Drive away
Inside the door, Dou Feng frowned and looked solemn.
"Miss, do you really want to overturn the case for the Su family? This matter is not as simple as you think. Uncle advises you not to take any risks. Leave the Shen family and Qingzhou as soon as possible. Go far away and never come back in this life..."
"Uncle Dou, I know you're worried about me." Su Xi interrupted Dou Feng, his expression resolute. "But I'm determined to redress this injustice."
After he finished speaking, Dou Feng's eyes wandered over the girl's face for a long time, his expression unclear, but his hands hanging in his sleeves were clenched into fists, his knuckles turning white.
After a long time, he finally sighed and sat down on the ground.
"Oh, forget it. Uncle knows that you are as stubborn as your father, and no one can change you. No matter how much I persuade you today, it will be useless. I will just tell you the inside story. After listening, if you don't want to overturn the verdict, I will leave. If..."
Dou Feng did not say anything more, but poured a cup of coarse tea and drank it, then spoke,
"At the beginning of this year, Shen Pingchang returned to the capital as an external official to report on his work. After returning, he frequently visited the family, trying to persuade the master to include the Su family in the Imperial Merchants, specifically to supply the royal family. However, the Imperial Merchants sounded nice, but in reality, they were handing over their ancestral heritage to others, allowing them to be manipulated and ordered around. If they weren't careful, they could lose their heads. When the royal family needed money, they were the first to be slaughtered. The master was also stubborn and refused to do anything. He even got very angry with Shen Pingchang, saying that if he mentioned the matter again, he would leave Qingzhou and cut off all contact."
At this point, Dou Feng sighed, "But who knew that Shen Pingchang was just a jackal that could never be fed. Seeing that this didn't work, he secretly made trouble and destroyed the Su family's century-old foundation. Overnight, all the Su family's wealth flowed into the royal family. Among them, there must be someone in a high position who was trying to hinder it, just for the Su family's property. Merchants don't have official positions and fame, so it's common for them to be coveted by others. But that person must be of a high status, something like a minister, a prime minister, or even a close minister of the emperor... "
Dou Feng paused. "For these people, dealing with you is as easy as crushing an ant. Do you think you can turn things around with a few pieces of evidence? Miss, this world is full of countless schemes of power-hungry people. You're still too young to understand, but you absolutely must not take risks for such an almost impossible hope!"
"No, Uncle Dou, I must go."
Dou Feng was startled and met the girl's extremely determined eyes.
For a moment, he actually saw a familiar shadow in this young girl who was only thirteen or fourteen years old.
"You're right. I know I can't necessarily defeat those powerful officials, but uncle, my parents and my family all died unjustly. God has spared my life, so I will live for revenge. If I succeed, I will become an ordinary woman again. Otherwise, even if I die, I will only be an orphan of the Su family, a lonely ghost supporting the lives of the entire Su family."
After saying this, Dou Feng knew that no matter how much he tried to persuade her, it was useless. He drank the cup of tea with melancholy, turned his head to look at Xihe who was sitting next to him with the same determination, and suddenly smiled.
"Miss, do you know that Xihe has been naughty since she was a child? She climbed trees, went down to the river, picked fruits and dug grass, and did everything. Her mother died early. She was ill when she gave birth to her, and she died in just two years. So, I have always treated her like the apple of my eye. When the Su family got into trouble, they wanted to sell Xihe to a brothel, but I managed to save her and she entered the Shen family as a maid. In the future, when she is old enough, she can return to her hometown and find an honest man to marry and live a good life..."
"Don't worry, Uncle Dou," Su Xi understood the meaning of Dou Feng's words. "When I go to the capital to appeal, I won't take Xihe with me. I won't reveal anything about Xihe when I make my case. If successful, I'll summon witnesses to the capital, and then you can come out and take Xihe with you. We'll have the protection of the officials, so you don't have to worry about your safety. If we fail, I'll die alone, and I won't implicate you or Xihe in the slightest."
"Xiaoxi, what nonsense are you talking about! How could I let you do such a dangerous thing? Just tell me when you're going to Beijing, and I'll go with you..."
