Chapter 20 (1/2)

Chapter 20: Lord Nongyu

I cradled a stack of paper money[1] in my hands, completely senseless…there were also ten brilliant gold leaves resting on the table, their veins and arteries delicately carved distinctly into the metal.

I swallowed a mouthful of drool.

Holding back the urge to jump on it all, I took a good look at the man’s face. He had a rather apologetic smile. “I left in a hurry, so I didn’t bring enough silver taels, but these should be enough to cover the sum of two taels of gold.”

I blinked a few times, poking at the ma.s.s. “This…”

“Please tell us whatever is most convenient, young master.” He was a man with a sagely air, the sparkle in his eyes unusually moving. Occasionally, flashes of well-intentioned feeling flashed in his pupils as he gazed upon me.

I felt like an idiot, my thoughts all awhirl.

Two taels of silver.

In a flash, they’d turned into two taels of gold.

I bit myself, then pinched a corner of my face, twisting the skin.

It hurt…

Then I quickly opened up my sleeves to accept the lot.

“Young master’s temperament is both generous and straightforward. Come, have a drink.” His face was wreathed in smiles as he stood up to pour more wine for me. A sweet fragrance rose from inside his sleeves, mixed with the unique odor that all men had, making me feel a little dizzy.

The more I looked, the more I thought this young master was quite handsome.

“That’s right, it’s been this long but I still don’t know young master’s respected surname?” His magnanimous posture while pouring the wine had the elegant carriage of a young gentleman. It was obvious he had a good grasp of ceremony and propriety.

“Shao…”

He stopped to look at me. My eyes did some quick calculations as I waved the cup between my fingers with a smile. “My surname is Shào, and my given name is Yu[2].”

While in the outside world, one must not only be a ruffian, but act shamelessly when the situation called for it.

If he knew the prices for these pills were so low in the surrounding shops, wouldn’t he find me to cause trouble? I lowered my head to take a sip from my wine cup, raising an eye towards him. “And how shall I call you, young master?”

He smiled as if reading my thoughts. “This one…” He slowly opened his mouth and spat out two words. “Nong…Yu[3].”

Choke.

I didn’t manage to hold it in, and spewed a majestic stream of alcohol.

— [Most up to date translations for this series can be found on volaretranslations.]

I called myself Shào Yu, and he called himself Nongyu (fooling around with Yu).

No matter how I listened to it in my head, it still sounded strange…

He lowered his head to rub off the bits of liquid on his robe as if he didn’t mind a bit. The next time he saw me, his eyes were like limpid pools of water. I shrank back, turning my body as I thought to myself. Was I being too suspicious? No matter how I looked at this, it didn’t seem so simple.

He seemed to have seen through my misgivings, and put down his chopsticks to offer me food. A smile flashed on his face. “I won’t hide it from young master. I’m an imperial physician for the emperor that came here to search for valuable medicinal plants. Unexpectedly, I ran into you…young master is very young, yet you have so many poisons and miracle pills on your person. Thus, I have a presumptuous request.”

He paused then, as if he found it difficult to speak. I lifted my eyelids to peer at him. I didn’t say much, but docilely lowered my head to drink my wine.

It was good alcohol…

Very savory.

Although it wasn’t as clear and sweet as the stuff I brewed for yifu, it had a marvelous strength behind it. I gave it a whiff and smiled until my eyes curved into crescents, pouring myself another cup.

His expression seemed embarra.s.sed as he stammered and sputtered. “I hope that if you have good pills in the future, you can save them for me.”

“No problem…” Two words, succinct and pithy.

An expensive fellow like you offered prices that surpa.s.sed the highest ones from other stores. Who else would I sell to?

He seemed extremely happy. “Young Master Shào really leaves a person refreshed and comfortable. To understand me so well makes me want to swear oaths with you as your sworn brother.”

You’re mental.

We’ve only chattered a few words and you already want to be sworn brothers?

Pfft. Pah! I spat on the ground.

