Chapter 4: Low-Key or High-Key

Du Shoushou's face turned even redder; he was already drunk before he had a drink. He grabbed the wine jug and was about to pour it into his mouth, but after a moment's thought, he realized that would be somewhat impolite. He took a cup and poured a glass for An Zheng, then he himself tilted the wine jug and took a big gulp. The first sip made him choke, and after coughing a few times, fearing that Aunt Ye would look down on him, he deliberately puffed out his chest and said, "What a fine wine!"

Aunt Ye smiled, resembling a peach blossom in full bloom. She walked into the kitchen with a waist as slender as a willow branch, and before long, she emerged carrying a large plate of cooked beef and a jug of wine. After placing the items on the table, she said: "The meat is hard to come by, so no haggling. This jug is a gift for you, as you are all so beautiful; when you grow up, you will surely become enchanting men."

Du Shoushou slapped the table and said, "I want to drink!"

Du Shoushou pressed her lips together and asked, "How can I pretend that it is not my first time dining at a tavern? And how can I appear to be very wealthy and extravagant?"

An Zheng's heart warmed, and he patted Du Shoushou's shoulder: "Don't worry, I'm not that easy to kill. From today onwards, we are brothers. If you have a meal, I will share half of it; if you have a piece of clothing, I will share half of it. Through wind and rain, we will be good brothers for life."

An Zheng reached out and wrapped his arm around Du Shoushou's neck, playfully pulling him forward. As they walked, he laughed and said, "Do you want me to force you to reveal the incident of me carrying you to secretly watch Xiao Qi's mother take a bath?"

An Zheng smiled and said, "Good day, Aunt Ye. We are here to eat meat; as for the wine, let's skip it."

Du Shoushou scratched his head: "An Zheng... are you really An Zheng?"

As An Zheng walked to the entrance of the tavern, he couldn't help but exclaim in admiration at the character for 'wine.' The former An Zheng would have certainly failed to discern any significance in this character, but the current An Zheng was different. There was a fierce and dominating essence within this character, as if it were alive, ready to leap off the banner at any moment

Good word

An Zheng walked along while gently stroking the cat, which gradually calmed down. It lifted its head and looked at An Zheng with its beautiful big eyes, filled with gratitude, displaying a remarkable understanding of human emotions

Aunt Ye heard someone enter, and upon seeing two half-grown children, she was momentarily taken aback. Then she bent down, squinting her eyes to speak: "Gentlemen, there is no candy here, only wine."

Aunt Ye felt that this young man had a very special temperament, and his way of speaking did not resemble that of a child. Moreover, she sensed that there seemed to be some extraordinary power hidden within him, which led her to instinctively glance at An Zheng a bit longer. At that moment, a sudden commotion erupted outside, and Gao Di, who was missing an ear, came running over with a group of young people around seventeen or eighteen years old.

An Zheng lowered his head to examine the clothes he was wearing, then glanced at Du Shoushou's attire, and with a hint of resignation, said: "You are overthinking it... I think it would be better this way. Once we arrive, let's see what others are eating; whatever everyone is having must be quite delicious."

Du Shoushou immediately laughed when he heard An Zheng say this: "You must not tell anyone, if Old Lady Ye finds out that I have seen her backside, wouldn't she skin me alive? Who in Nanshan Street doesn't know that Old Lady Ye is not to be trifled with?"

Her gaze was once again drawn to the several kittens in An Zheng's arms, which had been cleaned up considerably, and she couldn't help but exclaim: "What beautiful cats, they are unlike ordinary ones"

Aunt Ye cast a glance at Du Shoushou with a knowing look that suggested she was aware they dared not drink alcohol, resting her chin on her hand and leaning low over the counter: "I thought two little men had come, but it turns out they are just two little gluttons. So, did you steal some silver from home to come buy meat? Be careful, or your parents will come looking for you, and we'll see if you get beaten or not"

An Zheng suddenly sighed: "How similar this is to the human world, where the weak suffer from bullying. This cat seems to have lost its mother since it was young, which is quite pitiful. I might as well take it in as a companion, after all, I am the only one at home."

An Zhengduan took another sip from his wine glass and squinted as he looked out the window

Du Shoushou exclaimed loudly as if she were being discriminated against: "We are here just to drink!"

