Amor a través del tiempo

Capítulo 44

Seeing that he was all smiles and had lost his arrogance, Bei Chenxiang, emboldened by the alcohol, actually felt much closer to him. The unpleasantness of the past few days vanished in an instant, and he laughed heartily.

"Am I such an impolite person? But seriously... An, you... uh... are really peculiar! I have never seen such a strange person in my life."

Lin Feng tossed his hair, pulled off the red ribbon, tied it behind his head, and laughed, "Otherwise, how could I be called the Number One Eccentric of Beichen?"

“That’s true…” Bei Chenxiang pulled Lin Feng to sit down, insisting that she join him for a hearty drink. The road to Chechi was mostly sandy and dusty, truly reminiscent of the desolate landscape beyond the Great Wall. Lin Feng, being human, also harbored feelings of emptiness and coldness in her heart. She shook her head, smiled, picked up the wine jar, and took two sips.

Chapter 45 Drinking

"Spicy! Really spicy! It's like my head is on fire!" Lin Feng wasn't easily intoxicated, and as someone who often drank strong liquor, she was genuinely bothered by the spiciness of the drink, her brows furrowing. The moment the liquor entered her stomach, a thin layer of sweat broke out all over her body; the effect was incredibly satisfying! She couldn't help but take another small sip, but it was still so spicy that she shook her head.

Seeing that he had suffered, Bei Chenxiang revealed a triumphant smile on his handsome face: "Your Majesty, you may not know this, but this wine is a specialty of Chechi, called Dongfengdu. It is made without any water."

Lin Feng's eyes widened, completely unfazed? Goodness, this guy doesn't have to be in such a hurry to murder her! Besides, Lin Feng didn't intend to die such a gruesome death.

Bei Chenxiang, however, had no idea what Lin Feng was thinking. He simply smiled nostalgically and said, "This wine, though a bit spicy, is refreshingly spicy and stimulating. I'm usually stationed on the border of Xilan, a desolate place. Spending too much time on the battlefield can make one feel melancholic. But now, a few brothers gathered together, drinking this Dongfeng Ferry wine, and the coldness disappears." He then looked at Lin Feng and smiled, "Dark King, you've never been on the battlefield, so perhaps you don't understand the feeling. I've been too talkative. Come on, bottoms up!"

A crisp sound came from the wine jar. The strong liquor dispelled the cold and warmed the heart, easily raising emotions. Lin Feng seemed to be infected by it, taking two sips in a row, shaking the wine jar in his hand, and looking thoughtful.

After observing for several days, I realized that Bei Chenxiang was completely different from Bei Chentian. Apart from their handsome appearances, which they shared, his way of handling things, his methods, and his temperament were worlds apart from Bei Chentian's calculating and cunning nature.

Bei Chentian possessed the full aura of a king, embodying all the qualities of a successful emperor. Bei Chenxiang, on the other hand, was more like a renowned general. While the prince had a certain air of authority, he was extremely uninhibited, displaying the boldness and unrestrained spirit of a man. His arrogance and pride were fully evident, along with a touch of awkwardness, though this was merely a temporary quirk of his personality. Bei Chenxiang seemed genuine, quite different from the vague and elusive feeling of Bei Chentian.

"Prince Xiang, you can't just think about how to fight, can you? What will you do when Chen Tian unifies the world? Will you still be a decorative vase on the battlefield?" Lin Feng reminded him. A successful prince can't just be good at fighting.

Although Bei Chenxiang disliked scheming, he was indeed Bei Chentian's younger brother, exceptionally intelligent. He had already understood the meaning behind Lin Feng's words, but shook his head: "Dark King, you don't know that even if the country is unified, there will still be many instabilities. I have never competed with my brother for anything. When my brother dominates Yin Sang, that will be the day I am stationed in a foreign land. Even if my brother trusts me, there are countless examples of brothers turning against each other in imperial families throughout history. I have been taken care of by my brother since I was a child, and I have always thought that one day I will definitely help my brother dominate, so as not to cause him any trouble, and repay him for his brotherly affection."

Lin Feng blinked. Such brotherly affection was truly rare in an imperial family. It seemed that something must have happened between Bei Chen Tian and Bei Chen Xiang. This prince had planned to go far away from the beginning, which was truly remarkable.

Suddenly, he laughed and said, "I didn't want to say these things to anyone. I didn't like you, but I didn't expect to want to tell you this now. Please don't take offense, Dark King."

"The fact that you can say you don't like me shows that Your Highness is not pretentious. I admire your straightforward personality." Lin Feng paused for a moment, then said, "Actually, I also have unfulfilled ambitions and a lot of aspirations. I'm afraid that people who know me would think I'm crazy and shouldn't be meddling in the affairs of the world. It's rare for Chen Tian to appreciate me. I would feel bad if I didn't repay his kindness."

"Whether I have this title or not makes no difference to me. I've always operated in the shadows, so why would I need such a ridiculous title? If Your Highness is dissatisfied with this title, I apologize." After saying that, he made a gesture to apologize.

Bei Chenxiang wouldn't let her kneel down, grabbing her and saying urgently, "Since I'm drinking with you, why would I care about such things! I treat you like a brother, and you don't appreciate it, do you?"

Lin Feng smiled slightly: "I don't consider Your Highness a brother."

