Jeune Premier ministre, un ermite

Chapitre 21

Li Tianqi immediately instructed the shopkeeper to prepare the wine and incense table under a large tree in the backyard.

"You want me to become sworn brothers with this pretty boy?!" Li Hongyi said, annoyed. "No way! I'd be more accepting if he were uglier."

Wei Zijun rolled her eyes at him upon hearing this, "Brother Li, Brother Chen, it just so happens that there are three of us. I hate being the fourth one the most."

“Bo Yuan and I are both twenty-eight, but he is three months older than me, so I can only be the second oldest. How old are you, my brother?” Chen Chang asked.

I am eighteen years old.

"Eighteen years old and not yet of age, are you trying to act mature?" Chen Chang glanced at Wei Zijun's head, then laughed and pulled her and Li Tianqi to kneel under the incense table.

Just as he was about to say some words about swearing brotherhood, Li Hongyi knelt down beside him.

"Huh, why are you kneeling down?" Wei Zijun asked in confusion.

"The things you hate are, of course, what I have to do." Saying this, she leaned her face closer to Wei Zijun, "I'll make you the fourth one."

"Hahaha... then Boyuan won't be the boss anymore." Chen Chang laughed loudly.

Li Hongyi ignored him and solemnly said, "I am Li Hongyi."

Upon hearing this, Li Tianqi immediately replied, "I am Li Tianqi."

"I am Chen Chang."

Wei Zijun immediately replied, "I am Wei Zijun."

"Today we are sworn brothers. From now on, the four of us will share happiness and hardship. We do not ask to be born on the same day, month, and year, but we ask to die on the same day, month, and year. Heaven and earth bear witness. If we break this oath, may we be punished by gods and men."

Wei Zijun stammered as she finished reading, when she saw Li Hongyi pull a dagger from his boot and slit his middle finger, dripping blood into a wine bowl. Wei Zijun shuddered at the sight. Was he really going to do this? Just as she was inwardly lamenting, a dagger was thrust in front of her.

"You... help me cut it..." Cut herself? She couldn't do it.

Then, trembling, she stretched out her jade-white hand, "A little... a tiny cut... hehe... hehe... just one drop... that's enough... too much would be a waste... just a little something... just a little something..." Then she turned her face away, closed her eyes tightly, and covered half of her face with her other hand.

The three men stared at her actions in disbelief, then burst into laughter.

Ignoring her flushed face from being laughed at, Wei Zijun just wanted it to end quickly. "Stop laughing... hurry up..."

Since there's no way to avoid it, let's just cut it off quickly, and hopefully not too deep.

"Fourth brother is really... cute... so cute... hahaha... hahaha..." Chen Chang was already laughing so hard he was doubled over.

Wei Zijun didn't know who had grabbed her hand. A sharp pain shot through her fingertips. She turned her head and saw Li Hongyi squeezing a drop of blood into the wine bowl from her middle finger, his eyes still glistening with a smile.

I took my hand back to look at it. Thankfully, it was just a small cut. This person still has a conscience.

Li Hongyi took a big gulp of wine from his bowl and handed it to Li Tianqi. As Chen Chang drank, Wei Zijun began to murmur, "Drink more...drink more...just leave a little for me."

I imagine that wine laced with blood wouldn't taste very good.

Chen Chang ignored her and left a large gulp for her. Wei Zijun, though helpless, couldn't show it and drank from the bowl. The taste of wine mixed with the smell of blood stimulated her taste buds, almost making her vomit.

After finishing the drink, he wiped his mouth, frowned, and said, "It tastes awful."

The men burst into laughter again upon hearing this.

"Fourth brother, we are true brothers now. If you have any difficulties in the future, just talk to us older brothers." Chen Chang patted Wei Zijun on the shoulder, and Li Tianqi also smiled and nodded at her.

Wei Zijun nodded in agreement. Sometimes, trust between people is built solely on intuition, without necessarily detailed understanding or long-term interaction. Friendships are also built on mutual attraction and liking. People judge things based on their own preferences, just like this sworn brotherhood. The group was formed entirely out of affinity; there was no right or wrong, just liking each other was enough.

Since they each had their own business to attend to, the group parted ways there and agreed to meet Chen Chang the following day.

After they parted ways, Wei Zijun planned to go to the restaurant to find Liu Lang, ask about the manager, and try to recruit Liu Lang to help her.

But Liu Lang was not around, and she didn't know when he would return. So she strolled along the bustling street, intending to find a place to sell books and learn about the world.

As they were walking, a torrential downpour suddenly began under the bright, sunny sky, and Wei Zijun quickly followed the pedestrians to take shelter under the eaves of a shop.

Wei Zijun looked up and observed the flying eaves. She noticed their simple and elegant structure, with clean lines, unlike Ming Dynasty architecture. Ming Dynasty buildings typically had small animal figures on their roof ridges, but these lacked them. The architectural style was also more grand, unlike the more ornate style of the Ming Dynasty. The clothing of the pedestrians was also unlike that of the Song Dynasty. Song Dynasty outer garments mostly had round collars, while these were still cross-collared and right-fastening, indicating that the style hadn't yet reached the Song Dynasty level. Judging from the headwear and clothing, it was definitely not from the Tang Dynasty. Furthermore, many people on the street were wearing Hu (non-Han) clothing. Which dynasty could this great ethnic fusion possibly belong to?

Wei Zijun diligently explored the little historical knowledge she possessed and began to regret why she had hated history so much in the first place.

You can never be complacent or take things lightly. This knowledge I thought I'd never use in my life is now proving useful. Luckily, I practiced calligraphy for a few years, otherwise I wouldn't even be able to recognize all the traditional Chinese characters here.

I couldn't help but sigh with emotion again.

[Volume 1, Deer City Chapter: Chapter 19, Dayu]

After the rain, the setting sun cast golden rays onto the wet world washed clean by the rain, and the air was filled with a fresh scent.

The high walls and gray tiles were also bathed in the warmth of the setting sun.

The sky was clear and spotless, and the earthen walls, turned golden by the setting sun, were dotted with a wisp of green grass that swayed gently. The raindrops on the grass blades had not yet evaporated, creating a beautiful scene.

The streets are bustling again.

Wei Zijun stretched her legs, which were aching from standing, lifted the hem of her long robe, and stepped out from under the eaves where she had taken shelter from the rain.

After walking for a while, I wanted to sit down and rest. I saw a teahouse ahead, steaming with heat. Above it was a plaque with the word "tea" written on it. The entrance was wide open, and on both sides was a couplet that read: "Dragon tea and sparrow tongue tea are fragrant from the secluded valley; the tripods and jade cups are as bright as the rosy clouds."

Wei Zijun glanced around the teahouse and couldn't help but chuckle. The couplet was indeed both expensive and elegant, a rare and beautiful touch, but looking at the coarse porcelain bowl, she couldn't connect it to the jade cup at all. It seemed the owner of this teahouse was a person of refined tastes but also quite common tastes.

Wei Zijun ordered a bowl of tea and sat down to rest for a moment. Suddenly, she overheard the waiter talking to a young man at the door, and the conversation seemed to contain hints of war. She got up and went to listen. But as soon as she approached, the waiter stopped talking, turned around, and went back to pour tea.