Amnesiac General and Infatuated Brothel Keeper 8

Su Jinzhi patiently poured tea for Yun Mengchen, then hurried to pour a cup for himself. Lowering his eyes, he tasted it carefully, only to feel his mouth water and the fragrant aroma of the tea assail his nose—Good heavens, in the future interstellar era, he wouldn't be able to afford a cup of such beautiful tea even if he went bankrupt and emptied his medical funds!

Su Jinzhi showed off to No. 0, "No. 0, this tea is too delicious!"

No. 0 was devastated. "Wuwuwu, No. 0 can't drink it..."

Su Jinzhi slowly swallowed the warm tea and said, "Is it really true that Feng Jiuli will appear on the Linqing River today? Don't trick me, the river wind is freezing me to death."

No. 0 said firmly, "It's true! The Salvation Target is expected to encounter the Host in 5 minutes. Please wait patiently, Lord Host!"

Su Jinzhi felt much more at ease hearing No. 0 say this. He had just set down his jade-porcelain cup when he saw a servant lift the curtain and enter. The servant walked to Yun Mengchen's side and whispered a few words. After he finished, a clear trace of anxiety appeared on Yun Mengchen's face, but when his eyes glanced over at Su Jinzhi, he abruptly lowered them again.

Su Jinzhi pretended to ask him, "Brother Yun, what's wrong?"

Yun Mengchen got up from the soft couch and bowed to Su Jinzhi. "Jinzhi, our painted boat just passed by my junior martial brother's. He recognized me and is now waiting outside the pavilion to meet with me. Please excuse me for a moment."

Hearing this, Su Jinzhi immediately scoffed, waved his hand, and said with half-closed eyes, "I thought it was something serious. Alright, go on, I'll just wait for you."

Yun Mengchen stared into his eyes for a moment, then nodded. He lifted the pale pink soft gauze and exited the boat pavilion, but he hadn't expected his junior martial brother to have directly boarded his painted boat. When Yun Mengchen saw him, his heart suddenly sank, and he subconsciously stood by the door curtain, wanting to block Su Jinzhi's line of sight. However, the wind on the river was strong. When Yun Mengchen lifted the curtain, the piece of soft gauze fluttered away with his movement and did not return to its original place for a long time. Su Jinzhi gently raised his eyes and saw the person standing at the other end of the painted boat's bow, dressed in dark robes.

The man had a smile on his face, the corners of his lips pressed lightly together, yet he could not conceal the coldness and sharpness between his deep brows. The bloody, ruthless aura he exuded from slaughtering on the battlefield could seemingly be easily smelled even across the entire painted boat, making people want to retreat and stay away from him.

However, his features were a familiarity that Jun Changle had carefully ground in his heart with an unfading inkstick, tracing them day and night for ten whole years. It was so familiar that, seeing him at this moment, he couldn't help but think that the separation, pain, and waiting of the past ten years were nothing but a grand dream.

After waking up, when the man stood before him once again, his features were as clear as their very first meeting under the eaves just yesterday.

However, for Su Jinzhi, he had indeed seen this person not long ago.

This was a fucking long-haired version of Qin Yezhou!

At least his own appearance had been altered slightly, but look at the newcomer's brows, his eyes, even the way he smiled was exactly the same!

Su Jinzhi's acting skills came online in a second. His fingers suddenly trembled, knocking over the celadon teacup. Hot tea spilled out, its temperature instantly blown away by the slightly chilly river wind. He stared intently at the man, his bloodless lips trembling as he murmured the man's name in a low voice: "Ah Shan..."

Actually, Su Jinzhi wanted to shout "old lover" more, but if he really shouted it, he would immediately be scolded to death by No. 1.

Meanwhile, Yun Mengchen watched as the young man clutched his chest, trembling uncontrollably. His breathing suddenly lost its calmness and became rapid, no longer possessing a single bit of his usual languid and aloof demeanor. After that soft murmur entered his ears, Yun Mengchen's face suddenly turned deathly pale.

As if sensing Su Jinzhi's gaze, the man gently turned his head to look at him. His dark pupils were still as deep as an abyss, calm and unrippled. They were so unfamiliar that it made him feel as if he were placed in the dead of winter, buried by a raging blizzard, chilling him to the bone—the old lover he was lingering with just yesterday had turned into a strange new patron today.

