Chapter 743 Misplaced Devotion

Everyone knows that Pei Xingyuan is a free-spirited and unrestrained person, and also someone who doesn't hold back his words. But when he was injured, he still said that he "brought it on himself," which shows how wrong he was in this matter. He was so wrong that his face turned red even before he opened his mouth.

At this, Yuwen Ye also stepped back into his seat, pointed to the seat next to him, and said in a deep voice, "Sit down and talk, explain yourself clearly."

Pei Xingyuan silently walked over and sat down, then looked up at the three of them before whispering, "Actually, I didn't mean to—that day I was just coming back from the Ministry of Revenue. Because the weather was nice and news of your great victory had come back, I was happy and didn't take a carriage. I thought I'd take a stroll by myself..."

Shen Wuzheng said, "Let's get down to business."

Pei Xingyuan said, "I was just saying that, we'll be there soon."

After saying that, he coughed lightly and continued, "Then, I wandered into a restaurant, and coincidentally, there were two people upstairs who looked familiar, so I went up to take a look, and then I saw—"

He glanced at Shang Ruyi, his face flushing slightly again: "I saw Physician Su."

Upon hearing the name "Imperial Physician Su," neither Yuwen Ye nor Shen Wuzheng reacted immediately. It was Shang Ruyi who reacted quickly, the image of that delicate figure flashing through her mind. She immediately said, "Su Qinglan?"

The other two also came to their senses.

Yuwen Ye asked, "Imperial Physician Su Qinglan... why are you following her?"

Pei Xingyuan's eyes widened immediately, and he said seriously, "What do you mean I followed her? I just happened to run into her."

Yuwen Ye didn't speak, but Shen Wuzheng, who was standing to the side, said expressionlessly, "One was upstairs and the other was downstairs. They just happened to run into each other."

"Yes."

"..."

Shen Wuzheng seemed to have already given up on him.

Suppressing a laugh, Shang Ruyi asked, "Young Master Pei, didn't you see two familiar faces? Who is the other one?"

Pei Xingyuan curled his lip and said, "The other one is that kid named Jiang something, who forced his way into Chang Le Fang and injured several of us. I think his skills are just average, but he's got quite the nerve..."

He kept muttering to himself, but as Shang Ruyi listened, she gradually came to her senses.

The person who met with Su Qinglan was Jiang Xing.

Actually, she had noticed before that although they hadn't spent much time together, it was under such extreme and difficult circumstances that people easily develop feelings for those they could rely on. Especially on the day Chang Le Fang was unsealed, she could clearly feel the deep affection between Su Qinglan and Jiang Yan. As a result, even though Pei Xingyuan wanted to explain his past actions to Su Qinglan, he gave up on it.

Sometimes, it's better to arrive at the right time than to arrive early.

She could tell that Pei Xingyuan might be a little disappointed, but since some things hadn't happened yet, he wasn't too disappointed. So when he ran into Su Qinglan and Jiang Yan, it probably wasn't because he necessarily wanted to do anything. He was probably just someone who loved to join in the fun and wanted to see something new.

At this moment, Shang Ruyi's thoughts drifted away.

She thought of Lei Yu, who was far away in the Western Turks, and whose status and position had undergone a complete transformation.

Lei Yu and Pei Xingyuan could not be considered lovers. At most, it was just a fleeting feeling in Pei Xingyuan's heart that he never had a chance to express. Now, due to the changes of the world, it is no longer the same as before. But looking at it this way, it seems that his past and present have always missed some things and some people because of some inexplicable reasons.

Why is everything always going wrong for him?

Thinking this, Shang Ruyi felt a pang of sorrow, and when she looked at Pei Xingyuan again, her eyes held a hint of pity. Fortunately, Pei Xingyuan didn't notice. After listening to him ramble on for a while, Yuwen Ye frowned and said, "The two of them are perfectly fine, why did you follow them? Is this something a court official like you should be doing?"

"It's on the way, they're going home after drinking, so I'm going home too."

"Did you happen to be going down the alley?"

"I...I'm lost..."

Yuwen Ye was too lazy to say anything more.

Shen Wuzheng, standing to the side, frowned and said, "So your injury was inflicted by that Jiang Yan?"

Upon hearing this, Yuwen Ye and Shang Ruyi immediately widened their eyes and looked at Pei Xingyuan.

Yes, they came today to ask about Pei Xingyuan's injury. Since he went after them himself, it wouldn't be difficult for Jiang Xing to injure him, given his skills. However, Pei Xingyuan isn't one to suffer in silence. If Jiang Xing really did injure him, how could he possibly swallow this insult? Even if he was mindful of his friendship with Su Qinglan, who served in the same court, and didn't want to publicize the matter and punish Jiang Xing, it was only natural for him to complain to them.

Why are you always stammering and hesitating?

Sure enough, when this was mentioned, Pei Xingyuan stammered again, and after hesitating for a long time, he finally said, "No, it wasn't him."

Yuwen Ye stared at him: "Who is that?"

Pei Xingyuan hesitated for a while before finally saying, as if he had made up his mind, "Yes, it was a woman who suddenly rushed at me and knocked me over without saying a word."

"What?!"

The three people present were stunned. Yuwen Ye and Shen Wuzheng exchanged a glance and were speechless for a moment, while Shang Ruyi stared at Pei Xingyuan in disbelief: "It was actually a woman who injured you?"

Pei Xingyuan's face immediately turned bright red.

He clearly hadn't expected that such an embarrassing question wouldn't be asked by Shen Wuzheng or Yuwen Ye, but by Shang Ruyi, who was usually his closest friend. So, with a resentful expression of "misplaced affection," he looked at Shang Ruyi and said, "What's wrong? Does the Princess look down on women?"

Shang Ruyi immediately realized that her words had been embarrassing.

She couldn't help but laugh, but seeing Pei Xingyuan's indignant expression, she could only bite her tongue to suppress her laughter. On the other side, Yuwen Ye and Shen Wuzheng were clearly holding back. After a while, Shen Wuzheng was the first to calm down. He coughed lightly and then asked, "What kind of woman is so powerful? Why did she attack you?"

Pei Xingyuan gave him another resentful look.

Just then, footsteps sounded outside the reception hall. Everyone looked up and saw the gatekeeper cautiously walk in again, reporting, "Young master, Physician Su has arrived."

"...!"

Upon hearing this, everyone present was startled once again.

Three pairs of eyes turned to Pei Xingyuan, who immediately jumped up as if his hair had been bristled, saying, "They injured me, do you expect me to go and call a doctor myself?"

"..."

That makes sense.

Therefore, Su Qinglan should be treating his injuries these days.

Yuwen Ye thought for a moment and said, "Then why don't you hurry up and invite them in?"