Ji Han's face calmly looks at him, "You continue to talk nonsense."
Zhao Jiangui not concerned regardless says, "I know, in your heart I..."
Ji Han is still quite composed, "I absolutely would not risk my life to save a sword."
Zhao Jiangui stares dumbfounded for a moment, he still hasn't waited for his spirit to come back, Ji Han seems extremely anxious to move away from the subject, suddenly saying, "Sometimes I also thought, if my parents were still around, they would or wouldn't also be unwilling to have me practice martial arts."
Zhao Jiangui can't help asking him, "What kind of people were your parents?"
Ji Han says, "I don't know, I only know they were also in the sect, and yifu was their best friend, the rest...yifu hasn't mentioned much to me at all."
Zhao Jiangui understands.
He thinks Ji Han's parents have probably already passed away, and their good friend took in their child. This is actually a very common story in Jianghu.
Ji Han says, "I've never heard people in Jianghu mention your parents."
If one became the number one swordsman, his parents also certainly will be somewhat famous along with him.
Zhao Jiangui says, "I don't know who they are. Someone left me at the entrance to the mountain, my shifu then returned with me."
Saying this, the two of them are also actually considered sufferers of the same situation.
Ji Han asks him, "Your shifu certainly treated you quite well."
Zhao Jiangui nods slightly, "He treated me like a biological father."
Ji Han doesn't speak.
Zhao Jiangui doesn't know at all where he spoke wrong, he is only able to nervously stare at Ji Han. Ji Han frowns slightly, suddenly continues to ask, "Do you have shixiongdi*?"
Zhao Jiangui says, "I have three shidimei.*"
Ji Han, "You're the da-shixiong?*"
Zhao Jiangui nods, "During the time I wandered out, er-shidi* was acting as a bailiff in the imperial police force, san-shimei* married into the medicinal Xian Gu,** nowadays in the sect there is only a young shidi still accompanying shifu."
Ji Han seems extremely interested in this, "I heard your relationships are very good."
"The few of us entered the sect at the same time, our ages are also similar, we were always playing well together when we were young." Zhao Jiangui says, "Only the young shidi came later, his age is a cycle younger than mine,*** these days shifu still coaxes him to be willing to...take his medicine."
He hasn't finished speaking, Zhao Jiangui already can't help but faintly turn up his lips.
This slight curve cannot count as a smile, but compared to the stiffly forced out "smile" of before, it's actually a lot more pleasing.
Ji Han doesn't know the cause is him looking back on past events in his sect and when he is extremely joyful, he also smiles himself like his young shidi the same in hating bitterness and not daring to take medicine.
He already can't speak out some of the reason for his mood.
Zhao Jiangui, "You seem very interested in my sect."
Ji Han says, "I don't have any shixiongdi, I was only momentarily curious, that's all."
Zhao Jiangui is dumbfounded, "That child...wasn't he about the same age as you?"
A child of about the same age, it's always very easy to become friends. Moreover, according to their relationship, it would be right they should be more like brothers.
Ji Han's expression already appears very bad looking, "From the age I was able to hold a sword, afterwards I stayed the whole day in the training ground. Also he didn't practice martial arts, I actually didn't have time to see him."
Zhao Jiangui already frowns, "When you aren't practicing the sword, you always have time to play a little."
Ji Han nevertheless plays it down as he says, "Yifu didn't like me to see him."
Zhao Jiangui already doesn't know what would be good to say once more.
So much so that he feels his own heart suddenly clutched into a wad by whatever thing, his subconscious mind even thinks, perhaps in his imagination the former sect leader treated Ji Han not very well at all.
Ji Han says, "I only remember in childhood when I was unwilling to train, yifu in order to coax me, so long as I progressed in swordsmanship, he would then send people down the mountain to buy sweets and come back."
Zhao Jiangui's subconscious then asks, "Pine nut candy?"
Ji Han replies, "At that time I was only six or seven years old, I most loved tanghulu,**** good to eat and good to look at, however as I got a big older, I understood myself to practice the sword, not how to eat candy. This trick only works on the young."
Zhao Jiangui in his heart silently notes it down.
Mn, Ji Han likes tanghulu.
—————
*It's in the notes, but as a reminder: shixiongdi is disciple brothers/siblings (disciples with the same master), da-shixiong would be the oldest disciple brother, shidi would be a younger disciple brother, er-shidi would mean second disciple younger brother, san-shimei would mean third disciple younger sister (but not just counting sisters, the numbers are applied to all), etc. Shidimei would mean younger disciple brothers and sisters (no older disciple siblings). And shifu is, of course, master.
**Immortal Valley, but as it's referred to a few times later on, I'm just going to go with pinyin as a name.
***This should mean his youngest shidi is twelve years younger than him.
****糖葫芦/tánghúlu is sugar-coated/candied haw on a stick
Translator's Note: I have so many feelings about Ji Han! I've cried over him. Sorry for the delay--again! Also, as a reminder, the rumor they spread at the beginning is that Zhao Jiangui murdered the top disciple, so...