While eating half-Western-style cuisine, Gu Wenxi was thinking about asking for wine or champagne, even though he didn’t know if such things could be easily bought in the countryside.

Du Yunyan nodded slightly, went back into the kitchen again, and then came back with a glass filled with a bright red liquid. Gu Wenxi couldn’t tell what kind of wine it was; it didn’t look much like red wine.

“Bayberry wine,” Du Yunyan introduced without waiting for him to ask.

It looked good, probably homemade.

“Thank you, just add it to my bill.” Gu Wenxi said cheerfully, “Is there any more?” He felt that the shallow half-glass was not enough.

“This is made with white wine. Drinking too much can easily make you drunk,” Du Yunyan glanced at him, “this one’s on me.” With that said, he returned to the bar counter.

Gu Wenxi didn’t think his alcohol tolerance was that bad, but the other’s words were not to be resisted. The wine in the glass had probably just been taken out of the refrigerator, and it was ice-cold. He took a sip; the sour and sweet fruit aroma mixed with the strong wine taste spread instantly on his lips and tongue. When he swallowed, he felt a slight warm sensation burning in his throat, indicating that the alcohol content was still not low.

The wind chime by the door was gently touched, making a sound like a music box. Gu Wenxi looked towards the door, where a very young man had just walked in, looking at most in his early twenties.

“Yunyan ge!”

“Yun Han?” Du Yunyan came around from behind the bar counter, “What brings you here?”

“I happened to pass by and saw a car outside. Is there a guest?” Only then did he glance at Gu Wenxi, nodding slightly in acknowledgment. Gu Wenxi returned a friendly smile.

“Yeah.”

“Do you need any help?” He continued to ask.

“No, I’m fine on my own,” Du Yunyan said gently, “Are you going to have dinner here?”

“I’ve already eaten.” The young man scratched his head with a smile, “I’ll come find you in a couple of days then!”

“Okay.” Du Yunyan watched him leave, his lips still half-smiling.

Gu Wenxi noticed that this boss also liked to smile, but it might be limited to acquaintances – to this young man, to the girl on the village road, and to the old man at the beginning.

On the other hand, in front of him, offering a glass of wine also seemed like a routine, nothing like someone doing business.

That being said, how could an innkeeper with a business mindset open business at this time of year?

He shrugged and continued to sip the bayberry wine. Du Yunyan hadn’t lied to him; this wine could indeed make you drunk. It was fine at first, but after a while, Gu Wenxi felt a bit dizzy, his eyes flicked upward, and the simple plaster line at the edge of the ceiling seemed to sway. But he was still sober and not uncomfortable. He picked up his luggage and headed upstairs to his room, intending to rest early.

His room was on the third floor, not large, with two wardrobe doors at the entrance, a small desk by the window, a double bed in the middle, a chair by the bed, and no other furniture. The light yellow curtains covered the small window. When Du Yunyan asked him during registration whether he wanted a double bed room or a standard room, even though he was staying alone, he had never slept in a single bed, so naturally he chose this room with a large bed.

Lying on the bed, Gu Wenxi wanted to ease the drunkenness. The silent phone all day suddenly became flooded with notifications when opened, and there were three missed calls from his father, all in the morning, which later turned into calls from his father’s assistant.

There were also messages on WeChat from the other party: [When do you plan to come back?]

Gu Wenxi sneered. Gu Yuching had asked him to report to the company that day, but he casually drove out of S City. Over the past two years since graduation, he had been living freely, doing various part-time jobs—singing in bars, translating, tutoring… He had only refused his father’s proposal to work in the family business. It was precisely this that angered the old man. Last week, in front of his stepmother and younger brother, he was scolded mercilessly.

Gu Wenxi wasn’t too upset about his personal life being interfered with, but it happened to be the anniversary of his mother’s death on the day they argued. He was late returning home because he had gone to pay respects at her grave, yet Gu Yuching didn’t even remember this. He accused him of hanging out with his friends like a fool. How could he swallow his pride?

Gu Wenxi casually typed a few words on WeChat: [I’m not coming back.]

Just as he was about to exit WeChat, the conspicuous red number at the bottom caught his eye—over a dozen messages from the same person—”JC Xiao Jiang.”

Gu Wenxi’s good buddy Jiang Chen, or rather, his former good buddy. The bar where he sang was owned by Jiang Chen. However, now the two were probably just left with awkwardness. He didn’t understand why Jiang Chen still wanted to contact him at this critical juncture.

[Are you still angry?]

[Do you really love her?]

[Why aren’t you answering my calls?]

…

Gu Wenxi didn’t know what to say. He had dated Liang Qian for a few months. He knew he wasn’t a good boyfriend. Initially, when she confessed to him at the bar, he accepted, but he didn’t put much effort into the relationship. Liang Qian wasn’t his first girlfriend, and she probably wouldn’t be the last, not to the extent that he couldn’t live without her.

He wasn’t angry that his good buddy was hitting on his girlfriend. He was angry that the two of them got together behind his back, and he was completely kept in the dark, like a fool waiting for others to tell him he’d been cheated on.

Some of the straight guys in the circle who knew about this even advised him, “Don’t damage the brotherly relationship for a woman.” They didn’t understand. Gu Wenxi was angry because Jiang Chen, as a brother and friend, deceived him. If Liang Qian had moved on to someone else, or if the two of them had been honest earlier, he might have politely wished them well.

With conflicts with his father and Jiang Chen happening at the same time, he couldn’t stay at the bar anymore. Gu Wenxi completely thought about leaving home, although this wasn’t his first time going out alone.

He casually opened a WeChat group. Another buddy, Zeng Bo Nian, was helping him cover up: [Alright, alright, don’t keep an eye on Gu Wenxi’s whereabouts. With this enthusiasm, why not earn a few more bucks?] After all, he had only told Zeng Bo Nian where he was going.

The group consisted of friends from college. Some he had good relationships with, while others were just average. After a brief uproar, they stopped talking about him.

Gu Wenxi didn’t reply to any more messages and locked his phone. After a while, he didn’t feel drunk, but he didn’t feel as comfortable as when he was tipsy. His head was pounding.

Gu Wenxi was woken up by the cold.

He had slept for a short while, and it was only past nine o’clock. He wrapped himself tighter in the blanket, still shivering. The November weather in the mountains wasn’t particularly cold, but unfortunately, Gu Wenxi was sensitive to both cold and heat. The temperature at home and in the apartment was kept constant at 24 degrees Celsius throughout the year. Being pampered like this, he found it hard to bear the sudden drop in temperature at night.

Looking around, the only heating equipment in this room was probably the air conditioner above his head. With a glimmer of hope, he got out of bed immediately and searched for the remote control.

To no avail.

He opened the door and walked out of the room.