Chapter 39: Brothers' Heart-to-Heart (Seeking Collection and Red Tickets)

  Lu Qiubai stepped into the shop, and saw that the interior of about 60 square meters was completely in the style of a traditional Chinese medicine shop. At the back of the shop, there was another 60 square meters of living quarters, mainly used for storage, where the apprentices who took turns keeping watch at night also lived.

  His elder brother was wearing a half-old blue robe, wiping the medicine box, and it could be seen that his elder brother was quite careful with this medicine shop. Apart from his elder brother, there was another man in his thirties, a short and stout man in plain clothes, who Lu Qi knew was an uncle of the Lu family, a lame man who had not married yet due to poverty and disability, and was considered the first partner of the medicine shop.

  "Brother, it's all set." Lu Qi said with a smile, and then greeted his uncle again. His uncle hastily returned the greeting with respect, being poor and humble, and also because Lu Qi was the master of the house, which everyone in the Lu family knew.

  "Xiao Qi, you're back so early today." Lu Tianhua put down the medicine box and came out from behind the counter with a spring in his step.

  "Today I came back a bit early, brother. I see that the medicine shop has already been decorated. In a few days, I'll go to Sanyuan County's Wanshengtang to sell medicine and open up the shop." Lu Qi glanced around and said in agreement.

  "You also know about Wanshengtang in Sanyuan County." Lu Tianhua was slightly surprised.

  "It was Xiaoyun who said it, in a few days I'll take her to San Yuan County to sell medicine." Lu Qi said.

  Lu Tianhua hummed and suddenly said seriously: "Xiao Qi, Chen Hu's matter must be settled in advance."

  Lu Qi and Sheng Dao said: "Don't worry about Chen Hu's matter, brother."

  Chen Tianhua nodded, and Lu Qi glanced outside before saying in a low voice, "Brother, let's go to the Liu Ming wine house for a drink and discuss some things."

  Chen Tianhua was taken aback and looked at Lu Qi with some confusion, nodding: "Alright, we brothers have never drunk alone before."

  There are seven or eight hotels on West Street, and the Liu Ming Hotel is third in scale. It's a three-story building. Lu Qi and Lu Tianhua left the shop and walked more than 500 meters to the Liu Ming Hotel. Under the enthusiastic invitation of the waiter, they ordered a second-floor suite, six dishes and a pot of wine.

  After two dishes were served, Lu Qi poured a full bowl for his brother and another one for himself. Lu Tianhua looked at the wine bowl and shook his head with a smile: "Little Seven, with this large bowl of wine, three bowls will get me drunk."

  Lu Qi smiled and said: "It's okay, brother must drink the first bowl in one gulp, and the rest can be drunk slowly."

  "Alright, come on, let's finish this first bowl." Lu Tian was stirred up with enthusiasm, picked up his wine bowl, and the brothers lightly clinked their bowls together, exchanged a smile, and each gulped down the liquor in one swift motion.

  Lu Tianhua put down his wine bowl and wiped his mouth with a smile: "Good, refreshing." After finishing, he picked up his chopsticks to pick up the dishes.

  Lu Qi put down his bowl and picked up a tankard to pour himself another drink. Lu Tianhua ate and laughed, saying: "Little Seven, what's on your mind? Spit it out."

  Lu Qi smiled and said, "Brother, today I took some time off to go to Wangjiangbao with Mother and Sister-in-law for a blind date. I have agreed to marry Xinyuner, and in the future, I will welcome her as my wife with the proper rituals."

  Lu Tianhua was taken aback and smiled: "Really? Your sister-in-law has mentioned this before, she thinks highly of Miss Xin, congratulations to you, brother."

  Lu Qi and Sheng Dao said: "Thank you, brother."

  Lu Tianhua smiled and said: "Looking at how calm you are, aren't you very fond of that Xin Miss?"

  Lu Qi thought for a moment and said in a harmonious tone: "I don't particularly like it, but I have a good feeling. I can tell that Xin Yun'er has taken a liking to me, and Mother also hopes that I will get married soon. Anyway, men can marry multiple women, so out of filial piety, I agreed."

  Lu Tianhua smiled and said: "Being liked by others is the greatest happiness. Don't be in a situation where you are blessed but hurt someone else's heart."

  Lu Qi smiled and said: "As long as she knows how to respect my preferences, I will also respect her likes."

  Lu Tianhua nodded and said in a harmonious tone: "You should get married soon, your mother is eagerly waiting for the Lu family to have an heir."

  Lu Qi glanced at his elder brother and saw Lu Tianhua's face was flushed with a mixture of red wine and solemnity.

  He hesitated for a moment, and then said in a soft voice: "Brother, you and I are biological brothers. Since we were young, you have always been good to me. There's something I want to talk about. Sister-in-law wants to buy a concubine to enter the house, and both Mother and I agree with it. Brother, I came to ask privately: do you want a concubine?"

