Would You Like to Have a Drink

Chapter 18.1

In his previous life, Zong Luo didn’t know how many times he had been to Pei’s mansion. He could just as well find his way even with his eyes closed.

The attendant led the way with an umbrella, as Zong Luo vaguely looked into the courtyard through the white silk soaked in shadowless water.

As the residence of the Prime Minister of the dynasty, although Pei’s mansion was not big, it was also not very simple. What’s more, Pei Qianxue was a wonderful person and he himself designed the Prime Minister’s Mansion. To the nine winding corridors, lotus pond, small bridges above flowing waters, high towering eaves with a part of it sticking out like teeth, and bamboo forests. It was not as cold and dignified as the Great Yuan Palace, but rather as pleasing as a picture.

“Young Master, we’re here.”

While Zong Luo was still contemplating the letter sent from the Ghost Valley and the bad things in his previous life, the servant had already led him to the entrance of a corridor, put away his umbrella, and respectfully stood aside.

He’s really here.

In the past, he and Pei Qianxue often burned incense, tuned the Qin, drank tea and played chess here. It’s just that after the “cold war” started, they never did it again.

Zong Luo looked up at the Yulu, pushed the door open and entered.

The inside was very quiet, as if the sound of the rain outside was cut off. A purple incense burner was placed in the corner, and the pleasing cold incense fragrant hovered in the center, leisurely scattered throughout the room. There were not only half-played chess pieces on the table, but also a freshly brewed tea.

When the wind swept in, it just simply blew the fire on the stove a little bit. The inside was plainly devoid of the wind and rain blowing outside, and the room was very quiet and peaceful like being independent from the world outside.

The man in Tsing Yi sat upright in front of the table, his eyebrows were picturesque, like pine and bamboo.

His expression was still as indifferent as water, only when he caught sight of the three inch white silk covering the eyes of the white-clothed swordsman, did his usually calm face begin to fluctuate, and the fingertips tucked inside the cuffs trembled imperceptibly.

That day at the Baijia Banquet, because he was far away, he only had a glimpse. In addition, Pei Qianxue had always been cautious and good at concealing his true emotions, therefore even if Mount Tai collapsed before him, one wouldn’t find any expression on his face. However, it wasn’t until he hurriedly left the banquet and sent someone to investigate that he felt unbelievable inside.

Right. There is no such coincidence in this world.

However, before Pei Qianxue could immerse himself in exuberance that his best friend was likely not dead, the attendant told the news from Gu Ziyuan in detail.

A year ago, he was picked up by the Confucian leader who was seriously injured, and with a life merely hanging on a thread. He was finally rescued from the gate of hell, but after waking up, he became blind and lost his memory. 

He couldn’t remember anything, amnesia, blindness……each piece of information was really shocking.

Zong Luo cupped his hands promptly. “This common man greets Prime Minister Pei.”

“Jin…Young Master Gu doesn’t need to be too polite.”

Pei Qianxue quickly got up to avoid the ceremony.

His voice was cold, like a broken jade casting pearls.

“Young Master Gu, sit down, there is no need to be cautious. I just happened to see this gentleman’s elegant demeanor during the banquet, and I was greatly astonished. That’s why I invited you to have this conversation.”

“Prime Minister Pei doesn’t need to be modest towards this common man.”

Zong Luo lightly nodded, took a step forward, and groped for his way forward.

Pei Qianxue was startled, and subconsciously went forward to help him.

When he regained his senses, he realized that he was tightly clasping the other party’s slightly cold wrist.

As soon as he came to, he immediately smelt the fragrance of the medicine, making him bewildered.

“Sorry, I acted rudely.”

Even though Pei Qianxue said so, his hands did not loosen at all, and his cold and clear eyes were still looking at Zong Luo. After a long while, when the swordsman in white turned his head to look at him suspiciously, he let go of his hand as if being burned by fire. He closed his eyes tightly, did not dare to look at the white silk again and lowered his head in silence.

He hadn’t seen Zong Luo for a long time since the two of them had a drink together and bid farewell to each other two years ago.

On that watery moonlit night, they sat and drank wine.

The prince in white, a “Yuan Ting Yuezhi”, raised his eyes in a drunken haze, and his eyes seemed like morning stars.