An Zhengxin remarked that this guy would definitely suffer losses with women in the future, as it seemed he had no resistance to beautiful women at all. He smiled, raised his glass, took a sip, and then his expression changed: "This... truly has a conscience!"

It seems that when speaking, this cat is even more important to her than An Zheng and Du Shoushou combined

Du Shoushou usually displays great spirit in the classroom, but upon seeing Madam Ye, he feels a tremor in his heart and instinctively hides behind An Zheng. An Zheng, on the other hand, shows no particular reaction and appears quite calm; however, his eyes involuntarily glance at Madam Ye's bosom, first passing over and then circling back for another look.

The quality of flatulence, whether good or bad, cannot be judged by sight, but only by smell

Du Shoushou nodded vigorously and said a word of agreement, only to realize afterwards: "Why does what you say sound so awkward"

The fur was originally supposed to be snow white, yet the fine hairs on all four paws are a deep red. The kitten's eyes are also quite peculiar; upon closer inspection, it seems as if there is a star swirling within each eye

An Zheng weighed the silver in his hand: "This amount of money should be enough for us to have a good meal at Aunt Ye's. Now let's quickly think about what we want to eat; we must not show any hesitation later."

An Zheng and Du Shoushou walked shoulder to shoulder along Nanshan Street, when a commotion by the roadside caught their attention. An Zheng glanced over and discovered that several fierce dogs had cornered a dirty stray cat. The little cat appeared to be no more than a few months old, curled up and trembling, perhaps just a second away from being torn apart by the vicious dogs.

After entering the door, An Zheng looked around. At this hour, it was likely not yet mealtime, so there were not many people. Three tables had patrons seated beside them, all of whom were, without exception, staring intently at Aunt Ye behind the counter. Today, Aunt Ye was wearing a long dress in deep purple. Although it was not revealing, her enchanting and curvaceous figure was perfectly accentuated by the dress.

It seems that in this unremarkable place, living quietly is not an easy task. I originally intended to recuperate here discreetly, but it appears that is not feasible. To achieve tranquility, one must first make a bold statement to deter these ruffians from bothering oneself again.

An Zheng smiled: "I would appreciate it if you could make an exception and sell it to me at a lower price..."

An Zheng turned his head and smiled apologetically at Aunt Ye: "Could you please bring a pot of wine"

Du Shoushou slapped the table again and said: "One pot is not enough! I want to drink ten pots!"

No

An Zheng said solemnly: "This water is actually mixed with wine, a regular tavern would never be so generous!"

Madam Ye had encountered many men who coveted her beauty, but it was the first time she had seen such a large boy being so lecherous. The fat man behind clearly belonged to the type who had the heart of a thief but lacked the courage, while the one in front appeared somewhat frail; however, the look in his eyes was anything but childlike, resembling that of an adult who had endured many hardships. Upon seeing such a gaze, Madam Ye was slightly taken aback. She had initially thought that An Zheng was a little lecher with untrustworthy eyes, but after taking a closer look, she realized that there was not a trace of wickedness in An Zheng's eyes.

Aunt Ye, who had already turned back, couldn't help but pause her steps and turned to An Zheng to ask: "What true conscience?"

Du Shoushou does not believe that An Zheng can discern the quality of the characters: "What the hell can you tell about good or bad!"

He stepped forward, and the few vicious dogs turned to look at him, lowering their heads and emitting a threatening growl. An Zheng's gaze merely sharpened slightly, and suddenly, all the vicious dogs were so frightened that they collapsed right there, not daring to move, and even urinated in fear

Aunt Ye glared at him fiercely and said, "Do you believe that I can twist your ears off right now and sell them as boiled pig ears?"

Xiao Qidao's mother is a widow, living alone with her child in a place like the Illusory World Changju City. Logically, it should be quite difficult for her to survive there, but in fact, very few people in Nanshan Street dare to provoke her. Even the members of the Nine Great Bandits treat Xiao Qidao's mother with courtesy. It is rumored that she is a practitioner who has hidden away here to avoid calamity.

When Aunt Ye was momentarily lost in thought, Du Shoushou mistakenly believed he was being looked down upon. He stretched his neck from behind An Zheng and said: "We are not here to buy candy; we have long since stopped eating candy! We are here to drink... Yes! We are here to drink! Just bring out whatever good wine you have, and do not think that we are young and can be looked down upon."

