"Haha, good eyesight." Ji Mian laughed even more happily, as if she had found a kindred spirit. She leaned in close to Song Chu and said, "Hua Jin, I think we hit it off, how about going out for a drink today? Let's go to the theater to listen to some opera, I'll cover all expenses."

  "Let's spare the actors, I'm not willing to waste this tender flesh of mine just yet." Song Chu smiled and said, "Why don't we just brew some wine and drink to our heart's content?"

  Ji Mian suddenly found Song Chu Yi interesting and immediately turned around to invite everyone, "Let's go, let's all go have a drink together, to welcome Hua Jin back!"

  The guests' time is generally very free, and it's not required to sit in the house all the time. When going out, just report your whereabouts, so that Tetsuya can find you whenever he wants.

  It just so happened that it snowed today, which was perfect for drinking. So, after some discussion, everyone decided to go to a tavern they often frequented.

  At the beginning of the Song Dynasty, a servant was invited to take care of Zichao and Ziya's food, and then went out with them.

  But on the matter of transportation, Song ChuYi and Nan Qi had differing opinions. Song ChuYi suggested riding horses, while Nan Qi insisted on taking a carriage. At an impasse, Nan Qi simply got into the horse-drawn carriage, and everyone else followed suit. This was just a small matter, no need to make a fuss about it.

  ……

  After two cups of tea...

  Three carriages without four walls, each with a copper umbrella on top, the wind and snow howling in all directions, moving at an extremely slow pace.

  Nine old and young, huddled in a three-wheeled horse carriage, shivering with fear. Song Chuyi gritted his teeth and glared at Nan Qi, "I said ride horses, but you insisted on taking the carriage. Now you can open your belly and drink in the wind and snow to your heart's content!"

  "Ignorance! Is riding a horse something that people with status can do?" He picked it up, still holding his posture while shaking his lips.

  In the Spring and Autumn period, people with some status would not ride horses, which they considered a very shameful behavior. By the end of the Warring States period, as single riding was used in warfare, it gradually became popular, and many scholars also chose to ride horses when traveling.

  "Zhou Tianzi rides a horse and he is still Zhou Tianzi! A jester rides a carriage with seven horses and he is still a jester!" Song Chuyi said coldly.

  Nan Qi's eyes blazed with anger as soon as he heard this, "I'm telling the truth, why are you insulting me! This is an insult to my dignity!"

  Song Chuoyi was not willing to show weakness, "I'm just talking about reason, it's metaphorical! You insist on applying it to yourself, can I stop you? Which country has ever issued an order prohibiting scholars from using this kind of rhetoric?"

  Although Song Chu-yi's words seem to be strong and unreasonable, sometimes scholars would tell stories with hidden meanings to advise those in power, and when the words are severe, the metaphors wouldn't sound so pleasant.

  "Two Taoist masters, can you also take care of the common people who are in a desperate situation?" Ji Mian shrunk into a corner, stuttering and interrupting.

  Nan Qi let out a cold snort and turned his head away. Song Chu buried her face in her sleeve, also falling silent.

  They were seated in the carriage according to their age, otherwise how could Song Chuyi be sitting in the same carriage as Nan Qi.

  Ji Mian turned her head and took a look, behind the horse-drawn carriage, Xi Hong, Hui Shu Yun and Ji Yan were grinning from ear to ear, watching the commotion with their hands clasped together. He couldn't help but laugh and say, "The three of you, swallowing wind and snow, have an exceptionally elegant demeanor!"

  The three of them smiled and bowed their hands, saying "You're overpraising!"

  The horses pulled a very heavy bronze carriage, against the wind in the snow for about two moments, and finally arrived at the tavern they said.

  A dark brown wine flag fluttered in the wind and snow, with a loud noise, on which a big "wine" character was strong and powerful.

  A group of people were frozen stiff, and it took them half a while to all get down. Song Chuyi now hated Nan Qi thoroughly - originally they were just going to have a nice drink, but no, he had to put on a show!

