Why do I have so many masters?-Chapter 490 - 148 Old Times with Drinks (1/2)

Wang Anfeng's body felt somewhat stiff.

It was as if he had returned to the days before he practiced martial arts, standing there blankly.

Even his breathing had unconsciously slowed, while his perception extended to its greatest extent. He could clearly catch even the light sound of a breeze passing through distant withered branches.

That sound was not his illusion.

After confirming this, a flicker passed through Wang Anfeng's eyes. The world that had been repressed in his perception instantly came alive. He took a deep breath, turned around abruptly, and then took several large steps to the door.

Raising his hand, he rested it on the wooden door.

He paused, then, as if using all his inner strength, he pulled the wooden door open forcefully. This door had been used for a long time. With a creaking sound, it almost came off, shaking loose a lot of dust that scattered on his blue shirt.

Wang Anfeng's eyes widened as he looked at the old man dozing on the bed.

The old man seemed to have been startled by the noise of the door as well, shuddering violently in his sleep.

Opening his eyes, he turned his head to look at the young man whose features had matured, standing in the doorway. The falling dust glittered in the backlight, casting a silhouette of the blue shirt, like an illusion from a dream.

Li Qidao's eyes momentarily lost focus.

In fact, Wang Anfeng's facial features were not extremely similar to his father's. His brows and eyes more closely resembled his mother's. Overall, he looked gentler than the stalwart scholar of old, by a touch or two. But seeing the silhouette of the blue shirt against the light, Li Qidao couldn't contain the rush of memories soaring within him.

Back when he was still fairly young, amidst a peach grove by a winding stream, slightly tipsy, he leaned against the trunk of a peach tree, one hand holding a wine cup, with a figure in blue standing before him, smiling.

In the backlight, the scholar opened his mouth and a low murmur crumbled into memories, fading into obscurity.

"Li Bo!"

"Have you returned?!"

After being stunned for a few moments, Wang Anfeng took a step forward, sweeping directly from the doorway to the bedside. His sleeves fluttered loudly, and as he stood by the bed, he looked at the elder who was identical to the one in his memories but appeared somewhat at a loss.

Li Qidao came back to his senses.

Looking at Wang Anfeng, as the young man drew closer, he saw not the stalwart scholar from his memories, and then remembered again that the scholar who had spent his life amidst the clash of iron and steel had already departed from this world—a scene he had witnessed with his own eyes.

A feeling of emptiness settled within him.

But then, joy and consolation from their reunion rose up, suppressing those emotions no lighter than those of a young man. The elder simply raised his hand and rubbed Wang Anfeng's head vigorously, grinning and saying:

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"Yes, you're back..."

"Let's see how this little guy has fared in the past three years."

Wang Anfeng just smiled. Li Qidao took the young man by the shoulders, pushing him back to take a good look at his face, his expression one of satisfaction, he said:

"Looks like you haven't been raised too badly."

"Not bad!"

Wang Anfeng grinned, his palm gripping the hem of Li Qidao's clothes tightly.

Li Qidao's return was an unexpected joy.

The New Year's festival was only a few days away, and neither Wang Anfeng nor Wang Hongyi had anticipated that this elder, who had left Great Liang Village for three years, would suddenly return at this time.

Wang Hongyi was overjoyed, and the efficiency of his pig slaughtering increased by thirty percent. He exclaimed that if not for the birth of a son, he would definitely dig up the daughter's red wine buried under the tree and have a good drink today.

Those words earned him a roll of eyes from Li Qidao.

It was a man without a daughter who dared to say such things. If anyone really had a daughter at home, who would dare to even think about touching that jar of daughter's red? The butcher, Wang, would probably make a show of his pig-killing knife if anyone dared to come near, ready to slice at them.

Wang Hongyi could only scratch his head and pretend to be foolish, laughing and saying:

"How could I do that, right?"

Li Qidao chuckled, too lazy to bother with the butcher who said one thing and meant another.