How could this young man have such a pair of eyes

An Zheng lifted the curtain and walked in. Du Shoushou felt a bit nervous for the first time entering such a tavern. Usually, he would walk boldly in front while An Zheng carefully followed behind. Today, however, the roles were reversed.

An Zheng approached closely, cradling the seemingly frightened kitten in his arms, and gently stroked it a few times, yet the kitten remained in a state of shock. This kitten was quite dirty, with a considerable amount of grime on its fur. As An Zheng walked, he cleaned it up, and upon closer inspection, he discovered that the kitten was actually very beautiful.

Especially that towering bosom, it is simply a lamp, and the eyes of those guests are like moths.

Aunt Ye glanced at Du Shoushou but did not say anything further. Du Shoushou felt insulted, his chest heaving as he gasped for breath. An Zheng quietly tugged at him, leading him to sit down at the table by the window, and lowered his voice to say: "You are just a child, why bother arguing with an adult..."

Du Shoushou gave a thumbs up: "You were knocked out by them once, and now your mind seems to have opened up. But you really scared me just now; you are my only friend on Nanshan Street. If you were to die, I would be all alone in the future"

Du Shoushou straightened her chest and then pointed at An Zheng: "He has!"

Du Shoushou pulled An Zheng and said: "Let's go, those vicious dogs can't find food, so they will take the weak stray cats as supplements, nothing unusual about that"

In any case, the matters of the practitioners are very distant from them; they only know that the mother of Xiao Qidao is exceptionally beautiful. No one along Nanshan Street is more beautiful than her, with that bosom, that waist, that curvaceous figure, and that face imbued with a hint of charm, completely unlike a woman who has given birth. Xiao Qidao is only four years old, speaking in a soft, childlike voice, and is also exceptionally beautiful, resembling a porcelain doll.

Du Shoushou kept glancing at An Zheng along the way, her eyes filled with curiosity. An Zheng walked while looking around, observing the environment of Nanshan Street. He would be staying here for a long time; at least until his strength was restored to a certain level, he would not leave easily. He noticed Du Shoushou stealing glances at him and couldn't help but smile: "Are you admiring me?"

An Zheng laughed heartily: "Oh dear, can we not be so pedantic with our words? We are not scholars, as long as the meaning is roughly the same, that is sufficient"

Aunt Ye let out a sound: "You child, your words do make sense. Looking at your attire, you don't seem to be from a wealthy family. Since that's the case, be mindful; after you eat your fill, remember to take the leftover silver home to support your parents. You all seem to be in your teens, not exactly ignorant, perhaps you are just really craving it."

Big brother, it was that kid sitting by the window who cut off my ear, and he said that bullies are just a bunch of little kids playing house, he looks down on you

An Zhengdao said: "Do you see us like this? Does it look like we can steal money from home? This silver is a reward from Mr. Liu at the school for our good performance."

Aunt Ye is the term used by the people on Nanshan Street to refer to Xiao Qi's mother. At first glance, one might think she is an elderly woman, but in reality, Aunt Ye is likely no older than twenty-five. She runs a small tavern at one end of Nanshan Street, and due to her beauty and outgoing personality, her business is quite good. However, everyone knows that the alcohol served in Aunt Ye's tavern is mostly watered down. Most of the patrons who go there do so to catch a glimpse of Aunt Ye herself, and the quality of the alcohol is of little concern to them. It is well known that the alcohol in Aunt Ye's tavern is generally diluted with water, yet most who visit are more interested in seeing Aunt Ye than in the quality of the drinks.

Aunt Ye squinted her eyes, her beautiful gaze curving into a pair of crescent moons: "Drinking is good, do you have any money?"

Two people, chatting and laughing, arrived at one end of Nanshan Street. The small shop at the corner is Ye Danniang's, which has no name, just a flag hanging at the entrance with the character for 'wine' written on it. Du Shoushou can read, but cannot discern any charm in the character; they all just feel that this character for 'wine' has a certain imposing presence. It looks less like a single character and more like the silhouette of a chivalrous figure, wielding a wine gourd and roaming the world with a sword.

Du Shoushou was momentarily taken aback, then burst into laughter. He noticed that An Zheng was particularly interesting in his speech today, quite unlike his previous self who was always submissive and lacked opinions. In the past, An Zheng would never speak up; if others said one, he would not say two, if they said east, he would not say west, and he certainly would not take the initiative to express his views on any matter. To Du Shoushou, the former An Zheng was like a ball being kicked around by others.