Chapter Ninety-One: A Clever Ruse

When one is alone, time always seems to pass more slowly than expected; perhaps that is the mind playing its tricks. It was especially so for someone like Han Tanyi, who even moving a finger seemed difficult. Such thoughts were only natural. The bowl of medicine had been set not far away, and even now it still gave off a faint warmth. Though it had mellowed a great deal, it had not yet gone cold, which meant Shao Changchun had not been gone long. Yet to him it felt as though an age had passed, so long that lying there upon the bedstead had become uncomfortable, leaving him sore and stiff. He had no wish to drink the medicine, so he simply let it remain where it was. He still had little strength in his body and had no intention of struggling up from the bed. So he waited.

Whether it was because the room was too silent, or for some other reason, when Shao Changchun returned, his steps were light, yet Han Tanyi could still hear them clearly. He kept his eyes closed and did not look over. In Shao Changchun’s hands was also a bundle. Though wrapped in paper, the faint, lingering aroma of meat that seeped through it was enough to tell the hungry youth what it was. He was far too hungry, so hungry that he had become acutely sensitive to such things. And there was more: the scent of wine was drifting from the jug in Shao Changchun’s hand as well. Those two aromas intertwined, and for any wanderer of the martial world, the temptation would have been hard to resist.

Of course, Shao Changchun seemed to have expected the medicine to remain untouched. It had never been anything good to begin with. Not only did it smell foul, it was bitter beyond measure. If it had been him, under such circumstances, he would never have sought out that sort of suffering.

“So Xingyang City really is a backwater,” he muttered. “There’s nothing good here. Even the finest wine and meat sold at Homecoming Tower are only so-so. They smell so unappetizing that one can only make do with them!”

It was hard to tell whether he was speaking to himself or to Han Tanyi. Shao Changchun did not approach the bed at all, and did not even glance in that direction. Instead, he walked straight to the Buddha statue. The altar and the like were old and worn, but with a little tidying, placing a few things there would not be difficult. Homecoming Tower was by no means an ordinary place. It was well known not only throughout Xingyang City, but across the ten surrounding states and eight counties as well. And what Shao Changchun had bought was the very best that place had to offer.

It was springwater chicken and clear spring wine. The names alone sounded plain enough, with nothing particularly remarkable about them. Shao Changchun slowly unwrapped the paper, and what was revealed looked equally unassuming, hardly something that would tempt anyone at first glance. But that was only an illusion. Han Tanyi had once eaten it himself, and if there were anything in Xingyang City he could never forget, it would most likely be this springwater chicken.

At first glance, it seemed as though it had been boiled, but a closer look showed plainly that it had been roasted. Chicken itself was already a fine thing, its flesh fragrant and tender, yet resilient and full of character, making it one of the best meats for roasting. Since it was roasted chicken, why was it called springwater chicken? There was a story behind that. If one ate only the chicken, the flavor was indeed good enough. But when paired with the clear spring wine from Homecoming Tower, it became an entirely different delight. The wine stirred the palate and made every sensation more vivid; the chicken’s fragrant tenderness and crisp succulence rose to an even finer level, while the texture of the meat in turn deepened the wine’s richness. Back and forth they played off each other, a pleasure too subtle for words.

Of course, whether it was the wine or the meat, even the sauce and the liquor were blended with water from Jade Wave Spring on North Mountain outside Xingyang. Mountain water was always pure and secluded by nature, but more wondrous still was the spring itself, which carried a faint sweetness in its coolness. Looking across the world, there was probably only this one place with such a distinctive spring. It was precisely for this reason that Homecoming Tower had forged its legendary pair of chicken and wine specialties. Whatever sort of person came to Xingyang City, it was hard to imagine anyone failing to pay a visit to Homecoming Tower. Otherwise, they would truly have come in vain. And yet here was Shao Changchun, complaining endlessly all the same, with all the flair of a born performer.

