Chapter 319: A Fight After Drinking [Seeking Monthly Tickets]

"Mother, Father, don't worry, your daughter is doing well now... Have you seen my brother and the other two down there? How are Grandpa and Grandma doing? Grandma's legs aren't good, she can't stand the cold, so you have to take good care of her every day... Grandpa has a quick temper, so please be patient with him... Your daughter is unfilial, I'm afraid it will be a long time before I can go and reunite with you two..."

Deep in the mountains, the wild grass that had grown rampant on the grave mounds had been carefully cleared away. Several plates of offerings for the ancestors were placed before the graves, along with scriptures and bamboo slips that had been burned to ashes. A woman in plain clothes, with two swords at her waist, bowed her head, seemingly speaking to the decaying tombstone.

"...If you encounter your daughter's master down there, please give her my regards. Just say that your daughter misses her, and ask if her martial arts have improved. My daughter, you've really made something of yourself now. If one day you develop your martial spirit..."

He talked on and on for more than an hour before finally stopping.

As she leisurely returned to Fugu, the moment she stepped through the city gate, she was enveloped in a warm, welcoming atmosphere—a stark contrast between the two seasons inside and outside the city. Bai Su was slightly taken aback, just as the opening ceremony officially began, the dazzling fireworks under the sky captivating her.

What is this?

Just then, she heard someone calling her name.

They looked in the direction of the sound.

The sound came from above.

"Why is Mr. Gu up here?"

Seeing Gu Chi clinging to the eaves, his legs trembling beneath his clothes, she took a deep breath and leaped onto the roof with a light, effortless motion. Upon closer inspection, she wasn't mistaken; it really was Gu Chi.

Gu Chi's complexion was worse than usual at this moment.

"Naturally, it's for the celebration..." Gu Chi looked completely exhausted, as if he had been working overtime for three days and three nights straight. Seeing that Bai Su had noticed him, he breathed a sigh of relief, slumped onto the roof, and said with a wry smile, "I don't have the strength to go down now..."

If Bai Su hadn't noticed him, and he had accidentally lost his footing and tumbled off the roof, injury would have been secondary; the most important thing was the shame he would have suffered. Gu Chi, seeing that Bai Su had come from outside the city, asked her what she had been doing, saying it was a pity she had missed this grand ceremony.

Bai Su said, "We will pay respects to our ancestors."

Gu Chi then remembered that Bai Su was from He Yin.

Bai Su then asked, "Sir, do you need my help?"

This suggestion was exactly what Gu Chi wanted to hear.

"Yes, yes." Gu Chi was about to extend his hand when he caught a glimpse of the ongoing fireworks display and withdrew his fingers. He suggested, "The view from here is excellent, overlooking the main venue. Why don't we sit down and enjoy the view?"

"Okay, that's fine."

Bai Su sat steadily on the eaves.

Gu Chi's health was already poor, and now his energy had been completely drained. His hands, which were supporting him on the eaves, were trembling. Bai Su couldn't bear to see him like this and helped him up. He didn't refuse; instead, he used Bai Su's strength to sit up and catch his breath.

“Mr. Gu’s health needs proper care. It’s alright…” Bai Su paused, then gently reminded Gu Chi, “Don’t climb such dangerous places. It’s not good if you get hurt.”

Gu Chi smiled wryly and waved his hand: "This problem can't be cured."

Bai Su asked curiously, "How could it not be cured? Could it be a congenital weakness? I've heard that the scholar Wenxin..."

"no."

Gu Chi interrupted her speculation.

"It's not a congenital weakness." It might be hard to believe, but before acquiring the Way of the Scholar, Gu Chi was in excellent health, proficient in horsemanship, archery, and swordsmanship. He dared to venture into deep mountains and forests with just a sword. If he encountered bandits, he would definitely not be the one who suffered.

Seeing that he didn't want to talk more, Bai Su didn't ask any more questions.

Until the fireworks display on the sky completely ended.

The two looked down at the thousands of lights below.

Their thoughts are completely different.

Bai Su asked him, "Mr. Gu, won't you go downstairs and have some fun?"

Tourists thronged the area, and lanterns illuminated the night. The overwhelming atmosphere beckoned one to join in. Even doing nothing but simply following the crowd brought a strange sense of joy and satisfaction. Gu Chi, however, showed no intention of joining in.

"It's very noisy."

He complained verbally, but there was no impatience on his face; in fact, the corners of his mouth even curled up in a barely perceptible arc under the lamplight.

Gu Chi hates crowded places the most.

Every time he found himself in such an environment, he was forced to confront the darkest side of everyone's hearts, which took a toll on him. He was mentally exhausted and physically drained. But the voices he heard today were mostly passionate and sincere.

Surrounded by laughter and chatter, I felt none of the usual fatigue.

He even started to enjoy it.

Bai Su: "..."

Gu Chi didn't want to go down to play, but she really wanted to.

Just as he was thinking of making up an excuse to leave, Gu Chi changed his mind: "However—today is an exception."

