Set off

Pei Jue sat down opposite Li Wen and poured his teacher a cup of tea.

Li Wen, having spent so many years navigating the officialdom, quickly calmed himself down. He shakily picked up his teacup, took a sip, and then let out a long sigh.

"What's going on?"

Pei Jue fell silent upon hearing his hoarse voice.

He couldn't tell his teacher everything without reservation, at least not now, but every lie he told the kind old man lessened his guilt.

"Master, I will tell you about these things later. Right now, there is something I need your help with."

Li Wen's attention was quickly diverted, and he asked Pei Jue what trouble he had encountered.

Pei Jue secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

At least this doesn't count as deception, right?

"Master, how has Daqing been during my brother's reign?"

The old scholar in front of him forced a weak smile and said coldly, "Look at this for yourself, is this good?"

Pei Jue fell silent.

Everyone knows the outcome of Pei Huai taking power. The capital city is still somewhat manageable, but apart from the capital and some economically developed areas, the rest of the country is in dire straits. The people have suffered from war for too long, and just when the man-made disasters were over, they were met with natural disasters. The central government is indifferent and doesn't care, and the people don't even know where to kowtow to.

Pei Jue then subtly turned his gaze to Li Wen.

It's no wonder that this teacher, though only in his sixties, looked like he was in his eighties. His hair was completely white, and he had lost all his energy and spirit, a far cry from the sprightly old man who used to lead them in reciting poetry and composing verses. Watching his once thriving country fall into decline and his own powerlessness to change it, he must have been in immense pain.

Pei Jue seemed to have made up his mind. He stood up, walked to Li Wen's side, and then squatted down, tightly grasping his hand: "Master, I want to change all of this. Please help me."

Li Wen slowly turned his head, trying to focus his gaze on Pei Jue.

Looking into Pei Jue's resolute gaze, he seemed to see, in a daze, the little boy who had followed him since childhood, not very talkative but excellent at his studies. At that moment, he suddenly realized that even amidst the ever-changing world, some people remain unchanged.

In fact, when he first saw Pei Jue, he was shocked but had already guessed what Pei Jue wanted to do. When Pei Jue told him, he understood.

Understanding is one thing, accepting it is another.

"Ziyan, have you thought this through?"

Pei Jue nodded solemnly: "Master, to be honest, our plan is already halfway done, and we will need your help to make it proceed smoothly from here on out."

Li Wen let out a breath: "It's not that I don't want to help you with this matter. I know you have your own ideas, but after all, that person is now extremely powerful, and I'm afraid you'll suffer a setback!"

Pei Jue patted his hand reassuringly: "Master, please don't worry. I am not alone now; many people are helping me. I understand your concerns, and I will not force you if you are unwilling to help me."

He knew that Li Wen was truly worried about him. Li Wen had always been like this, valuing his students above all else. But he had come this far and could not back down; there was no turning back.

Li Wen knew he couldn't go against him, so he had no choice but to compromise.

"Tell me, how can I help you?" He coughed a few times, leaning on the table, and then said, "I'm not what I used to be, so it's hard for me to offer you any help."

“It’s alright,” Pei Jue immediately replied, “I just need you to keep an eye on this person for me.”

As he spoke, he put one hand on Li Wen's shoulder and dipped the other hand in tea to carefully write Li Siming's name on the wooden table.

Li Wen stared at the three inconspicuous characters, blinked slowly, and said, "I vaguely remember, they're from the new recruits who just joined this year, right?"

Pei Jue flipped his hand and erased the words: "Exactly. And I also need you to find some people who can be of use to me."

Knowing that Li Wen was getting old and it wouldn't be good to involve him in this mess, he added, "You don't need to go out; just leave it to this person to handle."

Li Wen stroked his long beard repeatedly, and after thinking for a while, he finally spoke: "I understand. There are still some people you can try to contact."

Pei Jue's eyes lit up, and he quickly leaned in to listen attentively.

Guo Yuan, Minister of Personnel, Yu Yue, Minister of Rites, as well as Grand Secretaries of the Cabinet, officials from the Censorate, and members of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, among other local officials.

“Don’t misunderstand,” he said, coughing twice. “These people aren’t friends with me. I’ve observed that they don’t get along with Pei Huai. If you need help, you can give them a try.”

Pei Jue immediately knelt down and bowed deeply to Li Wen: "I will never forget your kindness, Master, and I will surely repay you in the future."

Li Wen closed his eyes, cleared his throat, but his voice was still very hoarse:

"Go, protect yourself, and protect the people around you."

...

The couple had completed their respective tasks and met up at home, along with Pei An, whom they hadn't seen for many days.

"Brother, why are you leaving so soon? I thought it would be a while longer."

Pei Jue said calmly, "Go and come back sooner rather than later. We can't delay any longer."

Xu Ruoyan followed him over and ruffled Pei An's hair: "I'll have to trouble you to look after the house again."

Pei An's miserable face suddenly brightened up like a pancake, and he looked full of fighting spirit.

