"Rush back to the county government office overnight? How many people are there in your group? Heqin is in chaos and war, so you must be careful when you go out on business." Jiang Yushu took off her veil hat. After working all afternoon, her hair was a little messy.
Pei Wenfeng paced back and forth with his hands behind his back, and answered helplessly: "Don't worry, there are more than a dozen of us in the group, and the detectives are all resting in the town. The case is urgent, so we have to rush back to the county, so we can only see you briefly." He changed into clean clothes, and his face was handsome and gentle.
"Thank you. Thank you cousin for taking the time out of your busy schedule to come visit me." Jiang Yushu was overwhelmed with emotion.
Pei Wenfeng stopped and asked sadly, "Why do you and I have to be so polite?"
Jiang Yushu lowered her head, her heart ache in her mouth, unable to meet those soulful eyes. She simply continued walking, avoiding the question. She changed the subject and offered sincere advice, "You're a new official, and your duties are hectic. I hear you often neglect sleep and food. How can you handle that? If you collapse from exhaustion, won't your elders be sad? Cousin, you might want to try the medicine Doctor Fang prescribed. Get well soon so you can have the energy to pursue your ambitions."
"I know." Pei Wenfeng listened to the familiar voice he had not heard for a long time, and his heart felt warm and sad.
The cousins walked side by side towards the courtyard gate while talking. Cuimei, Cai Chun and others followed quietly, carrying their bags.
As they were about to part, Pei Wenfeng had a thousand things to say in his mind, but due to the situation, he couldn't express them all, and he felt depressed.
Jiang Yushu, however, seemed relieved. With a cheerful tone, she asked curiously, "What kind of case is this? Why is there such a big fuss?"
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"A tragic case of an entire family being wiped out has caused panic in the county. We couldn't allow it to remain unsolved. We pursued the perpetrator all the way to Yuehu Town, where we finally apprehended the mastermind." Pei Wenfeng stopped again, then changed the subject, admonishing, "These past two days, I've noticed you haven't eaten much, yet you've been working in the fields all day. If you keep going like this, won't your body be worn out? When I return to the county, I'll send two truckloads of high-quality rice for you. You're not used to eating whole grains—"
"Don't! Don't!"
Jiang Yushu interrupted him with a wave of her hand, explaining quietly, "To be honest, it's not that we can't afford rice, but we dare not buy it. As exiles, we shouldn't enjoy luxurious meals, rice, or flour, to avoid criticism and trouble."
"Well, what about quietly?" Pei Wenfeng looked at his cousin, feeling distressed.
Jiang Yushu shook her head and declined politely: "I appreciate your kindness, cousin. But you see, every household in the village is close to each other and we run into each other all day long. We can't have three meals a day in secret, right? In fact, multi-grain rice is quite good. I'm used to it. You don't have to worry."
Pei Wenfeng suddenly approached, lowered his voice, and whispered, "Is he good to you?" He had wanted to ask this for a long time, but had been holding it back until now.
"Hmm?" The other party asked without thinking. Jiang Yushu was stunned for a moment, then understood and answered without hesitation: "Okay."
"real?"
"Really!" Jiang Yushu said firmly, earnestly and earnestly, "Cousin, you really don't have to worry about me. Go back to the county quickly. Remember to take your medicine on time. Don't let a minor illness turn into a major one—"
Pei Wenfeng ignored him, staring intently, and interrupted to ask, "Are you better than I am to you?"
"this……"
You are you, he is him; Miss Jiang is Miss Jiang, I am me. The well water does not interfere with the river water. The difficulty lies in the fact that there are two souls in one body, which is difficult to explain.
Jiang Yushu closed her eyes, racked her brains, and said seriously: "Listen to me——"
At this moment, there was a sudden sound of horse hooves outside the courtyard gate, mixed with the greetings of the Guo family, the village chief, and others:
"Hey, look, it's the young master and the others!"
“Second brother!”
"Hello?" Zhuang Song, who was chatting with the detectives beside the carriage, turned around and asked with a smile, "Everyone, it's been a while since we last met."
"Whoa!" Guo Honglei pulled the reins, and the four of them dismounted. They glanced at the strange constable in confusion while answering their relatives and friends.
Guo Honglei held a horsewhip in his left hand and a long wooden box in his right, striding forward with his head held high. "Master Zhuang, I suppose these people are your friends, right? I'm not sure what to call them."
Zhuang Song replied cheerfully, "Oh, these are all detectives from the county government. This one is Captain Zou. They, along with Lord Pei, have been chasing the suspect to town, and Lord Pei has come to the village to visit you."
Lord Pei?
Guo Honglei was stunned and asked in shock: "Master Pei? Where—"
"Second brother," Guo Hongzhe trotted over and said, "Pei Wenfeng! My sister-in-law's cousin arrived yesterday at noon. These constables are here to take him back to the county government office. They say he has urgent business."
It was like a bolt from the blue. Guo Honglei was stunned. After a while, he took a deep breath and asked in a low voice, "Where are the others?"
"In the yard, saying goodbye to my second sister-in-law. I guess she'll be out soon." As soon as Guo Hongzhe finished speaking, he saw his brother striding past him and heading straight for the gate.
"Second brother, wait a moment!" Guo Hongzhe followed a few steps worriedly, but heard his brother say, "I'm going to meet the guests. I'll leave the outside to you."
"Yes!" Peng Changrong and others understood, and chatted and laughed with Zhuang Song as if nothing had happened.
"Okay." Guo Hongzhe had no choice but to turn around and talk shyly to the officials. He wanted to invite them in for tea, but they refused and were anxiously waiting for Pei Wenfeng.
