Chapter 36: He Drinks the Bejewelled Nectar, I Taste the Ice Heart Jade Urn
Translator: OnGoingWhy Editor: Vermillion
The hoa.r.s.e voice contained a slight chill and was rough like sandpaper.
Yearning and eagerness could be detected from the other party"s tone.
"There"s wine, of course," Bu Fang nodded and said. He wanted to slowly enjoy the wine, but since there was a customer, he put down the wine cup from his hands.
That man delightedly stepped into the store, sat down at a table, and hoa.r.s.ely said, "Owner, give me a jar of wine."
Bu Fang expressionlessly acknowledged with a nod. Then he turned to look at the menu and there was a new dish on it.
"Ice Heart Jade Urn Wine, fifteen crystals per jar."
"It"s only fifteen crystals? It"s really not expensive." Bu Fang was startled, but quickly understood the reason. Even though the Ice Heart Jade Urn Wine was a fine wine, the ingredients used were not that expensive compared to the other dishes.
It"s only selling point was the tedious manufacturing process of the Nine Brewing Method. As for the ingredients, they were considered ordinary. The rice used was a superior type of spirit rice, but was not much better than the Pearl Rice used in Egg-Fried Rice.
"System, isn"t the price too cheap?" Bu Fang silently asked the system.
"The price set by the system is reasonable. It is determined by the combination of ingredients, process, and time. The Ice Heart Jade Urn Wine is still a mundane wine after all, so the price won"t be too high. Compared to fruit wine and spirit wine made from high grade ingredients, there"ll still be quite a difference in price. Fifteen crystals is already the maximum for a mundane wine," the system solemnly explained.
Bu Fang nodded to indicate that he understood.
"The Ice Heart Jade Urn Wine will cost fifteen crystals per jar," Bu Fang expressionlessly said to the man wearing the bamboo hat.
"Fifteen crystals?" The man seemed to be slightly surprised. It seemed slightly ridiculous for a jar of wine to cost fifteen crystals. However, when he looked at the menu, he became silent.
After a while, he said, "I"ll have a jar. When I pa.s.sed by the alleyway earlier on, I was suddenly attracted by the smell of a rich wine aroma that was drifting out. I hope the wine here is worthy of its price."
Quality goods did not need advertising. The corner of Bu Fang"s mouth slightly curled up.
"You won"t be disappointed by my wine," Bu Fang confidently replied. Then he walked back into the kitchen and took out a jar of Ice Heart Jade Urn Wine from a cupboard.
The small earthen jar was actually not that big and was even smaller than the ordinary jars used to store wine. Bu Fang placed the jar of wine in front of the man wearing the bamboo hat and simply said, "Here"s your wine."
The man nodded, then slowly took off his black-veiled bamboo hat and finally unveiled his face.
Bu Fang was slightly surprised by the other party"s facial features. Just from looking at the profile, the man seemed familiar to him.
As the other party took off the bamboo hat, a beautiful with a refined aura was revealed. He had a handsome face with eyes as bright as stars and a mouth that smiled naturally.
"That"s right! This guy actually resembles that sissy, Xiao Xiaolong!"
"Owner, why are you looking at me like that?" The man chuckled and hoa.r.s.ely asked.
"You look familiar, that"s all. Enjoy your drink," Bu Fang expressionlessly replied. Then he sat down and began to enjoy his own cup of wine.
The man was unconcerned as well. His throat slightly moved as he removed the cloth cover of the wine jar.
A rich wine aroma instantly gushed out like the eruption of a volcano and rushed through his nostrils into the depths of his heart. He was wholeheartedly indulging in the aroma.
He started pouring the wine into the blue and white porcelain wine cup given by Bu Fang. The crystal-clear wine was as pristine as clear springs found in deep mountains and was not murky in the slightest.
"Good wine!" the man was unable to suppress his joy as he softly exclaimed. Then he carefully lifted up the wine cup and slowly drank from it.
As the wine flowed down his throat, it instantly opened up the pores in his body. He violently exhaled as his eyes lit up and were filled with incredulity.
He was completely captivated by the rich aroma and the ice and fire feeling of the wine.
"Good wine! It"s comparable to the Bejewelled Nectar Wine from the imperial palace!" the man praised it once more.
It was strong, mellow, and aromatic! It was even able to stimulate the true energy within the body! It was definitely worth more than the fifteen crystals!
"Haha! I didn"t think that I would be able to find such a fine wine, I am really lucky! They"re drinking the Bejewelled Nectar in the palace, while I am tasting the Ice Heart Jade Urn here. I am not losing out at all." The man laughed and poured another cup of wine. Drinking it down in one go, the spiciness in his throat caused a touch of redness to appear on his fair skin.
