Starting My Cultivation With Immortality - Chapter 29

Chapter 29 Fish Spring Wine

In the Wenqu Building in the north of the city, across the street from Yuyang Academy.

In addition to the county office, there was also Yuyang Academy and many restaurants here.

Yuyang City was built by the river. The river meandered from the north of the city. The river was wide and the current was rapid.

There was an ancient city wall here. Peaches and plums were planted everywhere. In the third month of spring, flowers bloomed like brocade. Beyond the wall was the Yueshui River. Scholars often brought their beauties here to enjoy themselves.

The restaurants here were doing very well, especially the Wenqu Restaurant. It was adjacent to the academy and was three stories high. One could enjoy the scenery of the river just by eating inside.

Yun Su and He Buyu brought the little ones to the Wenqu Building.

“Please come upstairs, Master.”

“Please, Mr. Su.”

Yun Su carried Xiaoyu from Wang Xuanji’s back before everyone went upstairs.

There were many people eating in the restaurant. The third floor was a private room and was very large. Only a young man in Confucian clothes sat near the west window. Yun Su glanced at him and did not say anything.

The group sat at the east window. There were some decorations in the middle, so even if they talked to each other, it wouldn’t affect the others.

“Mr. Su, the wind by the window is slightly strong but the scenery is extremely beautiful. Why don’t the two of us drink by the window? The little ones can sit alone at the table.”

“Sure.”

Yun Su had yet to taste the wine of this world. When he went upstairs, he saw guests drinking with each other. The taste was fragrant and long, with a faint taste of rice wine.

He Buyu was a regular here and quickly ordered.

This was the first time the children had come to such a high place to eat. They were very curious about the scenery outside and did not dare to run noisily. They only admired the river view outside the building and told their eldest sister interesting stories about the academy.

“This isn’t the Academy. There’s no need to be so formal.”

He Buyu smiled at the three little fellows and started chatting with Yun Su. They talked about some good food and wine in Yuyang City and some old matters in Yuyang City.

“Dear guests, a bottle of five-year-old Fish Spring Wine.”

The waiter quickly set out a bottle of wine and the dishes that went with it. He pulled out the stopper and filled two small glasses. The wine was beige and sparkling. A rich fragrance of rice wine filled the air. It was intoxicating.

“Good wine!”

Yun Su drank it in one gulp. He felt that it was fresh and full of starch like a faint warmth flowing into her stomach. There was a lingering fragrance between her lips and teeth, and the aftertaste was long.

Compared to the wine he drank before, it didn’t have that sweetness but it retained its glutinous texture. It was fresh and refreshing and the alcohol content was much higher.

Compared to those high-grade white wines, the alcohol content was much lower and less spicy. It was somewhere between homemade rice wine and distilled white wine.

“This Fish Spring Wine also has a legend. More than 200 years ago, a winemaker discovered a strange spring in a valley more than 40 kilometers outside Yuyang City. When it flowed into the river, it attracted countless fish to fight for it. It was like this every day.

“Later, the brewer tasted the spring water and felt that it was extremely suitable for brewing wine, so he settled down in that valley and built a cellar to brew wine. He named it Fish Spring Wine. Unfortunately, the spring was not big and there was too little wine. I bought it with 80% of my annual salary.”

“As the saying goes, poetry, wine, and essays go together. It’s elegant for a scholar to enjoy wine.”

“I’m ashamed to say this but it’s because every time I get drunk, my divination is exceptionally accurate. Unfortunately, there’s only five-year-old fish spring wine here. If it’s ten-year-old or even older, it’s rumored to be like drinking nectar.”

“Oh? If it’s really that magical, I’ll have to taste it in the future.”

Yun Su smiled. It was not that he was addicted to wine but that the wine was indeed delicious. The three side dishes were meat with sauce, pickled vegetables, and a plate of extremely peanut-like fried mud beans.

Before long, the dishes were served. There were three meat dishes, two vegetables, and a soup. They were all the signature dishes of Wenqu Restaurant. The dishes on both tables were the same. The little guys were hungry and greedy. They buried their heads and ate.

“This Yueshui River is quite a sight.”

Yun Su drank and ate while admiring the scenery outside. The ingredients of these dishes were not bad but the cooking method was slightly different. He felt that the dishes were ordinary while the wine was much better.

“It’s really glorious now. In another three months, the river will surge and the people along the way will be affected every year. The north city wall is so sturdy because it’s to prevent floods.”

“It’s rare for a teacher to be wary of danger.”