"Hey sister-in-law, you can rest assured I'll handle things!"

Xu Ruoyan clapped along in agreement, then went to pack her luggage.

"Brother, when will you be back?"

Pei Jue stuffed a thick stack of silver notes into the package: "One month, I guess."

Pei An asked doubtfully, "Only a month? As far as I know, your journey to and from Yangzhou takes more than a month."

“So we’re not taking a carriage,” Xu Ruoyan peeked out from behind the door, smiling at Pei An. “We’re going to ride horses.”

"Riding a horse?!" Pei An suddenly looked at Pei Jue. "Does my sister-in-law even know how to ride a horse? What if she falls and gets hurt?!"

Xu Ruoyan was indignant upon hearing this, raising her eyebrows and gesturing with her chin towards Pei An: "You look down on me?"

Pei An valued his life highly, and immediately shook his head and waved his hand: "No, sister-in-law, I was just worried that you would get hurt while riding a horse."

"Don't worry," Xu Ruoyan smiled at him, her smile full of confidence. "Your brother has already taught me beforehand. Although I haven't practiced much, I just need to familiarize myself with it."

"But the journey is so long, can you handle riding a horse, sister-in-law?"

Xu Ruoyan got anxious as soon as she heard this, and rolled up her long sleeves to show Pei An her muscles: "Your sister-in-law has been training for a long time for a reason."

When Pei An saw Xu Ruoyan's actions, she cried out in panic and hurriedly covered her eyes. Pei Jue heard this and, thinking something had happened, rushed over and threw himself at Xu Ruoyan, trying to pull at her sleeve.

Pei An covered his eyes and screamed as if his eyes had been burned by a deadly poison. His upper and lower eyelids were clenched together as if glued shut, and he kept muttering, "I can't look at this, I can't look at this, my brother will kill me."

Xu Ruoyan was completely bewildered when Pei Jue hugged her, only then realizing that women in ancient times were not supposed to expose too much skin like that.

She slapped her head in frustration and gave Pei Jue a sheepish smile.

Why are you still not used to it after being here for so long?

She laughed it off and brushed them off, then said to Pei An, "Xiao An, you might need to keep a closer eye on things in the palace."

Pei Jue put his arm around Xu Ruoyan and turned to look at Pei An: "It's impossible for you to gain Qi Feng's trust now, so don't worry about it. The main thing is to protect yourself. If you have the ability, you can help us monitor Qi Feng's movements. As for the rest, just leave it to Li Siming."

Xu Ruoyan glared at Pei Jue, who was seizing the opportunity to come closer, and sighed, "I'm afraid that if we're not here, Qi Feng will start targeting you, so you must be careful in everything you do, don't run around recklessly or act impulsively."

Pei An nodded very seriously: "Don't worry, I will wait for you to come back safely."

Xu Ruoyan smiled with satisfaction: "Xiao An has grown up too."

While Pei An was basking in the joy of her sister-in-law praising her again, she also felt something was amiss.

It's like she's become their child!

The next day, before dawn, the two, with Pei An's help, secretly led their horses out of the city. Pei An tightened the reins for them and breathed on his frozen hands.

"Sister-in-law, don't push yourself. If you can't take it anymore, be sure to tell us immediately."

Xu Ruoyan was busy checking the luggage one last time when she heard this, so she looked up and smiled at him: "Don't worry."

Pei Jue nodded and added seriously, "I will take good care of her."

Pei An: ...Why do I always get forced to watch couples like this?!

He watched as the two men deftly mounted their horses and waved the reins at him.

See you in a month.

Pei An blinked, trying to suppress his unease, and waved to them on tiptoe: "Have a safe journey!"

Pei Jue cracked his whip, and his chestnut horse neighed loudly before galloping forward. Xu Ruoyan, not to be outdone, spurred her horse and followed closely behind, leaving Pei An far behind.

Pei An was no longer afraid of the cold; he stubbornly huddled up and watched them until they disappeared before slowly turning around and walking back.

Everything was going too smoothly, and he had a bad feeling about it.

But since he could sense it, he believed that his brother and sister-in-law could also find out, and he always unconditionally trusted his brother and sister-in-law.

...

As soon as they set off, Pei Jue wanted Xu Ruoyan to get used to the pace, so he didn't run too fast. However, Xu Ruoyan had an excellent learning ability and quickly mastered the method, catching up with Pei Jue's pace.

The two chased each other, and a passionate chase ensued. The sun, taking advantage of their inattention, quietly climbed higher, and only when it reached their heads did they realize they had been running for a long time.

They came to a body of water, and Pei Jue pulled hard on the reins to slow the horse down: "Let's rest for a bit before continuing our journey."

Xu Ruoyan followed him, jumped off the horse, tied the rope securely to the tree, and took out the biscuits she had brought from home to eat.

How long will it take us to get there?

Pei Jue looked at her cheeks, which were stuffed full of biscuits, chuckled, and handed her the water bottle: "Five days. We'll be in Yangzhou in five days."