Intro]
Down it goes in one burning gulp
Spice hits hard, my eyes turn red
Who’s asking where I’m headed?
We’ll talk when morning comes (hey)
⸻
[Verse 1]
Gourd flask hanging at my waist
Swaying through ten thousand waves of fate
Last night I poured fame and fortune
Straight down into my throat
Footprints scatter on bluestone streets
Can’t tell blood from spilled wine
You trained your blade ten long years
Yet fear one empty cup drained dry
Lantern lights fade on the bridge
I nap against the rail
Someone comes to claim my life
I offer only cloudy ale
He calls me wasted talent
Says I could’ve worn a lord’s seal
I shake the dust from off my coat
(Brother) this is the mark my rivers reveal
⸻
[Chorus]
Inside this gourd lives the jianghu
One drink could drown a thousand homes
I don’t ask who claims the throne of blades
I just live confused and roam
Steel flashes fall behind me
Drunken haze blocks the road
If you want to live, don’t see too clear
Come drain this flask I hold
Inside this gourd lives the jianghu
Bitter and heat swallowed whole
The wind erased the road I came
The mist decides my goal
Once you drink, don’t turn around
Let favors fly like foxes untold
If you love, don’t ask where it ends
Tonight I’m just a wandering soul (oh yeah)
⸻
[Verse 2]
Oil stains streak my sleeves
From roadside fire and smoke
Half a bowl of noodles buys your ride
I cling to that small warmth of hope
The inn’s front gate collapsed long ago
But old dreams still run at night
The ribbon she tied into my hair
Still wraps beneath my blade tight
In teahouses they speak of me
Like I’m some passing myth
Truth is I was just hungry
Chewing stories like dry rations to live
When I reach where the waters end
I still fear being alone
So I raise three cups to the moon
And call it fate I’ve known
⸻
[Chorus]
Inside this gourd lives the jianghu
One drink could drown a thousand homes
I don’t ask who claims the throne of blades
I just live confused and roam
Steel flashes fall behind me
Drunken haze blocks the road
If you want to live, don’t see too clear
Come drain this flask I hold
Inside this gourd lives the jianghu
Bitter and heat swallowed whole
The wind erased the road I came
The mist decides my goal
Once you drink, don’t turn around
Let favors fly like foxes untold
If you love, don’t ask where it ends
Tonight I’m just a wandering soul (wanderer)
⸻
[Bridge]
You ask what I’m chasing
(Brother, I’ve wondered too)
Just hoping when I wake tomorrow
I still recognize my own soul’s fire true
If one day this gourd runs dry
Maybe I’ll finally stop and stay
Pour this half-lived carousel
Into a bowl of plain porridge one day
⸻
[Final Chorus]
Inside this gourd lives the jianghu
One drink could drown a thousand homes
I don’t ask who claims the throne of blades
I just live confused and roam
Steel flashes fall behind me
Drunken haze blocks the road
If you want to live, don’t see too clear
Come drain this flask I hold
Inside this gourd lives the jianghu
Bitter and heat swallowe
