Chapter 94 He Remembered Everything (Part 3)
The night was as cool as water, with thick clouds occasionally blocking the moonlight, and the world was quiet and desolate.
Lingxiao Courtyard was quieter than anywhere else, and the servants didn't even dare to walk loudly.
In the room, Pei Xingju sat at the table, flipping through files. He finished one and then moved on to the next, seemingly too busy to stop.
On the table not far away, there was a sumptuous meal for tonight, but the dishes and chopsticks on it were clean and the owner had not used a single bit.
The servant who was grinding ink moved his lips several times, wanting to persuade Pei Xingju to have his meal, but he held back.
He was afraid of displeasing his master.
The food on the table was brought by Miss Zhuang. An hour had passed and the food had gone cold but Pei Xingju hadn't eaten it yet.
But he didn't give the order to retreat, so the servant couldn't figure out what Pei Xingju meant at the moment.
From a distance, he saw someone staggering outside the courtyard carrying something. The servant hurriedly put down the ink stick and went out to help.
"Master Shen, slow down!"
Chen Yi was half drunk, and in a daze he came to Pei Xingju holding a jar of wine.
As soon as he entered the door, he shouted, "Yuzhi, come on! Let's have a few drinks!"
Hearing this, Pei Xingju knew that he was very drunk.
The servant was in a dilemma. Their master never drank alcohol, so of course he wouldn't drink with Lord Shen. Just as he was racking his brains over how to persuade this drunkard to go back, Pei Xingju came over.
"You go down." He waved his hand.
The servant hurriedly let go of Chen Yi and respectfully withdrew.
Pei Xingju looked at Shen Yi quietly: "How much did you drink?"
Chen Yi grinned: "Not much...just..."
He pointed with his finger: "Just one jar."
Pei Xingju was speechless.
"You don't believe me?" Chen Yi patted the wine jar in his arms. "I can drink quite well. Don't you remember? I've been a better drinker than you since we were little. When we were six, we stole my father's wine. I drank half a pot, and you only took two sips before your neck turned red."
Pei Xingju couldn't help but smile when he recalled his childhood.
He helped Shen Yi sit at the table and shook his long sleeves: "Come, I'll drink with you."
The servant at the door was surprised and looked at Guard Lu, silently asking whether they should step forward to stop him. Because they all knew that if Pei Xingju touched alcohol, his whole body would inevitably break out in a rash.
Guard Lu shook his head at him.
The master is in a bad mood, so let him drink if he wants.
Inside the room, Pei Xingju took the wine jar from Chen Yi and poured half a bowl into the bowl on the table for each person.
Seeing the neatly arranged food on the table, Shen Yi immediately understood: "Miss Zhuang made this for you?"
Pei Xingju nodded.
Chen Yi took a bite and spit it out: "It's cold and not tasty."
Pei Xingju handed the missing bowl of wine to him and said, "Drink it. You can drink whatever you want tonight. I will drink with you."
Chen Yi squinted his eyes at him and said, "You don't look any better, but I'm really upset. And why are you upset? Is it because Miss Zhuang got mad at you? Actually, you just need to comfort her. I don't think Miss Zhuang is unreasonable."
Pei Xingju said nothing, took a sip of wine, and frowned.
Chen Yi pointed at him and chuckled, "Look, you're still the same as when you were little. The way you drink is like a young boy visiting a brothel for the first time."
“…”
Shen Yi took a big gulp, then leaned back in his chair, looking up at the beam in a daze.
"It was better to be a child, carefree, without having to think about anything, without having to know so much, and without having to carry any burdens..."
He paused, and even though he was drunk, he knew what to say and what not to say.
"If possible, I really hope we can live in Anzhou forever, without having to come to a place like the capital where people are eaten without leaving any bones, and without having to... marry that arrogant and tyrannical Princess of Lu."
"Yuzhi, you don't know, I, Chen Yi, have lived for more than 20 years. I didn't know what it felt like to like a girl before, but recently I feel that this feeling is really good. I imagined that she liked me too. When the time is right, I will go to her house to propose marriage. I even thought of how to pester her and shamelessly coax my father-in-law and mother-in-law, but..."
He took another sip of wine sadly: "But suddenly everything is gone. I finally had a girl I loved in my life, and now it's gone just like that."
After listening to him quietly for a while, Pei Xingju raised his glass, clinked it with his, and took a sip of wine as well.
The strong liquor was so spicy that even my intestines hurt.
"You advised me before," he said, "to be patient for the sake of the emperor's plans. When Lu is destroyed and you propose a divorce, it won't be too late to marry the woman you like then."
"No, it's too late!" Shen Yi shook his head and murmured, "She saw it."
"Who saw it?"
Shen Yi paused, but did not respond. Instead, he continued to murmur, "If she sees this, she will never marry me again."
Although he had little contact with Jiang Baohe, he knew very well that Jiang Baohe was different from other women. She was proud and would never tolerate a man who had married another woman.
From the moment the two looked at each other on the field, Chen Yi knew that the girl he had just fallen in love with had already left him.
"Yuzhi," Chen Yi suddenly sat up: "Do you think it's too late for me to disobey the order now?"
Pei Xingju glanced at him.
After a moment, Chen Yi slowly laughed: "I'm just joking with you, how dare I disobey your order? Am I going to die? Even if I don't want to live, I still have to think about my family in Anzhou. My grandmother is still looking forward to me giving her a big fat great-grandson."
"Alas!" he sighed, "But her wish will be dashed. If I marry Princess Wujing, how can I give birth to a fat great-grandson? I don't like her and I will definitely not touch her."
Pei Xingju poured him half a bowl of wine: "I still remember when you first came to the capital, you were full of vigor and vitality, but after just a few years, you sighed and lamented. This is not like you, Chen Yi..."
"What's wrong?" Pei Xingju stopped and asked, "Why are you looking at me like that?"
Shen Yi suddenly sobered up as if he had seen a ghost.
He looked at Pei Xingju suspiciously and in shock: "What did you just say?"
"I said you're new to the capital..."
Pei Xingju also stopped and smiled helplessly.
"You actually remember a few years ago, do you..." Chen Yi asked, "Do you remember everything?"
"Yeah." Pei Xingju nodded.
"How much do you remember?"
"About 90%."
"When did you remember it?"
"Early last month."
Chen Yi thought carefully and suddenly understood: "Oh, that should be the time of the Queen Mother's birthday, right?"
He sat up suddenly and said angrily: "Pei Xingju! How dare you? You didn't tell me that you remembered it, and you pretended for so long. You really are..."
Chen Yi was so angry that he didn't know how to describe it. He simply looked at him with contempt: "I treated you as a brother, but you are so disloyal!"
After being angry for a while, he asked curiously, "Why are you pretending?"
"...No reason." After a pause, Pei Xingju forced an explanation: "I haven't fully recovered yet, so I didn't mention it to you."
Chen Yi was skeptical, and chuckled, putting down the wine bowl heavily: "Pour the wine!"
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