Peace Order
Chapter 242 - 117: I am Li Guanyi from Jiangzhou!_2

Chapter 242: Chapter 117: I am Li Guanyi from Jiangzhou!_2

They didn’t leave; instead, they ordered more wine, watching the young lads spar with laughter, as they stroked their burgeoning bellies and said to their friends how things were when we were young.

Oh, how unforgiving time is.

The drinking game started with short to long phrases, increasingly so, drink a cup and match it with a line of poetry.

Fail to match and you’re out.

It started easy, even Zhou Liuying could keep up.

"Spring flowers."

"Autumn moon."

But soon, these youngsters who spent most of their time in arduous training and honing their martial arts couldn’t keep up, and on these banquets’ poetry challenges, it wasn’t about poetic talent but quick thinking, something they knew less about than the good-for-nothing sons of their own families.

Round after round passed, with only the time to raise and lower cups.

What mattered most wasn’t the flair of the moment, but how many lines you had seen before.

The candlelight bright, laughter and voices all around, your opponent from a family that has been at odds with your grandfather’s, with the heat of youth fueled by alcohol, there’s no way they would back down, for if they did, they might wake up at night in old age, slapping their thighs in frustration.

On the second floor of the painted pleasure boat, Wang Tong’s disciples were also present. When they caught sight of their nominal junior brother, Li Guanyi, they all grinned. Du Keming said, "I’ve heard he’s been making a name for himself in the Imperial Guard lately. I asked our master why he didn’t visit him, but he said the time wasn’t right."

"Didn’t expect to see him here."

Fang Ziqiao slowly sipped his drink and said, "Yes, it seems Vice Minister Yan’s daughter plans to suppress him. Keming, be ready."

Du Keming replied, "Yes, after all, he is our younger brother in our school, although he hasn’t formally joined us yet."

"But he shouldn’t be humiliated by outsiders."

"After all, we are part of the Gongyang Lineage, with a duty to avenge our grudges."

Their gazes fell away; Li Guanyi, who had not been sufficiently advanced in his cultivation back in Guan Yi City, now noticed them. Li Guanyi looked up and saw the three people on the second floor: Du Keming, Fang Ziqiao, and Wei Xuancheng.

Du Keming, clad in black, lifted his cup and mouthed:

"Don’t worry, if it gets tough we’ll come down!"

It was only Wei Xuancheng who said, "He might not lose."

Du Keming responded, "You trust him that much?"

Wei Xuancheng countered, "Want to bet?"

Du Keming smirked and said, "No, your eyes are sharp, I won’t bet with you. Besides, if an elder brother bets against his younger brother and loses, the master would be upset."

"The world has no truth that doesn’t favor kin, even if this younger brother overturns tables and brawls, I should at least join in with a few kicks."

Li Guanyi had not expected to see these few; he had a good impression of them, and his mood brightened a little. At the start, when it was just two words, he had responded with "Gold Armors", and after a few rounds, only Li Guanyi and Ye Buyi were holding on, while the civil servants’ children were all still there.

So the rule changed again, to stringing together the previous two words into a phrase.

Yan Daiqing said indifferently, "Spring flowers, autumn moon."

Li Guanyi responded, "Gold Armors and Iron Horses!"

Yan Daiqing stated, "Spring flowers, autumn moon, beauties of peerless elegance."

Li Guanyi lifted his cup and drained it in one gulp, the youth in his scarlet war robe sitting ramrod straight, surrounded by the bright light of red candles, setting down his wine cup on the table and declared:

"Gold Armors and Iron Horses, spirit swallows vast distances like a tiger!"

With a bold statement, the surrounding fell into silence, the Military Merit children cheered, and even the noble guests could hear the depth in his line, and they, too, applauded. Yan Daiqing held his folding fan, his face looking unpleasant, as he began again.

Several rounds later, with a hand pointing to the moon outside the window, and after "Spring flowers, autumn moon", with the moon as the new theme, he recited a short verse about the moonlight. Li Zhaowen had come out, leaning against a distant pillar, watching the youth drink cup after cup, often with a brilliant line, one noble son after another losing.

Finally, Li Guanyi tossed aside his cup, used his sword to strike the table, and sang out in a long drawl, replying: "Summoning a bright moon above, it shines on my heart full of ice and snow, overflowing the vast rivers!"

"Though the whale’s drink hasn’t swallowed the sea, the Sword Qi has already swept through autumn!"

"Wild light afloat, heavens vast, nature’s beauty hidden. World’s lasting regret, who knows how many grieve tonight!"

Slightly intoxicated, with the vigor of youth, the world’s regrests were all within these verses.

The crowd, accustomed to chanting lamentations of spring flowers and autumn moon’s beauties, had never witnessed such a bold poem’s spirit, and everyone quieted down, save for a gentle clapping. Li Guanyi looked sideways to see a silver-haired rich merchant, draped in a heavy cloak, smiling and saying:

"World’s lasting regret, who knows how many grieve tonight, what excellent verses."

Li Guanyi, slightly tipsy, bowed with hands clasped in a carefree manner. He saw his colleagues from the Imperial Guard, witnessed the stand-off between the civil servants and those of Military Merit, knowing he was now part of it, unable to withdraw. So, he decided to play his part to the fullest, saying, "It has always been you who set the drinking challenges, shall we have a turn now?"

The commotion here had already attracted most of the guests in the flower building.

The tall flower building, with its banisters carved with intricate designs, the lamps spreading a bright, warm yellow glow, reflecting off the surrounding buildings like the luster of gold, as if it were the abode of the gods in heaven.

In the center hung a giant lantern, suspended by iron chains, and on both sides were beautiful women in splendid attire, holding light fans. They saw the youth stand up boldly in the center, in his crimson robe, with a jade belt at his waist. He drew his sword and laid it across his knees.

His fingers curled to knock on the sword, then he began to sing in a long drawl:

"Youthful heroism binds together the valiants of the five cities.

"Undaunted spirit, hair bristling on end. Standing amid talk, facing life and death together. A promise worth a thousand in gold. Displaying courage, boasting with pride. Lightly cloaked I ride, bridles flying in unison, fighting east of the city. Loudly we drink from the jar, spring’s chill lingers in the clay, as I suck the sea into a rainbow. Idly I call eagles, urge on the hounds, white feathers plucked from bows, sly dens suddenly empty. All is merriment."