His Purpose

"Hurry, faster, or it'll all be sold out soon!"

"Hurry! If we can't buy any, the young master will be angry."

Tianfu City.

Early in the morning, the streets were already full of people running.

They raced one another, afraid of falling even a second behind.

And their goal was the fine wine Dukang.

One of Jun Jingyi's poems had once again caused a stir in Tianfu City, and just as countless scholars were secretly admiring him, Dukang wine had suddenly appeared.

Out of curiosity, someone bought a jar to try.

After that, there was no stopping it.

Fine wine and good poetry-sing over wine, for how long does life last!

What imagery!

Perhaps ordinary people felt nothing special, but those who considered themselves distinguished, well-read, and talented...

They all began competing with one another without so much as a word.

Poetry gatherings, dinner parties...

Without a jar of Dukang, how could you sing over wine? What right did you have to call yourself a gifted scholar?

And so Dukang became an outright sensation.

Now only ten jars were sold each day, at a hundred taels of silver apiece. It was an exorbitant price, yet supply still fell short of demand.

Because of the poem, even the name Dukang had spread beyond Tianfu City, and merchants followed its scent here to buy it every day.

Many servants had begun lining up overnight.

So whenever people passed the wine shop, they could see the long queue.

All because of Dukang!

The Bai residence.

"Miss! Miss!"

Lian'er ran in high-spiritedly and told Bai Ruoli the news from outside.

"Dukang? Wine?"

Bai Ruoli's hand paused in spite of herself as she wrote a prescription.

This again.

Ever since her rebirth, things that had never happened in her previous life kept happening. These unexpected occurrences were just so... irritating.

"Miss, you have no idea. Those scholars out there, even the officials, have gone mad. A hundred taels of silver for one jar-heavens! And they still can't get their hands on it every day."

"A hundred taels?"

Bai Ruoli's face twitched slightly.

That much money could buy a decent residence in Tianfu City, and now it was going for a single jar of wine?

How crazy!

Now she was somewhat envious of the person selling the wine.

If she had that much money, her plans for revenge would be much easier to carry out.

"Yes, yes, a hundred taels."

Lian'er said happily, "And that Dukang wine has a poem, too. They say Young Master Jun wrote it."

"Jun Jingyi?"

Bai Ruoli's expression grew complicated, and she nodded gently.

That made sense. If he was behind it, then it was perfectly normal.

After all, every surprise since her rebirth had come from that fellow.

"What poem?"

Bai Ruoli asked curiously.

"I think it went something like..."

Lian'er thought for a moment, then slowly recited, "What can dispel my sorrow? Only Dukang!"

When she finished, she lowered her head in embarrassment and muttered, "I don't remember the rest."

"But wait a moment, miss."

With that, she ran out and soon returned with a sheet of paper.

Written on it was Jun Jingyi's poem.

The poem had already swept through all of Tianfu City, so getting a copy was easy.

"Sing over wine, for how long does life last!"

Bai Ruoli murmured quietly, astonished.

Another poem worthy of being passed down through the ages!

And if her guess was right, Jun Jingyi had probably written this poem especially to sell wine?

The thought left her speechless.

He had written a poem that would be passed down through the ages... just to sell wine?

Such literary talent...

Was he that short of money?

As the Jun family's legitimate son and its future head, he possessed such talent, yet he used it to make money?

He didn't even care about his reputation.

Bai Ruoli couldn't help rolling her eyes. She rubbed her temples out of habit, unable to understand.

"Miss..."

"It's nothing. Go make me a cup of tea."

Bai Ruoli nodded.

A short while later, she drank the clear tea, savoring its delicate fragrance and slight bitterness, and felt much calmer.

But...

Looking at the clear tea before her, she fell silent again.

That fellow again.

Had he even influenced her daily habits without her noticing?

And this clear tea...

She was absolutely certain that if Jun Jingyi's clear tea spread, gifted scholars throughout the world would love it.

Its delicate elegance...

This fellow could shake the world with something he did on a whim.

Yet despite possessing such talent, he had chosen to hide it in her previous life.

But in this life, he was displaying his brilliance for all to see.

Why?

What was his purpose?

And what exactly was different between the two lives to have caused such a great change in him?

Bai Ruoli kept turning it over in her mind.

She wanted revenge, but faced with such a mysterious and terrifying enemy, if she couldn't understand him, she would only die faster!

But she had thought about it for a long time, racking her brains.

She had even gone so far as to personally investigate much of Jun Jingyi's past.

Because she believed that a person's character, what he intended to do, and much more could be seen in his past deeds.

No one, even if he was skilled at disguise, could keep up an act for more than ten years without revealing a single flaw.

A master constable from the Capital had told her that in her previous life.

But...

Knowing Jun Jingyi's past had only made her more puzzled.

From that information, an image of an arrogant, hypocritical, incompetent Jun Jingyi emerged before her eyes.

He was nothing like the terrifying Jun Jingyi of the present.

If all of that before had been an act,

Why had this fellow kept up such a watertight disguise since childhood... and what exactly was his purpose?