"Fan'er, don't rush to eat. Tell me quickly, what exactly happened?" As soon as Wei Junpei and his grandson left, Prime Minister Dong immediately asked his son in a low voice.
Dong Yuefan, who had just torn off a duck leg and taken a bite, was about to have a sip of wine when, feeling rather helpless, she continued eating and drinking, briefly recounting how she and Kaiyang met.
After hearing the gist of the matter, Dong Xiang's expression softened as he looked at his son's unseemly eating. He knew that although his good-for-nothing son was not ambitious, he was not a bad person at heart. He just didn't expect that his son would be so kind-hearted as to help others.
The person who went to Mopan Town to take care of his son didn't mention it in their letter, presumably because they were afraid of the boy and didn't dare to bring it up.
"Your father and your second brother will go back first. We will not abandon you, so don't lose heart." After saying this, Prime Minister Dong suddenly felt that he was talking nonsense.
I was worried and nervous, but when I looked at my sixth son, he was eating a duck leg and drinking wine with great relish. If I were even slightly disheartened, I wouldn't be in the mood to eat!
Holding a duck leg, Dong Yuefan nodded, then suddenly remembered something and said, "Father, you and your brothers don't need to go through all this trouble and beg for favors anymore. Go back and get some rest, go to court when you need to, and get on with your official duties."
"My son is really alright. The mother in Kaiyang says I'll be released soon without charge. Just let her stay home and wait patiently. Oh, and make sure to prepare plenty of good food for him while we wait."
Hearing his son say this, Prime Minister Dong frowned again. Kaiyang's mother was a woman confined to the inner quarters; she said that to appease the child. Even if Wei Junpei had said it, he wouldn't have believed it, let alone the child's mother.
After several days of running around without any progress or hope, can you really take the words of a woman comforting her child seriously? Just listen to her good wishes!
Perhaps, my son is just pretending to be relaxed because he doesn't want me to worry!
Dong Xiang and his second son left the Ministry of Justice's prison and went outside to their own carriage. The driver, having received no instructions, waited quietly.
Inside the carriage, Dong Xiang wanted to continue thinking of a solution, but he really couldn't think of anyone who could help him.
He suddenly felt a sense of powerlessness and defeat. As a prime minister of the first rank, he was second only to the emperor, yet he was powerless to help his son who was imprisoned. If his son were really so despicable as to bully men and women, he wouldn't have gone to such lengths.
The key is that this son would never do such a terrible thing!
But what if my son did it while drunk and unconscious?
“Father, we’ve asked everyone we could. Why don’t we go back to the manor and think it over some more?” Dong Yuejie looked at his father with heartache.
When the father and son returned to the Dong residence, the Dong Prime Minister had just entered his courtyard when he saw the servants and maids, all of whom were very nervous.
"What happened?" Dong Xiang asked, frowning, looking at the exhausted Gu Shi.
"After you left the manor, Prime Minister, Mother came. We managed to cover it up, but then Grandmother came too, asking where Fan'er had gone. She said she hadn't seen him for several days and wondered if he had upset you by sending the child back to Mopan Town." After saying this, Madam Gu felt utterly exhausted and on the verge of collapse.
She was already anxious enough about her son's life or death, but she also had to deceive and keep it from the two elderly women in her family.
Prime Minister Dong was also exhausted and didn't even bother to ask what excuse his wife had used to coax the old lady away.
"Prime Minister, is there still no good news?" Gu Shi asked, her heart sinking as she looked at her husband's exhausted expression.
"It's not that we didn't see him. My second brother and I saw that kid today. I don't know what's going on with the Ministry of Justice today. The jailer actually allowed us to go in and visit him."
"Don't worry, apart from his shabby clothes, that boy is fine." Prime Minister Dong also felt sorry for his wife and wanted to tell her.
Upon hearing this, Madam Gu became anxious: "Oh, they're allowing a visit today? Oh dear, I didn't prepare any food for today. My son, he must have lost weight. Just thinking about the food in the prison, I know it can't be very good; it's a miracle if it's not spoiled."
"Madam, please don't be upset. We didn't bring any food, but the roast duck at Jinghua Restaurant, paired with wine, was absolutely delicious." Dong Xiang couldn't help but feel a little exasperated when he recalled the scene.
The whole family, except for the two old ladies who were unaware of the situation, couldn't eat or drink, but the boy had a great appetite.
"Hmm? Roasted duck from Jinghualou? And wine too? Is the food in the Ministry of Justice prison this good? Or is it because of your connections that Fan'er is getting extra treatment?" Madam Gu was quite surprised.
Dong Xiang took the tea brought by the maid, took a sip and said, "Madam, you overestimate your husband. If connections were useful, we would have met that boy long ago."
I haven't finished talking to you yet. Congratulations, you've become a grandmother!
The roasted duck and wine that kid drank were brought in by your grandson.
"Grandmother? My grandson? Prime Minister, are you out of your mind? We don't have any daughters, so where did this grandson come from?" Madam Gu was confused.
“There wasn’t one before, but there is now. You might not believe it, but you’ve heard about Wei Junpei’s found grandson, right? He calls Fan’er ‘uncle.’ You didn’t see it today, but the uncle and nephew are so close.” As Dong Xiang said this, he suddenly realized that the previously heavy and suffocating atmosphere seemed to have eased a lot.
So he simply told Madam Gu how his son had helped Lord Wei's grandson in Mopan Town.
"Such a thing happened? How did he recognize his uncle?" Gu was temporarily distracted by the news her husband had brought back.
"That kid didn't say the specifics, but you'll definitely like that child when you meet him," Dong Xiang said, adding a compliment.
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