Chapter 74: The Wandering Record of Han (3)

  "Really? You're also Chinese!?" I felt a bit surprised at his arrival.

  "Dude! I'm also from Northeast China! What a bloody coincidence!! I'm from Harbin!! Where are you from?" He said excitedly and surprisingly.

  "I'm from Harbin too!! What a coincidence!!" I was even more surprised than him. When I was in Harbin, almost everyone around me was from Northeast China, and it didn't feel special at all. But meeting someone from Harbin in a foreign country feels especially intimate.

  "Really? Then we have to drink two cups!!"

  "Come on! Just what we needed. Let's sit down and have a drink..." I hastily and warmly ushered him to his seat.

  "There are two more guys on my side, they're also Chinese..." he said with a slight awkwardness.

  "Let's call them over together then! It's already a kind of fate to run into each other in this place!" Jin Yina said generously. So our table had three more Chinese people, and after introducing themselves, we found out that the other two were from Zhejiang Wenzhou and Inner Mongolia respectively, both studying in Korea but not at the same school, and they knew each other through the Chinese overseas students association. Like this, six people started eating and chatting enthusiastically, of course also drinking, especially since it was a scene of Northeasterners meeting in a foreign land.

  "Do you know that we Mongolians have a rule when drinking with others for the first time?" said my friend from Inner Mongolia, suddenly standing up with his cup of wine.

  "Eagles soar across the prairie, one wing holding four cups..." Our tour guide happened to be a Mongolian too, and we had a few drinks with him, listening to him recite this line.

  "Yes, two wings are eight cups. This is the rule of Genghis Khan's descendants when treating friends!" The Mongolian said with a smile.

  "I've had a taste of it before, to be honest, thinking about it now still gives me goosebumps!"

  "Except for Mongolians, I'd most like to drink with Northeasterners! They're straightforward! Korean liquor is too gentle, it's no fun, let's switch cups! Fang Jie! Trouble you to bring a few more cups!" The Mongolian said generously, making me break out in cold sweat.

  "Although Korean soju has a low alcohol content, it's potent afterwards, you guys should drink less!" Jin Yina advised from the side.

  "No big deal! We Mongolians take friendship seriously, and we value our drinking capacity. Don't worry, even if the two of us get drunk, there are four of you to carry us back!" The underlying tone of his words seemed to suggest that I was doomed today, and I didn't know what his purpose was in competing with me in drinking, but anyway, it's all the same whether I live or die. At least I couldn't let others look down on me, so I gritted my teeth, stood up, rolled up my sleeves and said, "Alright! Since you think so highly of me, I'll accompany you today. At worst, I'll leave horizontally!" I also thought I was being quite bold in saying that, although maybe I wasn't as good at drinking as him, but I definitely couldn't lose to him in terms of momentum.

  "Alright! Like a Northeasterner, it's refreshing enough! I'll set an example first!" At this time, the waiter happened to bring over several bowls, which were slightly smaller than the ordinary bowls used for meals in China, making me feel a bit more at ease. The Mongolians started downing bowl after bowl, while I was calculating how many bowls I could handle. After all, it had been a long time since I'd engaged in this kind of crazy challenge. Besides, when drinking, the most taboo word is "haste", no matter how low the degree of the liquor, if you drink hastily, you'll get drunk.

  I have always suspected that Mongolians' ability to drink is influenced by their genetic heritage. At least, among the Mongolians I know, there isn't one who can't hold his liquor on a drinking table. In less than a minute, he had downed eight bowls, although his face was red, but at least his expression remained calm. This bold move earned him applause and cheers from his two friends who were present, and after applauding, they stared at me together, their eyes seeming to gleam with provocation.

  "Be strong! Don't show off! If you can't drink it, then forget it!" Qin Ke Yi whispered beside me, but this only stirred up my competitive spirit even more. So I gritted my teeth and started drinking bowl after bowl. By the time I reached the sixth bowl, my stomach was already churning violently, and I could feel something surging up my throat that I repeatedly suppressed. Taking a deep breath, I closed my eyes and continued to down the remaining two bowls.

