Xiguan City, the city lord's residence.

Ning Chen and the others traded toast after toast, and the drinking went on deep into the night.

Everyone was drunk.

Feng Qizheng, his face bright red, threw an arm around Ning Chen's shoulders and bellowed, "Somebody! Somebody get over here... Go to your father's Hundred Flowers Pavilion and bring back a few of the prettiest girls to drink with us."

Yue Congyun was drunk too. She slapped the table. "How about this old woman drinks with you?"

Feng Qizheng slammed the table too. "You stinking woman, who do you think you're slapping the table at?"

Ning Chen shook his head, trying hard to stay clearheaded. "Isn't the Hundred Flowers Pavilion in Xuanwu City? This is Xiguan City."

"Let's go. We'll head back to Xuanwu City right now."

Feng Qizheng was plastered. He got up, grabbed Ning Chen and started dragging him out.

Pan Yucheng was so drunk he was seeing double. "Where are you going?"

Feng Qizheng shouted, "We're going back to Xuanwu City."

Pan Yucheng stood up, swaying. "Let's go. We'll all go back together!"

The only sober person in the room was Xiao Yanxi.

She was at a total loss for words.

These men really were drunk. Wanting to go back to Xuanwu City, thousands of miles away, was bad enough. They wanted to go just to find some girls to drink with.

Ning Chen and the others were too drunk to walk a straight line. They kept shouting about going back to Xuanwu City, when in fact they were going around and around the table.

Feng Qizheng belched wine fumes. "Are we there yet?"

Pan Yucheng squinted and slurred, dead serious, "Not yet. Should be just up ahead."

Xiao Yanxi was about ready to die of exasperation.

"It's a long road. Why don't you sit down and rest a little?"

If she didn't stop them, they'd be walking until tomorrow morning. Swap that table for a millstone, and they'd have ground a couple hundred pounds of bean flour by dawn.

"I'm done, I'm done..." Ning Chen waved his hands wildly.…