053 Pawnshop and sell wine (Part 3)

The young man's expression shifted slightly upon hearing the first sentence, revealing a faint surprise in his dewy, affectionate peach blossom eyes, which widened even further. 

Not only him, but Chu Yao beside him also changed his expression.

Beneath the calm surface, there seemed to be a brewing vortex of hidden power.

Shen Tang didn't have time to react to their responses. Her gaze was fixed on the mouth of the wine barrel, deeply engrossed as she solemnly uttered the next line.

"How to dispel worry? Only with Dukang!"

As the words fell, a surge of pent-up literary energy erupted. All that could be heard was the sound of flowing water, and all that could be smelled was the fragrant aroma of nectar. Shen Tang moved her right hand aside, and the barrel's mouth was no longer empty. In its place was a clear, crystalline liquor. The young man couldn't help but sniff, his affectionate peach blossom eyes shining even brighter as he exclaimed, "Excellent wine!"

Onlookers, unaware of the truth, could only sigh at the sight—doing business these days seemed to have no bottom line. This young lad, with his striking appearance, seemed capable of anything, even serving as an unscrupulous wine tout.

The next scene astonished everyone.

The young man impatiently grabbed the wine barrel, tilted his head back, and drank without hesitation, not even caring when the wine splashed onto his clothes.

This Dukang wine was unlike any new brew; its clear, crystalline taste lingered with a sweet aftertaste, its rich aroma wafting through the air. Even the young man, who had tasted his fair share of fine wines, couldn't help but revel in delight. One sip after another, he couldn't seem to get enough, and before long, he had finished the entire barrel.

"Huh? Finished already?"

He licked his lips, still savoring the taste, and shook the empty wine barrel, squinting as if he couldn't believe he had finished it so quickly—after just experiencing its flavor. He reached into his purse at his waist, pulled out a silver coin much larger than the broken silver from earlier.

With delight, he exclaimed, "Young lady, two barrels!"

After speaking, he hesitated for a moment, his embarrassment and drunken flush spreading across his fair, clean complexion, turning it as rosy as peach blossoms. He bowed repeatedly to Shen Tang, "Forgive me, forgive me, my lord, please don't be angry. It wasn't intentional to mistake you..."

Because Shen Tang had been sitting the whole time, not revealing her waist's literary seal, the young man had assumed her gender based on her appearance, thinking she was a spirited young lady selling wine. As for the unheard-of method of brewing wine with literary seals, he didn't react much.

The power of words was indeed mysterious. If it could conjure war horses and weapons, brewing wine naturally wouldn't seem too extraordinary. From the young man's perspective, these were all trivial matters, but mistaking someone's gender was a big deal!

He feared that if he apologized even a second late, this lord would become angry and pick up the wine barrel, ready to smash it over his head.

Would he get beaten or not when the time came?

Alas, a dilemma.

Shen Tang: "..."

If this weren't an important customer, and he didn't have such a charming face, she would have really wanted to pluck out his eyes and give them a good wash. How blind must one be to steadfastly believe she was a man? But considering there was more than one blind person, she endured.

Shen Tang stiffly said, "No need to apologize."

The young man's face immediately lit up with a smile again, full of vitality and extreme familiarity. He clasped his hands towards Shen Tang, "My lord is magnanimous. I am Qu Dianzhai Le, known as Xiaofang. May I inquire your lord's name? This wine of yours is truly enticing, and I wish to make friends with you."

Qu Dianzhai? Where is that?

Shen Tang couldn't help but glance at Chu Yao.

Chu Yao had maintained silence since earlier, seemingly preoccupied with something, and only snapped out of it when his gaze met Shen Tang's eyes.

He replied, "Qu Dianzhai is in the Kingdom of Shen."

Shen Tang was puzzled, "Where is the Kingdom of Shen?"

Chu Yao: "..."

Facing this situation, the young man was not embarrassed. Instead, he eagerly answered with a smile, "Shen is in the southeast, and Qu Dianzhai is north of Shen."

