Chapter 4

Parsed with an automated reader. The content accuracy is not guranteed.

Ugh, there were some hard bits in this one. Note to self: never try translating names. Also, I need to figure out a uniform way of dealing with capitalizing things. /flops

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Right now, Ye You didn’t remember a single person. Of course he had no impression of the Demonic Sect’s Sect Leader, but he wasn’t going to just honestly admit that, so he merely said, “He sounds somewhat familiar. I’ll have to think about it.”

Wenren Heng didn’t pressure him at all and just sat down on a stone bench.

The people within the pavilion have been curious about Ye You from the first. After having chattered for a bit, they all turned their attention to Ye You. One of them asked, “And this is?”

Having found his Junior Brother, Wenren Heng was obviously very happy. Hearing them ask, he replied, voice filled with delight, “My Junior Brother, Ah-Xiao.”

“…” Those people were blindsided. “What?”

Their reactions were the same as Qin Yuemian. Everyone’s first thought was that shockingly Wenren Heng had a Junior Brother.

They asked, “Why have we never heard you bring him up?”

Wenren Heng said, “We’ve been separated for many years, and only just now reunited.”

“Oh… So it’s like that…” As they spoke, they remembered the face of Qin Yuemian as he left, as if he was preparing to watch a very entertaining play, causing them to suspect something was wrong. Rolling their eyes laughing, they said, “That’s good news. Ah-Mian was acting so mysterious earlier that we thought you two were going to cheat someone.”

Wenren Heng knew this group of people very well and so, in simple terms, explained what had happened, saying, “My Junior Brother and I each had one piece of that jade pendant. Ah-Mian saw the jade pendant on my Junior Brother and thought I had gifted my own to him.”

The two people who knew the truth silently looked at him for a moment.

What Qin Yuemian thought was, Your Junior Brother is this frightening, and yet you dare to tell such a bald-faced lie in front of his face. Aren’t you afraid he’ll suspect that everything you told him before was also a lie?

Ye You’s thoughts were deeper than that. He understood that Wenren Heng didn’t want these people to suspect him like Qin Yuemian did, and he might’ve even been afraid that they would cause a ruckus resulting in an accident, so he simply skipped over the entire matter of losing the jade pendant.

As expected, these people’s curiosities were fully satisfied. Seeing that, Wenren Heng seized the opportunity to change the subject, and they tactfully followed his new train of conversation.

Ye You sat quietly and found that Wenren Heng’s standing amongst these people was fairly high, most likely occupying a “leader” position. His curiosity about the other’s identity rose even more. At this time, he saw a person from the other side pick up a jug of wine from a desk and place it on the stone table with a slight clunk.

The entire wine jug was a milky white, with an elaborate calligraphic “Wind[1]” printed in gold on its body, drawn with bold and confident strokes, as if it could fly away at any moment.

In the blink of an eye, a name flashed through Ye You’s mind, and he said, “Fengzui[2].”

Almost at the same time, Qin Yuemian also shouted, “Fengzui!”

The person who grabbed the wine jug laughed, raising his eyebrows. “I especially brought it here to drink. Generous, right?”

In his heart, Qin Yuemian laughed a bit. He was very aware of these scoundrels’ habit of counting chickens before they hatch.

This entertaining play of Wenren Heng’s would be hard to come by even with eight hundred years[3]. Just like how Qin Yuemian wanted to see it, these people would definitely also not want to miss it. Wenren Heng could never resist alcohol, so in order to bypass his defenses, they brought the “Fengzui” that’s more valuable than gold, in order to bribe him.

These people were all rich young masters, willingly prodigal children. Qin Yuemian obviously wasn’t going to stand on ceremony, and immediately instructed a servant to fetch wine cups, itching to pour out a round.

The mellow and rich scent of the wine quickly wafted through the air, stirring up the nerves. Ye You twitched his nose and, lifting up his cup, took a small sip of the wine. Closing his eyes in satisfaction, he said, “It’s the ‘Thirteen Beauties‘[4].”

