Reborn: Revenge of the Concubine’s Daughter

Liao Zhiyuan was leaning against the window frame with astonishment, looking at Gao Jue, who was “more annoying than usual”. He didn’t understand his grumpy look of “someone owes me 10,000 liang silver”. But, but, it seemed that he really owed him 100 liang silver for wine last time… Liao Zhiyuan rolled his lynx-like eyes and glanced at Gao Jue guiltily. “Oh, no. Is he here to ask for money? Gao, we are friends that could almost be sworn to live or die together. We don’t have to make the account so clear, do we?” He thought.

Before Liao Zhiyuan could come up with any result, the empty wine jar in Gao Jue’s hand flied past and grazed Liao Zhiyuan’s auricle closely, finally landing on the top of the last pile of debris in the yard.

Liao Zhiyuan rubbed his painful auricle and shouted angrily, “Fuck! Did the donkey kick your head? Does it take that much effort to throw a wine jar? Do you have so much Zhenqi that you got nowhere to use it?” Then he thought, “Even if he wants to ask for the wine account of 100 liang silver, he has to sit down and have a good talk. How could he be so rude? However, I am a little short of money this month and need to ask him for help now…”

Thinking of this, Liao Zhiyuan cleared his throat and said gently to the back side of Gao Jue’s head, while Gao Jue was facing the wall, “Gao, I have received a letter from Gezhu yesterday, saying that your mission to Yangzhou City was over fulfilled. He was very satisfied and gave you a good compliment! By the way, there is also a name list of people whom you are going to kill next month in the letter. Since you’re in a bad mood now, let me read it for you to work off your anger!”

“…”

“Jin Dachong is a jeweler, 54 years old, from Fengyang County. He has a mole on his nose. And there is his portrait… Xu Sandiao is the head of Da Diao Escort, 49 years old, from Huai’an City. He has no index finger on his left hand. And there is his portrait… Ma Yaozu, from Huzhou City…” Liao Zhiyuan read the “killing list” with a cadence, which made people think that he was reading the “introduction list” of some popular novels.

“…”

After a long time, Liao Zhiyuan finally finished reading the list, and the room fell into a short silence. After a while, Liao Zhiyuan said in a friendly way, “Gao, I heard that you have a 12-day-long holiday this month. Do you have any traveling plan?”

“…” The figure facing the wall was motionless, as if he had fallen asleep.

Liao Zhiyuan kept on saying, “It’s really cold today! I’ve heard that the first snow has fallen in the north. It looks like… Well, it’s like a beauty! Yes, that’s right. When you see that beautiful scene, you will immediately think of the most beautiful woman you have ever seen! As you know, Yingtian Prefecture belongs to the south. It only snows a little in the midwinter, and the snow always melt before falling to the ground. When you go out, mud spots are all over your boots and the hem of clothes. It’s really annoying snow. But the snow in the north is totally different…”

Gao Jue suddenly sat up from the bed and growled, “If you have something to say, finish quickly, then go away!”

Shouted by Gao Jue, Liao Zhiyuan froze for a moment. But he did not care about Gao Jue’s bad attitude. When Liao Zhiyuan hurriedly went to the bed, his handsome face became anxious and he requested Gao Jue with a soft voice, “I have something personal that I would like you to help me with, because I trust you. So, Gao, my brother, please help me!”

“What’s the matter?” Gao Jue said coldly, “I’m tired of meddlesome matters.”

Liao Zhiyuan pretended to smile, tried to ignore Gao Jue’s bad attitude and said, “This matter is related to my sister. She is in danger.”

“Come on, women issue again? No way!” Gao Jue immediately refused, “Well, if you have finished, you can get out of here!”

Liao Zhiyuan resisted his impulse to beat him. Although he had known Gao Jue had tough and arbitrary personality, he did not expect that Gao Jue was not even willing to offer a chance to discuss! He thought their brotherhood was strong, eternal and durable. Then Liao Zhiyuan thought for a while and awkwardly said, “Gao Jue, don’t you remember? When we went to Fengyang City for a case, we had a fight with a group of masked men, and I was stabbed to protect you. Don’t you know what gratitude is? Gao Jue, think carefully, is this your attitude to talk to your savior?”

Gao Jue let out a sneer from his chest, “But I saved you more in the past few years. You won’t be here if I didn’t save you one less time. When it comes to gratitude, we can calculate it well.”

Liao Zhiyuan rushed towards Gao Jue and grabbed his collar, looked at his impassive face and gnashed his teeth, “Gao Jue, Are we friends? Should you offer your help if your friend is in trouble?”

“A friend’s girl, never.” Gao Jue turned his face away.

Liao Zhiyuan felt very embarrassed, beat his chest and said, “Please, she is my sib sister, not my girl.”

“She’s a woman, too.”

“Gao Jue, are you serious to sit by while my sister is in danger?” Liao Zhiyuan issued an ultimatum.

There was a long silence. Gao Jue fell back to lie on the bed again and made intermittent snore. Obviously, he was indicating that Liao Zhiyuan should leave. To him, the phrase “sitting by while others in danger” applied to him was nothing but a praise.

Liao Zhiyuan had no idea to start it. Then he took a deep breath and put a smile back on his face. He slowly took out a small gourd from his chest, slowly uncorked the stopper and said, “That smells so good…” As Gao Jue’s good friend for many years, he knew exactly Gao Jue’s weakness.

It was clear that the snoring in the room disappeared.

Liao Zhiyuan felt happy, but dared not show his feelings on his face. Then he sniffed at the gourd and looked intoxicated. “It smells so good! One could only have a taste of it in the paradise! No matter how it smells, it’s — wine aromas…”

Gao Jue stood up and took an oblique glance at that small gourd. From his perspective, there was not enough wine in the gourd for him to drink. But that smelt quite good! What wine was that? He couldn’t smell it! Was it because of the distance? Gao Jue stared at Liao Zhiyuan with anger and began to bargain, “Far from enough! You are stingier than I thought. Well, let me examine it first.”