Bei Chenxiang was stunned for a moment, seemingly not expecting Lin Feng to deny it at this time.

Lin Feng suddenly smiled again, his handsome face losing its coldness and gaining warmth: "I consider you a kindred spirit." (Getting ganged up on by his fans...)

His face, which had been filled with surprise, now showed a look of excited joy. Bei Chenxiang finally couldn't help but burst into laughter: "Good, good, good! A kindred spirit! I never thought I would hear these two words from someone I just met. Today is indeed a good day! Come, Brother An, let's just go with the flow and become sworn brothers, shall we?"

"Brother Xiang, your words are rather vulgar. The mutual appreciation between us is beyond what the word 'brother' can encompass. Becoming sworn brothers would only make us seem more distant. This is not a good time. Why be bound by such a formality?"

Bei Chenxiang then remembered that An was the most eccentric person in Bei Chen, with an extremely strange personality and little regard for etiquette, just like his elder brother. He couldn't help but shake his head and laugh.

"You are right, I was presumptuous."

"So...shouldn't we have a drink?" Lin Feng held up the jar and brought it close to him.

"Cheers!" Bei Chenxiang smiled, and the crisp sound of wine jars clinking together filled the entire tent with a fragrant aroma...

Lin Feng's mind wasn't racing anymore. The alcohol was taking effect, his face was flushed, and his head was spinning. He'd originally only wanted to build a good relationship with Bei Chenxiang for future support, but now he was genuinely enjoying it. With this man, he didn't have to think things through; he spoke his mind directly, and even his thoughts were often written on his face, saving Lin Feng the trouble of dealing with a headache…

I decided to stop thinking about it and shook my head, saying:

"Prince Xiang, tonight we'll drink until we drop!"

"Hehe, that's exactly what I was waiting for you to say." Bei Chenxiang seemed to have set a trap, and his smile was truly cunning. Lin Feng was speechless; it turned out this guy was also scheming!

"Tell me about your ambitions..."

Qin Zheng kept watch outside the tent, while the two inside chatted and laughed until dawn. The night seemed endless, and the next day, the two didn't emerge from the tent until the sun was high in the sky. They hadn't traveled this late in recent days, and the group had already prepared their carriages and horses, setting off again in a grand procession.

Lin Feng rode his horse leisurely, riding side by side with Bei Chenxiang, exchanging a few words of laughter every now and then to relieve the boredom of the journey.

The others were all puzzled. How come yesterday the Dark Prince and Prince Xiang were separated by distance, but now they were inseparable? Yesterday Prince Xiang disliked the Dark Prince, but today he seemed to be overjoyed, wishing they could ride a horse together and chat all the time.

Everyone saw it and felt puzzled, but no one dared to say anything...

Suddenly, the convoy in front stopped. Lin Feng and Bei Chenxiang became alert, exchanged glances, and rode their horses to the location. They saw that the group of people were dressed in a rustic manner and were holding various weapons—all of them low-class, such as kitchen knives and hoes.

The people in front shouted, "Hand over all your valuables, or we'll kill you all!" The hundred or so people behind them roared in unison, their voices carrying a certain air of authority. Lin Feng and Bei Chenxiang found it amusing; it turned out they had encountered a band of refugees who had gathered together as mountain bandits.

These people had probably just escaped from the chaos of war. Their clothes were tattered, and they had no authority whatsoever. They called out to the soldiers for a long time, but there was no response. They just waited for Bei Chenxiang and his companion to speak.

Bei Chenxiang glanced at those people, waved his hand and said, "Let's just send them away. We're in a hurry, there's no need to take action against these people."

The refugees, however, were relentless. They formed a line and stood in the middle of the road, refusing to give way and demanding that all their gold and silver treasures be left behind.

Lin Feng's expression flashed, he snorted coldly, and spurred his horse straight at the leader. His protective short sword flashed, and he slashed cleanly and swiftly! The man tried to dodge, but he was no match for Lin Feng's speed. In a flash of sword light, a bloody head was already in Lin Feng's hand. He sneered, "Anyone else want to block my way?"

The refugees there had never seen anything like this before, and they screamed, "Murder!" and scattered in all directions. Lin Feng and the others did not stop them and left without leaving a trace.

Bei Chenxiang didn't blame Lin Feng for his ruthlessness. If that situation hadn't been resolved quickly, it would have caused a lot of trouble. A mere life was nothing to a general like him. Just as he was about to step forward, he suddenly saw Lin Feng's expression change as he fell into thought, and shouted urgently, "Quickly back to the central flank! We've been tricked!"

Bei Chenxiang thought of those people from earlier and felt a chill run down his spine. He knew what Lin Feng meant, so he spurred his horse to follow behind him, secretly thinking to himself that he had been careless.

Those people were at most refugees; how could they dare to rob such a large caravan? It was clearly someone using them to divert the attention of the main force and deal with Princess Chechi and the most beautiful woman of the Northern Star Saintess in the rear. The caravan was so long that the two people walking in front didn't even notice that they had already moved far away from the carriages, and even further away from the main caravan carrying gifts.

When the two arrived, a fight had already broken out inside and outside the car. Lin Feng's gaze drifted to the box being escorted, and he revealed a meaningful smile.

Everything was within the scope of the brilliant plan...