"Xihe, stop messing around!"
Dou Feng suddenly interrupted Xi He, and Su Xi understood and patted Xi He's shoulder in a soothing manner, "Don't worry, I'm not taking this risk alone. Besides, if you go, you won't be able to find anyone in the mansion, and Housekeeper Liu knows your identity. What if they target Uncle Dou?"
Seeing Xihe's expression begin to waver, Suxi said, "So, you should save some money these days and buy Uncle Dou some winter clothes, quilts, shoes and socks. The winter in Qingzhou is long and cold, you can't let Uncle Dou go through the winter with only a few clothes on."
After saying that, Suxi saw Xihe nodded, so she withdrew her hand. She caught a glimpse of Dou Feng looking at her with an extremely complicated expression. She couldn't understand it, but she just nodded slightly, pulled Xihe and hurried away.
Suddenly, the iron gate closed again, and Dou Feng collapsed to the ground as if he had lost strength, staring blankly at the end of the corridor. He didn't know how much time had passed until evening came. He heard the footsteps of the jailer approaching slowly after serving dinner. Dou Feng drank the last sip of cold tea in the pot and tightly grasped the rough porcelain cup.
"Master, Miss, I'm so sorry. I can't stand by and watch Xi He fall into any danger. In the afterlife, Dou Feng will serve you like a slave and let you do whatever you want."
Dou Feng put down his teacup with a thud, his eyes heavy. Hearing the knock on the iron door, he turned around and saw the jailer scooping a bowl of porridge and putting it at the door before leaving. He quickly stood up and
"Wait." Dou Feng stopped the jailer, "Please, little brother, help me pass a message to Prefect Shen. Tell him that I have something important to tell you about the Su family."
-
In the evening, Xihe went back to the old lady's courtyard early to do her work, and Yinzhen also went home to cook. Suxi spent half a day strolling around the market, buying all the food she needed for tomorrow's trip to the capital. She rented a carriage, and returned to Xiyuan with two large bags of food. She opened the door to the main house of Xiyuan, which was wide open. Yinzhen was carrying dishes from the kitchen into the house. Seeing her return, she grinned, revealing two rows of white teeth. "Xiaoxi, you're back! It's just right. I just cooked the dishes. Come and eat!"
"Oh, okay."
Su Xi agreed, put down her things and went into the house. She saw Shen Yunqiu waiting at the table. His nervous expression relaxed instantly when he saw her.
"Is everything done?"
Shen Yunqiu asked.
"It's done. We'll leave tomorrow."
Su Xi smiled at him, but felt a little depressed.
"Leave? Where to? Xiaoxi, Master, why are you always so busy and chattering these days? What are you doing?"
Yinzhen sucked the end of the chopsticks soaked in soup and looked between them curiously. The atmosphere was stagnant for a moment. Suxi didn't know how to talk to Yinzhen about such a complicated matter, nor did he know whether he should take Yinzhen with him. Just as he was thinking about it, Chen Yunqiu spoke first: "Yinzhen, you can leave after this meal today."
"Let's go? Master, just tell me what you want me to do!"
Shen Yunqiu didn't respond to Yinzhen's words, but looked around and turned back.
"In the cabinet, there are two vases. The inkstone in the study is from Huizhou and is worth some silver. There are also these white jade teacups and incense burners. Pick any two and take them away. I'll take that as your wages for this month."
After hearing this, Yinzhen finally came to his senses and looked at Shen Yunqiu in disbelief.
"Young Master...are you trying to kick me out? Why? Is there something wrong with the silver needle? You said it can be fixed!"
“Nothing is good.”
Chen Yunqiu stopped Su Xi from speaking with a look, suppressing his inner thoughts. "This young master doesn't like the food you cook. It doesn't look good, and your words are not pleasant. You are also not polite in your daily behavior. This young master can tolerate you for a month, which is the limit. I don't want to see you hanging around me every day, annoying me."