During the brief respite of resting for a cup of tea, he managed to regain some of his composure, and his hands and feet finally stopped trembling so much that he could climb down the ladder by himself. He wanted to ask Bai Su to help him move a ladder, but the heroine was extremely generous. She grabbed his hand, hoisted him onto her shoulder, and after a moment of weightlessness, his feet touched solid ground.

Gu Chi: "..."

Bai Su: "I am, after all, a martial artist."

Although she doesn't possess the strength of a martial arts master and relies on agility, carrying someone off a rooftop is no problem for her. If Gu Chi needs it, she can even carry him and scale walls.

Gu Chi also said, "I am, after all, a grown man! Although I am thin, my weight is something else..."

Bai Su: "..."

To be honest, I can't really tell.

Gu Chi's weight was much lighter than expected.

Beneath the scholar's robes lay a rather thin body, not quite skin and bones, but close enough; so thin it hurt her shoulders. If it weren't for Gu Chi's exceptionally bright eyes, his face alone would have made him look like a consumptive patient on the verge of death. Who wouldn't suspect he was seriously ill and nearing the end of his life?

Gu Chi: "..."

Bai Su saw that Gu Chi's legs were still wobbling, and with so many tourists around, she was worried that he might get bumped into and trampled to death, so she didn't want to leave directly. She noticed that Gu Chi had bought a lot of pastries, a jar of wine, a set of writing brush and ink, and some trinkets that young ladies would like.

She offered to help carry the things, since Gu Chi looked too frail. That jar of wine was quite heavy. She then casually asked, "Why haven't we seen you with your wife and daughters out for a stroll?"

Gu Chi smiled and said, "Because I have no wife or daughters."

Bai Su: "..."

"Buy it for worship."

Gu Chi hadn't thought about the past for a long time, but today, looking at the thousands of lights and hearing Bai Su return from worshiping outside the city, he inexplicably felt an urge to confide in his family.

He wanted to tell his grandfather and father about the people he had met and the things he had experienced over the years—although he knew that given their straightforward nature, they would likely be furious and berate him for what he had done, Gu Chi was prepared to "deal with the crisis." Hey, those pens, ink, and trinkets were bribes for his younger brother and two younger sisters. Having accepted his favor, he had to help him keep those two in check.

He chuckled softly as he imagined the noisy scene, which drew Bai Su's attention.

People in this world...

It seems that none of them are complete.

They may seem glamorous, but they all have untold hardships.

The sound of phoenix flutes stirs, the jade pot's light turns, and fish and dragons dance all night.

The grand opening ceremony lasted until midnight before the tourists gradually dispersed, but they still couldn't stop thinking about everything they had seen and heard that night. The next day was the official competition day, and the notice boards had already posted the competition events.

Gu Chi returned to his residence, but did not sleep a wink all night.

He burned the gifts he had bought one by one.

Watching them burn to ashes in the basin.

He poured more wine and drank it with the air.

He kept muttering to himself.

"...Father, I rarely drink alcohol anymore, but I'm making an exception today because I'm happy. Please don't scold me..." Gu Chi actually has a good tolerance for alcohol and enjoys drinking on weekdays, but he always drinks very little.

"...How is Mother's health?"

Gu Chi drank the whole jar and got a little tipsy.

She murmured incessantly to the bright moon in the sky.

"...My younger brother and sister are still young, and while they are mischievous, they are better than my son, less infuriating... I wonder when you will be reincarnated? If not yet, take my advice and reincarnate a few years later. When the world is at peace, you can come back to this world with peace of mind... so that you won't be bullied in places I don't know about. In your next life, remember to temper your temper, be more cunning and shrewd, and don't trust those self-important so-called 'nobles,' or—"

Fueled by alcohol, Gu Chi had a bold idea.

"How about becoming the son of a son?"

As soon as he finished speaking, a chuckle came from next door. Enraged, Gu Chi hurled the empty bowl over the low wall and smashed it into the neighbor's yard. The sound of the bowl shattering filled the air as Gu Chi said, "Qi Yuanliang, eavesdropping on private conversations late at night is not the behavior of a gentleman."

Qi Shan jumped onto the wall and landed, looking at Gu Chi, who was wearing a cloak, sitting on the veranda with his knees drawn up, burning something and drinking.

"Drinking alone is no fun, why don't you count me in?"

Gu Chi glanced at him sideways.

Their faces clearly showed their unwelcomeness.

Why is Qi Shan interfering when he's talking to his family?

Qi Shan ignored him, shook the two jars of wine she was carrying, opened the seals, and filled her own wine bowl. Gu Chi, seeing that there was free wine, snorted, picked up a bowl, and drank it all in a few gulps, tacitly agreeing that Qi Shan could stay.

Qi Shan smiled and said, "We are both lonely people, both wanderers in this world. I'll offer you a bowl."

The two clinked their bowls together.

Watching ordinary families strolling together in the streets and alleys, they felt a mix of emotions. They were gratified that the event had achieved its intended effect, adding a touch of sweetness to their hard lives, but when they looked around, they felt a profound sense of desolation and loneliness.

