114 Hangover Soup

◎The cold blade reflected a hint of cold light under the dim light!◎

New Year’s Eve.

Xu Ruolan and Zhang Jinfei arrived in Shengjing early in the morning, met with Song Jinyi, and strolled around Shengjing City together for half a day.

"You're finally here!" When everyone saw them come in, they greeted them with smiles.

Four square tables were put together to form a large table. Huo Changqing sat in the main seat facing the door, and the guest seat opposite was reserved for Song Jinyi. Zhang Yao, Li He, and Ruer sat on Song Jinyi's left, and Xu Ruolan, Zhang Jinfei, Wang Zhi and his little granddaughter Cui'er, and Chen Ming sat on the right.

Everyone was talking and laughing, and before they knew it, it was late at night. The sound of firecrackers from far and near outside the window gradually became more frequent, crackling one after another. Cui'er was so scared that tears fell. Wang Zhi covered her ears and coaxed her to be afraid.

Ru'er stood up and poured a glass of wine for everyone. "The firecrackers are going off, it's time to drink Tusu wine."

Zhang Yao gulped it down in one gulp. "Hmm, the taste of this Tusu wine...is not as good as the osmanthus wine brewed by Master." As she spoke, she pulled Song Jinyi's sleeve and shook it gently, saying coquettishly, "Master, it's New Year's Day today. How about opening a jar of wine?"

Hearing this, Xu Ruolan glanced over and said, "Oh? Ah Jin can also make wine? I've never heard you mention it before. I'd like to try it too."

"That's right!" Li He usually doesn't like drinking, but she likes to join in the fun and agrees with everyone.

Song Jinyi was surrounded by people asking for wine, her eyes full of helpless yet doting smiles. She gently poked Zhang Yao's forehead and said, "Girl, it's freezing and snowy outside, and the road is frozen. Aren't you afraid that the person delivering the wine will slip and fall?"

She wanted to use this excuse to get away with it, but unexpectedly, Chen Ming, who had been sitting in the corner eating his food, immediately raised his head when he heard the word "send wine" and said without thinking, "Don't worry, boss! I'll go to the restaurant and get the wine for you!"

He looked so honest and simple that Song Jinyi was at a loss whether to laugh or cry.

In the end, I couldn't bear to refuse his kindness, so I had to remind him: "Well, thank you for your hard work. You carry the lantern, be careful on the road, walk slowly, and pay attention to the road."

"Hey! Don't worry, boss!" After receiving the order, Chen Ming immediately put down his chopsticks, wiped his mouth, stood up and was about to leave.

When he reached the door, he remembered something and turned around and asked embarrassedly, "Boss, there are some delicious dishes left in the kitchen. Can I bring some to my brother? He's home alone..."

Song Jinyi nodded, her tone gentle: "Of course."

"Thank you, boss!" Chen Ming responded gratefully and quickly went to the kitchen.

Zhang Jinfei looked at Chen Ming's departing back and asked Wang Zhi beside him in a low voice, somewhat puzzled, "Father-in-law, Chen Tian is his brother? Why doesn't he come to the banquet together?"

Before Wang Zhi could reply, Li He, who was standing opposite him, quickly took over the conversation: "He's a nasty guy. No one wants him here. It's just as well he didn't come!"

…

Chen Ming brought back the food from the theater, wrapped it in oil paper, and kept it warm in his arms. He pushed open the door of the small house in the backyard. Only a dim oil lamp was lit in the room.

Chen Tianzheng lowered his head and ate steamed buns with two cold dishes.

Chen Ming placed the warm oil-paper package in his hand on the table. Chen Tian's eyes lit up. He put down the steamed bun and couldn't wait to open the oil-paper package - inside were a few pieces of rich-colored braised pork, a few slices of shiny roast duck, and two snow-white meat buns.

"Eat quickly, it's still hot." Chen Ming felt inexplicably sad when he saw his brother like this.

He pulled over another stool and sat down, watching Chen Tian grab a piece of fat and lean braised pork and stuff it into his mouth, chewing it contentedly. He couldn't help but ask, "Why don't you come with me to the theater to eat? It's more lively over there, and the food is better..."

Chen Tian slowed down his chewing.

He swallowed the meat in his mouth and pulled the corner of his mouth, "Going to the theater? Ha, I'm not as popular as my brother."

"How could that be?" Chen Ming subconsciously retorted, "The shopkeepers are all very nice people! They wouldn't dislike you."

"Good guy?" Chen Tian snorted coldly, changing the subject and asking, "By the way, why did you suddenly come back?"

"The shopkeeper's sister in Yunzhou wanted to drink the shopkeeper's newly brewed longan and osmanthus wine, and asked me to come back and get it."

