BLHO Chapter 81

Chapter 81: I’m Drunk

The evening banquet saw the two arrive fashionably late.

Han Mao stood up to greet them, respectfully calling out, “General He, Young Master.”

He Yuncheng ignored him, went straight ahead, and took a seat, a faint smile on his lips, appearing to be in an excellent mood.

Lin Shuangxu sat next to He Yuncheng, his face calm, but the lingering flush at the corner of his eyes had not completely faded.

Those who were perceptive could tell what kind of passionate encounter the two had just experienced.

Han Mao, adhering to etiquette, didn’t dare to look too closely at Lin Shuangxu’s face. Once they were seated, he raised his wine glass and addressed everyone, “Now that everyone’s here, for today’s victory celebration, I, Han, will be so bold as to offer the first toast.”

He raised his glass towards He Yuncheng, “This cup I offer to General He, for risking his life to save us. Without you, the thousands of soldiers of the Han family would probably have been buried in YanHui Mountain. Great kindness needs no thanks, I’ll finish this.”

After speaking, he downed the drink in one go, a picture of boldness.

He Yuncheng calmly watched him, with no intention of raising his glass in return.

Han Mao turned his empty glass upside down. He Yuncheng’s lack of support didn’t bother him. He didn’t sit down, picked up the wine jug, poured another cup, and looked at Lin Shuangxu.

“Young Master.”

He called out to Lin Shuangxu.

Lin Shuangxu met his gaze openly.

A hint of shame flashed across Han Mao’s face. He steadied his mind and said, “What I wanted to say, I already said during the day. I won’t repeat myself. This cup is for you, Young Master. I’ll finish it.”

He tilted his head back and finished another cup. The wine was too strong, and his face started to flush.

But he didn’t stop there. He poured a third cup, this time raising the glass to the sky, and said to everyone present, “This cup, I dedicate to the soldiers who sacrificed themselves in this battle. Whether they were from the Han family army or the He family army, you are the heroes of Bei Sheng. The court and the people will not forget you!”

He drank this cup even more decisively than the previous two. Remembering the fallen comrades, everyone present felt their emotions stirring.

He Yuncheng’s expression turned serious. He stood up abruptly, raised the wine glass in his hand high, and drank it in one gulp, to commemorate the heroic souls of the soldiers.

At this point, all the soldiers followed him and stood up, drinking the victory wine in their cups together.

The atmosphere of the banquet gradually warmed up. The soldiers drank wine, ate meat, and competed with each other to see who had killed more enemies.

Lin Shuangxu occasionally picked up food for He Yuncheng, while secretly observing Han Mao’s actions.

The brutal battle seemed to have worn away all the arrogance from this playboy. At this moment, he toasted the soldiers with humility and politeness, with no trace of his former overbearingness.

Lin Shuangxu tentatively assumed that after surviving a near-death experience, he had finally understood the meaning of benevolence, righteousness, and right from wrong.

He lowered his eyes, concealing his scrutiny, and smiled as he spoke to Han Mao, “After returning to Fengdu City, what are General Han’s plans?”

Han Mao was taken aback, not expecting Lin Shuangxu to take the initiative to speak to him.

After carefully considering the meaning behind his words, he realized that this was not concern, but rather an attempt to gauge his intentions.

Han Mao’s smile was slightly bitter as he sincerely said to Lin Shuangxu, “Young Master, rest assured, I will truthfully report the situation of this battle to the court and will never mistreat the meritorious officials. As for the Ministry of War, although I have some connections with Lord Chen Chang, I don’t have much influence there. Moreover, as you know, the Ministry of War is only speaking for the people behind the scenes and has no real power in their hands. I can only say that I will try my best to help the He family not be constrained.”

As he spoke, Lin Shuangxu stared at him intently, his discerning eyes not allowing him to utter a single lie.

And Han Mao met his gaze without any guilt.

Lin Shuangxu continued, “Who are the people behind the Ministry of War that you speak of?”

Han Mao’s expression darkened, and he subconsciously glanced at the crowd.

Although everyone here was his own who had shared life and death, it was still dangerous to openly discuss this at the dinner table.

But in order to show his sincerity to Lin Shuangxu, he still lowered his voice and said, “Eunuchs.”

It was actually a tacit answer. Lin Shuangxu should have known better than anyone, but he still insisted on asking.

Han Mao gave the answer as he wished, which could be regarded as a declaration of his position, a re-selection of sides.

Lin Shuangxu’s reaction was very bland. After a moment of silence, he smiled at him, jokingly saying, “General Han, I have remembered what you said today.”

Han Mao breathed a sigh of relief, held his cup with both hands, stepped forward, and clinked it with Lin Shuangxu’s, “If I break my word, I will let you punish me as you see fit.”