The group gaped in astonishment. The person who brought the wine quickly said, “Very good, this really is Fengzui’s ‘Thirteen Beauties’. So Junior Brother Ah-Xiao also likes drinking wine?”

Ye You didn’t remember if he liked it or not, so he simply said, “Sometimes. The taste of the ‘Thirteen Beauties’ is very distinctive.”

“That’s true. Within Fengzui, ‘Thirteen Beauties’ is in a league of its own,” the wine-bringing lad said as he laughed, “Many say that the ‘Thirteen Beauties’ and ‘Earth’s Karma‘[5] are similar. But let me say that the two are very different. Using Sect Leader Ye’s words, only when there are more than two people will it be hard to tell the two apart.”

Hearing how he kept bringing up Sect Leader Ye, Ye You thought it strange and gave him a look.

Upon seeing this, the group said, “Junior Brother Ah-Xiao is laughing at us. If Young Master Li doesn’t talk about Sect Leader Ye for several times a day, his whole body starts feeling unwell. And as soon as he can bring up anything even remotely related to Sect Leader Ye, he’ll miraculously get better.”

Young Master Li groaned. “I just like him, so what?”

Ye You thought it very strange.

He’d already heard from the servants these past few days that Xunliu Manor was part of the righteous faction. These people were the Manor Lord’s friends, so they should also be part of the righteous faction. Weren’t the righteous faction and the demonic faction like oil and water? And so, plainly speaking, wasn’t he afraid that he’ll be seen as part of the demonic faction by others?

He pushed down his questions and drank another mouthful of wine, not continuing the conversation.

From there, Young Master Li certainly opened up the floodgates. Whining and groaning, he complained about how difficult it was to see Sect Master Ye. Other than the time at Yushan stage, these past few years, he’d seen Sect Master Ye’s shadow only twice, so he might as well actually join the Demonic Sect at this point. The pack of scoundrels weren’t the least bit surprised, and simply spoke a few sentences to heckle Young Master Li, which quickly devolved into a group brawl, with some good-natured ribbing. It was obvious that they were all very close.

Qin Yuemian hadn’t even heard the joke. He silently squeezed his wine cup, no longer in the mood for wine.

Miracle Doctor Ji’s Hundred-Grass Dew was incredibly well-known, so Ah-Xiao remembering it wasn’t out of the ordinary. However, “Fengzui” wasn’t something any ordinary person could drink, so it’s clear that Ah-Xiao previously had a very good livelihood.

His inner suspicions reached their peak.

This person had both intelligence and wealth, and had a face that could move people’s hearts, so how could this man remain so obscure and unknown? How could he have never heard of such a person before?

He couldn’t help but glance at Wenren Heng.

At this moment, Wenren Heng was looking at his Junior Brother, his handsome eyebrows knitted in a faint line. Qin Yuemian immediately felt relieved, thinking that this Lord Sect Master had finally started realizing the significance of this information, only to then see Wenren Heng reach out his hands to stop his Junior Brother before switching out the wine cup for tea.

Wenren Heng urged, “Your body is injured, so you shouldn’t drink alcohol for now. Wait until you’re fully recovered.”

“…” Stupefied, Qin Yuemian diverted his line of sight, gloomily thinking that this Wenren Heng was really good at acting like a concerned Senior Brother… Ah, jeez, you’re really not afraid that this person will hurt you?!

Ye You graciously took the tea.

His previous phrase “Thirteen Beauties” wasn’t just said without thought. After confirming that he hadn’t spoken wrong, he couldn’t help but remember the matter with the Hundred-Grass Dew, and so he turned over the vast sea of his mind for information regarding “Fengzui” before finally digging up the name.

He remembered that the Hundred-Grass Dew was famous and expensive, but he didn’t have a single clue about the identity of the person who made the medicine. If the person wasn’t as well-known as the Hundred-Dew Grass, then that would be understandable, but that wasn’t the case. This situation was the same. He remembered “Fengzui” and could even pick out that it was the “Thirteen Beauties”, but regarding the actual people who made the wine, he had not a single impression.