Bu Fang was much more refined as he pleasantly sipped from the wine cup. His drinking capacity was not that good, so he only filled a small cup of wine.
"Owner, do you have any dish that goes well with wine?" the man finished a cup of wine, then turned to Bu Fang—who was sipping from the wine cup—and asked.
"No," Bu Fang simply replied.
A slight disappointment appeared on his face, but quickly disappeared as he continued with his drinking.
"Why are you still open for business today? Why didn"t you go to watch the homecoming of the Great General Xiao Meng?" the man asked Bu Fang. He was much more talkative after drinking a few cups of wine.
"What does his homecoming have to do with me?" Bu Fang calmly replied.
The man suddenly went into a daze, then started laughing and seemed to be really happy.
"The owner is a hot-blooded person. Let me give you a toast." The man laughed and drank down a cup of wine.
Bu Fang remained expressionless as he continued to leisurely sip from his wine cup.
Someone once said that there were two methods to drink wine. The first method was purely drinking the wine. It was just pouring the wine into the mouth and tasting the mellowness.
The other method was drinking emotions instead of wine. Drinking wine when having different emotions would produce different tastes. That was how a person who truly knew wine would drink.
When someone drank when he was in love, he would be overjoyed. When someone drank when he was angry, he would be daunting even if he was not angry. When someone drank when he was sorrowful, he would become melancholy. When someone drank when he was happy, he would not be able to stop drinking.
"That"s right, what does his homecoming have to do with you? No matter how glorious he is, he"s still an executioner with blood-stained hands. He"s still just a sharp blade in the hands of Ji Changfeng." The man suddenly became melancholy as he rapidly drank cup after cup.
"This is someone with a story," Bu Fang blinked and thought as he continued to sip from his wine cup.
After that, the man spoke very little as he continued to constantly pour and drink the wine. Soon, a jar of Ice Heart Jade Urn Wine was finished and the man seemed to be slightly intoxicated as his eyes turned cloudy.
The intensity of the Ice Heart Jade Urn Wine was unimaginable for Bu Fang. He might be able to drink half a jar of ordinary wine, but he would only be able to drink three cups of the Ice Heart Jade Urn Wine at most.
However, this man was able to completely finish the entire jar and was only slightly intoxicated. His drinking capacity was truly shocking.
"Owner, there"s no more wine! Get me another jar," the man said with a frown.
"Each person is limited to one jar," Bu Fang simply replied. He was also finished with the cup of wine in his hands and his face was slightly flushed.
The man banged on the table with his hand and lightly belched as dozens of crystals appeared on the table. "Owner, the amount of crystals is not a problem. Get me another jar."
"The store"s rules: each person is limited to one jar," Bu Fang remained unmoved as he expressionlessly replied.
The man frowned, then his hand suddenly banged on the table and the sword that was wrapped up in a rag immediately came out of its sheath.
The cry of the sword incessantly resounded like a dragon"s roar within the store.
The man was holding the sword with one hand as he pointed it at Bu Fang. The tip of the sword was only an inch away from Bu Fang"s nose and he could even feel the chill emanating from it.
Faint gooseb.u.mps instantly covered Bu Fang"s entire body, but he remained expressionless.
"Do you know who I am? Do you really dare to not provide wine to me?" The man teasingly said with a smile.
"Why should I care who you are? Are you trying to cause trouble?" Bu Fang simply replied. Even though the tip of the sword was only an inch away, he remained unmoved by it.
The man watched Bu Fang for a while, then sheathed the longsword and wrapped it back in the rags. The sword energy that was raging within the store moments ago vanished.
"The owner is truly a strange person. Here is thirty crystals, I am reserving tomorrow"s Ice Heart Jade Urn Wine," the man said with a laugh. Then he put on his bamboo hat, slung his longsword behind his back and headed toward the entrance.
As he reached the entrance, he asked, "Does the owner really not know who I am?"
"I don"t know and there"s no need for me to know. Anyone who enters my store is a customer. I"ll welcome anyone as long as they don"t cause trouble," Bu Fang seriously said.
"Hahaha! Good! I, Xiao Yue of the Void Sword Pavilion, acknowledge you as a friend!" The man laughed as he suddenly stepped out of the entrance and disappeared into the windy autumn.
"Xiao Yue? His surname is Xiao..." Bu Fang pondered. However, he pursed his lips and muttered to himself, "What an egoistic fellow. Who acknowledged you as a friend?"
As he finished muttering, the voice of the system suddenly rang out in his mind...