VIP Volume Chapter 032: Never Drunk After a Thousand Cups

Ye Xiaoxuan had always prided himself on his drinking capacity. Among any group, there were few who could outdrink him! He possessed a rather peculiar tolerance for alcohol—no matter the size of the cup, whether a teacup or a wine glass, one drink was all it took for him to pass out, collapsing the moment he finished.

Ye Dajun and Hao Six-Fingers had grown up with him and were well aware of this habit. When they boarded the ship, they assumed that such a large vessel would be well stocked and that the liquor, naturally, would be decent. Yet after searching for quite some time, someone finally led them to the liquor cabinet, offering free drinks. But the liquor was an appalling shade—red as blood, so off-putting that they could hardly look at it, let alone drink it!

After much effort, they managed to find a bottle of Erguotou used for cooking in the kitchen, which they treated as a treasure, snatching it back to their cabin. Along the way, they also pilfered a packet of peanuts to serve as a bar snack.

In short, with just this single bottle, to let someone like Ye Xiaoxuan—who would pass out at the sight of alcohol—down it in one gulp would have been a waste! The two of them joined forces and quickly took the bottle back. Hao Six-Fingers held the cap while Ye Dajun poured half a capful for Ye Xiaoxuan and handed it to him. “Drink up!”

Ye Xiaoxuan didn’t fuss, took the cap, and drained it in one gulp. Then he sat on the bunk, took off his shoes, lay down, fastened the safety belt, and placed his hands flat by his sides, closing his eyes and lying still as though awaiting death.

Meanwhile, Ye Dajun and Hao Six-Fingers were still enjoying their drinks, trading cups back and forth. To their surprise, Ye Xiaoxuan, already lying down, unfastened his belt and sat up, stretching out his arm toward Ye Dajun. “Pour me another!”

Hao Six-Fingers, his eyes already bloodshot, came over with a grin, holding out a cup. “Well now, Xiaoxuan, your tolerance is improving! Here, drink this one!”

Ye Xiaoxuan took the cup from him—it held about two taels—and tipped it back in one motion, drained it, returned the cup to Hao Six-Fingers, lay back down, fastened the safety belt, and closed his eyes, waiting for oblivion.

There was not much left in the bottle. Erguotou was strong to begin with, and neither Ye Dajun nor Hao Six-Fingers were heavy drinkers; they were already feeling dizzy and lightheaded, ready to drift off to sleep after finishing the last bit.

Hao Six-Fingers shook the bottle—there was barely enough for two cups. He poured half a cup for Ye Dajun, then half for himself, saying to Ye Dajun, “Xiaoxuan drank one of mine earlier, so I’m making up for it now!”

Ye Dajun cursed at him, “You sly dog, even drinking you have to keep score!” Hao Six-Fingers ignored him, poured out the last of the liquor, and was about to pick up his cup when Ye Xiaoxuan’s voice came from behind. “I think I could drink a bit more.”

Ye Xiaoxuan opened his eyes, unfastened his belt, got up, snatched Hao Six-Fingers’ cup, and, with a slurp, downed it. Then he lay back down, fastened the belt, closed his eyes, and murmured, “Now I should be able to get drunk.”

Ye Dajun and Hao Six-Fingers stared at each other in disbelief. This fellow had always been famous for his poor tolerance—what on earth had gotten into him tonight, that he could drink so much?

Not two minutes after lying down, Ye Xiaoxuan opened his eyes, unbuckled the belt, and was about to get up when Hao Six-Fingers, now frantic, shouted, “You still want more?”

Ye Xiaoxuan grabbed Ye Dajun’s cup, who was staring at him in shock, finished what was left, then looked around the room, unsatisfied. “Is there any more? I haven’t had enough!”

“Are you alright, Xiaoxuan?” Ye Dajun asked worriedly, feeling his forehead as if checking for fever.

Ye Xiaoxuan brushed his hand away, baffled. “I’m just as confused. How can I drink so much? Is there any more?”

Hao Six-Fingers, face twisted in dismay, scolded, “You’ve got some nerve! That bottle of Erguotou, we barely had half a jin between the two of us, and you finished off the rest by yourself! Aren’t you supposed to pass out after just one cup?”

Ye Xiaoxuan shook his head in bewilderment. “I can’t explain it. Normally, this much would have knocked me out till the day after tomorrow. But now I don’t feel a thing. In fact, it tastes rather sweet! Maybe I’m just excited to be out on the water? Invincible tonight?”

Ye Dajun, his burly arm sweeping the air, shouted, “Who cares why! They say only real men can survive the monstrous waves—let’s show the guys back in the village what the Ye brothers are made of!”

“Count me in! I, Hao the Brave, have always been the very image of a real man!” Hao Six-Fingers declared, his oversized head held high, one foot on the bed, striking a pose of heroic resolve. He looked at Ye Xiaoxuan. “So what if we face the monster waves? I’ll go catch a few of those legendary fish for our drinks!”

With a clatter, the bottle on the table toppled, rolling across the floor and spinning under the bed.

Hao Six-Fingers, terrified, leapt onto the nearby bunk, clutching the rail with white knuckles and shouted, “It’s here! The monster wave is coming!”

Ye Dajun, furious, snapped, “You coward! I just knocked it over by accident. Look at you, scared stiff!” Ye Xiaoxuan, head down, watched the bottle rolling across the floor and said, “No, it’s really coming! Wait here, I’m going to take a look.”

Ye Dajun blocked him with his arm. “Where do you think you’re going?” Ye Xiaoxuan knew his brother’s temper—if he said he was going to warn everyone, Dajun would insist on coming along. So he grinned and said, “Don’t worry, this is my chance to impress my future wife. Don’t you steal my thunder!”

Ye Dajun burst out laughing and kicked him on the backside. “Go on then! And if you don’t come back, just stay in that girl’s cabin overnight! I’ll keep an eye on Six-Fingers here—look at how scared he is!”

Ye Xiaoxuan left the cabin, but he didn’t head for Wen Xiaoyu or Hua Lingluo’s rooms. In fact, he had no idea where the two girls were sleeping. When they boarded, the three of them had only been shown their own cabin and the kitchen—the rest of the ship remained a mystery.

To Ye Xiaoxuan, the whole ship was shrouded in secrets, but he wasn’t a particularly curious man and had no desire to pry into where others slept.

In truth, Ye Xiaoxuan understood that no matter how much he drank tonight, even ten times more, he would not get drunk or fall asleep.

He kept feeling as though some voice was calling to him—at times a wail, at others a whispered tale—never clear when he strained to listen, yet always lingering at the edge of his hearing.

That sound was coming from outside, so Ye Xiaoxuan stepped out. The moment he reached the deck, he was stunned. Though it was night, the ship’s searchlight illuminated the scene: in the distance, the surface of the lake rose like a towering mountain, waves as high as five-story buildings rolling toward the fishing vessel like a line of dominoes, whistling through the darkness.

Ye Xiaoxuan remembered witnessing the monster waves on Grand Immortal Lake when he was nine. That time, the lake had raged like a furious demon, claiming dozens of lives from the surrounding villages.

This time, the waves seemed even more menacing than those nine years ago. It appeared unlikely that this ship could escape disaster.

The sky was so overcast it seemed tinged with red, heavy rain brewing overhead. Yet even standing on deck, there was not a breath of wind. Such was the peculiar geography of Grand Immortal Lake—mountains to the south, ancient forests to the north, blocking the seasonal winds and leaving the lake eerily still year-round.