Upon hearing this, Chen Tian yelled in dissatisfaction, "How much money did they give you? They treated you like a servant? They ordered you around!"

"Don't say that. I took the initiative to do this job."

"Humph, you're just a fool. Well, now that you're back here, just take a rest. I'll take care of it for you."

"No, no! A round trip is no big deal..."

"Brother, why should you worry about me? No matter how bad I am," he deliberately emphasized the word "bastard" as if mocking himself, "I dare not touch the shopkeeper's wine! That's the shopkeeper's treasure!"

He patted his chest and assured, "Besides, it's just delivering wine, such a small matter. Don't you trust me enough? Do you think I can't even do this? You look down on your brother too much, don't you?"

These words put Chen Ming in a difficult position. If he disagreed, it would mean he didn't trust his brother. If he agreed...

Before he could figure it out, Chen Tian grabbed the key and shook the rope, "Brother, you go to sleep first, I'll be back soon."

Chen Tian opened the door of the wine cellar and walked down the cold stone steps in the moonlight.

Although the wine jar is sealed, the aroma of wine that has penetrated into the bone marrow cannot be restrained and takes root and sprouts in this enclosed space.

Chen Tian greedily took a deep breath of the intoxicating aroma. He took off the water bag from his waist. This was specially prepared by Song Jinyi for the deliverymen, fearing that they would be thirsty on the road.

He removed the oil-paper and red cloth seal from the wine jar, and the amber-colored wine shimmered alluringly under the dim light. Without further hesitation, he carefully tilted the jar and poured the precious wine into the water bag.

"Hmph, I worked so hard to come all this way in this cold weather, so I think it's not too much to ask for some hard work fee?"

******

Inside the theater, it was warm and cozy. Zhang Yao twirled her wine glass and asked, "Why hasn't Chen Ming come yet?" As she was speaking, the heavy door curtain was lifted, and a chill rushed in, but was quickly swallowed up by the warmth in the room.

Chen Tian stood at the door awkwardly, holding the jar of longan and osmanthus wine.

"The wine is here." Chen Tian's voice was filled with a hint of barely perceptible nervousness as he placed the wine jar on the table.

He caught a glimpse of Li He across from him and looked up secretly.

Li He was born with a bright and charming appearance. She didn't drink much on weekdays. But after drinking two cups of Tu Su wine, two blushes appeared on her fair cheeks, as if she had applied the finest rouge, and the blush extended all the way to her small earlobes.

Her eyes were wandering, with a hint of innocent confusion, and as they moved, they were full of brilliance. She leaned against Ru'er, saying something to her, and they both giggled.

Just as he was fascinated by the scene, he heard someone ask him, "Why are you here? Where is Chen Tian?" Song Jinyi was talking to Xu Ruolan. When she saw it was Chen Tian, ​​she asked with some surprise.

Chen Tian quickly collected his thoughts and said, "My elder brother has been running around all day and is a little tired. He is resting. He asked me to bring him over." After he said that, he did not leave immediately. His eyes were wandering, as if he was expecting something.

The atmosphere seemed to pause subtly.

Huo Changqing was sipping wine with his head down, Wang Zhi was coaxing his granddaughter, and the others were chatting with each other. No one asked him to sit down.

After a while, Song Jinyi saw that he had not left yet, and said softly: "Thank you for your trip. It's getting late, go back and rest early."

Chen Tian understood her implication—there is no place for you here.

He opened his mouth, but in the end no word came out. He lifted the door curtain and plunged into the cold New Year's Eve night outside.

The moment the door curtain fell, it blocked out the warmth and laughter inside. The biting cold wind scraped against Chen Tian's face like a knife.

"Damn it! Why!" Chen Tian looked back at the warm light in the window lattice, "Why are you guys enjoying the delicacies and fine wines in there while we brothers are out there running around in the wind and rain?"

The more he thought about it, the angrier he became, and the more unfair it seemed!

"Isn't it just that you look down on me? Isn't it that you think I'm unworthy?" He gritted his teeth, his face grim. He suddenly reached for the bulging water bag at his waist and drank it all in one gulp.

Although the alcohol content of the stolen osmanthus wine was not too high, it had a long-lasting aftertaste, which was strong enough for someone like him who had a low alcohol tolerance.

"Cough, cough, cough!" The mixture of spiciness and sweetness made him cough violently, and tears and snot came out. But he didn't care and continued to drink desperately until there was not a drop left in the stolen wine in the water bag!

"Uh..." Chen Ming burped loudly, a strong smell of alcohol escaping his body. He shook the empty water bag and threw it on the ground.

The anger just now seemed to be replaced by a dizzy heat, but the unwillingness and resentment in my heart burned even more intensely.

