Chapter 177: One More Trip
Zhang Ze had no choice but to hand it over.
Xiao Yu, a step faster than Prince Qi, took the bottle.
The father and son, each carrying a wine bottle, left with several attendants.
Zhang Ze watched the backs of the father and son, wanting to cry but finding no tears. He turned and headed for Su Chen’s courtyard.
Su Chen was practicing calligraphy by the window. The sun had been lovely the past few days, and sitting there felt wonderfully warm.
A maid entered, curtsied, and announced, "Young Master, Guard Zhang has returned to report."
Su Chen put down his brush. "Let him in."
Zhang Ze came in and stammered out what had happened.
Su Chen’s eyebrows furrowed slightly. "Great Uncle liked the wine, and Brother Yu liked the bottles?"
"And Brother Yu offered to trade a Ru Kiln vase for them?"
Zhang Ze nodded vigorously. That was exactly what had happened.
Su Chen shook his head. "That doesn’t add up. Why would Brother Yu want those two bottles? Even if they were valuable, they couldn’t be worth more than a Ru Kiln vase. Besides, he’s never cared for things like that."
Zhang Ze hurriedly said, "Those bottles... they aren’t valuable at all, really. They’re just ordinary bottles. I don’t know what came over the Young Master Heir—it was like his brain short-circuited."
He muttered, "Miss Xiao Fei gave me those two bottles of wine with her own hands."
Su Chen was silent for a long moment, then pursed his lips. "Since Great Uncle is sending you, you should go again. Explain the situation properly to Second Uncle Gu. It would be great if there’s more wine, but if not, just come back and report to the Prince."
Zhang Ze nodded. "I’ll go, then."
Zhang Ze got some silver from the steward, mounted a horse, and galloped out of the city.
Gu Zhang was just returning from delivering half a roe deer to Liu Zhuangtou when he bumped into Zhang Ze dismounting at the gate.
"Brother Zhang, what brings you back so soon? Don’t tell me you left something behind?"
Zhang Ze looked completely embarrassed. "Second Uncle Gu, well, you see... I took the two bottles of wine back and happened to run into the Pr—I mean, my master’s uncle. My master’s uncle is obsessed with wine. He couldn’t stop praising how good your wine is and sent me back to ask if I could get some more."
Gu Zhang was a little surprised. ’Since Young Master Su is the Prefectural Governor’s son, his maternal family must also be a prominent official family. That means his uncle is definitely not an ordinary person. A man like that must have seen plenty of fine things... Is the wine really *that* good?’
He ushered Zhang Ze inside. "Please wait a moment, Brother Zhang. I need to ask my daughter. She’s the one who put the wine away, so I don’t know if there’s any left."
The two of them entered together. Gu Fei was in the main hall cutting a wolf pelt on the table. When she saw Zhang Ze come in, she quickly put down her scissors.
Gu Zhang explained why Zhang Ze was there. Gu Fei had been feeling that her return gift was too small, but she knew she couldn’t give too much, either. After all, Zhang Ze had traveled with them the whole way and knew they didn’t even have a single wine jug on their mule cart. Giving too much would only arouse suspicion.
So she nodded. "There is a little wine left, but not much. Probably only about a liter or so, but—"
"We just moved in, and things aren’t properly unpacked yet. Please wait a moment, Brother Zhang. I’ll go find a suitable jar."
Zhang Ze said hurriedly, "No need to be so particular. Those plum blossom bottles from before were just fine."
Gu Fei gave a dry laugh. "Those bottles were just a couple of things I kept for fun. I only had the two. Please have a seat, Brother Zhang. I’ll be right back."
Gu Fei walked quickly to the front courtyard and rummaged around the kitchen for a while. All she could find were a few black pottery pickling jars. Not only did they smell sour, but they were also crude and huge.
After searching high and low, Gu Fei suddenly remembered the waterskin they had used for drinking on the road. She quickly found one, washed it clean, closed the kitchen door, and took out a bottle of Wuliangye to pour inside.