Ch.35 Forming A Bond

{In Wu Zhe Yan’s manor}

In all the manors that other Generals had invited Luo Yue to in the past had all been plainly furnished and decorated to their bare minimum. They had merely laughed, what was the use of decorating their houses when they would be out at war most of the time?

Wu Zhe Yan, on the other hand, seemed to have taken great care, making his manor with great style. She noticed the beautifully carved pillars, the carefully trimmed grass and even the blossoming trees planted exactly where they could be enjoyed from the windows. There were many valuable artifacts and even things that she had never seen before, probably from his travels across the Jianghu.

“Lady… look at all these… even the chairs are lined with gold.” Besides her, this was a sight that Xiao Liu could only ever imagine. “Any thieves who manage to break into this house would strike it big.”

“I would not recommend that,” Shen Tian Ping said before Xiao Liu could have any dangerous thoughts. “Every possible entrance to this mansion is guarded by at least five guards and around five groups of ten guards are patrolling every minute.”

“That many?!”

“Because they are not guarding against thieves. They’re guarding against assassins.” Luo Yue responded. “Since the Imperial Hounds Army is the Emperor’s private troop, there must be a lot of people waiting to take down the crazy dog.”

“Should we… return then?”

The lady gave his head a good smack with her fan. Return when she hasn’t even had a sip of her wine?

Dream on.

~~

Wu Zhe Yan could make out the extra light in her eyes. Could see the way she straightened in interest and the way her nose twitched softly from behind the white silk.

He smirked, giving a pointed glance at the various small and big jars scattered on the table, “as promised.”

At this very moment, Wu Zhe Yan seemed like a much more agreeable person in her eyes.

Since there was no one else besides the two, Luo Yue pulled off the white silk and put it back into her sleeves. Perhaps, the moonlight must possess a hint of seduction magic or maybe it was just because he had not seen her face for an entire day, because the pale face reflected by the moonlight was a dangerously pleasant sight.

He tore his eyes away, suddenly finding her as perilous as the Emperor had warned. He quickly grabbed a jar on the table and poured himself a cup before downing it. As beautiful as he admits her to be, he was confident that it wouldn’t stop him from ending her life if or when needed.

Luo Yue also reached out, hand pausing in the air before she decisively picked up a ceramic jar. Pouring herself a cup, she brought it up to her nose and let the smell tingle her senses. When she took a sip, she was stunned by the unexpected overwhelming taste burning down her throat.

“That’s a strong one.” Wu Zhe Yan was already on his second cup as he eyed her over the cup. “So? How is it?”

There was only honesty in her reply, “one of the best.”

Pleased by that answer, there was a smug tilt of his lips. “You won’t be able to enjoy that anywhere else. It’s made by greengage, a fruit that I happened to get my hands on from a special trade.”

She pointed at another jar. This time, it was a jar made from marbled blue glass, sealed tightly with a lid and secured by a thin rope. It looked obviously different from the rest. “What about that one?”

“This,” Wu Zhe Yan picked up the jar and cut the rope before popping open the lid, “is not from here. It’s something I got from a foreign merchant when I was travelling the Jianghu. I only have one of this.”

Saying that, he poured her a generous amount.

Wu Zhe Yan was not a stingy person; she found her impression of him improving again. So, it seemed like even a rotten apple will have a salvageable side.

She poured it down her throat, this time not even taking the time to savour its smell. Because the moment the seal was popped open, its fragrant smell had already burst out.

Another personal favourite… Luo Yue thought that the night would be a long one this time.

~~

“Drunk already, kitty?” a voice dripping with teasing allurement sounded in the quiet night. “You’ve been staring at that tree for a long time.”

Indeed, Luo Yue was getting a little tipsy and a very light pink tinted her ears. It was not surprising considering the number of emptied jars on the table before her. She did not look away from the tree outside the window as she asked, “why is there a swing there?”

Wu Zhe Yan followed her gaze, his own one slightly unstable but still landing on the worn-out swing tied onto the tree. It might have been the alcohol or the precious memory of a small figure laughing as she flew in the wind that made him soften the look in his eyes. “Because, she liked it.”

“Who?” Luo Yue turned back.

Their eyes met under the moonlight. For a moment, it felt like if any one of them were to make a move, they could very well find themselves committing a drunken mistake.

However, both were still in their right minds.

“My sister.” At the back of his mind, Wu Zhe Yan realised that the drinks were making his tongue a little looser, making him talk more than he would have when sober. Yet, he continued, “we used to roam the world, fighting against all enemies with just the two of us.”

“How was the Jianghu like?” Luo Yue asked.

“It’s not a bad place. If you’re weak, you get trampled on and die. If you’re strong, you get plotted against and still die. Isn’t that how it is everywhere? Jianghu or not.” Wu Zhe Yan gave a low laugh. “The only difference is that in the Jianghu, there are no rules. You do what you want and get all the freedom in the world. You live for your own dream. Be it to be the strongest or to live in peaceful seclusion. In return, you are responsible for your own safety.”

Luo Yue remembered some of the members of the Lonewolf saying something similar. “I would have liked that.”

“You?” he quizzed with a lifted eyebrow. “Forget it, you wouldn’t have survived.”

A frown as she challenged, “how would you know?”

“You look like the type that would only gather enemy.”

“That’s you.”

He guffawed, “you’re right, cut from the same cloth then.”

Luo Yue found that very offensive.

Wu Zhe Yan continued, “how did you even make it until now without losing a limb or two?”

“I just have to be stronger than my enemies.”

“Indeed. That’s how I survived as well,” he couldn’t help but agree. Then, he poured her another cup as he raised his own, “well, cheers to the survivors.”

The cups clinked in the silent night.