Chapter 245 – The Warm Peach Wine
Although Mo Ruo seemed to be addicted to indulging his life in alcohol, he was surprisingly quite clear-headed. It appeared that he was already prepared when he made Ji Yunshu agree to his condition.
Jing Xian smiled. “Although that Teacher Ji is very smart, he isn’t omnipotent. It is still unknown if he can handle well this matter and allow me to leave the palace,” he weakly uttered.
Mo Ruo patted his shoulder and encouraged him. “You will leave this place.”
He was very determined, but he had been incessantly repeating the same words over the years.
Rou! Rou!
A pigeon suddenly swooped down to the windowsill and then hopped to where a few grains of rice were left. It lowered its head and started to peck at the food.
Mo Ruo’s eyes glinted. He got up, grabbed a few grains of rice and placed them on the windowsill. He tu-tutted at the bird and teased it. The pigeon was not afraid of humans. It continued to eat, ignoring Mo Ruo.
“How long have you been raising it?” he asked.
Jing Xian hummed a bit before answering. “Ah! It should be around 3 or 4 years. I remember it was afraid of strangers before, now it seems used to it and is no longer afraid of approaching people. It often flies on my shoulder to cuddle me.” A big smile spread across his face.
Mo Ruo turned back his head and rubbed his eyes. He was getting sleepy. “Tell me, you live in the depths of the palace, of all animals you could raise, why do you like raising a pigeon? What if one day it decides to fly away, never to come back? Wouldn’t that just be depressing for you?”
“My pigeon flying away won’t necessarily be a bad thing. It only means that it also doesn’t like this cage!”
What logic is that? However, Mo Ruo understood his hidden meaning. Besides, Jing Xian already broke that pigeon’s wings. It could never fly into the blue sky like before, forever caged in the palace.
Therefore, he only raised a pigeon to comfort himself, treating it like his counterpart.
After teasing the pigeon for a moment, they chatted once again.
Mo Ruo took Jing Xian’s pulse and nodded. “Hmm… It’s better compared to before. You must continue taking the medication I prescribed. You absolutely must not touch that medicine given to you by the Great Hospital.”
“Hmm!”
“The weather will be fluctuating for the next few days. It might rain, then become sunny. The last thing you want is to catch a cold.”
“Oh!” he obediently agreed.
When it was time for Mo Ruo to leave, Jing Xian suddenly called Bi Lu and ordered the latter, “Bring him the warm wine from before.”
“Yes, Your Highness.” Bi Lu bowed and immediately left to fulfill the order. Then, he delivered it to Mo Ruo. “This is something His Highness had intentionally prepared for Young Master Mo. This is a high quality peach wine that is already warm.”
The faint fragrance of alcohol mixed with the wooden scent of the garden assailed his nose. Mo Ruo’s heart was filled with joy, and his eyes brightened. He took the jug, opened the lid and took a sip. Immediately, his eyes squinted in pleasure and his expression bloomed like a field of flowers. His mind had immersed in the taste of his addiction.
He exclaimed, “Good wine! Really a good wine. In this world, the only person who can brew such moving wine is you, and only your wine suits my taste buds the most.”
Seeing Mo Ruo this happy also infected Jing Xian. Then, he noticed the sky was darkening. “Next time you come, I will prepare another jug. It’s getting late now, you should hurry and leave the palace.”
“Alright. I’ll come see you again in a few days.”
He drank another mouthful of wine before leaving Tongren hall in great spirit with a jug of wine in hand.
After he left, Jing Xian dismissed Bi Lu. He struggled to get up from his rocking chair and weakly walked to the window. He watched the pigeon eating and used his slender fingers to gently caress it. The corner of his mouth slightly curled. “Pigeon, ah, pigeon. I am lucky to have you with me these years.”
The pigeon cooed in response. It flapped its wings and immediately flew away, quickly disappearing from his line of sight.
He dragged himself back to the rocking chair, looked down and watched the ashes of an already burnt piece of paper. His hands weakly clenched into fists. The gentle expression had been quickly replaced by a terribly icy one.
“Mother, soon… soon the time will come!”
……….
After Mo Ruo left Jing Xian, he was planning to leave through the South Gate, but midway, he changed direction and went to Shaoxian hall. As a non-resident of the imperial palace, he could not enter the palace as he pleased, or even enter the harem as he wished. However, who made his deceased old man an imperial palace physician with outstanding skills to boot. At his peak, the Emperor granted the members of the Mo family the permission to enter the palace without the need for an entry token.
It was without a doubt that Mo Ruo would use this benefit to its fullest.
When he reached Shaoxian hall, a eunuch invited him in. A pot of fragrant tea was brought out, but Mo Ruo pushed it aside. Instead, he started to drink the warm wine Jing Xian gave him. The mellow fragrance of the peach wine imbued the whole room.
“Young Master Mo, please wait for a moment. Princess Huiwen has gone to meet Princess Jing Xuan. Her Highness should be back soon,” the eunuch politely informed him.
Mo Ruo was the God Doctor after all. In the event that he became sick, he hoped that his good attitude would make Mo Ruo treat him. What optimistic thinking.
Mo Ruo wasn’t anxious. Waiting is just waiting! He could take that time to enjoy the wine he just got.
The next thing he knew, he had woken up, leaning on the pear wood chair. He blinked and narrowed his eyes a bit confused. Then, he noticed that an hour had already passed. He opened wider his eyes and saw Kong Yu sitting not far from him. She had a ladle in her hand and was gently stirring in a bowl.
“Awake? How did you manage to drink to this point?” Her voice was as pleasant to the ears as it was in the past.
Mo Ruo straightened his body and rubbed his temples. He asked with a frown, “How long was I asleep?”
“Not long. Around an hour maybe.”
Kong Yu scooped the sobering soup into a small bowl and carried it to him. “Hurry and drink it, or else, I’ll have to dispatch someone to carry you out of the palace.”
Mo Ruo received the sobering soup and drank it without hesitation.
Kong Yu inquired, “You’re really too much. Why do you carry so much wine and drink it everywhere? Aren’t you afraid an accident might occur? This is the imperial palace, not your Yuhua Pavilion, and even less the jianghu.” Her tone was one of a little girl complaining to her family.
The soup was clearly beginning to take effect as Mo Ruo took his last sip. He lifted his heavy eyelids to look at Kong Yu. “That peach wine is a gift from Jing Xian. It would be a pity not to drink it while it was still warm.”
“Huh? You mean you went to examine him?”
Mo Ruo hummed in response.
“Then, is the Sage King’s body alright? Several days ago, I heard some palace maids say that his illness had worsened and an imperial physician went to see him.” She sat down next to Mo Ruo, with a look of worry on her face.
Mo Ruo whispered, “His chronic disease is slowly becoming manageable. Sooner or later, it will be treated. However, he lacks the will to survive and is indifferent about it. If he doesn’t leave the palace, everything might be in vain.”
“Leaving the palace?” Kong Yu was startled. She leaned closer to Mo Ruo and inquired, “Will it be possible? The Emperor once decreed that he wasn’t allowed to leave the palace and build his own estate,” she meaningfully reminded him.