In other words, he remembered what he heard, what he saw, and what he used in the past, but he didn’t remember any people.

Why?

He unhurriedly drank his tea and started considering the possibility that it was after taking medicine that he started forgetting.

The pitter-patter of the rain slowly came to a stop. The rain had washed the courtyard bright and shining, and a sweet scent lingered in the air after it ceased. This group of people only stopped talking after drinking three cups of wine. Qin Yuemian had originally wanted to invite the group to stay for dinner, but after realizing that they weren’t able to have fun at Wenren Heng’s expense, the group decided to return quickly to see the disgraced face of Shao Yuan as he’s rejected by Lady Tao and so ran away as fast as could be.

Qin Yuemian speechlessly looked at the two people next to him for a moment before picking up the wine jug and leaving.

It’s only now that Wenren Heng had the opportunity to tell his Junior Brother his Sect.

He’s the Sect Master of Shuangji Sect, a sect that he himself built from the ground up. It had been established for about seven or eight years now.

Ye You asked, “Was it difficult?”

Wenren Heng laughed. “This is something you’ll slowly understand in the future. Even if I say it’s difficult, you still won’t fully take it to heart.”

Ye You subconsciously wanted to retort, but seeing the tender smile in his Senior Brother’s eyes and that he hadn’t meant it badly, Ye You ended up tacitly agreeing to his words. He then asked, “Does the name ‘Shuangji’ have any special meaning?”

“Yes. In the past, Master and Martial-Uncle[6]’s reputation in Jianghu was well-known, and they were called ‘Shuangji’. Since I was brought up by them, I decided to name it that.” Wenren Heng looked at him. “Uncle is still alive. In the future when we have the time, I’ll bring you to the capital to visit him.”

Ye You asked, “He lives in the capital?”

“He lives in the residence for high-ranking military officials[7].” Seeing a flash of amazement in Ye You’s eyes, Wenren Heng explained, “Uncle had a thirst for battle, and he had already enlisted in the army much earlier. Ten years ago when Master passed away and you went missing, Uncle rushed over when he heard the news of Master’s passing and brought me back. Aren’t you very curious why that Young Master Li just now was so open with his admiration for Sect Master Ye? He’s actually the son of a prince from the palace and he just came to Jianghu to play. I got to know him at the capital.”

Although his curiosity was actually satisfied, Ye You instead said, “Senior Brother, you guessed wrong. I wasn’t the least bit curious.”

With this retort, Wenren Heng’s mood got even better. “Yes, I guessed wrong.”

Ye You didn’t understand why he was so happy.

Seeing that a servant had come to call them to dinner, Wenren Heng brought his Junior Brother with him out of the pavilion. Speaking not only to Ye You but also to himself, Wenren Heng said, “Back when you were an idiot, you always loved to say that I was wrong. Your Senior Brother found it so nostalgic.”

Ye You, “…”

And right as he had stopped thinking about that problem.

 

Since Ye You was injured, after eating dinner, he went to rest early. This entire afternoon, Qin Yuemian had nearly sustained some deep emotional wounds, and upon seeing them separate, he immediately called Wenren Heng into his study and asked solemnly, “Tell me the truth. Did you really lose the jade pendant?”

Wenren Heng said, “Really. And for quite a few days already.”

Qin Yuemian inwardly drew a breath. The entire foundation for his speculations was based on the loss of that jade pendant. Since it really was lost, then his concerns weren’t wrong. He thus plainly laid out the entirety of his suspicions and remorsefully said, “I’m afraid I fell into someone else’s trap.”

He originally wanted to discuss countermeasures to deal with the situation but was instead met with the quiet laughing of this hypocrite who then went on to placate him with, “There’s no problem. Everything is a coincidence.”

Qin Yuemian almost couldn’t take another breath, feeling like Wenren Heng had stomped all over his good intentions.

