Chapter Eighty-Seven: Drunkenness

The praise from Liang Xiao stunned everyone.

Though few knew him well, most had heard of his eccentric nature. He never minced words, never bothered with pleasantries, and always said exactly what he meant. At times, his bluntness was so extreme that people found it hard to bear.

So when he called Xu Ruojin’s brew good wine, was he sincere, or simply trying to provoke Zhang Zhongheng?

It was not that the others did not trust Xu Ruojin; rather, the foul stench she had just conjured left a shadow in everyone’s mind.

Could anything brewed from that kind of mixture possibly taste good?

Half in doubt and half in curiosity, everyone turned to Zhang Zhongheng.

Even Zhang Zhongheng hesitated before the wine before him.

Liang Xiao’s lips curved faintly, clearly mocking his cowardice.

Out of the corner of his eye, Liang Xiao saw Jiang Biwu still staring at the bowl of wine. He lifted the bowl before him and, looking straight at Zhang Zhongheng, drained it in one gulp.

“Uh, then what am I supposed to drink?” Jiang Biwu felt himself utterly wronged.

He did not want anyone to mistake him for a coward who dared not drink; he had only wanted to take a careful look.

Xu Ruojin gave Chun Cao a glance, and Chun Cao immediately stepped forward and filled another bowl.

“Master Jiang, please.”

With such a generous invitation, Jiang Biwu naturally would not refuse.

He lifted the bowl and first took a small sip. The moment it touched his throat, it burned hot and rich, with a potency far stronger than ordinary wine.

It was as though a spark had been swallowed into his belly; warmth erupted at once and spread through his entire body.

What a delight it was!

“Good, truly good wine!”

Jiang Biwu’s face lit up with pleasure, and his praise made the others even more convinced.

Everyone could not help wanting to taste the wine before them, but Zhang Zhongheng, seething in silence, looked at Liang Xiao and Jiang Biwu before simply tilting his head back and pouring it all into his mouth.

“Cough, cough!”

A fit of violent coughing erupted!

Zhang Zhongheng coughed so hard his face turned crimson, as though he might hack his lungs out.

Yuan Huiling had long been displeased at seeing Liang Xiao and Jiang Biwu praise Xu Ruojin. Now, with Zhang Zhongheng in trouble, she hurried to cry out, “You said it was good wine, but it’s clearly terrible wine. Otherwise, how could Brother Zhongheng be like this?”

“Brother Zhongheng, can you hold on? I’ll have someone go to the front courtyard at once and fetch the senior physician. You must wait, just hold on!”

As Yuan Huiling spoke, she turned as if to call for help, but Zhang Zhongheng slammed the table. “Come back!”

“Brother Zhongheng, you don’t need to mind—”

“Shut up and stand aside. No one asked you to speak!”

Zhang Zhongheng kept pressing a hand to his chest. He had drunk too quickly and had not realized the wine could be this fierce.

Seeing Liang Xiao’s half-smiling expression, he understood at once that he had been played.

But he had no one to blame. Who had told him to gulp it down in one mouthful?

A servant brought him another bowl, and Zhang Zhongheng sipped it bit by bit, his gaze slipping toward Xu Ruojin.

This woman really was different.

He had originally thought her nothing more than a fallen girl of humble stock, but it seemed she possessed some talent after all.

If she entered the Zhang household and was properly trained, she might yet become something worthwhile.

Only her temperament was truly disgraceful.

She was already betrothed, yet she stood in public before so many men and even brewed wine for them?

Just now, while stirring the wine, she had even inadvertently exposed half her arm.

Above all, though she and Liang Xiao had spoken little, the exchange of their glances was enough to make him jealous beyond tolerance.

What kind of conduct was this for a proper young lady?

Such a flirtatious nature could never be accepted.

Zhang Zhongheng stared at Xu Ruojin, and the complexity of his expression made the others twitch with curiosity before they began murmuring among themselves.

Everyone knew that he and Miss Xu were already engaged.

But even with such a chance to meet, did he need to stare at her like that?

He was going to be looking at her for the rest of his life anyway...

Yet as time passed, the crowd noticed something was not right.