The two drank a cup in one go, a promise made.

He Yuncheng, sitting in the middle, watched the commotion for a long time, finally unable to resist getting involved. He picked up his wine glass and said to Lin Shuangxu, “I also offer Young Master a cup.”

His toast was out of nowhere, obviously not a serious drink.

Lin Shuangxu knew him all too well. He was starting to cause trouble again with his crooked ideas.

He glanced at He Yuncheng’s wine glass, remaining unmoved, and asked, “Why should I drink with you?”

He Yuncheng smiled playfully, “Because I want to drink with you.”

“I don’t want to drink with you.”

Han Mao, sitting beside them, naturally couldn’t understand their secret conversation. He Yuncheng hadn’t offended Lin Shuangxu, so why would he reject He Yuncheng’s advances?

Little did he know what He Yuncheng had done to bully Lin Shuangxu in the room that afternoon.

And he had never seen what Lin Shuangxu had done every time he got drunk.

“Alright.” He Yuncheng nodded jokingly, not forcing the issue. He drank a cup on his own and sighed, “Good wine.”

Han Mao was afraid that he would find it boring to drink alone, so he quickly raised his glass and said to him, “I toast you, General He.”

What was the point of drinking with him? He Yuncheng was too lazy to even talk to him, but he didn’t refuse his kindness. He symbolically clinked glasses and drank it in one gulp.

While he was eating, Han Mao took the initiative to strike up a conversation with Lin Shuangxu, “Young Master, is this your first time at the border?”

Lin Shuangxu nodded, “Yes.”

“Marching is difficult. This trip must be making General He’s heart ache.”

He glanced at He Yuncheng with a knowing look, clearly aware of the relationship between the two.

He Yuncheng lowered his head and ate, as if he hadn’t heard him.

Lin Shuangxu smiled without saying a word.

Han Mao was probably drunk, his cheeks flushed. He continued, “I really envy you two. Standing firm in your love, not afraid of the world’s opinions, a divine couple.”

He Yuncheng continued to eat.

Lin Shuangxu’s smile faded slightly as he looked at Han Mao.

“What’s wrong?” Han Mao noticed his wariness. “Did I say something wrong?”

“General Han, you’ve misunderstood,” Lin Shuangxu said calmly.

Han Mao looked at He Yuncheng again. He was still eating calmly.

His attempt to get closer had failed. Han Mao quickly changed his tune, “Yes, yes, yes, I’m drunk, just spouting nonsense. I’ll toast Young Master a cup to apologize.”

He raised his cup to toast, but Lin Shuangxu didn’t move.

Whether it was just his imagination, he saw a hint of killing intent in Lin Shuangxu’s eyes for a moment.

Not the emotion of anger, but a ruthless desire to kill him.

This made Han Mao feel a little terrified. He said awkwardly, “I’ll punish myself, I should punish myself.”

He drank the wine in his cup on his own, but Lin Shuangxu’s expression didn’t soften.

At this time, He Yuncheng finally put down his chopsticks, slowly wiped his mouth with a white towel, and said to Han Mao, “Why didn’t the Yan people cut out your tongue?”

After speaking, he gently grasped Lin Shuangxu’s wrist, stood up, and pulled him away.

The noisy banquet gradually faded behind them, and after Lin Shuangxu stopped pretending, his expression became even more gloomy.

After getting away from the crowd, He Yuncheng slid his hand down from his wrist, tightly grasping his palm.

The night outside the pass had stars but no moon, and the figures of the two were wrapped in the vastness of the world.

He Yuncheng stopped, using the faint light of the morning star to look closely into Lin Shuangxu’s eyes, wanting to find out why he was so angry with Han Mao.

He couldn’t find the reason. All he saw in Lin Shuangxu’s eyes was himself.

Involuntarily, he cupped his face and touched his lips to his.

“What are you worried about?” he asked Lin Shuangxu.

Lin Shuangxu couldn’t say. Everything seemed to be going smoothly, there was no reason for him to be nervous.

“It’s my fault, I ruined Young Master’s reputation.” He Yuncheng reflected sincerely, although he felt no regret in his heart.

Lin Shuangxu raised his head and looked at the sky. The dense stars seemed to want to devour him.

He wasn’t angry because of what Han Mao had said just now. Now, he no longer cared about any reputation.

He just wanted to kill Han Mao.

As for why he wanted to kill him, he couldn’t say the reason himself.

He sighed softly, leaned on He Yuncheng’s shoulder, half-closed his eyes, and found an excuse for his dark thoughts, “I’m drunk.”

He Yuncheng smiled, “You only drank one cup.”

“That’s enough to get me drunk. If I say I’m drunk, then I’m drunk.”

“Okay.” He Yuncheng agreed even if he said the moon was square, “What do you want to do when you’re drunk?”