Page 786 - Enders_Game_Full_Book

Wang-mu did not mean her words to sound ironic; the idea of being servant to a nonhuman entity intrigued her. But Master Han reacted as if he were trying to smooth over an offense.
"No," he said. "You shouldn't be anyone's servant. You have acted bravely and worthily."
"And yet you called me back to fulfill my contract with you."
Master Han bowed his head. "I called you back because you are the only one who knows the truth. If you go, then I'm alone in this house."
Wang-mu almost said: How can you be alone, when your daughter is here? And until the last few days, it wouldn't have been a cruel thing to say, because Master Han and Mistress Qing-jao were friends as close as a father and daughter could ever be. But now, the barrier between them was insuperable. Qing-jao lived in a world where she was a triumphant servant of the gods, trying to be patient with the temporary madness of her father. Master Han lived in a world where his daughter and all of his society were slaves to an oppressive Congress, and only he knew the truth. How could they even speak to each other across a gulf so wide and deep?
"I'll stay," said Wang-mu. "However I can serve you, I will."
"We'll serve each other," said Master Han. "My daughter promised to teach you. I'll continue that."
Wang-mu touched her forehead to the floor. "I am unworthy of such kindness."
"No," said Master Han. "We both know the truth now. The gods don't speak to me. Your face should never touch the floor before me."
"We have to live in this world," said Wang-mu. "I will treat you as an honored man among the godspoken, because that is what all the world would expect of me. And you must treat me as a servant, for the same reason."
Master Han's face twisted bitterly. "The world also expects that when a man of my age takes a young girl from his daughter's service into his own, he is using her for venery. Shall we act out all the world's expectations?"
"It is not in your nature to take advantage of your power in that way," said Wang-mu.
"Nor is it in my nature to receive your humiliation. Before I learned the truth about my affliction, I accepted other people's obeisance because I believed it was really being offered to the gods, and not to me."
"That is as true as it ever was. Those who believe you are godspoken are offering their obeisance to the gods, while those who are dishonest do it to flatter you. "
"But you are not dishonest. Nor do you believe the gods speak to me."