On such a good day, Qi Shan also talked with her family and "Qi Shan" for a while. The most mentioned person was her master, Shen Tang. Although she was a woman and still at the age where cats and dogs disliked her, she would do things that made Qi Shan's blood pressure soar. Compared with the masters of the past, she had a lot of shortcomings. However, her greatest advantage made Qi Shan want to follow her wholeheartedly.

even--

If one day the two truly drifted apart, Qi Shan wanted to end his own life before the scholar's path could be initiated. He thought that if he was no longer trusted by her, it must be because he had gone astray and lost his original intentions. This was Qi Shan's true feeling at that moment.

Gu Chi chuckled: "A lonely man..."

It's not just the two of them.

The two of them took turns drinking from one bowl to another, and if that wasn't enough, they had other supplies. Before long, six or seven empty wine jars had rolled around their feet.

"How about we grab a drink with Wu Hui too?"

Chu Yao: "..."

It was the middle of the night, and he didn't want to take in two drunkards.

But I really don't feel comfortable letting these two seemingly sober but actually half-drunk drunkards out—ordinary drunkards causing trouble while drunk might at most disturb the peace, but these two literary scholars causing trouble while drunk would be a disaster.

"Wu Hui! Let's drink!"

"I won't drink."

Qi Shan: "Aren't you all alone too?"

Gu Chi: "A drink can wash away a thousand sorrows!"

Chu Yao calmly graded the assignments of two students and Yu Zi, the auditing student. He had three kids to worry about; he was hardly a lone wolf. These two simply had too little to do and thought too much. If they had more things to do, they wouldn't be so easily depressed.

"No obscurity!"

"Chu Wuhui~~~"

Seeing that Chu Yao ignored them, they lost interest.

"Forget it, let's go have a drink with our lord."

"Good idea, our lord is also all alone..."

Chu Yao: "..."

These two are already drunk, but if we add a lord who can be knocked out with just a drop of alcohol, wouldn't the three of them tear Fugu apart?

He decisively took action to capture the two, but the instincts of a scholar are ingrained in his bones, and he immediately counterattacked when he sensed danger.

Chu Yao: "..."

These two drunkards aren't very agile, are they?

Shen Tang received the message the next day.

I saw a Kang Shi with dark circles under his eyes first thing in the morning.

She casually asked other people.

Kang Shi's expression was as if he had hemorrhoids and constipation for ten days.

Shen Tang realized something was wrong.

"What happened?"

Kang Shi stammered, "Last night..."

Shen Tang listened patiently to what followed.

"Last night? And then what?"

“Last night, Yuanliang and Wangchao got drunk and went to Wuhui Courtyard to cause a ruckus, which angered Wuhui. They started fighting there... Now they've just sobered up and it's inconvenient for them to see anyone.”

Shen Tang: "???"

She recognized every word Kang Shi spoke.

Why is it that when we put them together, I don't understand at all?

These two who went to someone else's house, got drunk and caused a scene, and even teamed up to fight the host... are they really the Qi Yuanliang and Gu Wangchao she knows?

She didn't understand and was deeply shocked.

Shen Tang snapped out of her daze and hurriedly asked, "Where's Wu Hui? Is Wu Hui injured? You know, with his old arms and legs, how could he possibly beat two young men like Yuan Liang and Wang Chao? Did he suffer a big loss?"

Kang Shi: "..."

Chu Wuhui was indeed the oldest among the Wenxin literati, but in a few days, the new year would arrive, and he would only be thirty-five. As long as they didn't die a violent death or suffer from other illnesses, the Wenxin literati could live a relatively long life, far from being described as "old and frail."

How come he's described as old and decrepit in the lord's words?

It's no wonder Shen Tang thinks that way.

Chu Yao always had a head of gray hair. She had seen Chu Yao at his oldest and most disheveled. Even though he had now regained his youthful appearance, Shen Tang always subconsciously regarded him as an old man who had rejuvenated... If he got into a fight, especially a two-on-one fight, he would definitely be at a disadvantage.

Pushing Kang Shi aside, the impatient man said, "I'll go see for myself."

Kang Shi opened his mouth, but then stopped himself from speaking.

He can speak—

Are the other two the ones who suffer a loss?

Chu Yao was sober, but the other two were drunkards.

What's the point of a two-on-one situation?

Weren't we still getting beaten and suppressed?

His face was bruised and swollen; he was almost too ashamed to show his face.

Upon seeing the three wounded and learning the whole story, Shen Tang was speechless.

Good heavens, even clearing out the local bullies in Fugu couldn't harm these three literary scholars, but after a few jars of wine, they went on a drunken rampage and started fighting amongst themselves, resulting in all three of them being severely injured? Shen Tang suppressed his bulging veins.

"Quit drinking! All three of you, quit drinking!"

No alcohol, no emo!

Chu·Innocent·Yao: "..."

What does this have to do with him?

The common people of Fugu who came to watch the game today noticed that the gentlemen in charge of the government office had bruises on their faces, as if they had been beaten.

"impossible!"

"Perhaps it's a popular makeup style somewhere."

"The hobbies of important people are beyond the understanding of us commoners."

(End of this chapter)