HLnovel Chapter 160 A gentle breeze caresses the river, carrying the aroma of wine.
Chapter 160 A gentle breeze caresses the river, carrying the aroma of wine.
At night, the Yellow Crane Tower is bathed in the gentle breeze of the river, filled with the aroma of wine, and illuminated by dazzling lights.
Xiao Si, Zi An, and Yu Zhanmo entered the ancient building hand in hand and witnessed Qu Youjiu raising a glass with a group of friends. At this moment, Qu Youjiu was waving enthusiastically at Yu Zhanmo and Xiao Si, and the atmosphere in the hall was lively.
Qu Youjiu flicked his sleeves, his face beaming with joy:
"Come, come, tonight at Yellow Crane Tower, we must drink to our hearts' content! Come, let's raise a big glass to everyone, and let this alcohol fuel our poetic inspiration!"
Xiao Si smiled and raised her wine glass to toast Qu Youjiu:
"Little Si toasts 'Brother Quyoujiu'! Today we have no shortage of friends, only a worry that there isn't enough fine wine, so we can't fly like yellow cranes!"
Zi'an poured the wine while joking:
"Alright, Little Si, stop showing off. Drinking too much wine isn't good either. First, ask your liver if it's dry enough to handle this sea of wine."
It's wonderful to fly like a yellow crane, but if you can't fly at all, no one will laugh at you!
It's a rare treat for friends to get together.
Little Si smiled mysteriously:
"Brother Zi'an, you came up with the 'Flying Flowers' idea! To tell you the truth, Brother Qu Youjiu isn't the only one who can fly tonight!"
Look at Yu Zhanmo, he's ready to spread his wings and fly high!
Yu Zhanmo's eyes were vacant, and he had a wooden and simple appearance.
"I have an idea. To match everyone's drinking mood, even though I can't drink alcohol because I have a severe allergy."
But flying petals can also fly like wine.
Why don't we fly to Brother Qu's Li Bai space tonight, drink wine, compose poetry, and incidentally fly into the world of that rejected "Ode to the Great Roc," so we can see it for ourselves!
Zi'an held his wine glass, watching a group of people gathered around the long table at the Yellow Crane Tower. The atmosphere was lively, and as someone who had once traveled through time to find Wang Bo, he hadn't seen such a scene in a long time.
The wine jars on the table were gradually emptying, and everyone was starting to get a little tipsy, yet they were still full of enthusiasm and ready to start a game of "Flying Flowers".
Qu Youjiu tapped the table, a carefree expression on his face:
"Sure! Come on, let's play this 'Flying Flowers' drinking game today! But this isn't your average drinking game, so you'd better listen carefully!"
The people at the table sat up straight, though there were always those who pretended to be cultured but didn't know how to play.
Zi'an began to explain:
"The rules are simple, everyone listen carefully! First, we need to choose a character—today we'll choose the character 'flower,' how about that?"
He raised his glass, gulped it down in one go, and then put the glass down.
"This word 'flower' is interesting. In the lines of poetry that each of you writes, the position of 'flower' must match what I said!"
Zi'an made a mysterious gesture:
"I'll start by quoting a line of poetry, 'Flowers near the high tower wound the traveler's heart,' where the word 'flower' comes first."
Next, the first person to receive the order must compose a poem, with the word 'flower' appearing as the second character. Understand?
Xiao Si nodded, her face glowing.
"Understood, Brother Zian, give these literary figures a tough challenge!"
Zi An squinted, turned to look at them, and continued:
"The second rule is that if you can't come up with a poem, or you come up with the wrong one, or you just can't recite it, then you'll be punished with a drink! Those who don't drink will be punished with bitter melon soup. You have to drink, until you don't want to drink anymore!"
Little Si chuckled:
"This rule is quite interesting; it makes me a little excited!"
Zi'an stroked his chin, pondered for a moment, and announced, "Alright, let's continue! I'm starting now, 'Flowers near tall buildings wound the hearts of guests,' you guys continue, if you can keep up, then continue, if you can't, then drink!"
With Zi'an's command, the game officially began.
Qu Youjiu stood up with a smile: "Alright! 'When the flowers fall, we meet again,' the 'flower' is in the second position, Zi'an, here we go!"
Little Si clapped her hands excitedly: "Oh dear, this isn't Li Bai's poem either. But you picked it up so quickly!"
Okay, I'll join in too. 'Spring River, Flowers in the Morning, Autumn Moonlit Night,' the character 'flower' is in the third position!
Zi An nodded slightly, her smile growing even more smug: "Good, that works, keep going! Who's next?"
The atmosphere at the dinner table was lively, with everyone chiming in.
Some people continued with "The peach blossoms and the maiden's face are both rosy," others said "Everyone who goes out is a flower-viewer," and still others even added "The frosted leaves are redder than the flowers of February"...
It truly lives up to its reputation as a parallel world.
However, as the smell of alcohol grew stronger and a commotion ensued, Zi'an suddenly raised his hand and laughed:
"When the game is being played, don't just focus on receiving the orders, pay attention, listen to me!"
