Bajie perked up at those words.
"Your master agreed?"
Jade Flute shook his head. "Of course not. Master was wholly devoted to pursuing the Dao then. How could he care about romance?"
He paused there.
"Besides, he personally awakened both Pipa and me, and we became his disciples. Master was a stickler for propriety. He always saw us as his disciples, so how could he possibly agree?"
Jade Flute lowered his head and looked at the teacup before him.
"Pipa knew all that herself."
Bajie asked, "Then she didn't give up?"
"If only she had."
Jade Flute gave a little smile.
"Every time Master refused her, she came back again."
"Sometimes Master grew so annoyed by her pestering that his words became rather harsh. She would be hurt, too, and stay away for a few days."
"But before long, she would come back."
Bajie clicked his tongue as he listened. "Quite the lovestruck soul."
Jade Flute smiled as he recalled the past. "Once she set her mind on something, no amount of persuasion helped."
"At first, Master still tried to reason with her."
"He said he had yet to attain the Great Dao and had no interest in romance."
"He also said she had only recently undergone Transformation and had met too few people to tell attachment from love."
"Master even urged her to go out and see the world, to meet more people. Once she had seen enough, perhaps she would discover that what she thought was love wasn't anything of the sort."
At that, A-Hu couldn't help asking, "Then what happened?"
Jade Flute smiled. "She really went."
Bajie blinked. "She actually listened?"
"She listened to everything Master said, but only ever took in half of it."
"Master told her to go out and see the world, so she