"No, I can't just leave like this. I need to have a good talk with Shopkeeper Song."

His steps were unsteady, and he stumbled to the back door of the theater, then stumbled into the kitchen. Where was everyone? Where had everyone gone? He slumped down beside the cold stove.

He mumbled incoherently, "You...just wait...I...I must...have a good talk with you...Why...do you look down on me..."

******

"You go to the kitchen first. I'll go to the small warehouse in the back to see if I can find some dried tangerine peel."

"Okay." Li He responded while pushing open the kitchen door. After three rounds of drinks, everyone was drunk, except Huo Changqing who didn't drink, and Li He who only drank two glasses of wine. Zhang Yao, who usually had a good alcohol tolerance, was barely sober.

Seeing that everyone was very drunk, the two of them went to the kitchen to prepare some sobering soup.

Li He smelled a faint aroma of wine from the kitchen door. Li He shook his head, feeling a little heavy, but didn't take it seriously.

There were only two small oil lamps lit in the kitchen, and the light was dim. She groped to find the cabinet where dried fruits and medicinal herbs were stored, took out some hawthorn slices, and prepared to wash them for making soup.

She scooped a ladle of clean water into the basin, immersed the bright red hawthorn slices in the water, and lowered her head to scrub them attentively.

The rustling sound of water was particularly clear in the quiet kitchen.

The deepest shadow in the corner of the stove shook. Chen Tian heard the sound of water, blinked, and looked towards the place where the sound came from. Who was it?

Li He heard a rustling sound behind her and thought it was Zhang Yao coming. Without even raising her head, she muttered in a drunken tone, "Have you found the tangerine peel? Put it there." She shook off the water droplets on her hands.

However, she waited for a long time without any response from Zhang Yao. A heavy breathing sound approached her. Li He's heart skipped a beat and she finally realized something was wrong. She turned her head suddenly -

Under the dim light, Chen Tian stood staggeringly, his eyes cloudy and fanatical, staring at her straight like a beast eyeing its prey!

"Chen Tian?" Li He stared at him. "Why are you here?!" She smelled the alcohol again, coming from Chen Tian. "Did you steal the longan and osmanthus wine brewed by Sister Jinyi?!"

Li He raised his voice, "How dare you steal the wine? I'm going to tell Sister Jinyi!"

"Don't go!" Chen Tian suddenly stretched out his hand and grabbed Li He's arm tightly!

"Let me go!" Li He struggled hard. "You dare not take responsibility for what you did?! Humph, I'm going to tell Sister Jinyi!"

However, Li He's strength seemed insignificant in Chen Tian's hands. Chen Tian looked at the face in front of him, which seemed more vivid and gorgeous because of anger, and a crazy idea came to his mind.

"You can't go anywhere!" Chen Tian grinned, and instead of letting go, he stretched out his other hand and roughly touched Li He's waist, trying to pull her belt!

"Ah--!" Li He let out a scream of extreme terror! Only then did she realize the danger she was in.

Li He used all his strength to kick, struggle and bite frantically!

But it was no use——

Her outer shirt was roughly torn in half, revealing the thin undergarment underneath. The cold air was like tiny shards of glass, piercing her skin coldly.

Her whole body was shaking violently, tears were pouring out, and broken sobs came from her throat.

"Squeak——" The kitchen door was pushed open suddenly!

Zhang Yao was holding a small bag of freshly found dried tangerine peels in her hand. "I found some dried tangerine peels...Ah!!" The sight before her terrified her to death! The dried tangerine peels in her hand scatter all over the floor with a crash!

"Stop!" Zhang Yao screamed and rushed forward without thinking, using all her strength to pull Chen Tian's arm, trying to pull him away from Li He!

"Get out of here! You little bitch!" Chen Tian swung his hand back in anger, pushing Zhang Yao back and causing her to stagger backward, crashing heavily into the cupboard behind her, causing the dishes to clink everywhere!

Zhang Yao only felt severe pain in her back and saw stars.

When she came to her senses, she saw that something irreversible was about to happen. Her panicked gaze suddenly stopped at the stove - there, a knife lay quietly.

It was the knife she usually used to chop bones. The cold blade reflected a bit of cold light under the dim light!

"You beast! Let her go—!"

“Puff!”

A dull and tearing sound suddenly rang out!

Immediately afterwards, Chen Tian let out a heart-wrenching, shrill howl like a pig being slaughtered!

“Ahhhh!!! My hand! My arm!!!”

Warm liquid with a strong smell of rust suddenly spurted out, a few drops even splashing onto Zhang Yao's pale face.

【Author’s words】

Ask for a collection [eat melon]