Junior Brother?"
"How could we!" The other four looked at him and answered in unison.
"We can't spoil him enough!" Fifth Senior Brother quickly added.
The next morning, Zhang Xiaofan was woken by a burst of noise and laughter. He got dressed, rubbing his eyes as he opened the door. All his senior brothers were gathered together, looking toward the first room on the left and laughing merrily.
"Good morning, Senior Brothers!" Zhang Xiaofan walked over and greeted them politely.
"Xiaofan, did the noise wake you?" Second Senior Brother Wu Dayi asked with a laugh.
"What's going on?" Zhang Xiaofan asked curiously.
"Oh! The Little Junior Brother's back. Junior Sister's trying to wake him up."
"When did Little Junior Brother get back?"
"Just now! Senior Sister Wen Min from Small Bamboo Peak came back with Shiniang and the others."
"Senior Sister Wen Min?" Zhang Xiaofan asked in confusion. He hadn't seen anyone else unfamiliar, or even Eldest Senior Brother.
At his question, the senior brothers exchanged knowing, mischievous grins.
"Senior Sister Wen Min has someone all to herself." Sixth Senior Brother's odd little chuckle instantly woke Xiaofan up completely, banishing all traces of sleep.
"Woof! Woof!" At the sound, a yellow dog nearly half a person's height walked slowly out of the room. Then Tian Linger appeared, struggling to drag a quilt across the threshold.
"Senior Brothers! Come help me!" Tian Linger called out loudly when she spotted them gathered nearby.
The senior brothers walked over. "Junior Sister, aren't you being a bit harsh?" Only when they got closer did they see the Little Junior Brother curled up on the quilt, sleeping soundly.
"This Little Fatty slept all night yesterday, and on the way back this morning, he kept sleeping in my mother's arms. He still hasn't woken up!" Tian Linger complained about Luo Yunji's "crimes."
"Could Little Junior Brother be exhausted?" Fourth Senior Brother He Dazhi guessed.
"How tired could he be? At Small Bamboo Peak, all he did was eat and sleep! I had no idea the senior sisters could make so many delicious things. I only got to eat so much good food because of him. Before, when I visited, the senior sisters never went out of their way to make anything for me!" Tian Linger said, feeling a little aggrieved.
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