Di Fuyi did not see the rejection coming. He could not believe that Gu Xijiu would turn down her offer! 

Meanwhile, Gu Xijiu no longer wanted to stay in the hall as she looked away and said, "Please excuse me. I am quite tired now. Qians.h.i.+ and Qianyan, please make our guests feel at home." She then disappeared almost instantaneously.

The crowd was confused and lost by how things unfolded. The conversation between Gu Xijiu and Di Fuyi was strictly for their ears only, so no one heard what they said. Perplexed, they turned to Di Fuyi for an answer.

Di Fuyi stared at the box blankly for a while before laughing out loud. He then left as well.

….

Gu Xijiu was having a drink. The wine that she drank was produced by Fan Qians.h.i.+, which was made from bamboo leaves. It had been kept in the wine cellar for almost a decade now.

Fan Qians.h.i.+ was a very thoughtful man. As soon as he realized that Gu Xijiu liked to drink, he immediately searched for the best wine-makers to learn how to become a brewer. After that, he personally made a few bottles of wine for Gu Xijiu and kept them in the cellar, until now.

It was the first time that Gu Xijiu tasted the wine, and she was immediately drawn to its taste. She then decided to open three bottles of wine and spend her time drinking in the garden alone.

After Fan Qians.h.i.+ escorted all of their guests out, he then found her leaning against the pillar with three empty bottles around her.

"Master?" He called out softly.

Motionlessly, Gu Xijiu still had her eyes closed. Nevertheless, the strong smell of wine on her body clearly indicated that she was drunk.

"Master, this place is too chilly and cold for you to sleep. Shall we go back?" Fan Qians.h.i.+ took two steps forward and stood next to her.

She remained unresponsive; her beautiful lashes drooped with tiredness, while her cheeks remained scarlet. The air was actually filled with the fragrance of the wine and her sweet scent.

Fan Qians.h.i.+ gazed at her intensely before lowering his body to hold her. "Master, I shall send you back to your room."

His fingers made contact with her arms. Even if it was only a minor physical contact, he could not stop his heart from racing in excitement.

Even though Gu Xijiu no longer had her guard up against him, there was hardly any physical contact between them. Even during practice, she would usually demonstrate the moves for him to see rather than guiding his movements with her hands.

There would only be physical contact when she punched at him violently. He would end up with bruises on his face with the slightest distraction. Therefore, he was not exactly excited about the violent part of their physical contact. For so long, he never had second thoughts about her. But all of his defenses were shattered, now that she was drunk.

Slowly, he lifted her. She was surprisingly obedient when she was not fully conscious. She merely peered at him while leaning against his shoulder. 

The place was about 200 meters away from her room. Fan Qians.h.i.+ could have easily used a spell to cover the entire distance in less than 30 seconds, but he chose to walk her through the garden. He secretly wished for the journey to be longer.

Everything came to an end, eventually, when they arrived in her room. He then put her down on her bed. He even moved her legs onto the bed as well and lifted the covers. He was ready to leave when Gu Xijiu started talking in her sleep. "Why? Why do you refuse to be my disciple?" Gu Xijiu whispered in despair.