If I recite a line of poetry, "A shepherd boy points to Xinghua Village in the distance," and the word "flower" is in the sixth position, then starting with me, the sixth person to recite the poem will follow.
If I'm the sixth one, then I'll have to drink a penalty shot!
Upon hearing this, the little ox immediately winked and made faces:
"Zi'an, your rules are really tricky. Aren't you just trying to drink more wine yourself?!"
Qu Youjiu laughed even more freely:
"Brother Bo, right? How generous! How could you not keep up with the Four Great Poets of the Early Tang Dynasty? Unless it was intentional, haha, let's continue!"
He glanced around, a smile playing on his lips, and then uttered the line, "The shepherd boy points to Xinghua Village in the distance."
Everyone started counting from Zi'an: "One, two, three, four, five, six—"
Everyone stopped drinking and their eyes all fell on Zi'an. Zi'an's heart tightened, and he quickly laughed: "Haha, who can handle this? Who can handle this!"
A burst of laughter erupted at the table. Zi'an realized he had succeeded, quickly raised his glass, and drank it down with a smile.
"Alright, alright, the penalty drink. Since it's my turn, I'll drink one!"
Everyone burst into laughter.
Xiao Si waved triumphantly at Zi An:
"Tch, who can't see that you made a huge blunder yourself!"
Xiao Si couldn't help but chuckle:
"Don't think you can enter the world of Dapeng Fu just because you've had a few drinks."
Li Bai's poetic inspiration only flowed when he drank wine; your drinking is merely an excuse to 'fly' and travel!
Zi An shook his head, looked at Yu Zhanmo who had already silently taken off, and smiled:
"Yu Zhanmo, are you trying to fly higher than a roc? Be careful not to fly too high and get knocked down by a bitter gourd!"
Yu Zhanmo brandished a glass filled with bitter melon soup, as if drinking strong liquor from a Western movie, his eyes widening:
"The bitter wine served at the Yellow Crane Tower is indeed extraordinary! Today, I will fly like Li Bai riding a roc!"
Flying through the sky, flying over the earth, flying over rivers, flying through life, flying over battlefields! Fly, fly!
Before he finished speaking, he flicked his hand, and the bitter melon soup in the wine glass actually flew into the sky with him like a roc soaring into the heavens.
His figure suddenly swayed, as if blown into the air by an invisible wind.
Xiao Si and Zi An stared wide-eyed, almost unable to believe it.
In an instant, Yu Zhanmo's shadow grew incredibly tall, no longer the chivalrous swordsman drinking bitter melon water, but transformed into a giant roc with wings that blotted out the sky.
The entire Yellow Crane Tower seemed to sway a few times, and even the river water began to fluctuate violently, with the building dancing and swaying in the wind.
The little ox pointed to the sky in surprise:
"Look—look! The roc has taken flight! With a flap of its wings, it almost knocked over the river!"
This aura is even more imposing than the Shenzhou War God I saw in the future!
Zi'an was also stunned, her tone tinged with emotion:
"The way this roc flies is simply 'the sky is high and the earth is vast, making one feel the infinity of the universe'! It's even more amazing than Li Bai's poems!"
Upon closer inspection, why has Dapeng been replaced again?
It was Qu Youjiu's handsome, exquisitely sculpted face, his laughter echoing freely in the ethereal wind high in the sky:
"Look! Between heaven and earth, I am the mighty roc that stirs up rivers and seas! Who can stop me!"
Little Si laughed and clapped:
"Okay, okay, as expected of someone who works in literature, no matter what you drink, you can fly to the sky."
Yu Zhanmo is even more impressive; he can even make bitter melon soup. Even Li Bai wasn't as domineering as you!
Zi'an was speechless at the incredible actions of these two.
"We are witnessing the miracle of 'Li Bai and his brother Gao Shi flying to the heavens after drinking' today!"
This Yellow Crane Tower truly makes you feel like you're flying, soaring higher than the starry sky!
At this moment, Yu Zhanmo seemed to realize that he had drunk too much bitter melon soup. He suddenly looked up, his face still showing bitterness, and laughed:
"Hahaha! I've finally flown into the Great Roc! It's amazing! Look, even the stars are making way for me!"
No reading difficulties are a problem! I can write poetry just like Li Bai!
Little Si looked around:
"Wait a minute, don't get too excited. Your flight was probably just too fast in the 'Dreamlike Flying Apsaras' at the Yellow Crane Tower, and your mind couldn't keep up!"
Zi'an also laughed so hard he almost fell over:
"Literature originates from life. If you meet Li Bai and casually write a frontier poem, you can become famous. Don't you really think you're riding on Li Bai's roc?"
However, if this can help you, and you can remember this warmth tonight during the harsh times of military service, then I will have no regrets in this life.
As they laughed and joked, Yu Zhanmo's figure gradually blurred and disappeared, leaving only a table full of wine and laughter.
Then, he suddenly opened his eyes and found himself back at the banquet at the Yellow Crane Tower, everything as usual.
He coughed lightly, raised his glass, and said:
"Alright, everyone, stop laughing at me. This bitter melon wine is so good, even I could fly with the roc! Having read the whole thing, I'm quite the writer at such a young age. Let's stop dreaming of being 'Poet Immortals'."
