Qin Moyu said quietly.
"You're not!"
Shen Yebai looked at Qin Moyu disapprovingly, afraid that Qin Moyu would overthink things: "What happened that night had nothing to do with you. You were implicated by chance. No one could have predicted that things would turn out this way. If your master knew that you thought this way, he would definitely scold you."
"But if it weren't for me... if I hadn't meddled... how could the sect have been destroyed, and how could my master's remains have been lost..."
"Nobody wanted this to happen. You did nothing wrong. The one who truly deserves to die is Fen Tian." Shen Yebai pursed his lips and hugged Qin Moyu with heartache.
Qin Moyu closed his eyes in pain. It wasn't that he didn't understand these principles, but a voice in his mind kept telling him that he was the one who killed his master.
That voice was like a curse, constantly assaulting Qin Moyu's already battered heart.
Shen Yebai couldn't bear to see Qin Moyu in such pain and distress, but he didn't know how to comfort her. He caught a glimpse of the broken grape trellis out of the corner of his eye, and suddenly thought of something. He quietly left Qin Moyu's side.
"Mo Yu, open your eyes and look."
Shen Yebai said softly.
Qin Moyu looked up and saw several familiar jars of wine in front of her.
"This is……"
Master's wine.
Qin Moyu stared blankly at the wine jar.
"I dug these out from under the trellis, but unfortunately there are only a few jars left." Shen Yebai sighed softly and sat down cross-legged.
Shen Yebai took a jar of wine, unsealed it, and the rich aroma of wine and rice was intoxicating without even drinking it. He found two broken bowls from somewhere; although they were damaged, they should be fine for drinking wine.
"Isn't Mo Yu's master a big drinker? Since you can't get out of this situation, let it help you get out of it." Shen Yebai picked up the wine jar, poured wine into a bowl, and handed it to Qin Mo Yu after filling it.
Qin Moyu took the bowl with both hands. The clear wine reflected his haggard face. He smelled the familiar aroma of the wine and felt as if his master was right beside him.
Ah, wine...
Qin Moyu held the bowl, tilted his head back, and drank it all in one gulp. The burning spiciness made him choke several times. It was the familiar taste of the liquor, and it tasted just as strong as he remembered.
In the past, when the old Taoist priest coaxed and tricked him into drinking, Qin Moyu would only take a small sip, and even that would easily make him blush and wrinkle his face, saying he wouldn't drink anymore. But now that no one is tricking him, he drinks bowl after bowl with all his might.
He drank too quickly, and the wine soaked his clothes.
Qin Moyu's neck and face were flushed red from the wine. His eyes were glazed over, clearly drunk, yet he kept drinking bowl after bowl, eventually even hugging the wine jar and drinking directly from it, which Shen Yebai couldn't stop him from doing.
Qin Moyu hugged the wine jar, her expression sorrowful, crying and laughing at the same time: "Ye... Ye Bai... why... why is this wine... so bitter..."
Qin Moyu kept saying how bitter it was while shaking her head and rambling on and on, seemingly talking to no one in particular.
"This wine is so bitter... why... why does Master like to drink it..."
"It tastes terrible! Why?"
"Why...?"
"Why is this happening?!" Qin Moyu almost shouted these words, tears welling in his eyes, completely drunk and collapsing to the ground, still clutching the wine jar tightly in his hands.
Even as he lay drunk on the ground, he kept muttering "why," as if questioning the person who had abandoned him, asking why he had been left all alone.
Qin Moyu finally fell asleep again.
He dreamed of an endless corridor, so long it seemed to have no end. He chased after that figure, almost catching up, but when he lunged forward, he couldn't grasp anything. He cried like a child, and someone gently hugged him, patting his back. He gradually stopped sobbing as the person hummed an unknown song.
Shen Yebai wiped away the tears that had fallen from Qin Moyu's eyes and gently placed a kiss on his forehead.
Sleep well, Momo.
The night was cold and long, but thankfully, the east gradually brightened and the sun rose, and all the pain would eventually pass.
...
The faceless man sat on the rock and, seeing the man in the blue robe leisurely walk to his side, asked, "Is it resolved?"
"More or less," the man in the blue robe shrugged casually.
The faceless man said discontentedly, "A solution is a solution, and an incomplete solution is an incomplete solution. What do you mean by 'almost'?"
"Tsk, as long as it doesn't interfere with your plans, that's all that matters." The man in the blue robe was unwilling to say more.
The faceless man was rebuffed and felt dissatisfied, but he couldn't force the man in the blue robe to say it. He could only do some calculations and finally understood why the man was being so secretive.
"Never mind." Although the faceless man was dissatisfied, he let it go as long as it didn't affect his plans.
"Where to next?" the man in the blue robe asked.
"West Continent".
"oh?"
The destination surprised the man in the blue robe. Just then, he received a message from his subordinate. He looked down at the wooden plaque in his hand and was delighted to see the message: "What a coincidence, the Southern Continent royal family has also begun to take action."
"What do you mean?" the faceless man asked in a deep voice.
"They say the Southern Continent royal family is assembling an army, preparing to send troops to the Western Continent."
...
The Imperial Study.