Chapter Thirty-One: Intoxication

Ping'an Village.

The sun had already set.

He had promised to drink with Stone tonight—he couldn’t go back on his word.

At home, his mother-in-law was there with the two children, so there was nothing for Lu Kun to worry about.

His mother-in-law helped with dinner, leaving Lu Kun with some spare time on his hands.

Carrying half a pound of pig head meat, he made his way to Stone’s house.

The pig head meat was already cooked, perfect as a snack to go with their drinks. He’d bought a whole pound, left half at home for his mother-in-law and two daughters to have a taste of something special.

During the day, Stone always left his courtyard gate open—not a soul in the village dared provoke him.

Today was no exception.

The courtyard gate stood wide open.

“Stone, heat this up too, so we’ll have something good with our drinks later.”

Stone was busying himself inside.

On the small table sat a little plate of stir-fried peanuts, two bottles of sorghum liquor still unopened.

Lu Kun clapped Stone on the shoulder, handing him the pig head meat.

“You’re here! I thought you’d stand me up,” Stone said, clearly pleased that Lu Kun had come early.

“With good wine, how could I not come?” Lu Kun replied, the craving for liquor all but dragging him over.

Before Lu Kun got married, the two of them used to drink together all the time. Since his children were born, those drinking nights with Stone had grown rarer. Especially after his younger son fell ill and passed away, there hadn’t been a genuine smile on Lu Kun’s face for a long time.

“Enough already, no need to fuss with all these dishes. Just the two of us, a drink and some conversation is all we need,” Lu Kun said, seeing Stone so busy and unable to help but advise him.

“Almost done. Here, you wipe down the small table.”

With a practiced motion, Stone shoveled the meat into a dish, added a splash of cold water to the hot pan to cool it down.

Everything was ready!

“So, you’re not planning to head out tonight?” Lu Kun tossed a peanut into his mouth, chewed, and asked.

The peanuts were fragrant and crisp, the heat rushing straight to his forehead.

“Not tonight. We need to have a proper drink, just the two of us. That job of mine—working nights every day—it’s taking a toll on my body.”

Stone picked up a piece of meat with his chopsticks, chewed, swallowed, and smacked his lips.

“True enough. You make money, but the risks are high. Not something you can do forever.”

Lu Kun’s thoughts turned inward.

“No kidding. I was locked up for half a year last time—nearly drove me mad—but what can I do? I don’t know how to do anything else,” Stone said, gulping down a mouthful of liquor, his breath heavy with alcohol.

“So, have you thought about your future?” Lu Kun sipped his liquor, his furrowed brow gradually relaxing. The wine was strong—he wondered where Stone had gotten it.

“My future? If there’s wine today, I’ll get drunk today. Tomorrow’s worries can wait till tomorrow,” Stone replied, not seeming to care as he crunched another peanut.

Glasses clinked.

They both drank in one go.

“What about settling down—have you thought about getting married?” Lu Kun propped a leg on the long bench, hesitated, and asked tentatively.

“We’ll see what fate brings,” Stone replied, smacking his lips.

“Enough chit-chat. Drink!” Stone urged.

They clinked glasses again and downed another round.

Exhilarating!

The fiery liquor burned their throats, sent a rush of blood to their heads.

“Let’s talk about you. What are your plans? You’ve been working like a man possessed lately,” Stone asked, swirling his cup in mid-air, his tone casual.

Lu Kun swallowed a mouthful of the strong liquor, wiped his mouth with his sleeve, and hesitated before he spoke:

“In a while, I want to take my wife and kids and move to the city for good. I won’t come back. Life in the countryside—damn, it’s too hard to bear.”

With that, he refilled his cup and downed it again.

He drank too quickly and broke into a fit of coughing.

He was already three parts drunk.

“Move to the city?” Stone frowned slightly.

He hesitated, wondering if he too ought to leave Ping’an Village and seek his fortunes elsewhere. But his uncle was about to get a promotion—if he left before that was settled, would he cause trouble for his uncle?

Stone, true to his nature, decided not to dwell on what he couldn’t figure out, and poured more wine.

“Another!”

When Lu Kun looked up again, Stone had already refilled his glass.

Clink.

They drank again, another round of hard liquor.

“When will you leave?” Stone asked, swirling his glass.

“Planning on after the New Year,” Lu Kun said, rubbing his face to clear his head a little.

“Congratulations!” Stone said, grinning from ear to ear.

“Would you like to go with me? Let’s go out there and make our way together,” Lu Kun said, trying his best to remain sober as he finally broached the real reason for his visit.

Stone’s eyes lit up, but then he shook his head.

“Don’t worry about money. In a little while, I’ll have money—a lot of money. You could even find yourself a beautiful wife. We’d live across from each other, look out for one another,” Lu Kun slurred, his words thick with drink.

“I can’t go to the city just yet,” Stone said with a wave of his hand. “I have so many guys working for me, I need to make sure they’re all taken care of first.”

“And besides, if I just suddenly show up in the city, who knows if my uncle and aunt would be okay with it.”

“Drink!” Stone cut him off.

Lu Kun was a little frustrated.

Something was off with Stone tonight—it felt like he was hiding something.

In the end, Lu Kun gave up trying to convince him and decided to simply drink his fill.

But the plan to bring Stone to the city was not over.

Stone was only in his twenties, in the prime of his life—what a waste it would be to spend his days cooped up in the village.

Lu Kun was determined to have Stone go with him.

Stay in the countryside, and even the most ambitious men get worn down by the endless grind of daily trivialities.

“Come on, bottoms up.”

By the end, the two of them were drinking straight from the bottle.

“To brotherhood!”

“To three stars shining bright!”

“To prosperity in all seasons!”

“To the five champions!”

“To smooth sailing every year!”

“To seven lucky chances!”

“To eight fine steeds!”

“To the nine immortals!”

“You lost! Drink up, no cheating!”

Lu Kun and Stone drank to their heart’s content, even playing drinking games. Lu Kun was so drunk he was almost crawling under the table, his shirt soaked with liquor, sweat beading on his forehead.

Stone looked at Lu Kun sprawled across the table, still insisting, “I’m not drunk,” and couldn’t help but twitch the corners of his mouth.