In the courtyard, Jiang Yushu hadn't recovered from her shock yet. She watched Guo Honglei stride towards her, feeling anxious and uneasy. Only one thought filled her mind:
Oh no, this is bad, what should I do?
The hatred of having one's wife taken away is irreconcilable.
Pei Wenfeng's face turned ashen, he didn't move, his eyes were as sharp as a knife, stabbing at Guo Honglei, he just wanted to cut his enemy into pieces!
"Girl, what should we do?" Cuimei's face turned pale, and she was even more panicked than the real owner.
Jiang Yushu's face turned pale, her scalp tingled, and she broke out in a cold sweat. She murmured, "It's terrible. I don't know what to do."
In a moment, Guo Honglei stood beside his wife with quick feet.
Jiang Yushu felt a slight pain when the long wooden box rubbed her shoulder. She asked in surprise, "What is this?"
"Qin." Guo Honglei handed the wooden box to Zou Gui and explained, "Your birthday gift was sent from the capital. It's over two months late. Don't blame me."
Jiang Yushu was greatly surprised and delighted. She said softly, "Thank you. I'm just in need of a zither." Then, she bravely raised her hand and introduced him, "Hey, this is my cousin, Wenfeng."
Guo Honglei was dressed in neat military uniform, tall and handsome, with an extraordinary sense of valor. He clasped his fists and said solemnly, "Brother Wenfeng, it's a pleasure to meet you."
Nice to meet you?
Pei Wenfeng's face was expressionless, raging with anger and hatred. He stared intently at his enemy, who was standing next to his cousin, and asked coldly, "Are you Guo Honglei?"
Guo Honglei nodded, "That's right."
The two men faced each other, the military uniform against the white robe. The military uniform was half a head taller than the white robe, and they were both handsome and each had his own merits.
No one spoke for a long time, and there was dead silence.
Jiang Yushu was caught in the middle, secretly anxious. She forced a smile and explained, "My cousin came to Xicang to take up his post at the beginning of the year. He was passing by here while investigating a case, so he stopped by to visit."
Pei Wenfeng's expression suddenly changed. He walked quickly towards the main hall and said without turning his head, "Can I have a moment to talk?"
There was no need to name names, as everyone present knew the truth.
"Okay." Guo Honglei handed the whip to his wife and followed steadily.
"Cousin?" Jiang Yushu immediately became anxious. "Wait a minute, I—"
"Don't come with me, I'm going to talk to him." Guo Honglei held his wife down and turned to leave.
It was dark and the main room was already lit. There were two oil lamps on the table, emitting a dim light.
The wind blew, the light flickered, and the shadows of the furniture in the room swayed.
Pei Wenfeng was the first to step into the room, facing the wall, his hands clenched into fists, veins bulging on his forehead and neck.
Guo Honglei followed closely behind and said apologetically: "Brother Wenfeng——"
"Shut up!" Pei Wenfeng turned around abruptly. Even with his high self-control, he couldn't show a good face at this moment. He gnashed his teeth and scolded fiercely: "Who calls you a brother? You despicable and shameless playboy, taking advantage of your power to steal someone else's wife. This feud is irreconcilable!"
If we put aside the reasons and just consider the first come first served basis, I was indeed wrong.
Guo Honglei calmed himself down, thought for a moment, and explained, "The whole thing is so complicated that it's hard to explain in a few words, but I swear to heaven: none of this was intentional, let alone premeditated. I was forced to hastily get married."
"How can this be! You stole someone else's wife, and you still feel wronged?"
"You took advantage of your power to force Yushu into marriage, causing her to become a convict. You turned this delicate and weak woman into a prisoner who suffered untold hardships. She suffered from food, clothing, shelter, and transportation, and was exposed to the wind and sun and toiled in the fields!" Pei Wenfeng was furious and disgusted. He approached and said, "If you hadn't interfered, I would have married Sister Shu after I finished the palace examination. What does it have to do with you?"
Guo Honglei raised his head and retorted in a deep voice, "Yushu has indeed suffered a lot since marrying into the Guo family. I will slowly make it up to her for the rest of my life. But having said that, even if I hadn't intervened after the incident, you wouldn't have been able to marry her."
"Nonsense!" Pei Wenfeng slammed the table, gritting his teeth. "Sister Shu and I have been childhood sweethearts and have been engaged for a long time. We're just waiting for an auspicious day to hold the wedding. She should marry me!"
Guo Honglei's eyes blazed brightly, and he spoke righteously and solemnly, "My father-in-law is your uncle. You two relatives understand each other deeply, so why should I say something directly? That day, Yushu and I were both framed. It caused a huge uproar. My father-in-law was furious and used family law to punish Yushu. If I hadn't intervened, he would have severely injured his daughter. And the Pei family will never allow you to marry a girl with a damaged reputation. Otherwise, if you refuse to break off the engagement, how can I get the engagement letter? Why would I have gone through so much trouble to get your family's consent to marry her?"
"Impossible!" Pei Wenfeng gasped, trembling all over, and said with red eyes: "Sister Shu is my granddaughter. My elders love her so much. It's obvious that the Jingyang Marquis's Mansion is bullying and forcing my family to cancel the engagement."
Guo Honglei shook his head and said sternly, "Brother Wenfeng, you've misunderstood. You don't know that, in fact, my family elders don't approve of it. They hope that I won't be able to marry. From the beginning to the end, they never used their power to threaten the Pei family."
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"impossible!"
"Impossible!" Pei Wenfeng was unwilling to believe that his cousin, whom he had loved for many years, had been snatched away. He was furious to the extreme, shaking violently, and suddenly rushed forward, punching Guo Honglei with his fist.
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