  "Are you okay?" Qin Ke Yi and Jin Yi Na asked in unison, their voices laced with concern. At that moment, my only feeling was that if I opened my mouth, the contents of my stomach would definitely gush out like a fountain. So, I could only pretend to be calm and use all my remaining strength to give Qin Ke Yi and Jin Yi Na a peaceful smile. Then, I stood there silently, continuing to struggle with the thing in my throat. My actions earned me even more enthusiastic applause than before, and it was a unanimous ovation from everyone at the table.

  "Alright! Brother, you're a real man! I've made up my mind to be friends with you!" The Mongolian stood up and sincerely shook hands with me. And all I could do was smile and stretch out my hand, continuing to struggle silently.

  After the situation in my throat slightly improved, I slowly sat down. At this time, the atmosphere at the wine table became more and more harmonious, everyone was talking and laughing, and later started playing games. I, due to the effects of alcohol, began to feel dizzy and sat there in a daze, as if I wasn't even sitting at the same table as them. I don't know when someone said something like "It's getting late, we should head back!" After that, I vaguely remember being supported by Qin Ke Yi, walking out of the seafood restaurant with everyone, saying goodbye to those three people. Not long after taking a few steps, I finally threw up, declaring my failure in the struggle that had lasted over an hour. Thinking about it, since I started drinking, I've never left anything behind on China's vast 9.6 million square kilometers of land. Who would have thought that today I'd end up vomiting on foreign soil, much smaller than China? I wonder if this counts as me making a tiny contribution to China's environmental protection efforts.

  Qin Keyi and Jin Yina hastily pulled out their handkerchiefs to wipe my mouth and face, after I had thoroughly vomited everything in my stomach. The two of them then supported me as we swayed and stumbled towards the hotel...

  I opened my eyes dazedly in the morning, feeling a severe pain in my head. I turned to look at Qin Ke Yi, who was leaning against the headboard watching a Korean show on TV.

  "Really? Can you understand it?" I asked curiously.

  "You're awake! Just staring blankly at nothing, huh?" Qin Ke said to me without taking his eyes off the TV.

  "Didn't I try to make a move on you last night?" I asked Qin Ke with a smile.

  "Really fresh! Aren't you trying to take liberties with me every night?" Qin Ke turned his head around, smiling and saying to me with a flirtatious gaze.

  "But last night must have been even more intense, didn't I just behave so obediently last night!"

  "Honestly!? Haha! You came back last night, fell onto the bed and started singing, not a single sentence I could understand! And you said you'd give me a striptease!!"

  "You can't be serious! I'm still... going to give you a striptease!" I asked in disbelief.

  "I'm also surprised! I didn't expect you to be so skilled in this aspect!" Qin Ke said with a smile.

  "Did I jump?"

  "You always disappoint me! I've got the cola and popcorn ready, but you're lying in bed sleeping like a dead pig! Sigh..."

  "Then I'll dance for you now!" I said, sitting up.

  "Get out! I'm not in the mood to look at you now! Hurry up and clean up! Jin Yina will be here soon!" Qin Ke said as he pushed me off the bed. So, after brushing my teeth and taking a shower in the bathroom, when I came out, Jin Yina was already chatting with Qin Ke in the room...

  Today's main event was Jin Yina taking me and Qin Ke to stroll around the streets. This is also one of the most coveted activities for these two women, while I can only serve as a free tour guide and laborer. We took a taxi to Myeong-dong Market, which is said to be a mid-range clothing distribution center. When we got off the car, looking at the scene in front of me made me feel a bit disappointed. It feels like this place is similar to Beijing's Dashilan, with similarly narrow alleys, similarly crowded crowds, and small shops selling cheap clothes, only with some slightly well-known brands scattered among them. Of course, in these brand stores, customers are scarce because the clothes here cost tens of thousands of yuan, which in my eyes aren't even as good as the 30-yuan styles at Hasi Clothing City.