Returning to his usual calm and collected demeanor, Wenren Heng said, “Let’s go over that day’s events together.”

With some difficulty, Qin Yuemian let him off and related the entire day’s events all the way through. But the exact details he could remember were few. At the time, the first thing he saw as he entered was the young sir’s face, everything else was a blur. Later, when he saw the pillar fall down, he hastily saved the man and dashed outside, with no time to pay attention to other things.

Frowning, he asked, “What have you decided?”

Wenren Heng said, “I’m going to first bring my Junior Brother to Miracle Doctor Ji to cure his wounds. We’re leaving tomorrow.”

“…” Qin Yuemian asked doubtfully, “He’s really your Junior Brother?”

Wenren Heng said, laughing, “Of course.”

Qin Yuemian still maintained an aura of skepticism. When Wenren Heng stood to return to his room, Qin Yuemian couldn’t help but call out, “Can you tell me something else that’s true? Anything will do as long as it’s about this matter.”

Wenren Heng said, “I can.”

Qin Yuemian perked up. No matter what was done, if Wenren Heng did not want to talk about something, he would never talk about it. So for Qin Yuemian the next best thing was being able to pry even the smallest bit of information from him. Everything else, he’d carefully consider on his own.

But he had underestimated this man. After Wenren Heng spoke, Qin Yuemian still could not guess a single thing, because what Wenren Heng said was, “I especially enjoy hearing him call me Senior Brother. This is the truth.”

Qin Yuemian, “…”

Bullshit! What Disciple-Brothers! You’ve definitely fallen for him!

Wenren Heng knew that his good friend was worried about him, so before he left, he left a few words of comfort, “Don’t worry, you know I’ve suffered before.”

 

When morning came and Ye You heard that they were going to look for Miracle Doctor Ji, he didn’t protest one bit. He’d been living here for half a month and had already been itching to go outside for a walk. Besides, the more people there were, the more news there would be.

In good spirits, he got on the carriage and was pleased throughout the entire slow and steady journey. However, when night came, it felt like a bucket of cold water had been dumped on him when he heard a certain someone asking for only one room.

“We still haven’t found out who injured you, and the outside isn’t as safe as within the Manor. Your Senior Brother wouldn’t feel at ease letting you stay in your own room,” Wenren Heng explained to him with deadly earnestness, “So let’s sleep in one room.”

“…” Ye You lifted up the corners of his mouth and replied, all smiles, “We can, we can. But Senior Brother, I now faintly remember that I prefer men. Senior Brother is so handsome. If, in the middle of the night, I couldn’t restrain myself and did something to you, I’d have to beg for Senior Brother’s forgiveness.”

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[1] 風 (fēng)

[2] 風醉 lit. wind intoxication. Though in this case, I suspect the 風 might be a lowkey reference to 瘋 (they sound the same), as in crazy. Meaning [wine that will make you] crazily intoxicated. But that’s just a guess.

[3] Hope this makes sense. They’re talking about how even if they waited another 800 years, it’d be near impossible to see Wenren Heng act the way he currently is with Ye You (being all kind and caring), so they all want to witness it.

[4] 十三佳 I know nothing about alcohol and honestly did not know how to translate this, so I gave it my best guess. Best I figure, it’s some kind of vintage maybe?

[5] 塵緣 …These hecking alcohol names, I can’t even. I don’t know!!

[6] 師伯 As in, their Master’s older brother. I’m just going to shorten it to “Uncle” from now on.

[7] 將軍府 There’s probably some kind of official name for this kind of residence, but my google-fu is weak, so I just translated it directly.

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Oh boy, we’re getting r o o m – s h a r i n g next. What will happen? Will there be bed-sharing? Hugs? Accidentally kicking someone off the bed because of bad sleeping posture?? Stay tuned for the next installment of narcissistic amnesiac and his doting senior brother to find out!!

(P.S. I actually have no idea what’s going to happen either. I’m reading as I translate, so I’m also finding things out at the same time. Exciting!)

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