He tore off a chicken leg, the most meat-rich part of the bird. It was already fragrant enough, and once separated, all the aroma trapped within the flesh burst out at once. Together with the open wine jug, the scents of wine and meat drifted through the air, mingling and alternating, making Shao Changchun feel thoroughly content. For Han Tanyi, however, it was nothing short of torment. With his eyes closed, his nose seemed only more sensitive. Had he never been to Homecoming Tower, perhaps he might still have endured the temptation. But he had been there. The aromas seeped into him through his nostrils, and memories of those days rose unbidden in his mind. Add to that the gnawing emptiness in his stomach, and it felt as though countless ants were biting at him, leaving him restless and unbearably itchy. Yet if he opened his eyes, what met them would only be more difficult to bear. And Shao Changchun’s position was arranged so conveniently that Han Tanyi could see it all too clearly. He almost wished he could snatch it over at once and take huge bites.

“Ah, so much for the finest in the realm. In my view, that’s all just a heap of nonsense. It doesn’t even taste that great. Honestly, it’s downright deceptive. Better to throw it away.”

Shao Changchun took a light bite. That small act alone was enough to draw a swallowing sound from Han Tanyi’s throat. Yet the other man seemed dissatisfied, his face showing a trace of disdain. With a sharp sweep of his arm, he flung the chicken leg through a crack in the wall and out of sight in one swift motion. That gesture was as though he were proving that his heart truly matched his words. At that moment, Han Tanyi could no longer tell what he was really thinking. But that was not all. Shao Changchun suddenly stood, wrapped the whole chicken back up in the paper, and made as if to carry it outside. The discarded chicken leg had already left Han Tanyi feeling unbearably regretful. Seeing that motion, as if he truly meant to throw everything away, he could not possibly endure it. The restraint he had been forcing on himself finally broke, and he called out anxiously, “Don’t throw away such good food!”

“What good food? If I think it’s no good, then it’s no good. Since you don’t need it anyway, I might as well throw it out. It’ll save me from looking at it and getting annoyed. And there’s this bowl of medicine too. I went to all that trouble to get it, spent the effort to boil it, and yet someone doesn’t appreciate the kindness. Fine, I might as well dump it all!”

With that, Shao Changchun walked straight toward the medicine bowl. Only then did Han Tanyi understand. So all this had been for the sake of the medicine. Setting aside everything else, though his heart was full of discomfort, being cared for by someone like this still brought a certain warmth. If he hurt the man’s feelings too much, it would seem he was being overly precious about the matter.

Thinking this, he suddenly reached out. He had meant to take the medicine bowl, but perhaps because his body was too weak, his hand moved slowly and missed by a hair. Instead of the bowl, his fingers caught Shao Changchun’s arm.

It was a somewhat awkward moment, and both men felt it. In Han Tanyi’s eyes, Shao Changchun was a man, and precisely because of that, such a gesture between men felt rather improper. As for Shao Changchun, he was merely using this guise to conceal himself. His face flushed faintly red. Fortunately, both reacted quickly: one let go at once, the other hastily pulled back. Even so, the atmosphere remained still and subdued for a moment.

At last Han Tanyi gave a slight smile and said in some haste, “Who said I wasn’t going to drink it? I was just waiting for the medicine to cool.”

Though he had been awake for some time, his face had been clouded with gloom the whole while. Only then did the first trace of a smile appear. But the expression vanished almost as soon as it came. His face soon returned to its former state, whether from sorrow in his heart or from the foul smell rising from the medicine bowl. Still, matters had come this far, and there was no way for him to retreat now.

Of course, lying there made drinking rather inconvenient. Shao Changchun adjusted his own feelings a little, letting the lingering embarrassment fade, and then gently helped Han Tanyi sit up. With his other hand, he handed over the bowl. “The medicine has cooled now. Drink it quickly.”

Since it had been said that far, there was no way to take it back. Though he remained somewhat unwilling in his heart, Han Tanyi still accepted the bowl. Clenching his teeth as though making some great resolve, he swallowed it down in one gulp. By the time he set the bowl aside, only a little dregs remained at the bottom. Medicine was, after all, bitter. A trace of misery could not help but show on Han Tanyi’s face, and even his brow was tightly furrowed. Yet in Shao Changchun’s eyes, a faint smile seemed to spread almost imperceptibly between his brows.