Chapter 137: Where is the Path Forward? The Pei Family’s Rebellious Son Becomes Even More Rebellious
Chapter 137: Chapter 137: Where is the Path Forward? The Pei Family’s Rebellious Son Becomes Even More Rebellious
Since Xie Qingwu hadn’t mentioned the conflict with the King of Qi, it meant she was surely in the dark. ’Otherwise,’ he thought, ’there’s no way she wouldn’t have brought up something so important before we came to the Capital City.’
Therefore, if he wanted to find out what had happened, he would have to rely on Zhou Rui. Pei Shaoqing planned to get him drunk.
But before that, he had to ask a crucial question. "How many people know about the Dragon Robe affair?"
"You can count on me, Brother Pei. Don’t worry. Including you and me, only three people know in total," Zhou Rui said, patting his chest.
Pei Shaoqing grabbed his wrist, pressing impatiently, "Then who’s the third person?"
"Brother Pei, let go! Let go! HISS—" Zhou Rui shook his throbbing wrist before answering. "It’s a servant from Prince Qi’s Mansion. I paid him a fortune. Otherwise, how could I have snuck in and buried the Dragon Robe in the rear garden? Don’t worry, Brother Pei. If this gets out, he’s a dead man with no grave to his name. He absolutely won’t dare to run his mouth."
The King of Qi had run his own Prince’s Mansion for four years. Among his followers were not only court officials and wealthy merchants from all over, but also many skilled individuals and unusual experts from the Jianghu. It would be incredibly difficult for an outsider to sneak into the Prince’s Mansion undetected, let alone dig a hole and bury a Dragon Robe.
"Only the dead don’t run their mouths," Pei Shaoqing’s gaze turned icy as he asked, "What’s this man’s name?"
’No matter what, this servant has to die!’
’If it weren’t for Zhou Rui’s special status...’
’...he’d want to kill him too.’
"Brother Pei, it’s not that serious, is it?" Zhou Rui’s face paled, frightened by his expression, and he stammered.
Pei Shaoqing took a deep breath and said with sincere eyes, "Brother Zhou, this is a grave matter. If it gets out, it won’t just be the two of us in trouble—it could bring utter ruin to our families. We cannot be anything but cautious."
"Alright, then. I’ll take care of it." Seeing how serious Pei Shaoqing was, Zhou Rui also grew solemn. A vicious glint appeared in his eyes as he spoke through gritted teeth.
Pei Shaoqing didn’t trust him, afraid he might bungle it. "I’ve already troubled you with burying the Dragon Robe, Brother Zhou," he said. "I’ll take care of this part."
"Alright. The servant’s name is Wang Er. His parents are dead, and he’s not married with any kids. But he has a long-term mistress, who lives in Yangliu Lane..."
Pei Shaoqing breathed a sigh of relief after hearing this. Wang Er’s personal connections were simple. As long as he and his mistress were killed, the risk of this leaking would be eliminated.
A smile touched his lips as he pulled Zhou Rui toward the eight-person table laden with food and wine. "Let’s not dwell on such dreary matters. Come, Brother Zhou, let’s drink! It’s been too long. Tonight, we don’t go home until we’re drunk!"
"Brother Pei, should we call for a courtesan to join us?"
"No need. Tonight, I have no eyes for beauties. I just want to catch up with my good brother."
Zhou Rui let his guard down completely around Pei Shaoqing, accepting every toast without hesitation. Soon, his face was flushed, his mind was muddled, and he was fighting to stay awake.
"Brother Zhou, speaking of which, how exactly did the feud between me and the King of Qi start?" Seeing that Zhou Rui was drunk enough, Pei Shaoqing put down his cup and asked quietly.
"Wh-what else could it be? It was about a woman, wasn’t it?" Zhou Rui was already slumped over the table, his eyes half-closed, slurring his words. "You slept with the woman he was keeping. He and his men caught you in the act and beat you up. You said you’d never been so humiliated in your life and swore you were going to kill him..."
Pei Shaoqing suddenly understood why Xie Qingwu had never heard about this. The incident was deeply humiliating for both him and the King of Qi.
One was cuckolded, the other was beaten to a pulp.
So neither of them would ever speak of it.
But the grudge was set in stone.