  Lu Tianhua listened calmly, took a sip of wine from the bowl, and said in a low voice: "Xiao Qi, brother is unwilling, the reason is that brother does not want to harm people, more importantly, does not want to lose face."

  Lu Qi's heart was shaken when he heard this. Although he had guessed the reason for Wu Hou's behavior towards his brother, now that it was confirmed, he was reluctant to accept it. He hesitated for a moment before speaking in a soft voice: "Brother, is it really not possible?"

  Lu Tianhua smiled bitterly and looked at Lu Qi frankly: "Little Seven, you are my younger brother, I don't need to hide this from you. It's not that I'm not capable, when it comes to sleeping with women, I'm absolutely vigorous. If not, your sister-in-law wouldn't have thought of buying a concubine to bear children. The thing is, I did something stupid back then and lost my fertility, no matter how hard I try, I won't be able to produce any results."

  Lu Qi was stunned, her elder brother was a scholar, this kind of coarse language he had never used before.

  Lu Tianhua saw Lu Qi's astonished face, he shook his head and took a big mouthful of wine, wiping his mouth with a big smile: "Little Seven, brother is no longer a pure literary man, these years have become rough and inferior, just pretending to be elegant at home. Brother was 18 years old that year, participated in a literary poetry gathering, the location was a brothel, as a result, brother got drunk and stayed overnight at the brothel, left after seven or eight days, his body was uncomfortable, seeking medical attention only to find out he had contracted gonorrhea, secretly treated for three months before recovering, later got married but couldn't have children, only then did he realize that he had left behind the root of infertility."

  Lu Tianhua took a big gulp of wine after finishing his words, and then sighed: "Xiao Qi, I'm your predecessor, you must remember that it's okay to like women and buy ten or so to play with at home, but never go to brothels. If you do go, find some high-class courtesans in private houses, those low-class ones are absolutely untouchable."

  Lu Qi nodded and said, "I will be careful."

  Lu Tianhua shook his head and said solemnly, "Xiao Qi, why did I become obsessed with medicine? It's because I wanted to cure the root of the disease. All these years, the root of the disease has not been eliminated, but I have really fallen in love with medicine. Mother hopes that I will focus on reading literature, but look at this world, if there is no official door to rely on, can a scholar from a humble background make a name for himself just by writing beautiful articles?"

  Lu Qi and Sheng said: "Brother, useless poems can be ignored, but the great principles of governance and wisdom of the ancients should not be abandoned."

  Lu Tianhua sighed and said: "Is what I learned about governing the world of any use?"

  Lu Qi and Sheng said: "It's useless for now, but when Xiao Qi becomes a high-ranking official one day, he will need his brother's help very much."

  Lu Tianhua was taken aback and asked in surprise: "Xiao Qi, you're so confident, have you found a way to get promoted?"

  "Brother, in a chaotic world there are opportunities for chaos. I will eventually return to the military and with my official background, I will strive upwards. Of course, I cannot guarantee success, but I have half confidence."

  Lu Tianhua looked at Lu Qi and solemnly nodded: "Brother promises you, from now on I will study the writings of governance strategies."

  "Come on, have a drink." Lu Qi raised his bowl and proposed a toast. The two brothers each took a big swig of wine.

  Lu Tianhua put down his bowl and said guiltily, "Xiao Qi, I can no longer deceive your sister. For so many years, the weight on my heart has been too heavy, and I've lived too tiredly. Today, when I return, I will apologize to your sister and then let her remarry."

  "Brother, your wife is a kind and virtuous woman who loves you deeply. Even if she finds out, she won't resent you, let alone remarry. If you force her to leave, it's like pushing her to kill herself. Brother, don't do such a foolish thing." Lu Qi hastily advised.

  Lu Tianhua shed tears and murmured, "Mei'er, I've wronged you. You're the best wife in this world." He raised his cup, tilted his head back, and downed a mouthful of wine.

  "Brother, slow down your drinking." Lu Qi hastily advised, as Lu Tianhua was already half drunk.

  "Little Seven, brother wants to ask you for a favor." Lu Tianhua put down his cup and gazed at Lu Qi with a pair of slightly red, drunken eyes full of longing.

  Lu Qi was taken aback and replied in a gentle voice: "What's wrong? Brother, you speak."

  Lu Tianhua stared at Lu Qi for a few seconds before speaking softly: "Little Seven, it's not going to work out between us. Can you adopt a child for me in the future?"

  Lu Qi did not show a surprised reaction. He had already guessed what his brother wanted to ask for. After hearing it, he didn't immediately respond but instead picked up the wine cup and took a sip while deep in thought.

  "Xiao Qi, don't you want to?" Lu Tianhua asked disappointedly again.

  Lu Qi raised his head and said in a harmonious tone, "Brother, you and I are brothers of the same root. It's very common for my child to be adopted by you. How could Xiao Qi not be willing? However, adopting openly involves many issues, so why not think of an alternative way to adopt?"