Chapter 43: Tang Liyue Gets Drunk

The open-air bar wasn’t very big, but it was packed with customers.

Looking around, Tang Liyue noticed people from all over the world, their faces a mix of different nationalities.

Song Jun Ye chose a quieter corner and led Tang Liyue to a seat.

A waiter brought over the drink menu.

Song Jun Ye asked, “Want me to order for you?”

Tang Liyue nodded. “Okay.”

Handing the menu back to the bartender, Song Jun Ye ordered, “Whiskey and wild berry.”

Whiskey needed no explanation, the king of strong liquor.

Wild berry, on the other hand, was a very mild fruit wine. Calling it wine was an exaggeration, it was mostly fruit juice with a splash of alcohol, barely enough to get anyone drunk.

But Song Jun Ye had still overestimated Tang Liyue’s alcohol tolerance.

They had barely started talking when she downed half a glass in one go.

As the alcohol hit her system, her fair cheeks visibly flushed red.

By the time she finished watching a round of fireworks, her posture had slumped against the seat.

That’s when Song Jun Ye realized something was off. He reached out and held down her glass, stopping her from drinking more.

“No way, Xiao Yue! This fruit juice-level wine actually got you drunk?”

“I’m not drunk,” Tang Liyue insisted stubbornly, yanking his hand away and protectively cradling her glass to her chest.

Not drunk?

Before drinking, she was a soft-spoken, obedient girl. After just a few sips, she’d grown bold?

Song Jun Ye suddenly grew curious, what would Tang Liyue be like if she completely got drunk? Maybe he could even get her to talk about her family.

He stopped trying to stop her and casually waved at the waiter for another drink.

“Go ahead, drink. If it’s not enough, we’ll get more.”

Tang Liyue’s face lit up with a sweet smile. She raised her glass and took a big sip. “So good! Way better than bubble tea.”

“You’ve never had alcohol before?”

“Mhm, first time drinking.”

“Not a single drop in twenty-two years?”

Tang Liyue nodded again. “Mhm.”

“No wonder…” No wonder even an 8–9% fruit wine had her tipsy after half a glass.

But aside from flushed cheeks, she didn’t seem too different yet.

Some people turned wild when drunk. Others could drink without showing any changes.

Tang Liyue seemed like the latter.

She leaned forward onto the table, resting her soft body against it. One hand clutched her glass stubbornly, while her eyes remained fixed on Song Jun Ye.

Song Jun Ye was thick-skinned, but even he felt a little uncomfortable being stared at so intensely.

“Ahem.” He cleared his throat awkwardly and lowered his sunglasses to block her gaze.

Immediately, Tang Liyue frowned and pouted in dissatisfaction.

“Take off the sunglasses!”

“W-Why?”

Tang Liyue giggled foolishly, her eyes full of admiration. “Because you’re good-looking! I was just thinking, whoever has such an outstanding and handsome brother must be so lucky.”

Her words actually made Song Jun Ye a little embarrassed.

He rubbed his head and took off his sunglasses. “No need to be envious. How about you call me ‘Second Brother’ and I’ll take you in as my god-sister?”

Song Jun Ye thought Tang Liyue would agree without hesitation.

But…

She simply laughed silly and shook her head dazedly.

Then, she took another sip of her drink, finishing the glass completely.

After swallowing the last drop, she finally spoke. “What’s real can’t be fake, and what’s fake can’t be real. I don’t want a fake brother.”

As much as she admired him, Tang Liyue understood deep down that no matter how well they got along, without the bond of blood, she could never fully accept being spoiled without hesitation.

Just like before, when Qin Shi An treated her well, it always weighed on her, making her feel like she had to find a way to repay him.

It was the same with Song Jun Ye now.

She truly felt a natural closeness to him, but she wasn’t his sister.

She was Tang Liyue. Her parents were Tang Hui and Liu Lian.

She only got the chance to meet Song Qing Ya and Song Jun Ye because she happened to resemble their missing mother.

So what would it change if she became Song Jun Ye’s god-sister?

Once she left this ship and returned to her normal life, she would still be Tang Liyue.

If she couldn’t have something forever, it was better not to have it at all.

Tang Liyue looked up at Song Jun Ye and smiled sweetly. “Second Brother Song, you have to keep working hard to find your mother and sister, okay? I’m sure they’re out there, waiting to reunite with you.”