He took the bait! Liao Zhiyuan was so pleased, but looked expressionless still, “This is my treasure and I never said I would give it to you! I only smell it when I am unhappy.” He told the truth. Everything he did was for his troublesome sister, or he would never let anyone touch the gourd.

He refused him! Gao Jue did not hesitate and without warning he appeared in front of Liao Zhiyuan instantly. He used his index and middle fingers of his left hand to prick on Liao Zhiyuan’s eyes while grabbed that small gourd with his right hand. Everything happened so fast that Liao Zhiyuan receded to avoid hurriedly. Liao Zhiyuan didn’t expect Gao Jue to be so shameless. Gao Jue’s right hand that came to grab the gourd seemed to have a suction force, and the gourd couldn’t be shaken off after touching the gourd. Liao Zhiyuan held off for a moment, then let Gao Jue take it away because he was afraid of spilling his precious wine.

Gao Jue sat back on the bed, put the gourd to his nose and sniffed, lifted his head and drained the wine out. The little golden gourd finished its mission and was thrown into the flowers outside of the window. He yawned, fell back to the bed with a thud sound, and soon began to snore again.

Liao Zhiyuan looked at this looter surprisingly. How, how could Gao Jue drink all his precious wine in one gulp? He had gone through great trouble to steal… No, it was the result of his hard work! Although he was not a simple man, he dared to cooperate with Gao Jue because he knew him well.

“It must be delicious! Although I didn’t taste a drop, only the smell of the wine was enough for me to be intoxicated.” Liao Zhiyuan heaved a sigh and began to talk to himself gloomily, “What am I going to do without the gourd? I won’t be able to smell that again ever since, will I?”

Gao Jue was lying on the bed but he was not asleep. “Why is that wine so delicious?” Gao Jue seemed to be infected with the melancholy that came from Liao Zhiyuan, “Will I be able to drink that again? Will I…be able to see her bright eyes again?”

“But, that’s okay!” Liao Zhiyuan suddenly changed into a lilting tone and said, “There are two more jars hidden in my house! I must had done a lot of good things in my previous life, so I can have such an ingenious sister this life.”

“Two jars!” Gao Jue sprang from the bed and seized Liao Zhiyuan’s collar with such force that Liao Zhiyuan almost choked, “In your house?”

“Yep.” Liao Zhiyuan winked gravely.

Gao Jue became clever this time and asked discreetly, “How big the jar is?” Actually, he wanted to know if there were two more small wine jars.

Liao Zhiyuan drew the outline of a mango with his hands and smiled before Gao Jue’s eyes, “It was this size.”

“I want them both.” Gao Jue pulled Liao Zhiyuan’s sleeve and shook it. He asked reluctantly, “Give them to me.” It was very rare for Gao Jue to say this kind pleading words because he always robbed whatever he wanted.

Liao Zhiyuan spread out his hands innocently, “But the wine is not mine. The gourd is all I have and you robbed it. My sister has all the wines. Tell you what, hiding things is her hobby. She likes to hide gold, silver, jewels, woks, bowls, wine and meat. No one, not even dogs, can find the staffs she has hidden! I want the wine as well but I cannot find it!”

“Are you lying to me?” Gao Jue narrowed his eyes in suspicion and looked at Liao Zhiyuan who had a face of kind, harmless and innocent.

“What? Can’t you trust me? I won’t hide it from you. In fact, my sister made these wines by herself and only she could make them in the world!” Liao Zhiyuan clapped his chest with pride and promised, “As long as you find my sister and bring her to me in an unscathed and lively manner, I will let her make another 10 jars for you!”

“Are you saying that woman can make wines?”

“All I said is true and I guarantee with my credibility!”

“You have no credibility at all.”

“You poker-face…” Liao Zhiyuan gritted his teeth and pressed his anger to explain the truth to Gao Jue, “Although my family is not as rich and glorious as yours, it is also a wealthy and influential family in Ming Zhao Fang of the capital and I have family there. I can run, but I can’t hide all the time. Are you still afraid that I won’t give you the wines?”

Gao Jue was silent for a while, considering how likely Liao Zhiyuan was to abscond with the wine. Finally, he said, “Just tell me, what’s wrong with that stupid woman? Even you can’t solve it?”

Bingo! Gao Jue was willing to help him, which meant that his sister’s life could be saved and his heart could be put down. Although Gao Jue was cruel, defiant, abominable, taciturn, arrogant, unsociable, annoying and aggressive, in Liao Zhiyuan’s eyes, no one could be more reliable than him in this world. Liao Zhiyuan took out a geographic map from his arms and pointed at the northeast direction, “My sister is missing here.”

“Changbai Mount? Why don’t you find her by yourself?”

“I really want to go, but Gezhu just gave me a very urgent task. Sure, no matter what task is, it’s less important than my sister. But the main reason is that as long as my sister sees me, she will run away.”

“Run away?”

“Yeah, because she’s running away from home now.”

“Let her go. Why are you bothering finding her?”

“Alas, I know the girls are not staying when they grow up,” Liao Zhiyuan sighed heavily, “But I only have this one sister. And what place is Changbai Mount? My beautiful sister is going to be a meal of black bears, tigers and elephants soon! Ah, my pitiful sister…” After saying, Liao Zhiyuan cried and covered his face.

Gao Jue didn’t buy his tears. He interrupted the loud crying sound, and claimed seriously, “10 jars of wines, packed in this size.” Then, Gao Jue gesticulated a watermelon-sized circle with his hands.

“Deal.”