Chapter 119 Where's the wine? Where's the meat?
Upon seeing that figure, Yuwen Ye's eyes lit up, and he hurried forward to greet her.
Shang Ruyi hurriedly followed, and saw that the figures were getting closer and closer. It was two guards escorting a man in shackles, who was slowly walking towards them. The man in shackles was none other than Pei Xingyuan, who had just been drinking and chatting with them two days ago.
Just two days ago, Pei Xingyuan was dressed in fine clothes, handsome and dashing, a true gentleman. But now, he was dressed in tattered clothes, looking dejected, and every step he took was so heavy. Compared to before, it was like heaven and earth.
To go from a noble young master to an exiled prisoner is like falling from the clouds into the mire.
Just thinking about it made Shang Ruyi feel sad.
At this moment, they had already walked up to several people. Pei Xingyuan, who had been staring blankly at the road beneath his feet, suddenly felt a familiar presence. He looked up and his eyes lit up.
"Feng Chen?"
Yuwen Ye looked at him with a solemn expression: "Xingyuan..."
When the two met, they were speechless for a moment.
But after only a moment, Pei Xingyuan suddenly laughed again and said, "I knew you were a true brother. You even brought Lei Yu to give to me, so how could you possibly abandon me?"
He chuckled and asked, "Where's the wine? Where's the meat?"
"..."
"You're giving me a farewell dinner, you can't leave me without a single bite to eat, can you?"
"..."
"Even if you don't have any of these things, at least give me some silver notes so I can have an easier time on the road."
His words still carried a hint of mockery and banter, no different from his previous merriment over drinks. But everyone knew that at this moment he was merely finding joy in hardship, trying to hide his sadness behind this cynical mask.
Yuwen Ye looked at him quietly, but did not break the mask.
He simply asked, "How much do you want?"
Pei Xingyuan was also taken aback for a moment, but then immediately said with a grin, "I'll take as many as you have."
Yuwen Ye didn't waste any time. He took out a stack of silver notes from his pocket, but instead of handing them to him, he turned to the two guards escorting him and said in a deep voice, "Gentlemen, the journey has been long and arduous. If you have a bite of meat to eat, give him a bite of vegetables; if you have a cup of wine to drink, give him a sip of water."
Pei Xingyuan, who was standing to the side, complained, "Why won't you give it to me!"
However, Shang Ruyi understood Yuwen Ye's meaning.
If the money is given to him, he will be of no use to him as he is not free, and it will only easily cause trouble. If the money is given to the two constables, at least out of respect for Yuwen Ye, they will loosen their grip a little, and Pei Xingyuan's life will be much easier.
Sure enough, the two constables were not polite. They accepted the silver notes with a smile and put them away. Then they said, "Young master is indeed very righteous. Just now in the city, General Lei's daughter also instructed us. Rest assured, we will not make things difficult for Young Master Pei, just for the sake of you young masters and ladies."
Yuwen Ye nodded and said, "Could you two wait a moment? We have a few more words to say."
The two officials politely stepped aside.
Yuwen Ye then turned to look at Pei Xingyuan, but the two stared at each other for a long time without saying another word.
At this moment, many emotions seem to really need no further expression.
Finally, Pei Xingyuan glanced at Shang Ruyi standing to the side and said with a smile, "My sister-in-law also came to see me off. It seems that I, Pei Xingyuan, have quite a lot of influence."
To be honest, Shang Ruyi had only met him once and they didn't have a deep relationship, but seeing him like this at this moment, she couldn't help but feel a surge of sadness.
She said softly, "Young Master Pei, please take care of yourself."
Pei Xingyuan smiled.
After laughing, he looked Shang Ruyi up and down again: "Sister-in-law, did you also go to see someone off?"
Shang Ruyi nodded.
Pei Xingyuan sighed and said, "That night, I only came out to find Brother Fengchen because I didn't want to drink with those old fogies. If I had known they were talking about that, I would have made a scene at home and prevented them from drinking."
Hearing this, Shang Ruyi couldn't help but smile wryly.
After the laughter subsided, everyone felt a pang of bitterness. In truth, even if Pei Xu and Shen Shiyan hadn't drunk together that night, these people, concerned for the nation, would have certainly found an opportunity to advise the emperor to stop the attack on Liaodong. Some fates are unavoidable.
So he simply asked, "By the way, Young Master Pei, where are your father and the others?"
When his father was mentioned, Pei Xingyuan showed a hint of worry and said, "They were taken away yesterday."
That makes sense. Most of the exiled prisoners were dissatisfied with the court. In order to prevent them from gathering and causing trouble, the Ministry of War would exile a maximum of two or three prisoners at a time. Young people like Pei Xingyuan would be even more closely guarded, so naturally they would be exiled separately from the others.
Shang Ruyi then asked, "Did Miss Lei also come to see you off?"
"Um,"
Mentioning this, Pei Xingyuan sneered and said, "Those who used to call me brother and ask me for money all the time, I can't even see them now. Only her—I've seen the coldness of human relationships this time."
Shang Ruyi paused for a moment, then said, "Adversity reveals a person's true character."
Pei Xingyuan also said, "Yes, by the way, she also specifically asked about her sister-in-law's family situation."
"Oh?" Shang Ruyi was a little surprised. Lei Yu had never been kind to her, yet he actually cared about her?
Pei Xingyuan laughed and said, "I told you long ago that she has no bad intentions, she just has a sour face. Please don't mind her, sister-in-law."
"..."
Upon hearing this, Shang Ruyi smiled meaningfully.
In fact, she never cared about Lei Yu's attitude towards her. Moreover, now that she knew who Yuwen Ye was in his heart, caring about Lei Yu's attitude would only make her uncomfortable.
She said calmly, "Why should I care?"
Looking into her somewhat dim eyes, Pei Xingyuan said, "Actually—"
Before he could finish speaking, Yuwen Ye said, "I will send someone to Lingnan to make arrangements. Please be patient for now."
Pei Xingyuan then turned to look at him, and said jokingly, "Rather than expecting me to endure, I'd rather wait for the Duke's—"
He smiled as he said this.
Looking up at the sky again, he said, "Alright, it's getting late. We must part ways eventually. Let's not chatter any longer. I should get going."
After saying that, he turned to the two officers and said, "Brothers, let's go."
The two officers immediately stepped forward, politely bowed to Yuwen Ye and the others, and then escorted him forward.
Yuwen Ye and Shang Ruyi stood there, watching Pei Xingyuan's swaying figure, still seemingly carrying some of his former carefree and unrestrained air, despite being shackled.
Watching his figure disappear, Shang Ruyi turned to Yuwen Ye and asked, "What did he just say he was waiting for, Father?"
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