"He's my brother!"
Liu Chuang bent down and picked up a flat stone. With a flick of his wrist, it shot out with a whistle, skipping across the lake again and again before quietly sinking at its center.
"People in the martial world have unfathomable hearts. Yet you call someone your brother so readily?"
Meng Xinghe's smile deepened as he baited his hook again and cast his line. "How do you know he's worth befriending?"
"Master, you underestimate your disciple's judgment." Liu Chuang slapped his chest and proudly swept the stray hair from his forehead. "You should know that my eye for friends is every bit as good as your eye for disciples!"
His grin suddenly vanished, replaced by a rare seriousness. "That day, my pockets were empty. I only wanted to sell some junk for drinking money. Everyone else either mocked me or coldly turned me away. He alone not only refrained from mocking me, but gave me every last piece of silver in his pocket."
Light shone in Liu Chuang's eyes as he continued, "We'd never met before, but at that moment, I knew he was someone worth befriending. Oh, right-his name is He An."
Meng Xinghe laughed despite himself. He lifted his rod lightly, and a small mottled crucian carp sprang free of the hook and splashed back into the water.
"Sect Master..."
Lao Tingxuan, who had remained silent until now, suddenly spoke. Stroking his beard, he mused, "Ling Wenyue has mentioned this young man several times in his letters, always with considerable praise. This He An... truly is a rare talent among the younger generation."
"See, Master? Even Senior Brother Ling says so. I can't possibly be wrong!" Liu Chuang slapped his thigh triumphantly, as though he were the one being praised.
"Hmm..." Meng Xinghe stroked