The pork belly that Butcher Wang gave to Wang Anfeng lasted less than half a day before being turned into a table full of dishes by Wang Anfeng. The table was laden with food, and only after Li Qidao was seated did Wang Anfeng turn around to retrieve the wine he had prepared for Li Qidao from the Shaolin Temple.

He had obtained the wine back in the Immortal Pavilion at the foot of the Fufeng mountain, after beheading the Sixth Rank Elder. Assuming the name 'Blade Madman,' he took the wine, mounted his horse, and rode off triumphantly.

Yet, the name 'Traveler of the Three Thousand Li After Beheading' that he was so proud of at the time, he simply couldn't utter in front of Li Qidao.

After some thought, he decided it was best not to mention the name conceived in a moment of surging combat will. Wang Anfeng concealed that dangerous location and casually narrated the origins of the wine.

Li Qidao popped the seal from the wine jar, closed his eyes, and took a sniff of the fragrance before disdainfully clicking his tongue and chuckling,

"It's just ordinary roadside dregs—reeks of earth."

"I thought you had prepared some fine wine for this old man."

Wang Anfeng scratched his head awkwardly.

He wasn't much of a connoisseur, but he felt this wine had some sentimental value, making it better than the ordinary kind one could buy.

Li Qidao shook his head repeatedly, disparaging the jar of wine as if it were worthless.

Then, running out of things to say, he opened the wine jug at his side, gave his palm a shake, held the wine jar with his right hand, and with a subtle inward curl of his left hand, a surge of inner strength drew all the liquid from the jar without spilling a drop—all of it into the jug—before he carefully resealed it.

Looking up at Wang Anfeng, the elder first appeared a bit sheepish, then brazenly defended,

"Can't let it go to waste."

"Besides, this wine cost a few Sixth Rank Martial Artists their heads. Great Qin's Jianghu might be vast, but Sixth Rank Martial Artists aren't like chives that you cut and regrow at will. With this sentiment in mind, I suppose the wine is passable."

The elder shook the wine jug in his hand, secured it at his waist, and took another jar of wine to pour into his bowl. He drank it down in one gulp, picked up his chopsticks to quickly eat several pieces of meat, then let out a long sigh and said,

"Heh, being out there for so long, the only decent meal I can have is the one you cook."

"What are they even serving outside, is that fit for human consumption?"

"You lad, how have these three years been for you..."

Wang Anfeng kept refilling the elder's wine and sat beside him, answering Li Qidao's questions including his experiences over the years and his martial arts progress.

Although Li Qidao had his suspicions when discussing the origins of the wine, when he heard Wang Anfeng say that he had reached the Middle Third Rank, the old man's movements still stiffened momentarily.

He didn't say much, but he drank faster.

One bowl after another.

The strong liquor Wang Anfeng brought back was guzzled down like water.

After Li Qidao had drained the third jar, Wang Anfeng broke the seal on a fourth for the elder. The youth hesitated before asking,

"Li Bo, where exactly have you been these past three years..."

For a full three years, Wang Anfeng had returned to Great Liang Village several times, yet never saw Li Qidao; if not for Wang Hongyi looking after the place, it would have turned to wilderness long ago. Had it not been for the occasional letter, Wang Anfeng would have almost thought something dire had happened to the man before him.

Li Qidao paused mid-drink.

After a moment of silence, the old man gazed outside and said nonchalantly,

"Nothing much."

"Just went to see some old friends."

"Staying in this little village for too long, it's been a while since I checked on them. Heh, one even got angry."

Remembering that fury like a tempest, Li Qidao chuckled softly.

He drained the bowl filled with strong liquor in one gulp.

Wang Anfeng refilled Li Qidao's drink once more and placed the black wine jar on the table. After a moment's thought, he said,

"Since they're friends of Li Bo, they must also be my elders..."

"If there's a chance, I should also pay them a visit."

Li Qidao first nodded in silence, then looking at the sky, he laughed softly,

"Of course."

"If they knew you wanted to visit them, I'm sure they would be very pleased."

PS: Here's the first update for today...