With the permit, our journey thereafter was like heaven compared what we experienced before we received the permit. The treatment we received at all the villages and towns we pa.s.sed through was unbelievably different. We met Liu Yan in Hua state, but he didn’t try and obstruct us in the least. All he did was mention what we did in pa.s.sing, organise a banquet, and let us rest for a day. We gladly accepted as we were finally able to take a bath and wash our clothes.

And now, the waypoint before the Yellow River Crossing which we had yearned to reach was within sight, as was its gatekeeper general, Qin Qi.

“Un…” Qin Qi went through the permit I pa.s.sed to him over and over, as though he didn’t dare believe what was written on it. After a moment of internal wrangling with himself, he finally sighed and didn’t say anything as he gestured for his troops to prepare a boat.

“Thank you, gatekeeper general, for your understanding.” I bowed in thanks as I silently cheered in my heart.

“Since you have the permit, I have nothing to say. Moreover, I’m General Xiahou Dun’s subordinate general, and I have received orders to let you through before.” Qin Qi said with an unsatisfied expression, and pointed at the River before he continued, “The waves are still very choppy, and you can’t cross for the time being. I suggest that you rest here for today and leave tomorrow.”

I couldn’t help but feel suspicious and look at him with fury when he mentioned delaying our journey, and he understood what I was thinking and shook his head helplessly.

“You have served the Imperial Chancellor well and you have your papers as per the Imperial Chancellor’s decree. The Imperial Chancellor herself has also chosen not to pursue the transgressions from before. And so, I really have no reason to bring harm to you so you can rest easy. Please excuse me then.” Qin Qi didn’t bother any further to speak to me when he finished and went off to attend to other matters.

His job as the gatekeeper general of the Yellow River Crossing appears to be far more important than I imagined. He has to manage the irrigation channels and watch out for flooding in this area; and if there were problems with food production here, military expeditions would be greatly delayed.

Looks like we have to stay here for another day before we can cross the river.

Un, looks like we can spend 1 last day with Meng Huo and the Nanman before we go our separate ways.

I turned, and looked at Meng Huo and the Nanman who had reunited with us just a few hours back.

Hu… Hu…

Hua Tuo, Gan Qing and Mi Zhen fell asleep shortly after dinner. I and Wen Yuan carried them into our tent before joining the rest to enjoy some drinks around a fire.

“Blade girl, here!”

“Ah! Thanks!” I gladly accepted the bowl of wine and downed it in 1 gulp.

Haa!! The wine was weak, but also very fragrant. Compared to wine from Zhuo commandery, Xuchang, and Xu state, the wine here is much sweeter and fiery.

How did that saying go? Something about the night being the world of adults? I didn’t get it when I was a child but now, I can fully understand how nice it is to drink at night.

Especially in the chilly winter. Under the moonlight. At this critical juncture in our journey.

Haa… I sighed as I looked at the full moon. A breeze blew and sent back my breath, which smelt strongly of the weak wine’s fragrance.

I can finally rest easy after so long. I still have some kinks in my heart to work out but I have resolved to keep advancing. That said, I’m still not quite confident that I’m as capable as Liao Hua believes me to be.

“Blade girl, what are you still sighing about at this time?!” Meng Huo flew over in a drunken stupor and put his arm on my shoulder.

Why are you so drunk so quickly when it’s so weak?

“Oi, let go of blade girl at once you b.a.s.t.a.r.d. Can’t you see that she’s tilted her head all the way to the side already?” Lady Zhurong, who sat beside Meng Huo, stood up shakily and walked over and kicked Meng Huo’s b.u.t.t.

After Meng Huo let out several disgusting moans, he let go of me and fell to the ground. Lady Zhurong didn’t care and continued to shower physical abuse on Meng Huo. It was a little too hard to watch so I turned away and continued to drink on my own.

“… Oi.”

Un?

Lu Bu, who was sitting on my other side, called out to me. I turned and saw Lu Bu raising her bowl to me with a slightly reddened face.

“Ah ah…” I hurriedly brought my bowl towards it when I saw Lu Bu’s gesture.

*Ding*! A clear sound rang out and some wine spilled out. I held my bowl and downed it in 1 gulp while Lu Bu did the same as well.

Haa… I drank a little too much too quickly, and my throat was stung a little.

“Lord Guan Yu… Are you still thinking about what happened in Luoyang?”

“Eh?” Lu Bu’s sudden words made me feel a little awkward. If I said I didn’t think about it anymore, that would be fake. But many things have happened since then, so I’ve accepted it already.

And so, I filled my bowl and smiled, “That was something that couldn’t have been helped. In any case, to us now, there are some things we can’t avoid doing.”

“… No. To be honest, I could have refrained from killing them back then.”

“Eh?”

“The only reason why I killed them was because I wanted to. That’s all.” Lu Bu continued as she licked the last bit of wine left in her bowl, “Even though I wish to see the world at peace, I still hunger for blood. What a farce.”

“… Lord Lu Bu.” I looked at Lu Bu’s calm expression and extended my bowl, “Feeling lost is a good thing. I too am lost. We just need to keep moving forward, and we will get our answer eventually.”

*Ding*! As I finished, I clinked bowls with Lu Bu on my own accord and downed the contents.

“Un…” Lu Bu sank into silence and clumsily nodded before she licked the wine in her bowl once more.

I don’t know if I misheard it, but Lu Bu seemed to have uttered “Xuan De” softly under her breath. I smiled, and licked my empty bowl just like she did.

“Oh~ Do you both have any more wine left? The wine jugs over where I came from are all empty~” Wen Yuan, who had been partying with the troops, came over as she licked her bowl as well.

At this scene before me, I couldn’t help but to laugh.