And this new patron could kill people, too!

Recalling the fear of being scammed to death by Qin Yezhou, Su Jinzhi shakily got up from the couch. He almost fell when he ran to the door of the pavilion, but Yun Mengchen supported him in time.

Feng Jiuli looked at him quietly for a moment, ignoring the sudden tremor of his heartstrings in that instant, and then looked away to ask Yun Mengchen, "Third Senior Brother, this is—"

Yun Mengchen supported Su Jinzhi and naturally felt his abnormal reaction. Hearing the question, he still explained to Feng Jiuli, his voice hoarse and slow, "He... He is the owner of Huaqi Pavilion... Hua Wuyan."

"Jinzhi, this is my seventh junior brother, Feng Jiuli, the general of the Chongluo Kingdom." Then, he spoke softly by Su Jinzhi's ear, not knowing whether he was saying it for the young man to hear or for himself.

After hearing Su Jinzhi's identity clearly, Feng Jiuli looked at the two people leaning closely together in front of him, raised an eyebrow, and scoffed, "So it's Young Master Wuyan. It seems this junior brother has interrupted Third Senior Brother's good time. Let's gather another day. Farewell." With that, he boarded the painted boat he arrived on and left.

The hem of the man's dark robes swayed gently, leaving behind a night-like silhouette. The young man stared at him blankly, his body shivering faintly.

Yun Mengchen looked at Su Jinzhi worriedly, "Jinzhi... what's wrong?"

But the young man seemed not to hear his words. Gazing at Feng Jiuli's departing figure, he still murmured in disbelief, "How could it be..."

No. 1 was a bit surprised. "How did your acting skills suddenly become so good?"

Su Jinzhi was utterly devastated. "He turned a blind eye to my beauty. Just like those young male courtesans in my pavilion, he can only see Yun Mengchen in his eyes."

No. 1: "..." Psycho.

"Salvation Target has appeared." No. 1's already emotionless electronic voice became even colder. "The punishment world buffer time has ended. Commencing the salvation of the punishment world's additional target—Jun Changle. Current progress: 0/100."

Su Jinzhi: "!"

Thus, in the next instant, Yun Mengchen saw the young man in his arms suddenly cover his mouth and begin to cough violently. He coughed heart-wrenchingly, as if he wanted to vomit out his already battered and fragile lungs. Then, bright red blood began to spill from between his fingers. He slowly collapsed limply to the ground, closed his eyes, and lost consciousness.

When Su Jinzhi woke up again, he had already returned to Huaqi Pavilion.

His personal attendant Xile stood by the bed, his eyes red as he wiped his tears. Qiu Yi was also there, while Yun Mengchen, the whites of his eyes bloodshot, was sitting on the edge of the bed wringing out a wet cloth to wipe his face. Seeing him wake up, joy suddenly bloomed on all three of their faces.

Xile was the first to throw himself at him. "Madam! Madam! You're finally awake! You scared Xile to death, wuwuwu—"

Qiu Yi also asked, "Young Master, do you feel any better now?"

Hearing the way Xile addressed him, Su Jinzhi almost failed to catch his breath and nearly fainted again.

Fortunately, Yun Mengchen knew his heart well. Letting out a deep breath, he bent his fingers and flicked Xile's forehead. "How many times have I told you? You must call him Young Master Jinzhi."

"I'm fine..." As soon as Su Jinzhi spoke, he realized his voice was extremely weak. He had just propped himself up on the bed when Xile immediately grabbed a soft pillow, tucked it behind him, and supported him up along with Qiu Yi.

Yun Mengchen sighed and said, "It's good that you're awake." Then he instructed Xile, "Hurry and warm the medicine for the young master, then bring a bowl of hot porridge over. I can watch over him here."

"Yes." Hearing this, Xile stood up from the edge of the bed. Qiu Yi gave him a look and also sighed as he left.

Only after the sound of the door closing indicated the two had left did Yun Mengchen sit back down on the edge of the bed to look at Su Jinzhi. Pretending to know nothing, he tentatively asked, "Jinzhi, can you tell me what's going on? Do you know my seventh junior brother?"