He actually pretended he didn’t see a thing, and reached out with both hands to warmly grab my sleeves, refusing to let me go. His eyes kept a firm stare on my face. I wanted to pull away, but found that I couldn’t.

His eyes were s.h.i.+ning. “I never thought Little Brother Shao’s internal energy was so deep and vast.”

I glanced over and saw his finger resting over one of my acupuncture points.

Curses…

I waved him off and backed up a few steps, clasping my hands together. “It’s nothing, my martial arts skills are shallow at best, not worthy of any mention.”

He laugh good-naturedly and pulled me over again, speaking softly. “Everything in this town is good, besides the people pretending to sell good meat with dog meat[3]… I took a stroll today and actually saw the pharmacies selling the Nine Fragrances Green Tea pill for only three taels of silver, how could that be possible?”

It was actually very possible because Fang Hua usually sold them for one or two taels.

I shot the sky a despicable look, and shrugged off the hand resting on my shoulder.

After expressing his heartfelt sentiments, Nongyu’s feelings turned sober. He grasped my hands and gave a loving glance at the bottle of pills on the table, saying leisurely, “It’s only Brother Shào’s pills that are the genuine article, and himself an honest, upright person.”

— [Most up to date translations for this series can be found on volaretranslations.]

Inside my heart, I was crying.

I felt oppressed to the point of beating my chest with my fists.

Nice people were really easy to swindle. He was certainly a piece of work.

“That’s right, I wanted to ask you about a certain matter.” It seemed like he remembered something. He made a motion to invite me over to my seat, rolling up his sleeves to pour me another cup of wine. As his eyes swept across the scene, they caught on to a sight downstairs, enough to forget the cup of wine even after it overflowed.

“Lord Nongyu?”

“I’m really sorry! Please pardon me–I didn’t splash your robes, did I, Brother Shao?” He withdrew his gaze to mysteriously inspect our surroundings, before scooting closer. “Do you know any men with a mole over this spot?”

He dipped his hands in the wine, a long and slender finger dabbing at a corner of his eye where the tears would flow. I raised my eyebrows in interest.

“You’re looking for someone? It’s rare to see anyone with a mole there.”

Really rare…

He was using his right hand to point at the spot by the right side of his face. Yifu’s mole was under his left eye.

However, even if the mole had been in the exact same place Nongyu indicated, I still wouldn’t have told him anything.

“I’ve heard at court that a legendary person who disappeared around these parts a few decades ago has reappeared. So, I made a special trip just to find them. Do you know…they say there’s a type of beast called a Fang Hua that can take on the appearance of humans? Although I don’t really believe this queer beast exists, I thought I’d give it a look.” He shook his head with a bitter smile. “His Imperial Majesty has been ill these recent years, and no medicines have been effective. An official like me should help to shoulder his lord’s burdens, so I wanted to search the area where the Fang Hua Beast has appeared before to see if there’s any Fang Hua Wood.”

“Isn’t the Fang Hua Wood capable of dispelling a hundred poisons?”

Could it be…

He gave me a surprised look. “Brother Shào really is experienced and knowledgable, you’re even aware of things like this.”

— [Most up to date translations for this series can be found on volaretranslations.]

How could I not know? Everyday, someone prattled off the same things to my ear. I could only clasp my hands and reply modestly, “You’re too kind. As a student of poisons, of course I would know about their natural enemy.”

He smiled in understanding, but I couldn’t smile back. Could it be that the current emperor was suffering from an illness caused by poisoning?

If news of this spread, it’d be hard to keep things peaceful.

With yifu’s temperament… …it was still better to restrict his visits to the outside world.

“Then, how long does Lord Nongyu plan to stay around here?” As I poured myself more wine, my chopsticks picked up another bite and I chewed for a bit.

Only silence greeted me.

I raised my head and saw that he was looking downstairs, an extremely focused expression on his face. My heart skipped a beat. I’m finished. It couldn’t be that yifu had come out for a stroll…and had been spotted by this guy?

But he’d never come by his own will unless the Heavens started flooding the Earth.

It was still hard to be sure…