  Here are also found a lot of counterfeit brand-name clothes, but compared to those in China, the workmanship and fabric quality are inferior by several levels. Thinking about this gives me a sense of national pride, starting to feel proud of the Chinese people's superb counterfeiting ability.

  Walking around in a place like this, even I feel a bit down, let alone Qin Ke Yi. Seeing her listless expression, I asked Jin Yina if there's anywhere slightly more upscale that sells trendy and fashionable clothes. After thinking for a moment, Jin Yina decided to take us to "Lotte World" - supposedly the world's largest indoor entertainment center.

  After we arrived here by taxi, Qin Ke's listless expression was slightly relieved. Looking at the magnificent building and luxurious modern interior decoration, amusement park, restaurant, folk museum, cinema, indoor swimming pool, indoor ice rink, bowling alley, member-based sports club, department store, supermarket, shopping center are all squeezed under the same roof, worthy of being a world-class entertainment venue.

  Qin Keyi and Jin Yina were walking with great energy and enthusiasm, not missing any corner, as if they were going to turn the place upside down. I, on the other hand, was still suffering from a headache caused by drinking too much yesterday, so I could only carry things and follow them like a zombie.

  This high-intensity dull activity finally came to an end after Jina received a phone call. Jina said she had an emergency and needed to leave immediately, so after putting us in a taxi and telling the driver the address of our hotel, she got into another taxi and left.

  After entering the room, I put my things aside and lay down on the bed. Due to the fatigue from walking around all day, I fell asleep quickly. I don't know how long had passed when Qin Ke suddenly woke me up. After seeing that I opened my eyes, she said to me, "Kang Jian! Accompany me for a trip..."

  "Where are we going?" I asked drowsily.

  "You'll know when you get there..." I got up from the bed, washed my face in the bathroom, and then left the hotel with Qin Ke Yi. We hailed a taxi, and after Qin Ke Yi said something to the driver in Korean, he nodded and drove us away. I was still staring at Qin Ke Yi, trying to process the shocking scene that had just happened.

  "Really... can you speak Korean?" I asked in surprise, but Qin Ke Yi just smiled lightly and started gazing out the window, seemingly reminiscing about something, leaving me perplexed.

  I don't know how long it took, but the buildings outside the car window became fewer and farther between, replaced by low-rise houses of varying heights and dilapidated roads, similar to a slum, making it hard for me to connect this with the high-rise buildings and clean streets of Seoul just a while ago. It seemed like we had arrived at the outskirts of Seoul. Qin Ke suddenly told the driver to stop at an alley entrance in Korean, and got out of the car with me, leaving me even more perplexed as to why she had come to this kind of place.

  Qin Keyi still didn't speak, leading me silently as we walked, and I felt that she seemed to be very familiar with this place.

  "Where are we going?" I finally asked Qin Ke Yi, this short period of time has brought me too many surprises and doubts.

  "You'll know soon enough......" Qin Ke said with a smile, then continued leading me forward.

  After turning a bend, a large street stall built with plastic sheets appeared before my eyes. I had seen similar stalls in many Korean movies, but I didn't expect to see one today. Qin stopped in her tracks, looked at the stall, and then walked towards it.

  "Are you hungry?" I asked curiously, wondering why we came all the way here even if we were hungry. Qin Ke Yi still ignored my question and walked into the big restaurant, standing at the entrance to look around. At this time, an elderly aunt who was serving customers at a nearby table saw us coming in and enthusiastically came over to greet us.

  Qin Ke Yi suddenly smiled and tears flowed out as she saw her coming over. Excitedly, she said a sentence in Korean to her. After hearing Qin Ke Yi's words, the aunt stood still for a moment, then suddenly hugged Qin Ke Yi tightly and also started crying excitedly, saying sentences of Korean that I couldn't understand...