Hearing the terrible news, Xu Feng grunted, then felt his reaction was too flat and asked another question: "Didn't the imperial court do anything?"
Master scoffed. "Who do you expect to risk his life for the imperial court?
Old Ma, or those old men on the city wall who barely have enough to eat or wear?
Seeing someone and calling out a warning is already doing right by the officials at the County Yamen.
Those willing to call out a warning died years ago. The fact that a few are still willing to do it is a blessing those officials should be grateful for."
Xu Feng changed the subject.
He crouched and looked at the three Knife Coins left on the ground.
"Master, have you seen Knife Coins like these before?"
"No," Master said. "But they should be good things. Take them!"
Xu Feng was startled. "For me? Master, you don't want them?"
He wasn't being needlessly talkative. He was genuinely surprised.
He looked up at Master.
Xu Feng had intended to suggest splitting them between them.
Granted, saying that would have been rather bold.
He had been prepared to risk losing a great deal of Master's goodwill, mainly because these things were genuinely useful. Xu Feng was willing to take that risk. He had also considered that, although they currently seemed to have a warm master-disciple relationship,
its foundation remained a master-disciple system built on one person's heavy dependence on the other.
That was the root of it.
Such a relationship naturally gave them unequal standing when it came to property. In other words, Master had every right to decide what happened to his disciple's possessions.
That was the harsh reality. It existed even beneath all the affection between them. Yet people had feelings, and even harsh realities could