(t/n Yuan Ting Yuezhi- a Chinese idiom , the pinyin is yuān tíng yuè zhì, which means that a person’s moral character is as deep as an abyss and as towering as a mountain.)

Pei Qianxue sat opposite him and was suddenly robbed of his wine cup when he was not paying attention.

“Ah Xue, drinking already cold wine is harmful to the body.”

Zong Luo smiled and used his internal force to warm the cold wine, and when he handed it to Pei Qianxue, the place where his fingertips touched was still hot, then he immediately downed it to his throat.

Pei Qianxue was a good drinker, but for the first time in his life, he felt drunk.

Who knows………maybe I won’t be able to see you again for the last time.

Pei Qianxue always remembered that night. He stayed on the stargazing platform and waited all night against the cold wind. Finally, blood-stained war horses rushed forward, along with the news of the Third Prince’s death.

But now, in front of him, was a young man with eyes covered in white silk, even such loose clothes could not conceal his emaciation, as he was seated upright in front of him. Even if he had lost his memory, he was still as calm as back then.

Those bleak memories that hadn’t been seen for a long time suddenly came back to life, but were filled with a heavy ailment, and appeared astonishingly light.

The proud son of heaven, how could he be reduced to this point?

It feels like a world apart.

In his dream, the person led a horse with a rope, and he was full of heroism. He would rather die than submit, and finally committed suicide after the battle in Hangu Pass.

Thunders accompanied the rain, blood stained his pale lips, which looked extremely gorgeous and astounding.

For more than a year, Pei Qianxue often repeated this dream.

It was obviously still the same face, but after a long time, it seemed that it had dug up those secret thoughts that had not been able to be expressed clearly, which caused some ripples.

And that sword, the Zhanlu sword that shouldn’t be in Zong Luo’s hand.

“Lord Pei?”

The familiar sound was very deafening.

Only then did Pei Qianxue realize that he unconsciously stared at the corner of the other’s lips for too long.

He, who had always been indifferent and scrupulous about etiquette, originally wanted to avoid apologizing, but he suddenly thought that the current Jin Yu obviously couldn’t see anything of what’s happening at the moment.

A little subtle thought began to sprout. He gently raised his hand, and was flustered for an unprecedented moment amidst the obvious difference in the other party’s expression, yet he still didn’t dare to brush off the strand of his hair, and only lowered his head to pour tea like a cover-up.

Just like his thoughts, the tea spilled out of the cold-cracked teacup.

“No need to use honorifics with me.”

Not in the past, not now, and not in the future.

Pei Qianxue said in a low voice, “The moment I saw Young Master Gu, I felt that we are predestined to be companions with each other, how I wish we could share life and death together.”

“If you can………just call me Ah Xue, okay?”

If this is just a beautiful dream, then he is willing to sleep forever.

****

Pitter-patter, pitter-patter..

The rain outside was still falling tirelessly, beating on the lotus leaves and plantains askew.

As the indoor incense was still hovering quietly.

“That being the case, I’m relieved.”

Different from Zong Chengsi’s implicit temptation, Pei Qianxue didn’t ask him why he lost his memory, but was more concerned about his situation in the past year, caring about his old friend who lost his memory, beyond courtesy.

Zong Luo’s thoughts gradually flew away.

At this point in his previous life, he and Pei Qianxue hadn’t reached the point where they turned against each other because of Yu Beizhou. In other words, they were still close friends at this current period.

In all fairness, except for the inexplicable cold war that followed, he and Pei Qianxue were very like-minded.

When Zong Luo returned to Great Yuan after finishing his studies in the Ghost Valley, because Yu Beizhou was younger than him, and he entered the school later than him, Zong Luo graduated a year earlier.

At that time, Zong Luo was in high spirits, this newborn calf was not afraid of tigers, and he was determined to confront Yu Beizhou. After returning to Great Yuan, he planned to follow his memory before transmigrating inside the book, try his best to win over a few male supporting characters, prepare to take advantage of his favorable position, and first empty out Yu Beizhou’s future family fortune.

It was a pity that the time was a little too early. Ye Linghan, in the Wei Country was still the Crown Prince that had everything going on perfectly, Gongsun You was still studying Martial Arts in the hermit family, and Zong Chengsi was not even old enough to leave the palace and had a mansion for himself.