Song Jun Ye didn’t respond right away. After a long pause, he muttered, “You silly girl, you’re smiling, but why does it make me feel so heartbroken?”

He never thought of himself as a kind person.

If a stranger’s entire family died in front of him, he wouldn’t even blink.

But now, just seeing Tang Liyue, drunk and giving him a few bitter smiles, made his chest ache.

Maybe it really was because she looked too much like his mother.

“Ugh… I feel a little dizzy.” Tang Liyue pushed against the table and stood up, her vision blurring. Everything around her seemed hazy.

“Then stop drinking. I’ll take you back.”

“Back? Back where?”

Suddenly, Tang Liyue gripped the table tightly, refusing to leave. She shook her head furiously.

“I don’t want to go home… Aunt Qiu is sick… No one is waiting for me at home…”

“Not home, not home. I’m taking you to the suite to find Yu Mo Yuan.”

Hearing that name, Tang Liyue’s grip on the table loosened slightly.

Song Jun Ye held her arm gently. “Come on, let’s go.”

“Oh…” Tang Liyue obediently followed him toward the elevator.

She was dizzy and her vision was blurry, but her steps were still steady.

When they reached the top floor, Song Jun Ye helped her to Yu Mo Yuan’s suite.

He knocked on the door.

No one answered.

Yu Mo Yuan still hadn’t returned.

But Tang Liyue also didn’t have her room card.

The suite’s door lock was a triple authentication system, fingerprint, password, and NIC card. Without a card, she could still try her fingerprint or the passcode.

Song Jun Ye suggested, “Xiao Yue, try using your fingerprint.”

Tang Liyue obediently nodded and carefully pressed all ten of her fingers one by one.

After she finished, she blinked at Song Jun Ye, raised both hands, and giggled foolishly. “It didn’t work!”

Song Jun Ye burst out laughing. “Then why are you laughing?!”

Just then, the door across the hall opened.

Song Qing Ya stepped out of his room and saw them.

Song Jun Ye immediately greeted him, “Brother.”

Song Qing Ya’s gaze landed on Tang Liyue. His brows furrowed slightly. “She’s drunk?”

Song Jun Ye scratched his head awkwardly. “I didn’t know Xiao Yue’s alcohol tolerance was this bad. She only had one glass of wild berry wine, she didn’t even get to touch her second drink, and she’s already like this.”

Tang Liyue’s legs were a bit weak. She held onto half of Song Qing Ya’s arm for balance, flashing him a sweet smile before happily waving.

“Hi, Big Brother Song! How are you?”

Silence.

After a few seconds, Song Qing Ya finally replied in a soft voice, “Hello.”

Song Jun Ye spoke up, “Brother, call Mo Yuan for me. Xiao Yue can’t get inside.”

“He’s probably busy right now. I heard he’s interrogating someone.”

Song Qing Ya glanced at the drunken Tang Liyue, then at the door lock. After a brief hesitation, he input four zeros.

With a soft “beep”, the door unlocked.

Song Jun Ye’s jaw dropped. It took him a while to find his voice. “Brother, you and Mo Yuan are definitely up to something shady!”

Song Qing Ya ignored him and took Tang Liyue from his hands, helping her inside as he explained, “His license plate, phone password, they’re all zeroes. If you paid a little more attention, you’d have guessed it too.”

Then, lowering his gaze to Tang Liyue, his voice softened. “Miss Tang, which room is yours?”

Tang Liyue looked up.

The two bedroom doors were identical. She stared at them blankly, then lazily lifted a hand and pointed at one at random.

Song Qing Ya led her inside, pulled back the blanket, and helped her lie down.

“Miss Tang, we won’t stay to take care of you. If you feel unwell, just call room service and ask for some hangover medicine.”

Tang Liyue didn’t answer.

Instead, she hugged the blanket, snuggled in, and immediately fell asleep.

Drunk people always pass out the moment they hit the bed.

She looked so ridiculously well-behaved in her sleep that even someone as composed as Song Qing Ya felt an urge to pat her head.

But Song Qing Ya was far more rational than Song Jun Ye.

Until they confirmed her identity, he couldn’t just assume Tang Liyue was the sister they had been searching for, just because she looked like their mother and he had a gut feeling.

If she wasn’t their sister, then touching her head without permission would just be plain inappropriate.

So, he held back.

After carefully tucking the blanket around her, he turned and left.