Ich verkaufe meine Kleidung und kaufe etwas Wein, den ich mit dir trinken kann

Kapitel 32

[Volume Two: Parting Chapter Twelve - Not Encountering the Auspicious Wine]

"My two brothers, let me be your host today. Let the three of us drink to our hearts' content and not leave until we're completely drunk, shall we?" I put my arm around Yue with my left hand and held Yan with my right, feeling full of ambition and boundless pride.

"I wonder who it is that was being chased for debts this morning, and now they're treating everyone to a meal?" Yan Zongwang looked at me with a mocking expression.

"Hey, are you making fun of me, bro? Of course it's my treat, you're paying!" I glanced at him nonchalantly. "With you, my big spender, right here, what's there to be afraid of?"

"Pay the bill? What does that mean?" Brother Yue is really eager to learn.

Oops! I let it slip. I stuck out my tongue. "That's a dialect from my hometown. It means 'pay the bill.'"

"But, third brother, you seem to have forgotten something." Brother Yan looked at me with a smile. "Don't you want the gift I gave you anymore?"

"What gift? I didn't receive one." I looked at him with a puzzled expression.

"Who was it that considered meeting Mr. Ye their greatest wish in life?" Brother Yan tapped me on the head in an annoyed tone. "Forgot so quickly? It seems it wasn't anything very important. Was I just being nosy?"

"Oh right, I completely forgot about him." I stuck out my tongue sheepishly.

"You've not only forgotten him, you've also forgotten that I arranged to meet you at Mingyue Tower this evening, haven't you?" Brother Yan seemed quite angry, his handsome face stern, but he really wasn't scary at all, haha!

"Oh yeah. Did you come looking for me because you've been waiting for me for so long? No wonder you came at such a convenient time!" I chuckled and scratched the back of my head. "But, since the three of us brothers finally got together today, you should be able to receive your gift tomorrow, right?"

"You!" Brother Yan gave me a helpless look. "You're the one I want, but now you're the one I want to push away. I went to great lengths to arrange today's meeting for you as quickly as possible, and you're acting all high and mighty."

"Hehe, I know my elder brother is the best to me! Besides, you're so capable that even Young Master Zhao Jiu was willing to condescend to see you. A mere Mr. Ye couldn't possibly be out of his depth, right? So, you can see him whenever you want, right?" — At a time like this, what better way than to flatter him?

"That's not necessarily true. Young Master Zhao is an official with very obvious hobbies, so he's relatively easy to deal with. Master Ye, on the other hand, is a江湖人 (jianghu person, a person from the martial arts world) with an extremely eccentric temperament, so he's not so easy to handle." Brother Yan, however, wasn't buying my flattery—was he deliberately trying to make things difficult for me?

"If it weren't difficult, you wouldn't need to get involved, Young Master Yan." I smiled and flattered him, pushing him forward. "Alright, big brother, stop putting on airs. I know you can handle it. Let's go, let's go!"

I'm not worried about not seeing Mr. Ye. Even if my eldest brother isn't around, there's always Huaiyuan. Hehe, I'll go have some fun first. Anyway, right now I'm only thinking about how to rewrite my second brother's fate, so I'm not in a hurry to go back. —Who told fate to play tricks on me? Putting me in such a backward time and space, how can I not make a mess of it and repay God's good intentions? Right?!

“Third brother is truly a man of principle. Eldest brother, I came to Jiangning this time on military business and am only passing through. I must set off for Taiyuan tomorrow to report back. It is really not advisable for me to stay any longer. Why don’t you grant my request?” Second brother Yue said with a smile on my behalf.

"Is my second brother currently serving under General Liu of the Pingding Army in Hedong Road?" Brother Yan's network of connections is truly boundless; he even knows everything about military affairs in the court. Brother Yue only mentioned returning to Taiyuan, and he immediately knew whose jurisdiction it was. Impressive! — I couldn't help but give him a thumbs up.

"Yes, it's a pity that the scoundrel only knows how to oppress the people and prey on the villagers. I... sigh!" Brother Yue was filled with indignation, but hesitated to speak, showing that he had a lot on his mind.

“Well, I’ve heard that General Liu is narrow-minded, suspicious by nature, and extremely ruthless. With your personality, Second Brother, you probably won’t have a very pleasant time working under him.” Brother Yan looked at Third Brother Yue with deep sympathy. “Since you’ve chosen the wrong person, Second Brother, it would be best to change course and find a wise ruler.”

"Yes, brother, you have quite a few friends in the court, why don't you recommend a good place for your second brother?" I was completely confused by their previous conversation and couldn't join the discussion. However, I did understand the phrase "find a wise ruler," and I immediately set my sights on Brother Yan—he had such a vast network of connections; wouldn't it be a waste not to make use of it?!

"Little guy, do you think your little schemes can escape my eyes? I know, next time I have the chance, I'll definitely help my second brother find a good job, okay?" Brother Yan lightly tapped my head, half-jokingly and half-seriously agreeing to my request.

"Hehe, my eldest brother is so good to me. This way, my second brother can become a general sooner!" I immediately tried to please him by shaking his hand—it sounded a bit like I was being coquettish, didn't it?