"Haha, everything you do is poetry, everything you drink is wine. You have to be like Qu Youjiu, who never forgets his wine jug even when flying!"
As Xiao Si spoke, she exchanged a glance with Zi An and couldn't help but laugh.
"Yu Zhanmo, you really treated the Yellow Crane Tower like a 'free-spirited party' today. But your flight certainly added a layer of complexity to your taciturn life!"
Qu Youjiu burst into laughter:
"Hahaha, this wine is really interesting today. You even invited my Dapeng Fu to the Yellow Crane Tower!"
Beneath the Yellow Crane Tower, the river flows gently, and the stars twinkle in the night sky.
The three raised their glasses, accompanied by Xiao Si, their laughter never ceasing, and their drinking never waning. All of this was a beautiful illusion left behind after a hearty drinking session.
Zi'an looked around and saw that the atmosphere was getting more intense:
"Speaking of the Yellow Crane Tower, everyone knows that Li Bai wrote the famous poem 'Farewell to Meng Haoran at Yellow Crane Tower' for Meng Haoran. But isn't Meng Haoran himself among those present today?"
Xiao Si's eyes widened as she turned to look at Meng Haoran, who was sitting quietly to the side, gesturing with his hand raised in greeting. Her eyes were filled with shock.
"What? This is Meng Haoran? I always thought you were just a name in a book! It turns out you're here in person. This is truly an eye-opening experience!"
Meng Haoran smiled calmly and nodded slightly:
"Hello everyone, I'm just someone who enjoys writing about romance and friendship."
Li Bai wrote this poem when he saw me off. If it weren't for his heroic spirit, how could I travel far away with peace of mind?
Zi'an smiled gently and shook her head:
"Brother Meng, there's no need to be modest. It is precisely because of your deep friendship with Li Bai that this poem has become a timeless masterpiece."
If Li Bai was able to write such moving verses at the Yellow Crane Tower, wasn't it precisely because you left such a deep mark on his life?
Xiao Si leaned closer to Meng Haoran and couldn't help but whisper:
"Would you like to walk this road again and see the scene when Li Bai saw you off back then?"
Meng Haoran's eyes lit up, as if he were lost in memories:
"Back then, I did see him off at the Yellow Crane Tower. I watched as he wrote with great skill, and the verses flowed from the paper. I sat there, looking at the mighty Yangtze River flowing eastward, my heart filled with sorrow and parting."
“The scenery back then felt like a lifetime ago,” he said softly. “‘My old friend bids farewell to the Yellow Crane Tower and sails down to Yangzhou in the third month of spring.’ The vast river was just like our feelings at the time, both the reluctance to part and the anticipation for the future.”
Qu Youjiu nodded and sighed:
"That farewell was made all the more profound by the great river and the vast sky. The lines I wrote, 'A lone sail disappears into the blue sky, only the Yangtze River flows to the horizon,' are meant to make this parting sentiment eternal in the poem."
Xiao Si smiled and asked Meng Haoran for an autograph:
"I really envy you two for being able to produce such moving poems. Your friendship is like a river, flowing endlessly, still touching people of that time even after a thousand years."
Meng Haoran smiled and sighed slightly: "You are right. The friendship between Li Bai and me is like the Yangtze River under the Yellow Crane Tower, and like his friendship with Gao Shi. Although there are separations and reunions, it is ultimately connected."
Zi An suddenly picked up a glass of wine and raised it to the sky:
"Now that we have Meng Haoran here, let the Yellow Crane Tower witness another poetic romance. Come, let's drink together and, like Li Bai and Meng Haoran, write our own poems to commemorate this moment."
The wine in the glasses swayed slightly, as if dancing with the river below the Yellow Crane Tower, and everyone raised their glasses and drank it all together.
At this moment, the Yellow Crane Tower still stands, the river still flows eastward, and poetry and friendship intertwine in the long river of time, transforming into eternity.
Zi'an put down her wine glass, a hint of reluctance flashing in her eyes:
"This cup seems insufficient to express our feelings at this moment. The river beneath the Yellow Crane Tower still flows, and the poetic sentiment has not yet faded."
Xiao Si sighed softly:
"How can the scenery of Yellow Crane Tower be fully appreciated with just a few cups of wine? The friendship between us has long transcended the boundaries of time and space, becoming an immortal poem."
Meng Haoran smiled and looked at the distant river, and said softly:
"If I could drink with Li Bai again, I would have lived a life without regrets."
Zi An gently patted Meng Haoran's shoulder and whispered:
"Look, we are the witnesses to the next chapter of history."
Following Zi'an's finger, Meng Haoran was astonished by the person in front of him.
At this moment, Qu Youjiu stood on the Yellow Crane Tower, with the Yangtze River shimmering before him as the setting sun gradually sank into the water.
Although they were still intoxicated and their words were not yet finished, in this moment of eternity, their hearts were already connected.
Xiao Si really wished she had a phone to capture this moment, so that it could be forever etched into this ancient building, along with the rolling eastward-flowing river.