Three Lives, Death Exists Not at the River of Oblivion

Chapter 13: Don't be afraid, Moxi

As soon as I woke up the next day, Accountant Liu had come to see me. He pulled me to a pile of empty jars and looked as though he wanted to cry but simply couldn't.

I heaved a sigh while slapping on a helpless look: "White wine isn't very popular among the customers anyway. Let's sell yellow wine."

Seeing that even the owner herself didn't really care, Accountant Liu naturally had nothing more to say.

I was still upset enough not to go home, and remained the entire day at the tavern. And when I didn't see anyone coming to look for me, I got even more peeved. The stubbornness of a rock kept me at the tavern for another night.

On the third day, I loitered outside the pub for an entire morning with a sour face on and ended up scaring all our customers away. Half pulling and half dragging, Accountant Liu begged me to go back inside. I found a corner to drink. At times I felt angry, and then at times I felt sad. After consuming some alcohol, the idea that perhaps something had happened to Moxi began to nip at me. I could hardly stood still because of this fear. I got up and was about to go home when, without any warning, a small figure flew into my arms and clung onto my waist.

I looked down. Moxi?! Hugging me, his face was firmly pressed against my stomach. He was out of breath, and after a while, still didn't calm down.

"Moxi."

He ignored my call. I had to call a few more times before he would nod his head against my stomach to show that he heard me. "What's wrong?"

He only now looked up from my arms with reddened eyes. He signed to tell me that he thought I had left and hadn't wanted him anymore.

I frowned, unable to help myself from grumbling: "You're the one who doesn't want me!"

His eyes reddened again as though he was going to cry when I said this to him. He hastily gestured something to the effect that yesterday, Bai Jiu took him to the outskirts to practice martial arts and he also didn't return for the day. This morning, they got back only to find me gone. He thus quickly came over here to look for me. He asked me not to chide him or to get angry with him. "Since Sansheng doesn't like Master, Moxi won't learn from him anymore," he wrote onto my palm after some deliberation.

When I saw him like this, my anger, no matter how bad, also vanished.

I couldn't but sigh. I crouched down, ruffled his hair and asked, "Why do you like Bai Jiu so much? Is he prettier than Sansheng?"

He resolutely shook his head. Pleased, I smiled. "Then how about we find another master for you?"

He kept still for a moment before writing on my palm: "Moxi wants to learn martial arts."

My brows raised in surprised. I didn't expect Moxi to have such thoughts. As I was about to ask him why, I suddenly heard a crass male voice shouting in front of the store: "No white wine? You run a tavern but you're actually telling me you have no wine? I don't give a damn. I have to drink today!"

Accountant Liu profusely apologized to him.

I scowled and told Moxi: "Stay here. We'll go back together after I take care of this."

Moxi nervously tried to pull me back. I patted his head to reassure him and then walked out. I frowned upon seeing the person in question. The third young master of the Guan family that ran the capital rampant had actually picked my tavern to crash today. The world is full of wonders, indeed. The third young master's father was a first-rank official in court, his older sister was the Imperial Consort, and his entire family was favored by the emperor. Normally, anyone who came across them would need to show some minimal courtesy. This third young master was a notoriously rotten dregs. He never worked, and was always found at various entertainment establishments. He loved women, money, and alcohol – a classic player exemplar.