Su Jinzhi lowered his eyelashes, his gaze drifting toward the south window, and remained silent.

Outside the south window was the bustling and noisy floral street, the peach blossoms lining the whole street looking like steaming rosy clouds. But inside the south window, there was a silence where even the air seemed to stagnate, quiet without a single sound.

Just when Yun Mengchen thought he wouldn't speak again, the young man suddenly closed his eyes. A voice, like the tinkling of pearls and jade, gently slipped from his mouth, carrying an obvious vulnerability: "Is he your junior brother...?"

Yun Mengchen blanked for a moment, then nodded. Weighing his words carefully, he said, "His name is Feng Jiuli, the general of the Chongluo Kingdom. I thought... Jinzhi should know of him."

When he finished speaking, the young man on the bed seemed exhausted to the extreme and nodded weakly.

Of course, the original host had heard the name of Feng Jiuli, the great general of the Chongluo Kingdom. But he didn't know why the person he had been yearning and waiting for over ten long years—almost a lifetime—would change his name and surname for no reason, becoming a powerful general in the hometown he missed day and night but dared not return to. He had even forgotten him, forgotten everything about their past, and forgotten that Jun Changle who was always waiting for him.

Su Jinzhi opened his eyes and gently tugged on Yun Mengchen's sleeve. With hope in his eyes, he murmured somewhat morbidly, "I want to see him... I want to see him! I want to send him a Fate Invitation!"

Having said that, the young man disregarded his own body, throwing off the brocade quilt and attempting to get out of bed.

Hearing this, Yun Mengchen trembled all over. Seeing the young man's movements, he hurriedly pressed him down. After a moment of silence, he said hoarsely, "Your body is currently unfit to leave the bed... I will bring the paper, invitation, and pen over to you."

The young man panted. That action just now, which was effortless for a normal person, had already drained all of his strength. Yet, his eyes were abnormally bright.

Yun Mengchen took the Fate Invitation the young man had finished writing and forced out a stiff smile. He said softly to the young man on the bed, "Get some good rest. I'll just deliver this Fate Invitation for you..."

"Many thanks, Brother Yun." Upon hearing this, the young man smiled and thanked him. Immediately after, as if utterly exhausted, he closed his eyes and leaned against the soft pillow to nap.

Yun Mengchen gazed at his face, which was still gorgeously beautiful and unreal even through illness and pain. His Adam's apple bobbed up and down several times. Finally, he fled the room, almost as if making a hasty retreat.

Seeing his act succeed, Su Jinzhi slowly let out a breath of relief. "I almost gave it away!"

After all, he wasn't an ancient person. He was fine with everyday speech, but he really didn't know those refined, literary phrasings when it came to writing letters. Fortunately, No. 0 had compiled a passage for him just in time so his character didn't break.

No. 0 claimed credit, saying, "Don't be afraid, Lord Host. No. 0 is here for everything!"

Su Jinzhi also said to No. 0, "Baby 0, you are the absolute cutest, but can you fix this habit of me always vomiting blood?" He hadn't even done many tasks since coming to this world, yet he had already vomited blood several times. Would he really not die?

"No. 0 has already worked hard to block a portion of the Host's pain receptors." No. 0's voice carried a hint of conflicted struggle. "If the frequency of vomiting blood is reduced, Brother No. 1 will find out..."

"Forget it, then I'd rather just vomit blood," Su Jinzhi said immediately. However, he also noticed a detail in No. 0's words. "No. 0, does No. 1 not know about our conversations?"

No. 0 said, "If it's directional communication, he won't know. If it's a public conversation, he will know. By the same logic, No. 0 doesn't know about the conversations between the Host and Brother No. 1 either."

Su Jinzhi found it somewhat strange. "Aren't you all in the same system? Why do you divide it into directional communication and public conversation?"

No. 0 sounded a bit aggrieved: "AIs also have the right to privacy."

Su Jinzhi still found it strange, but he was busy thinking about what exactly he needed to do to save Jun Changle. Did he need to awaken Jiang Lishan's lost memories or what? In no time at all, he tossed the matter to the back of his mind.