"But······"
Yinzhen was so anxious that she almost cried, "But hasn't the young master loved the food I cooked this past month? Is it... is it because I got drunk and acted crazy last time that made the young master unhappy? Then I will never drink again, I promise..."
Before Yinzhen finished speaking, he saw that Shen Yunqiu's face became darker and darker. With a thud, the young man reached out and took the white porcelain vase behind him and placed it on the table. His cold eyes were full of determination that would not tolerate any questioning.
"If you don't want to choose, then take this and go. Pawn it at the pawnshop, then find a job, or go back to your hometown to farm or raise pigs. It's up to you. Just don't show up in front of me again."
"Master, why are you like this? You were clearly not like this before!"
Yinzhen choked with sobs, and Suxi couldn't bear to watch. After hesitating for a while, he didn't say anything to mediate. Frowning, he saw a cold smile on Chen Yunqiu's lips, with a cynical and frivolous look on his face.
"I've told you long ago that I'm not a good person. But I thought it was funny that I casually threw a piece of gold at you and made you, a poor little man, remember it for the rest of your life. I was just teasing you. Do you really think I would look down on a scoundrel like you from a remote village?"
After saying that, Yinzhen couldn't bear it any longer and stood up and rushed out. Before he reached the door, he was stopped by Shen Yunqiu.
"Take this vase away immediately. If you don't, I will pour all the food you cooked into the toilet."
Shen Yunqiu pushed the vase forward, and sure enough, he saw Yinzhen return angrily. He picked up the vase and rushed out. After a while, he heard a bang, and the corner door of the West Garden was slammed shut, shaking the house three times, making people's hearts tremble.
For a moment, the room fell into a long, dead silence. The atmosphere grew increasingly oppressive, and even though the table was overflowing with delicious food, no one took the initiative to pick up their chopsticks. As the sky gradually darkened, Shen Yunqiu looked at the sullen young woman who was sitting beside him, her head bowed. Finally, he couldn't help but ask, "Xiaoxi, are you blaming me for driving him away?"
"Of course not."
Su Xi came to his senses and saw that the dishes were cold. He hurriedly served two bowls of rice and placed one bowl in front of himself. Knowing that Shen Yunqiu could not reach the dishes at the other end of the round table, he took out another porcelain bowl and filled it with some of the dishes that Shen Yunqiu usually liked to eat and pushed it over.
"I know you're doing this for his own good. I originally thought about taking the silver needle with me, or leaving him at the Shen Mansion, but I also know that this is the best way. I just can't bring myself to do it. I'm sorry."
"Sorry for what?"
"I've let you be the bad guy."
Suxi was silent and still unhappy, but she didn't want to waste the fruits of Yinzhen's hard work for an entire afternoon. She just picked up the side dishes in front of her casually, her mind wandering. When she picked up the bowl again, she saw a few pieces of braised beef on the bowl, and the person opposite her stretched out his chopsticks and placed the lion's head meat between his chopsticks on the edge of her bowl.
"Eat more. We're leaving tomorrow. Xiaoxi, you should be happy. Why are you still so unhappy?"
"Chen Yunqiu." Su Xi pressed down the chopsticks that were about to reach for food from Shen Yunqiu. After a long pause, he finally said, "Going to the capital to appeal for justice may not be that easy. You might be suppressed by a larger force, or you might not be able to overturn the verdict at all, and you might even lose your life. Shen Yunqiu, I have nowhere to go, but you are different. I don't want to..."
"Xiaoxi." Suddenly, the young man's deep voice interrupted Suxi's words.
"If I had left myself a way out, why would I have driven Silver Needle away today?"
Seeing Chen Yunqiu's stubbornness, Su Xi couldn't help but feel worried, and his tone couldn't help but become hurried:
"But Shen Yunqiu, revenge for the Su family is my own business. The grudge between the Su family and Shen Pingchang has nothing to do with you!"
"But you're related to me!"
For a moment, Su Xi was stunned, and his tightly furrowed brows suddenly relaxed, but he still couldn't take his eyes away from the boy's face. Instead, he was attracted by those extremely firm and clear eyes, which made him want to indulge in them and be selfish for once, just this once.
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