However, this fragrance had made him realize that the Zhang family was indeed skilled in wine brewing.

If they were to compete in wine brewing, Ren Baqian wouldn't necessarily be able to produce wine in a short period of time that would surpa.s.s theirs. After all, there were many factors that would affect the taste of a wine, just like how the 1982 Lafite was so famous. It was because the ripeness of the grapes in that year was almost perfect. As such, the ingredients that were used in wine brewing here were different from those on Earth. Ren Baqian definitely had to do more taste testing to be able to brew a better tasting wine.

Unfortunately, they were competing in the intensity of the wine!

"Sigh. Such is life!" Ren Baqian thought about the Zhang family and felt that they were indeed a little out of luck.

If they hadn't met Ren Baqian, they would most likely have had an opportunity to showcase their talents properly.

However, this was fine as well. They would only be able to exhibit their utmost value in this state of suppression by Ren Baqian.

Ren Baqian was impressed with himself for being so outstanding and brilliant. While he was at it, he took a small cup, scooped up some wine from the container that collected the liquid coming out of the still, and drank it. It was sweet and fragrant, rich and gentle. It felt silky in the mouth and had a lingering aftertaste. It was indeed good wine, better than any other wine that he had tasted before. As for the alcohol content, it was roughly at the 35 percent mark.

After distilling five jars of wine, the end product was about two and a half jars of wine at 35 percent alcohol by volume.

After that, Ren Baqian distilled the wine again and obtained one and a half jars of wine that was 50 percent alcohol. At present, the wine felt like a raging inferno as it glided down to the stomach, and its fragrance had gotten richer and more alluring.

By the fourth distillation, the fragrance of the wine had changed entirely. Even though the original smell was still there after careful a.n.a.lysis, the feel that it gave off was completely different. There were a few new and different scents, almost as if it had become a totally different type of wine.

At present, the fragrance of the wine had filled the entire courtyard, and almost half the street was able to smell it. Furthermore, one would feel slightly intoxicated simply by inhaling this fragrance. Although it was unknown when it started, a group of people gathered outside the courtyard and smelled the fragrance of the wine while looking as if their mouths were watering.

Even Zhang Junzheng, who was in the next courtyard, was astonished when he smelled the fragrance. This scent should undoubtedly be very familiar to him, but instead, felt very foreign. It was as if the wine was a different one from what he had smelled previously; the difference was like heaven and earth. How did Ren Baqian do this? What did he add to the wine?

In fact, the only thing Ren Baqian did was distillation. It was just that by the time the wine had achieved the 65 percent alcohol level after the fourth distillation, the fragrance of the wine had increased tremendously without him knowing what had actually happened. A few of the scents, which were typically not very noticeable, grew very prominent. The aroma eventually became very infatuating.

"What fragrant wine!" A loud and deep voice sounded in the courtyard. Qin Chuan unknowingly followed the smell and arrived here, then immediately grabbed the wine jar.

"This wine belongs to Her Majesty!" Ren Baqian was shocked.

This was to be used for the contest. Anything could be discussed after the contest, but it was definitely impossible to let someone drink it now.

"Let me have some, and I won't hesitate to do anything for you in the future! You said previously that you wanted to teach Tong Zhenye a lesson—I'll do that without even thinking twice!" Qin Chuan held the wine jar and had his eyes affixed to it.

"You old and ignorant fellow, who are you talking about?" Tong Zhenye's shady voice immediately rang out in the courtyard. At the same time, he launched a [Black Tiger Steals Heart] toward Qin Chuan's back. Tong Zhenye reached his hand out to grab the wine jar just as Qin Chuan turned his body around.

"The old and ignorant fellow we are talking about is you!" Qin Chuan was immediately enraged.

Tong Zhenye let out a grim laugh. Although his [Black Tiger Steals Heart] was blocked by Qin Chuan, he launched a lightning fast [Darkness Lifting Kick] in that window of opportunity.

"Get lost, the both of you!" The empress's slightly angry voice resounded in the air. After that, a person dressed in red descended from the sky. She grabbed the wine jar with one hand and gave both of them a kick at the same time that sent them flying. The wall of the courtyard immediately had two human-shaped holes.

"Your Majesty, why have you come too?" Ren Baqian didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

"This smell is too strong. These two bast*rds have already been wandering around here for quite some time." Ren Baqian understood what the empress meant as soon as she finished talking.