Shen Tang: "..."

Shen is in the southeast of the continent.

Currently, they are in Xiaocheng, which is in the northwest of the continent.

The two places are quite far apart. How did this young man come all this way?

Seeing the doubt in Shen Tang's eyes, the young man scratched his head with a smile, "My friends and I agreed to travel together for study. Since it's a journey of learning, what's the point of staying in one place? But I didn't expect that as we traveled, we'd end up here."

Shen Tang: "..."

You and your friends have traveled quite far. One is in the northwest of the continent, and the other is in the southeast. Even if you flew in a straight line, it would take a long time, and there are wars going on along the way. Quite the journey!

"I am Shen Tang, known as Youli."

Shen Tang dryly mimicked the young man's hand gesture, not mentioning her place of origin, purely because she didn't know where the original owner was from.

Qu Dianzhai: "Nice to meet you!"

Having successfully produced two barrels of Dukang wine as before, Qu Dianzhai happily carried one on each side and jogged slowly in the direction he had previously inspected. Shen Tang watched discreetly, only to see him meet another youth who was half a head taller than him. He handed one of the barrels to the taller youth.

The taller youth dressed similarly to Qu Dianzhai, with a resemblance in his features, but with a colder temperament. Unlike Qu Dianzhai's carefree nature, he appeared more refined and dignified, while Qu Dianzhai was barefoot in grass shoes, with his hair tied casually with a red string.

"Want a drink?"

The taller youth asked, "Do you dare to drink any wine?"

Qu Dianzhai retorted unhappily, "Didn't you bet with me earlier? Look, I won the bet. Why wouldn't I dare to drink? Besides this excellent Dukang wine, I couldn't even get a bowl of clear wine before entering Xiaocheng. You really won't drink? If you don't drink, I'll just drink it all by myself."

The taller youth snorted, snatching a barrel from Qu Dianzhai, his indifferent gaze meeting Shen Tang's, neither avoiding nor yielding.

Shen Tang: "..."

She sold the wine at a fair price, without shortchanging anyone or selling fake wine. Why was he looking at her like that???

The youth was around twenty years old, a couple of years older than Qu Dianzhai.

Their eyes briefly met and

 then shifted away, and without any courtesy, he grabbed Qu Dianzhai by the collar and dragged him into a tea house.

Faintly, one could still hear Qu Dianzhai shouting, "Let's talk it out, Brother! Don't drag me like this. Do I look like I care about my face?"

Before they entered the tea house, Shen Tang's gaze briefly swept over his waist—indeed, he also wore a literary seal, but it was a jade green color. She didn't know what rank of seal it was, but it's no wonder he dared to travel from the southeast to the northwest with literary skills.

With both literary and martial abilities, he could handle himself.

With the help of the young wine tout, passersby were drawn to Shen Tang's stall, gradually coming to buy wine. However, none were as generous as Qu Dianzhai, who bought a whole barrel at once. Most only bought a little to taste. Business wasn't booming, but it was definitely not bad.

Shen Tang patted the literary seal at her waist, her face full of smiles. It seemed she wasn't always unlucky.

Freeloading truly was the sweetest.

After glancing at her prosperous purse and considering the additional income from selling paintings, Shen Tang calculated in her heart that she should have enough to buy several pieces of good fabric and make a few sets of clean, new clothes. Autumn in Xiaocheng arrived early, and with the peak of summer gone, it wouldn't be long before the weather turned cooler.

"Sir, let's go buy some fabric."

After buying fabric and making two more barrels of Dukang wine, they returned home with a full load. Upon entering the familiar courtyard, they saw Qishan sitting on the porch, lost in thought, with a heavy-hearted appearance.

She called out, "Yuanliang, are there any spare rooms here?"

Qishan only came to his senses just now.

"You're finally back..."

He paused.

With just one glance, he noticed Chu Yao standing beside Shen Tang. Coincidentally, Chu Yao was also looking at him, and their gazes met in the air.