When Five Hundred wrote his xianxia novels, he’d often described the experience of ascending to immortality. But that was all just from his imagination; no one truly knew what it felt like to become an immortal. However, after drinking this cup of Monkey Wine, he felt, ’This must be what it’s like, right?’ The only thing that could compare to this indescribable pleasure was probably achieving immortality itself.
Seeing Five Hundred’s reaction, the other three quickly grabbed the wine pot. They each poured a full cup and, following his example, downed it in one go. Then, they all closed their eyes slightly, savoring the rich, mellow flavor of the Monkey Wine.
"Sigh. When I first tasted the food, I thought winning this lottery was an incredible stroke of luck. But now, I’m actually starting to regret it," Wang Shen said with a wry smile, the first to open his eyes. "When I’m not in class, I enjoy pouring a couple of drinks and sipping them slowly by myself. But after tasting this, I’m afraid I’ll never be able to appreciate any other alcohol again."
"It’s all your fault! Why did you drink it so fast? You made me down it all at once, too. A wine this good is meant to be savored slowly," Tong’Er grumbled, shooting Five Hundred a look of playful reproach.
Jiayi, however, didn’t say a word. While the other three were busy talking, she secretly reached for the wine pot and poured herself another glass. This time, though, she couldn’t bear to drink it so quickly. Parting her lips, she took tiny, delicate sips. The moment the others saw this, they immediately started scrambling for the pot. The delicious dishes, so popular just moments ago, were now completely forgotten.
Fortunately, the four of them were all rather well-mannered; no one hogged the pot. They stuck to the rule of one glass per person, patiently waiting for everyone to finish before pouring the next round. However, the pot was only so big. After a few rounds, it was nearly empty. They managed to pour just three more glasses, but when it came to Tong’Er’s turn, there wasn’t a single drop left.
"Why don’t we each pour a little from our glasses for you?" Jiayi suggested, feeling bad about the idea of drinking while Tong’Er had none.
"Er... I’ve already drunk from my glass. It wouldn’t be very sanitary to pour it into another, would it?" If it had been any other alcohol, Wang Shen might have just handed his glass over to Tong’Er. But he couldn’t bring himself to part with the Monkey Wine. ’Then again,’ he thought, ’if it were any other alcohol, we wouldn’t be fighting over it this fiercely anyway.’ Five Hundred remained silent, but his expression made it clear he wasn’t willing to share either.
"How about this? Let’s go by old-school drinking game rules. We’ll roll dice—loser drinks. Sound good?" Tong’Er proposed, unwilling to give up so easily. She picked up the dice. "We’ll play for these last three glasses, and then that’s that."
"That rule is for other kinds of alcohol. For a wine like this, shouldn’t the winner be the one who drinks?" If he just protected the status quo, the glass in front of him was guaranteed. But if he joined the game, he might lose it... or he might win more. The thought made Five Hundred hesitate, unsure of what to do.
"That works too!" Tong’Er, confident in her dice-rolling skills, agreed without hesitation. Jiayi also voiced her support. The two men felt too awkward to object, so they could only nod in agreement.
In the first round, Jiayi had a lucky roll and won, gleefully finishing the glass in front of her. Wang Shen won the second round and drank his as well. By the final round, Tong’Er was getting nervous. ’Am I really not destined to get a single drop?’ she thought.
But as is often the case, the more nervous she got, the worse she performed. In her anxious excitement, Tong’Er called out the wrong number and lost to Five Hundred. Seeing the last glass of wine about to slip through her fingers, she shot to her feet in desperation and cried out, "If you give me this glass, I’ll consider being your girlfriend!"
’Damn, girl, you play hardball!’ The other three were stunned. When Jiayi snapped out of it, she found herself wondering, ’If I had been the one to lose, would I have done the same thing?’
"This..." Five Hundred was also dumbfounded. As a shut-in author who rarely interacted with the outside world, he was still single. And Tong’Er was so alluringly sexy... If he agreed, she would become his girlfriend. He was completely torn. ’Should I say yes? Or no?’
’If it were any other drink, I would’ve agreed in a heartbeat,’ Five Hundred thought. ’But this is Monkey Wine! Boss Shen just said there’s no more in the shop. If I give this glass away, I might never get another chance to taste it. But if I refuse... when will I ever find a girlfriend? You don’t just run into a girl as amazing as Tong’Er every day.’
"What’s going on here?" Shen Yibin asked, walking over just as Five Hundred was agonizing over his decision. Once he understood the situation, he poured a glass of wine for Tong’Er, releasing Five Hundred from his dilemma.
"Ha, you wasted your good deed, Boss Shen," Jiayi teased. "You just cost him a golden opportunity to get a girlfriend."
Tong’Er finished the wine Shen Yibin had given her, taking small sips. Seeing that the glass in front of Five Hundred was still untouched, she added, "If you give me your glass now, my offer still stands."
Five Hundred was once again plunged into conflict. His expression shifted rapidly, but he didn’t answer for a long time. Just as Tong’Er was about to press him again, Five Hundred suddenly snatched up the glass, brought it to his lips, and downed it in one gulp, as if he were afraid it would vanish if he hesitated a second longer.
"With a wine this delicious, who needs a girlfriend anyway?" Setting down the empty glass was like lifting a great weight from his shoulders, and Five Hundred suddenly seemed carefree. Yes, drinking that glass meant he’d lost a golden opportunity to escape his lonely bachelor status, but for a taste of that wine, it was worth being single a little longer.
With the last of the wine gone, the night’s banquet came to a close. The four lucky winners reluctantly departed from the pet store. They couldn’t even wait until they got home; on the way, they were already logging onto Weibo to praise Shen Yibin, raving about the lottery prize and declaring how much they were looking forward to next month’s drawing.
But for some reason, while they all posted photos of the magnificent feast, they didn’t breathe a word about the Monkey Wine. Instead, they posted on Weibo, offering to pay a high price for the next winner’s spot. They urged whoever won next month to contact them via private message, promising a price that would leave them more than satisfied.
For the next few days, Weibo was abuzz with people trying to figure out what the prize had been to have enchanted them so thoroughly. Unfortunately, the four winners never answered.
Shen Yibin, however, couldn’t be bothered to follow the drama on Weibo. He was busy pondering another question. ’By my calculations,’ he thought, ’Sun Qian, Sylvie, Sakai Kaori, Hong Mian, and Director Kong should have all received their Monkey Wine by now. I wonder how they’re reacting to it?’