When I learned this secret, Ji Jiu, Lou Xiyue, and I were having dinner at a small tavern on the border. I heard the locals describe me as having a "slender waist, snow-white skin, and a delicate, alluring beauty," and I couldn't help but lower my head and chuckle to myself, "Hehehehe, I'm famous in the East now."
Lou Xiyue glanced at me indifferently, then propped her forehead up and asked, "How did he know you have a slender waist?"
I thought about it for a long time, "This is what it means to have curves and a shapely figure, hehehehehe."
Lou Xiyue said, "..."
The second earth-shattering secret was that Lou Xiyue was leaving. On his journey, he received a letter from home, and Lou Yufeng urgently summoned him back. It was likely that his eighth sister was getting married, and Junior Sister Yun Shuang would be representing Qingshan Pavilion at the wedding. She sincerely hoped that Lou Xiyue would return to the Lou family mansion to attend the banquet with Junior Sister Yun Shuang.
This matter is not a big deal, but compared to the next one, it is already extremely shocking.
The last secret is that the wind has gone missing again.
We stayed overnight at an inn in Qinghuapu, and the next day we would go our separate ways. Lou Xiyue returned to Yangzhou, while Ji Jiu and I went to Nanyang to treat Lou Sanjian.
At dinner, Lou Xiyue asked me with a smile, "I'm leaving tomorrow, what would you like to eat tonight?"
The thought of parting, and not knowing when we would meet again, only added to my sadness, so I obediently replied, "Whatever."
Lou Xiyue pondered for a moment, then said to the waiter, "One roast chicken..."
I interrupted him, "I want to eat vegetarian food."
He said, "Then let's have a pot of Shaoxing wine, a plate of hibiscus pastry, and a dish of..."
I said with emotion, "Without the strong wind, let's not drink Shaoxing wine, let's switch to Nu'erhong wine."
He glanced at me and continued ordering, "Stir-fried lotus root."
I nudged Lou Xiyue and said, "The lotus root isn't good; it doesn't have leaves."
Lou Xiyue rubbed her forehead and chuckled, "What exactly do you want to eat?"
I said, "Whatever..."
The bright moon hangs in the sky outside the window, and the occasional chirping of cicadas and insects can be heard, while the fragrant grasses still flourish.
I poured myself a glass of wine, tilted my head back and drank it down, then asked, "When are you coming back?"
Lou Xiyue tilted her head slightly, looking at me with a smile, "You can't bear to part with me?"
I said, "If I can cure your third uncle, I will return to Medicine King Valley. If you still want to learn how to use medicine, you can come to the valley to find me."
He glanced down at the table, then picked up some food with his chopsticks and ate it slowly, simply replying with a "Mm".
Qinghuapu is a small county.
As night falls, many ordinary families bring bamboo stools, fan themselves with palm-leaf fans, and gossip outside to cool off.
It reminds me of summer in Medicine King Valley. I went to the town outside the valley to buy watermelons and came back to watch the stars with Uncle San and Master in the courtyard.
My master would occasionally say to me, "Xiao Xiang, it's going to rain tomorrow, so we should bring in the medicine books that are drying outside."
I asked him, "Master, do you know how to do the weather forecast?"
He smiled gently, his handsome features imprinted on my heart, more intoxicating than fine wine.
Sometimes I think that even just listening to the rain pattering on the banana leaves in the valley with my master, watching the misty clouds, and quietly listening to the sound of time flowing by would be a wonderful thing.
I sighed softly.
Lou Xiyue gently stroked the rim of the cup with her fingertips, picked up the white porcelain cup, took a sip, and said softly, "It won't be long, I'll be right back."
I've noticed that Lou Xiyue is always quite refined, possessing the air of a wealthy young master. Even at this rural inn, drinking and eating meat, he maintains his elegant demeanor, which is quite out of place for us commoners.
I was annoyed, so I tapped the wine jar and asked him, "Do you dare to drink with me and see who can hold their liquor better?"
Lou Xiyue raised an eyebrow slightly, "Want to compete with me in drinking?"
I nodded emphatically, "Yes, whoever loses is a little dog."
He glanced out the window and said nonchalantly, "If you lose, you'll have to call me 'Brother Lou'."
My interest was piqued. "Alright, if you lose, you can pull out all the weeds in the valley and copy all the medical books from now on."
Lou Xiyue turned around and looked at me quietly. The lights in the shop flickered, as if they were passing through his eyes, shimmering gently. He smiled faintly and tapped my forehead. "As you wish."
That night, we drank until the third watch of the night.
The shop was empty; Ji Jiu had already gone to sleep.
The residents of Qinghuapu had already packed up their chairs and benches and gone home to rest, leaving the small town quiet and peaceful.
The oil lamp was almost burned out, and the winner was still undecided.
The aroma of alcohol lingered in the air. Lou Xiyue poured herself a full glass and asked me, "Xiao Xiang, are you unhappy?"
I glanced up at him and saw what seemed to be a girl with slightly flushed cheeks reflected in his eyes. I smiled and said, "I have nothing to be unhappy about." After thinking for a moment, I added, "I don't think I have anything to be happy about either..."
I have no parents, and my only sister is lost. The only person I'm close to in the world is my master, but he's always so far away. Right now, I feel inexplicably lonely.
Lou Xiyue's lips moved, but I couldn't hear what he was saying.
I felt the oil lamp flickering before my eyes, its light streaming into his eyes, making me dizzy.
The night was so still, and the oil lamp gradually dimmed, losing its brilliance. I closed my eyes, and in my mind, I vaguely saw Lou Xiyue holding a fan and laughing softly. His wide-sleeved brocade robe was trimmed with silver and embroidered with flowing cloud patterns.
I could faintly hear the sound of the night watchman's drum. I lay on the table and whispered, "Brother Lou, I lost."