The people outside must have smelled the fragrance of the wine when it spread out during the distillation process. Not to mention the others, even Ren Baqian himself was amazed by the fragrance. The two of them must have then heard about it from someone else before they made their way over to get their hands on the prize! These two old b.a.s.t.a.r.ds were even willing to tarnish their reputations just for a sip of wine.

Perhaps, it wasn't only the two of them. The others probably knew that they weren't capable of getting it, so they didn't show their faces after seeing the both of them appear.

Unfortunately, the empress came out of nowhere and conveniently gave each of those two fellows a kick.

The empress held the jar in one hand, raised her head, and poured it into her mouth. The wine was fragrant and alluring at first. Then, a ball of fire started churning in her belly, and her face began to turn red.

"What a fragrant wine! What a strong wine!" the empress exclaimed in admiration and was pleasantly surprised. She raised her head and took another gulp, finis.h.i.+ng almost half the jar of wine in just two swigs.

"Please slow down, Your Majesty. This wine is strong, and we still need to save some of it for the contest," Ren Baqian hurriedly replied.

"Ha! I know that, but this wine is just too fragrant!" As the empress let out a laugh, the rich and fragrant smell puffed out from her mouth and onto Ren Baqian's face. After downing half a jar of that wine, the empress's face turned red all the way to her ears, and her voice sounded indolently captivating.

The empress lowered her head and looked at the wine jar, then looked back at Ren Baqian. She laughed gently and took another gulp. Both her eyes became hazy.

"Your Majesty…"

"Let me have another sip!" The empress felt the richness and the aroma of the wine in her mouth. She liked it a lot and took yet another gulp. This time, she took a slightly smaller gulp as her eyes grew even hazier.

"Your Majesty, you really can't have any more of it." Ren Baqian was between laughter and tears. He knew that the empress could hold her liquor well, but little did he expect this wine to be so enticing that the empress couldn't keep her hands off of it.

It seemed like Ren Baqian had managed to acquire the Zhang family's wine brewing technique.

"I know. Let me have another sip…" The empress took yet another gulp. In the blink of an eye, the wine was almost finished.

It grew more evident that the empress was drunk.

Even though the empress had a pretty good alcohol tolerance, out of around ten kilograms of wine in that jar, she drank more than half of it in just a few mouthfuls. It became very obvious that she was getting intoxicated.

"You really can't have any more, Your Majesty." Ren Baqian was helpless. The empress was already getting drunk. He was afraid that if he allowed her to continue drinking, the jar would really become empty soon. The only option left was to s.n.a.t.c.h the wine jar away from her.

When the empress saw Ren Baqian's hand reaching over, she raised the jar, causing him to throw himself at nothing as he ended up right in front of her. The distance between them was only one foot apart.

Ren Baqian looked at the empress who was right in front of him. Her pinkish face, hazy eyes, and the way she held the wine jar made her look extremely adorable. He couldn't control the pa.s.sion in his heart and leaned forward to give her a kiss.

The empress then bit him on the lips…

"Pain, pain, pain, pain…" Ren Baqian was in so much pain that he almost cried.

"Grow up!" The empress flirtatiously rolled her eyes at him and stepped back. She took another sip of wine before finally throwing the jar back to Ren Baqian. It now had less than 500 grams of wine left. She let out a few captivating and gentle laughs before leaping into the air. Then, she almost stumbled and fell down.

She was gone in a few flashes. After the empress left, both Tong Zhenye and Qin Chuan, who lay hidden the entire time, appeared in front of Ren Baqian.

"This is all that's left for the compet.i.tion. Both of you sirs can stop thinking about it." Ren Baqian felt helpless as he hugged the wine jar. In fact, after distillation, this wine was just a little stronger than the Zhang family's, but everyone was acting like a lecher that saw an exceptionally beautiful woman.

"Tong Zhenye, Qin Chuan, come to the palace, the both of you!" Not knowing from where the empress shouted from, her voice travelled and reached those in the courtyard. The two of them subsequently grimaced and gave an unwilling look at the jar in Ren Baqian's hands, which was still emitting that rich fragrance, before disappearing in a flash.

After the both of them left, Ren Baqian carefully took a sip. He first tasted the fragrance and sweetness in his mouth before feeling like someone lit a fire down his throat to his belly. After reaching the pinnacle of that heat, it diminished into a hint of freshness, soothing his throat that felt like it was just on fire.

It was a peculiar sense of rejuvenation, and he couldn't help but let out a moan.

It was no wonder that the empress refused to let go of the jar.

It was good wine indeed!

Even for someone like him, who rarely drank, one sip was enough to make him feel bewitched.