"Thank you for your kindness, elder brother and third brother. However, although I, Yue Fei, am not a hero, I have devoted my life's learning to the country, the people, and even my life, sacrificing my life for them. Only then can I be considered upright and worthy of respect. How can I rely on the blessings of others to enjoy their success?! This is absolutely unacceptable!" The second brother Yue's face turned solemn, and his words were impassioned, which made the elder brother Yan look at him with new respect and show an approving smile.

"Tch! So inflexible. No wonder he died at the hands of that treacherous Qin executioner. Second Brother Yue, it seems I have no choice but to help you. Just wait, I will definitely rescue you from that villain's clutches—" I nodded repeatedly on the surface, but secretly resolved to change history. I wonder if Zhao Gou is still in Jiangning? Should I go to his door one day and, under the guise of my elder brother, plead on his behalf?

"What are you thinking about?" Just as I was deep in thought, I was suddenly hit on the forehead again. I groaned and pressed my forehead, puffing out my cheeks and glaring at Brother Yan. "What did you do? That hurts!" — This guy seems to have gotten addicted to hitting people?

"What are you thinking about? You won't even take a drink offered by your older brother?" Brother Yan looked at me with a mixture of amusement and exasperation. "Who was it that was shouting that we wouldn't leave until we were drunk? What? Where did your soul go?!"

"Second Brother, I remember hearing someone say that you seem to have the four characters 'Serve the Country with Utmost Loyalty' tattooed on your back. Is that true?" I immediately changed the subject—I was actually quite curious about this question—if it were true, wouldn't Yue Fei be considered the first person in the Northern Song Dynasty to have a tattoo? Well, of course, excluding those who committed crimes and were subjected to the whale torture.

"Third brother, you really are a prophet! How could you even know about such a small matter?" Second Brother Yue looked at me with surprise—so that means it's true?

"What do you mean by being a prophet?" I quickly made up an excuse to get away with it. "Actually, I just happened to know someone who told me."

"The person you're talking about, could it be that Jiang Mohui again?" Brother Yan clearly didn't believe it.

"It's not him, of course it's not him." I smiled as I tried to recall who the characters in the novel "Yue Fei" were. Never mind, I'll just guess. "That person's name is Wang Gui, and he seems to be from the same hometown as you? Could he have lied to me?"—Even if I'm wrong, I'll shift the blame to him. He's the one who lied, it has nothing to do with me.

"I see. That makes sense. Wang Gui is my childhood friend; we're from the same village." Yue Erge smiled knowingly—wow! Luckily, I guessed right!

"Really? It seems you and Second Brother are truly destined for each other." Brother Yan's unfathomable smile made me a little uneasy—he wasn't as easily fooled as the straightforward Second Brother Yue, so it was best not to dwell on this issue too much, lest I say something inappropriate and let him see through my disguise.

"My bond with my second brother is as deep as my bond with my eldest brother!" I quickly stood up and poured him a full glass of wine. "If it weren't for my eldest brother, this arm of mine would be useless! Come to think of it, I don't think I've thanked my eldest brother yet! Today, I'm taking this opportunity to offer my gratitude and toast to my eldest brother!"

"At least you still have some conscience," Brother Yan said, taking the wine glass and downing it in one gulp. "I thought you were heartless!"

"How could I not know that my brother treats me so well?" I quickly urged him to drink—I was indeed a bit arrogant in front of him usually. "Hehe, brother is the best person in the world!"

“However, Third Brother, sometimes people who seem to be nice to you aren’t necessarily kind-hearted. Maybe they’re deliberately getting close to you with ulterior motives.” Brother Yan, however, kept his cup still and looked at me meaningfully, clearly implying something—could it be that he disliked Huaiyuan and was deliberately speaking ill of him?

"For example...?" I have no money, no power, and no influence. What could anyone possibly want from me?

“For example,” Brother Yan glanced at me and slowly uttered a name that surprised me quite a bit, “Xiao Feng.”

"Xiao Feng? I caused her family's ruin and death, and she doesn't blame me, I'm already secretly glad." I looked at Brother Yan suspiciously, clearly not believing him. "How could she have ulterior motives towards me?"

“Although Ma Juncai is drunk, he’s not stupid. He’s insisting that Xiaofeng is Shen Yunxian. Don’t you think there’s something fishy about that?”

"What's the strange thing?" I asked, looking displeased. "You believe what a drunkard says? Besides, people can look alike, and it was dark at the time, so it's common to mistake one person for another."

"No, now that things have come to this, I'm not afraid of upsetting you." Brother Yan's eyes sharpened. "Actually, I've suspected her for a long time. I even sent people to investigate her background—Xiao Feng is indeed Shen Yunxian, a courtesan from Yi Hong Lou."

He glanced at me, then calmly dropped another bombshell: "Furthermore, she's sixteen this year, not fourteen as she claims. As for the claim that she and Xiaolong are siblings, that's utter nonsense. She's not even the daughter of Shen Dazhu and his wife!"

This book was first published on Xiaoxiang Novel Original Website. Please retain this information when reprinting!

[Volume Two: Parting Chapter Thirteen - Farewell to the Green Steed Beyond the Willows]

“That could also be because the Shen family redeemed her from her servitude and adopted her as their daughter.” Yue Erge was an honest man and didn’t want to think the worst of people. “As for her age, it’s possible that the actual age was mixed up.”