Chapter 23. Drunk under the pink blossoms

"Are you able to stand?" Kai asked, still barely able to maintain a straight face since the silly fall and her words triggered his humor. 

"I think so." Hatsuki pressed both her palms at her sides. Her forearms utilized the strength to help her raise off the ground and turn around. The heels of the feet were grounded, and slowly the pressure was released to her lower body, making her stand up.

Since Hatsuki's stance was wobbly, Kai was quick to hold her elbow, taking on the weight. Then after, they walked towards the nearest rock, and he made her sit down. 

"It seems like you have hurt your knees."

Hatsuki gave a nod without any explanation; meanwhile, Kai checked her pulse. Then after, he tried to take off her shoe.

"Eh?! What are you doing?" Her mind went frenzied. Why would he ever try taking off her shoe?? When it was her knee that was hurt. 

"I would need to apply the balm on your ankles as well as your knees. That's w—"

"I… I will take them off myself." 

Hatsuki could feel the rush of anxiety wash off her body as she took off the shoes and socks as well as lifted her skirt above the knee so that Kai could apply the balm. While for a person practicing medicine, it must've been normal to work so closely, she wasn't keen on it. 

It showed on her face as her hands grappled the skirt as tight as she could. Her brows furrowed, and her palms had suddenly become sweaty. 

"You should be more careful, Asano," Kai spoke while applying the cool balm on her knees. It gave a cold sensation, bringing goosebumps to her skin.

Kai's hands were gentle as though she were a little mouse. He carefully applied the balm to her ankles as well and then afterwards helped her wear the sock and shoes despite Hatsuki's distaste for his help.

"AYY, WHAT ARE YOU TWO DOING?" LiFen shouted from the other side, startling the two youngsters.

"We should get going. Thank you very much, Brother Kai. 

Kai gave a relished smile as he lent his hand to help her walk. While the pain wasn't fully gone, she felt much better than before. It was unlike any medicine on earth. 

"Aiyahh, I didn't say that you both could take a break. Anyways, let's have some snacks, eh? Then we can start preparing the wine." 

LiMing had arranged a plate filled with little snacks like mooncakes, sesame balls, crispy spring rolls, and much more. They were arranged in a wooden tray. 

Taking off their shoes, all of them gathered around the mat in a circle and started devouring. Hatsuki took a bite of the small sesame ball, which was spongy but hollow on the inside. It was not too sweet. 

"Umm, it's so good." She had her eyes closed, enjoying the flavors.

"Isn't it? It's one of the famous snacks in the sect," LiMing replied while her mouth was stuffed with the mooncake with a lotus root filling. 

"Next time we should also bring dumplings. Do you know the baozi from the capital? They're so delicious," LiFen added while dipping the spring roll into the sauce.

"I've never tried the ones from the capital," Kai said. He took little bites of the snow-skinned mooncake. Eating the least among them.

Once done with the lunch, Hatsuki lent a hand with cleaning the place and arranging the trays. Meanwhile, LiMing and Kai washed the petals. After a thorough clean, LiMing used the warm wind to dry the petals in an instant. 

Hatsuki helped LiFen to bring the giant wooden rice steamers. Over the muslin cloth were the glutinous rice, and they mixed the rice petals with the washed rice. Once nicely mixed, using a wooden stick, they made a hole at the center and let the rice steam. 

LiFen set the fire ablaze while the rest of them simply enjoyed the view while resting on the mat. 

"Miss Asano," LiMing turned towards Hatsuki. LiMing wore her violet hanfu; her eyes were clear and cold. Her face was like a little fawn, with big, round doe eyes and a button nose, and she embodied elegance. 

"Are you the under realm's Arbiter's fiancé?" 

"...Yes" 

"Eh?! For real? I never thought I would get to meet you, especially since you shook the heavens with the engagement announcement." LiFen had her eyes enlarged, almost not believing what she heard. Leaving the rice, she quickly rushed into the conversation.

"Eh? Shook the heavens?" Hatsuki asked back. Her head slightly tilted after all; how could someone like her do that?

"Well, what she means is that when your engagement was announced, the entire heaven was in shock. The arbiter was very popular after all. Many young maidens wished to marry him, but their dreams were shattered. Not that I mind though," LiMing broke down the information. 

With each sentence, Hatsuki could feel the lies catching up to her neck, strangling her. The engagement was a lie, and they had faked everything. 

'WHAT HAVE I GOTTEN MYSELF INTO?!' She wished to cry out.

"Isn't the arbiter much older than you, though, Asano? You don't even seem a hundred years old, while the Arbiter at least is a century old now." Kai pointed out while having a cup of barley tea. 

"Is he? Shouldn't he be at least two centuries old? Uh… They're so ancient they probably don't know their age," LiFen remarked, making all of them giggle.

Soon the rice was cooked, and they took it off the flame. LiMing quickly brought the pounded yeast and red rice yeast. Kai and Hatsuki took turns pounding the rice, which had been cooled down. Once it had a chewy consistency, LiFen brought the jars, and slowly they started to fill the jars with the mixture of rice and blossom, yeast, and red year while leaving ample space for the wine. 

"Uh! Finally!" 

After filling up the eight jars, they all had worn out, but there were more things to get done. Each of them carried a jar and brought it to the woman's living area and let it rest in the dark room with a warm cloth covering them.

From the same room, LiFen brought two old jars of wine to the picnic. 

"Now that we are done, let's have some wine!" 

Kai brought the wine bowls, and LiMing poured the wine into each bowl until the very top. Once it was done, they each grabbed the bowl. 

"Cheers! Let's have even more wine harvest next season!" LiFen raised his, and so did everyone else as their bowls touched the others, and they started to drink the wine like water. 

The moment the liquid touched Hatsuki's lips, she could feel a sweetness as well as a little bitterness. It had a light pink radiance, and under the golden hue of the sun, the four were drunk under the blossom.