That look of his did not seem affectionate or pleased at all; instead, it carried anger, a lofty kind of reproach.

Sensing that something was amiss, everyone picked up their bowls and drank a few mouthfuls.

Only after the fierce liquor hit their tongues did they understand why Zhang Zhongheng had coughed so violently just now.

After tasting it carefully, they realized that this wine was indeed more delicious than the ones they had drunk before. It was called delicious precisely because it was stronger and fiercer, suited to men’s tastes.

But when they thought of Xu Ruojin’s method of brewing it, all their expressions turned strangely awkward.

Yuan Huiling had been waiting nearby for everyone’s judgment so she could mock Xu Ruojin.

But after all that drinking, not a single person said anything. Wasn’t that enough to drive her mad?

“Why is no one speaking? How is it, exactly?”

Yuan Huiling glared at Xu Ruojin. “Can wine brewed from such a foul stink really taste good? I don’t believe it. The young masters are only sparing your face and refusing to expose you.”

“Don’t believe it? Then why don’t you taste it yourself?” Xu Ruojin showed no intention of arguing with her head-on.

When a dog bites someone, it is wrong, but biting back is even more so.

Only by making her truly yield...

Even if she would not yield, she would at least have swallowed a bitter loss and have nothing to say for herself.

Yuan Huiling wanted to snap back, but seeing Xu Ruojin’s leisurely composure only made her anger rise.

“You want me to drink something so foul? If it ruins my tongue, will you cut yours off to pay me back?”

“Every young master here has drunk it. Could it be that you are cursing them?”

“Drink it, then! Once I’m done, I’ll curse you till your head spins!”

Yuan Huiling was met with hard stares from those who had tasted the wine, and she had never imagined that a single careless remark of hers would bring such hostility upon her.

She took a big gulp.

At once, her little face flushed a bright red!

With a “spit,” she sprayed the wine out and pointed at Xu Ruojin, but could not even find the words to curse her. “You, you tricked me! What is this awful thing? You, you did this on purpose!”

“The wine is strong. You simply cannot bear it. What does that have to do with me?” Xu Ruojin looked at her own still-ruddy hand and adjusted her sleeve. “The others all drank it and did not react like you. Could it be that whatever Miss Yuan cannot endure is all trash and refuse? If that is how you think, then I have nothing more to say.”

“Sister Yuan, this must be wine for men. You girls had better drink fruit wine instead and not touch this again.”

The young masters smiled at Yuan Huiling. They were not truly teasing her, only trying to console her.

“Indeed. We were all shocked by the first sip. How could a little girl like you possibly bear it?”

“But we’ve never tasted this kind of wine before. Miss Xu, from which master did you learn this? What sort of method is it?”

Someone asked carefully, and Xu Ruojin was left momentarily speechless.

She had not actually thought up this excuse. How was she supposed to fabricate it?

For other wines, she could say she had learned from Lady Fang.

But this was also her first attempt at something like this...

“I came up with it myself by accident.”

Xu Ruojin felt that saying so was too perfunctory, so she added, “It was a matter of chance. Otherwise, I would not possess such skill. To have the approval of all the young masters today puts my mind at ease. As for this wine, I myself could never drink it.”

“So that’s how it is.”

“No wonder.”

Yuan Huiling was coughing so hard that tears and mucus streamed down her face. Too occupied to continue scolding Xu Ruojin for her poisonous schemes, she quickly had her maid help her away to wash her face.

With the host gone, the others also began to think of leaving.

Just then, servants came to announce that the banquet in the front courtyard had begun and invited the guests to proceed there.

One by one, in twos and threes, they departed, and Xu Ruojin finally breathed a sigh of relief.

The moment she turned, she seemed to撞 into a wall.

Looking up, she saw it was Liang Xiao.

She hurriedly stepped back two paces and steadied herself.

Liang Xiao tossed over a small box. “Medicine. Don’t leave a scar.”

Xu Ruojin looked surprised and quickly thanked him. “Thank you, Master Liang.”

“I want the wine,” Liang Xiao said, gazing at her seriously. “I want this kind of wine!”