“What do you think of Yuyang, sir?”

“I’ve just left the mountain and don’t know the situation in the world. I just feel that this Yuyang is lively and prosperous. It is a stable city but the officials are not fierce. I’ve never seen anything disturbing the people. Law and order is supreme here. The people live and work in peace. However, there are also some tragic cases of people selling their bodies to save their fathers, abandoning their children to sell their daughters.”

Ever since he left the mountain, the Yuyang City that Yun Su saw was much more chaotic and lawless than he had imagined. The officials of the city had turned the commoners into mincemeat.

After experiencing the tragic destruction of the Mystic Wood Sect, he thought that Yuyang City was also very chaotic. Over the past few days, he had seen many foreign races, but they were still well-behaved. In terms of those he considers human cultivators, he had only seen a Daoist that cheated someone’s oranges.

Although there were many foreign species in the Hundred Flowers Valley’s fox marriage, it was not worth mentioning. Old Fox was said to have cultivated for nearly 200 years but his demonic power and cultivation were only ordinary about the same as the strength of the City God and Soil God. However, in Yun Su’s opinion, his cultivation was ordinary. How long he cultivated did not mean how much his cultivation meant. Compared to his realm, his cultivation was still relatively ordinary. He was not even worthy of the claim of having cultivated for 200 years.

Other than that, the people he usually saw were mostly people of the pugilistic world such as bodyguards. Occasionally, he would see a few martial artists but he rarely saw true experts.

“On one hand the government of the Great Cheng Dynasty is transparent, the treasury is full and the people are living in peace. On the other hand, it’s because the king is rich and powerful and Prime Minister Wang’s capabilities. The king implemented the reforms and worked hard to rule. Not only does he advocate education, culture, and agriculture but he also values trade. Although he offended many people, it made the dynasty look brand new.”

He Buyu sighed as he praised the dynasty.

“Since the dynasty has such a capable minister, why do you sigh?”

When Yun Su was shopping previously, he had occasionally heard the commoners talk about how the county government was preparing to clear the tax system. Most said that it was good but they also had some complaints.

“I had the urge to do a divination for Prime Minister Wang. It’s not good. I’ve been observing the stars for more than a month. I’m afraid…”

He Buyu just shook his head and said nothing.

“I am not in the royal court but I care about the world. Neither of us are in charge so we can only be spectators.”

‘Fair enough, sir. Exactly so, let’s toast to that.’

He Buyu was a little sulky. After a few glasses of wine, he felt better and changed the subject.

“Every year at this time, Yuyang City is the most lively. After the bitter cold of winter, many scholars and beautiful women begin to tour the rivers and mountains.”

“They wear fresh clothes and walk the streets. Maybe it’s because spring is here.”

Yun Su seemed to have recalled something. Humans were still animals, just much more advanced.

He Buyu could not understand the joke of spring coming. As they chatted, the sky gradually darkened. After a cold breeze, it began to rain.

The scenery of Yuyang City in the rain was even more unique. A peach blossom rain did not chase away those who were enjoying themselves. They opened their oil-paper umbrellas and strolled in the rain. Many scholars and beauties even took the opportunity to snuggle under umbrellas.

The rain urged some to move fast. Five young men and women rushed over from the street. The leader was about twenty years old and the other four were only fifteen or sixteen.

These five people were incompatible with the surrounding commoners. Their faces were either arrogant, indifferent, or disdainful. They were all dressed in green brocade clothes with some kind of sword pattern embroidered on them. Each of them carried a sword on their back. After discussing for a while, they went straight upstairs.

“What do you think of these people, sir?”

After drinking two cups of fish spring wine, He Buyu couldn’t hold it in anymore. He didn’t avoid it and started counting with his hands, which were whiter than a woman’s.

“They’re all quite young.”

Yun Su did not deliberately look at the fate of these people. The streets were filled with people and he did not have He Buyu’s hobby. He only took a glance and saw everything.

Compared to ordinary people, these five youths could be said to be filled with internal energy. Their blood essence was not weak and the swords on their bodies also had a murderous aura. They had all seen blood and were not posers.

There was no grievance or killing intent on their bodies. Instead, the person in the lead had already developed a trace of righteousness. If he wasn’t an upright person, he was a martial arts practitioner.

“These people are probably going to be unlucky today.”

Other than being a little vague when talking about the court, He Buyu was very articulate when it came to other things. He did not hide anything at all.

Yun Su could not be bothered to calculate their fortunes. He just drank and ate. He would know if it came true later.