Chapter 15: Don't Provoke Him

  Guo Jia walked to the front of the door, lightly knocked twice, and soon a gap appeared in the door. Seeing this, Guo Jia raised an eyebrow at Guo Yuan, hinting "learn from this", then politely spoke up.

  "Sir, I apologize for the disturbance earlier. My brother was rude and I'm here to make amends on his behalf. We are students from Xiangyang heading to Luoyang to study, but unfortunately missed our lodging and happened to pass by your place. Would you be so kind as to allow us to stay overnight?"

  Plop!

  The door closed...

  For some reason, although it was already dark and nothing could be seen, Guo Jia always felt that a crow had flown over the sky.

  "Cock-a-doodle-doo!"

  "That's it, big brother, I'll come instead." Guo Yuan couldn't help but say.

  Guo Jia's eyes twitched, if he let Guo Yuan go at this time, wouldn't it be too humiliating? So he gritted his teeth and continued to knock on the door.

  "Old man, there might have been some misunderstanding earlier. The student is on his way to Luoyang for studies and just passed by here, he's absolutely not a bad person. Can... Old man, please don't scold anymore, the student has already apologized for my brother... Old man, please don't hit me... Old man, please calm down... Hey, old guy, try pushing me again?! Do you really think I'm afraid of you?! You're still releasing dogs... You're so annoying! Brother, let's get him! Tonight, big brother will treat you to dog meat!!!"

  Rustling and crackling!

  Vroom!

  An hour later,

  "Ah, old man, haha, how can we be so presumptuous? We're just passing acquaintances, and yet you're treating us to dog meat. Oh dear, your generosity is hard to refuse, but under such circumstances, we have no choice but to decline with gratitude!" Guo Jia warmly grasped the old man's hand, completely at ease as if they were old friends.

  Poor old man's house was almost demolished, and even more pitiful is the black dog that had accompanied him for many days, now it has been cooked.

  Fortunately, Guo Jia was a relatively humane person and did not harm the old man himself.

  Cough cough, wrong, wrong, this was said incorrectly. Has Guo Jia ever hit anyone? Never!

  On the other side, Yaya sat quietly with a look of wanting to laugh but not daring to; while Guo Yuan was on the other side, cooking dog meat and drooling, his ferocious appearance made Guo Jia somewhat unbearable.

  "Adopted son, what's going on with you? Have you forgotten your manners?" Guo Jia said suddenly.

  "Big brother, me?" Guo Yuan was at a loss for words again.

  "Look at that old man over there," said Guo Jia, "if it weren't for his kindness, would we have a place to stay tonight? If it weren't for his good intentions, would we have dog meat to eat? In today's world, everywhere you go, there are people who are like chickens and dogs, jumping all over the place. You never know when you might run into some bad people, so being cautious like that old man just was is absolutely necessary."

  As he spoke, Guo Jia slapped his thigh loudly, startling the old man beside him.

  "But are we bandits? If we take everything that comes our way and use it, what's the difference between us and bandits?! In my life, I, Guo Jia, hate two kinds of people the most: those who break the law and those who don't respect the elderly or care for the young! No matter how the world changes, when everyone is drunk, I remain sober; when everyone is muddled, I remain clear! I am Guo Jia——"

  One finger points to heaven: "Above, we must live up to heaven!"

  One finger points to the ground, "Down, it's worth getting down!"

  One pat on the chest, "I'm at peace with myself! I have a clear conscience!"

  Guo Yuan was already completely stunned at this time, and Ya Niang also lowered her head, with the corners of her mouth twitching.

  Kuo Chia took a deep breath and finally began his final summary,

  "So nowadays when people invite us to eat and stay with them, even if the old folks don't plan on taking any money from you, can't you at least say a word of thanks?!"

  As he spoke, Guo Jia called over Guo Yuan and Ming'er together.

  "Come on, come on, follow me and say it together: Ani gada!"

  "What's Aniga?" The others had no idea what it meant.

  "Yes, Ani Gadao." Guo Jia said affirmatively.

  "Oh, Ani Gadao." Even if they didn't understand, whatever Guo Jia said was law, and Guo Yuan and Ming'er followed suit, bowing to the old man.

  "Hurry, hurry, it's open! Bring it over quickly, it won't taste good if it gets cold." Guo Jia suddenly patted Guo Yuan on the back. "Come on, old man, let's have a taste together. Dog meat is very nourishing, you know. Hmm? You don't have good teeth? Ah, what a pity! Your selfless heart is truly comparable to that of the ancient sages! I'm ashamed, having followed Master for so long and not knowing there was such a great sage by my side. Indeed, as Confucius said: 'When three people walk together, one must be my teacher.' Come on, Ming Er, you should eat more too, you haven't eaten much before. Don't worry about it, if we can't finish it, we'll just leave it here and it will go bad anyway, considering old man's teeth aren't good. What? You said we could take the leftovers home? Ah, how embarrassing! Too enthusiastic, too enthusiastic, it's hard to refuse..."

  For a moment, the old man almost burst into tears. Please, don't torture me like this anymore, okay? There's no one else here, so who is Guo Jia trying to convince with his righteous words?

  If the old man were also from modern times, he would definitely say this sentence: "You have already raped my body, do you still want to rape my soul?!"

  At this time, however, the old man could grit his teeth and be certain that the young man in front of him would never be a mediocre person!!!

  Sycophant ministers in times of prosperity, powerful officials in times of chaos!

  Don't provoke, don't provoke...

  ······

  On the second day, Guo Jia got up under the service of Ming Er Xiao Ya (corrupted ah corrupted), walked outside, and only then discovered that the old man had already gotten up early and was practicing "Tai Chi" outside.

  "It's so early, indeed people get older and sleep less." Guo Jia said.

  The old man's mouth twitched and he stopped in his tracks, jokingly saying: With someone like Guo Jia under the same roof, could the old man possibly sleep soundly?!

  It wasn't until daytime that Guo Jia had a chance to carefully survey his surroundings.

  "I say, this place is not near the village in front and not close to the store behind. How can you, an old man, live here all alone? Even if it's a hermitage, shouldn't it be deep in the mountains? Why would it be by the side of the official road?" Guo Jia asked strangely.

  If this were Journey to the West, Guo Jia would definitely think that old man was a transformed monster, or perhaps a Bodhisattva.

  The old man replied after hearing Guo Jia's question,

  "This is just an old place for me to settle down, I only come here occasionally to stay for a short period of time, and not live here permanently."

  "Oh, so it's a suburban villa resort. You really know how to enjoy yourself, fresh and natural, far away from the hustle and bustle of the world." Guo Jia said, looking at it this way, it's indeed safe and convenient not far from the official road.

  "Villa resort?" The old man was perplexed, this young man always came up with some inexplicable terms, had he already become so out of touch with the younger generation?

  ;