  The doors and windows of the tavern had already been hung with thick woolen blankets. The crowd lifted the blankets one after another and walked in continuously.

  By the beginning of the Song Dynasty, one stumble, almost couldn't hold up the weight of the sheepskin. Pushing open the thick sheepskin, as soon as I entered the house, I was immediately enveloped in warmth.

  This is a medium-sized wine shop in Puyang, with two floors. In the main hall, near the north wall, there is a platform that is two feet high and two feet wide. Song Chu looked at it and found that it was actually painted with a chessboard. On both sides of the platform were placed shallow-mouthed ceramic jars containing chess pieces. If you stand at the railing on the second floor, you can watch the game.

  "Gentlemen, are you going to sit in the hall or go to a private room?" A young man came forward and asked their group.

  "Ji Mian Dao, 'Ya She'."

  "Please follow me." The young man led the way in front, leading the nine people to the second floor.

  What is called a "Ya She" is not a four-sided enclosure, but rather a three-sided one with walls on three sides and a curtain on the fourth.

  A group of people brushed off the snow from their bodies, took off their shoes and walked into the elegant house. Ji Meng was shivering beside the small stove used for brewing tea, "I finally know why scholars didn't enter Qin in the past, because they were all afraid of freezing to death."

  "So you're saying that everyone who enters Qin nowadays is fearless?" Hui Shu brushed off the remaining snow on his sleeve.

  "It's not that I'm not afraid of death, it's just that I have guts." Xī Huáng said.

  The princess smiled and said, "Haha, so it seems that those who go to Yue Guo are all cowards!"

  Their words seem to be meaningless jokes, but they actually match the current situation. The Qin state had issued a decree seeking virtuous men during the time of Qin Xiao Gong, and the treatment of knowledgeable scholars was the most generous among the six states. However, the Qin state was poor, and what it could be generous with was only relaxing restrictions on political affairs. Scholars who went to the Qin state would receive unparalleled respect as long as they had practical ideas.

  Although Yue was a large country, it was located in a remote area. The king of Yue was not considered incompetent, but he really wasn't a ruler with talent and foresight.

  "Seven catties of roasted mutton and ten jars of good wine." said Xi Hong.

  "There is Chu wine, Wei wine, Qin wine, Yue wine and Lu wine in the small shop. Which one does the gentleman want?" The young man asked with a smile.

  "Come on, come on, bring one of each, let us taste all the flavors under heaven." Ji Mian shouted.

  "Please wait for a moment." The young man bowed and backed out.

  The wine and meat were soon served. Ji Mian patted Song Chuyi's shoulder, "Hua Jin, you should eat more, being so thin is not good! I heard that many men in An Yi apply lipstick and powder, looking weak and feminine, and are pursued by many young girls, you can't be like this."

  "Right, right." The crowd nodded in agreement, apparently not appreciating that kind of beauty.

  There was a maidservant who brought water for everyone to wash their hands. Nan Qi washed his hands while coldly saying, "Wu Mei doesn't have to worry, from head to toe, she doesn't have any good looks to show off."

  "I don't know where Huaijin offended you, why are you making things difficult for him everywhere?" Song Chuyi asked directly, she didn't want to find fault in everything after eating a full meal, it would be best if they could resolve the issue.

  Nan Qi wiped his hands and looked at her, "I don't like others for no reason."

  At the beginning of the Song Dynasty, it reached an extreme point, and suddenly burst out laughing. After a few laughs, he suddenly became serious and said, "You really are blind to everything! You can't even see that Wei Wang is bullying our country; you can't see that the etiquette and music of the world have collapsed; you can't see that the people are struggling to survive... but you can't tolerate me, Song Huaijin, a small person. Truly, you have character, temperament, breadth of vision, and ambition! It's really eye-opening!"

  Everyone was stunned, and for a long time no one spoke up. Ji Meng's action of putting meat into her mouth froze, and she glanced at Nan Qi's face with the corner of her eye.

  Not just their house, but the surrounding area has also quieted down.