Seeing this, Shopkeeper Wang sighed again.
While on patrol today, Lou Yunchun saw an old woman selling plum blossoms on the street. He gave the old woman one or two taels of silver, bought all the plum blossoms, and happily brought them to Xu Jiang.
But I didn't expect to disrupt the lively atmosphere in the room.
He was stunned for only a moment, then went into the house and handed the flowers to Xu Jiang.
Xu Jiang came back to her senses and saw that he looked okay, so she felt relieved. She smiled and led him to sit down, then asked Lin Hongchu to find a jar to put the flowers in.
Hu Xu greeted him first: "Long time no see, Mr. Lou."
Lou Yunchun nodded and replied, "Nice to meet you."
Shopkeeper Wang glanced at the two of them, and seeing that there was no sign of a fight, he felt relieved and said with a smile, "You came here when the wine was almost finished. You deserve to be punished." As he was about to pour him some wine, he shook the jug and remembered that the wine had already been drunk by the three of them.
"It's okay, I'll just drink hers." There was still half a cup left in Xu Jiang's cup. He picked it up, toasted the three of them, and drank it all in one gulp.
The three people at the table were silent for a moment, each with a different expression. Lou Yunchun finished his drink but acted as if nothing had happened. He then tasted the food on the table with Xu Jiang's chopsticks and then asked Zeng, "Did you make this?"
Zeng Zhui asked curiously, "How do you know?"
"It's not the taste she made."
The three of them were silent again.
Shopkeeper Wang coughed and jokingly said, "Why don't you guess it's me or Brother Zhuchun?"
"I've read her notes, which document the Shu region's method of smoking meat. Zeng Zhui is the only one here who is from Shuzhou."
Zeng Zhui thought expressionlessly: Don’t ask, don’t say anything, he doesn’t really want to hear it, let this bachelor go.
Hu Xu was silent for a moment, then asked with a smile, "But is it the 'Southern Journey Notes'?"
Lou Yunchun looked at him instantly, and their eyes met. One was cunning but had a sharp edge, while the other was sharp.
Shopkeeper Wang and Zeng Zhui were caught in the middle, feeling like they were sitting on pins and needles.
Fortunately, Xu Jiang came back, and the two of them immediately looked away, acting as if nothing had happened.
Xu Jiang placed the bouquet of plum blossoms she had shared nearby, sniffing their fragrance with delight. Seeing the joy at the table, she said with a smile, "It's a rare occasion to have so much fun today. How about a few more drinks?"
Shopkeeper Wang thought Hu Xu would decline, but he agreed readily, "Okay."
Lou Yunchun glanced at him and nodded, "Okay."
Zeng Zhui watched the two of them and felt that the atmosphere was strange again. Seeing that they were subtly arguing with each other, he suddenly felt mischievous. Hearing that Lou Yunchun had also entered the officialdom through the imperial examination and had a high ranking, he wanted to set the two of them up against each other to see who would come out on top.
Then he started to make a fuss, saying, "Just drinking is boring. Why not learn from the gentlemen and write essays and poems to help you get drunk?"
Shopkeeper Wang waved his hands repeatedly: "I can't come here."
Zeng Zhui assigned him a task: "You sit in on the class and help keep count of the drinks. Don't cheat."
"That's fine."
Zeng Zhui then asked Lou Yunchun and Hu Xu, "What do you two think?"
Lou Yunchun nodded in agreement.
Hu Xu also said, "Why not?"
Xu Jiang, enjoying the fun, clapped his hands and said, "Then I'll be the banker."
Zeng Zhui rubbed his hands in anticipation, thinking to himself: "When the snipe and the clam fight, we'll see how the fisherman will profit!"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
