The rise of the poor

Chapter 2322 Flower Wine

Zhao Wenhua was extremely hospitable, not only insisting that Zhu Pingan stay for dinner, but also reserving a villa for Zhu Pingan to live in, with Hu Zongxian as his next-door neighbor.

The banquet was incredibly lavish, with sea cucumber, shark fin, bear paw, bird's nest, snow lotus, deer tendon, abalone, and ginseng filling the table. The food was a feast for the eyes, nose, and palate, giving Zhu Ping'an a real eye-opener.

"This wine, Meilin and Zihou, you must try it."

As the banquet began, Zhao Wenhua presented a jar of wine and said to Zhu Pingan and Hu Zongxian with a smug look on his face.

Wow, is this the legendary Hundred Flowers Wine?

When Zhu Pingan saw Zhao Wenhua's smug expression, he immediately thought of the legendary Hundred Flowers Immortal Wine, the famous wine that stirred up the political winds between the emperor and the prime minister in the capital.

"Lord Zhao, you've finally decided to bring out this wine!!!! I've been drooling over it for so long! Lord Zhu, we really owe you a debt of gratitude this time." Hu Zongxian was so excited when he saw the wine jar that Zhao Wenhua brought out that his voice was drooling, like a cat seeing a fish.

"If you had asked, would I have refused? It's your own fault for not asking." Zhao Wenhua chuckled, then looked at Zhu Ping with a smug expression. "Hehe, Zihou, do you know what kind of wine this is?"

"I don't know, but for Lord Hu to be so excited, this wine must be either a celestial brew or a rare delicacy in the world," Zhu Ping'an said, feigning ignorance.

"Hahaha, Merlin, don't tell me the name yet. Let Zihou taste it and see what it's like." Zhao Wenhua laughed heartily and waved his hand to tell Hu Zongxian not to say the name.

popping.

Zhao Wenhua clapped his hands, and a veiled girl gracefully stepped into the banquet, her delicate hands lifting the red clay seal from the jar.

"This wine must be opened by a virgin," Zhao Wenhua explained.

Once the seal was broken, a wonderful aroma of wine wafted out, so fragrant and mellow that it was both elegant and intoxicating.

"Good wine."

Zhu Pingan couldn't help but praise the aroma after just one sniff.

"Hahaha, pour some wine, have a taste." Zhao Wenhua laughed heartily and gestured for the masked girl to pour wine for everyone.

As soon as the wine was poured into the jade cup, Hu Zongxian couldn't wait to reach out and pick it up. He took a small sip, then exclaimed, "Good wine, good wine! It truly lives up to its reputation! It's a heavenly wine!"

Zhao Wenhua stroked his chin, grinning from ear to ear, then looked at Zhu Pingan, gesturing for him to try it.

Zhu Pingan also took a sip, and it was indeed a fine wine. Just a small sip, and a mellow fragrance went straight from his lips to his heart and soul, as if he had drunk nectar. From the modern era to the ancient era, Zhu Pingan had never tasted such a wine. It was between baijiu and wine, and it also had an intoxicating floral aroma. The taste was elegant and sweet, and it was quite delicious.

"How is it?" Zhao Wenhua asked with a smile.

Zhu Pingan praised it generously, saying, "One sip is like drinking nectar, elegant and sweet, with an intoxicating floral fragrance that is refreshing and delightful, as if one were in a garden of flowers, drinking a sip of divine wine. I have never tasted such a fine wine before."

Hearing Zhu Ping'an's praise, Zhao Wenhua was overjoyed, as if drinking fine wine. "Hahaha, I never expected Zihou to be such a connoisseur of wine. This wine is made by picking peony stamens when spring is just beginning and the grass is turning green, and drying them in the sun; by taking a small boat into the lotus pond when the lotus leaves stretch to the sky and the petals are collected and dried in the shade; by collecting osmanthus blossoms when autumn is crisp and the petals are falling; and by picking white plum blossoms when the snow is falling and the landscape is covered in white powder. All of these are gathered in a celadon jar, sprinkled with century-old yeast and sealed. As the seasons change, the wine is made with rainwater from the sky, dew from flower petals in the morning, frost from bamboo leaves when the first frost falls, and snow from winter plum blossoms when the first snow falls. It is then sealed in a jar for 1,095 days."

"Since Master Zhao is so knowledgeable, could this wine be the legendary Hundred Flower Fairy Wine?!" Zhu Ping'an pretended to suddenly realize something.

Zhao Wenhua's lips curled into an unyielding smile. "Hahaha, Zihou is clever. He guessed it right away. That's right, this is Hundred Flowers Wine. I dare not call it Immortal Wine."

"Thank you very much, Teacher Zhao. I am truly fortunate to have such a delicious meal." Zhu Ping'an raised his wine glass to thank Zhao Wenhua.

"Hahaha, it's hard to say more, but I'll give you two each a small jar later," Zhao Wenhua promised.

Upon hearing this, Hu Zongxian jokingly remarked, "Lord Zhao is too stingy, only giving me and Lord Zhu a small jar each. If not ten or eight jars each, then at least a large jar each."

Hu Zongxian and Zhao Wenhua have become quite familiar with each other, so this kind of banter is nothing unusual.

Zhao Wenhua rolled his eyes, shook his head with a smile, and said, "Ten or eight jars? Meilin, you really dare to ask for such an exorbitant amount. Do you know how many jars of Baihua Wine can be produced in a year? Let me tell you, the entire city of Cixi can only produce a hundred jars a year."

"Only a hundred jars a year?" Hu Zongxian asked in surprise. "How can that be so few? Just find more people to make a few hundred more jars of wine."

Zhao Wenhua glared at him and explained irritably, "Making several hundred more jars sounds so easy to you. A hundred jars is already quite a lot. We need to collect flowers from all four seasons, as well as rainwater, dew, frost, and snow. These require virgins who are skilled in both internal and external cultivation to collect them. After collection, we need to blend the Hundred Flowers Wine according to the changing seasons, which requires the wine master to personally blend it. These hundred jars are already the limit."

After saying this, Zhao Wenhua continued, "Even if I swallow my pride, use every trick in the book, and even resort to bullying, I can only take sixty jars of this hundred jars of wine. Not a single jar more. Don't underestimate sixty jars of wine. Leaving aside the small portion, just consider the large portion: I need to offer twenty jars to His Majesty, and leave twenty jars for my adoptive father, Grand Secretary Yan, and Donglou. How many jars do I have left? Right now, besides this one jar, I only have two jars of Baihua wine left."

"I don't care, once you've taken out this jar of wine, you can't take it back. You have to let me and Lord Zhu drink as much as we want," Hu Zongxian said shamelessly.

"Drink as much of this jar of wine as you can," Zhao Wenhua chuckled.

"Then I won't stand on ceremony. It's a rare opportunity, and I won't let it slip by." Hu Zongxian chuckled, picked up his wine cup and drank it all in one gulp. He then said to the maid standing beside him, "Fill it up, fill it up."

After a few drinks, Hu Zongxian became unrestrained. While the maid was pouring wine, he accidentally touched her hand. Even though it was an accident, he didn't let go for a long time, saying he wanted to read the maid's palm and that she was destined to have many children and much happiness.

Zhu Pingan stood speechless, feeling that the unofficial historical accounts of Hu Zongxian's actions after drinking were probably somewhat true. (End of Chapter)