Even though the King of Qi had already caught Pei Shaoqing in the act and beaten him, that was only because the King of Qi had been rational enough not to kill him. Otherwise, he would have.
As a man of imperial blood, how could the King of Qi possibly tolerate the man who cuckolded him living on this earth?
’When he gets a chance in the future, he’ll definitely come for revenge.’
"My good brother," Pei Shaoqing said, deeply moved as he grasped Zhou Rui’s hand. This affair had nothing to do with Zhou Rui, yet he had risked the execution of his entire clan to help Pei Shaoqing get revenge. ’What incredible loyalty and righteousness.’
’For this reason alone,’ he thought, ’I can cut off all my other useless friends, but not Zhou Rui. He isn’t one of them. He’s a brother for life and death!’
"Mmm, good brother... good brother..." Zhou Rui mumbled with a dopey grin, then started snoring loudly.
Pei Shaoqing couldn’t help but chuckle at the sight. He continued to drink alone, contemplating the path ahead.
’Zhou Rui was right about one thing.’
’Whether the Ninth Prince or the King of Qi takes the throne, things will end badly for me. And unfortunately, it looks like the next Crown Prince can only be one of those two.’
’After all, the other Princes with a claim to the throne have already left to govern their own fiefdoms. Only the Fifth Prince and the youngest, the Ninth Prince, remain in the Capital City.’
...
KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK! Nalan Yujin arrived outside Pei Shaoqing’s room. "Sister-in-law, may I come in?"
"Is there something I can help you with, Sister-in-law?" Xie Qingwu asked coolly, opening the door without any intention of inviting her inside.
Nalan Yujin smiled gracefully. "I’m not sure why your attitude toward me has changed so much since you returned from Tongzhou, but how about we go inside and have a proper chat?"
"My husband and I were banished to fend for ourselves in the barren wasteland of Tongzhou, while you, Sister-in-law, lived leisurely in the capital. Surely you can’t blame me for feeling a bit resentful?" Xie Qingwu retorted, her words laced with thorns.
Nalan Yujin’s brows knitted. She couldn’t be bothered to probe any further and said directly, "Our father-in-law claimed that everything Shaoqing accomplished in Tongzhou was due to your planning. I was skeptical then, and it seems I was right to be."
As she spoke, she stared intently into Xie Qingwu’s eyes, watching for any change in her expression.
"What?" Surprise filled Xie Qingwu’s eyes. She finally understood why Nalan Yujin had been so unusually warm toward her. Her thoughts spun, and she let out a soft laugh. "Our father-in-law thinks too highly of me. I have no such talent. My husband’s current good fortune is entirely due to his own awakening. After all, without the Marquis’s Mansion to rely on, who is there to depend on but himself?"
First, she had witnessed the change in Xie Qingwu’s demeanor. Now, she had heard the confirmation from her own lips. Nalan Yujin was finally convinced that Pei Shaoqing’s dazzling success in Tongzhou was simply because the prodigal son had seen the light and changed his ways.
"You’re joking, Sister-in-law. The Marquis Wei Yuan’s Mansion will always be your home. Even if Shaoqing can’t understand his father’s difficult decision, surely you can? He was sent to Tongzhou for his own protection. As wives, it is our duty to guide our husbands and maintain harmony within the family."
If it were the old Pei Shaoqing, Nalan Yujin would have been delighted for him to become as estranged from the Marquis Wei Yuan’s Mansion as possible.
But this new Pei Shaoqing—reformed, ennobled for his achievements, and demonstrating immense potential and ability—was someone she, as the eldest daughter-in-law of the Pei Family, wanted to advance and retreat alongside the family.
After all, as long as the Pei Family prospered, her husband, as its heir, would be the one to benefit most.
Xie Qingwu gave a smile that didn’t reach her eyes and said airily, "You’re the one who’s joking, Sister-in-law. My husband once told me something: if his father had truly wanted to protect him, he would have sent him to the army on the Northern Border."
Nalan Yujin’s face instantly changed. "Even a vicious tiger won’t eat its own cubs," she said coldly. "No matter his faults, our father-in-law would never harm his own son. How could Shaoqing harbor such malicious suspicions about his own father? It must be you, you wretched hussy, running your mouth and stirring up trouble to drive a wedge between father and son!"
’Even if Pei Shaoqing really did say that, I have to blame Xie Qingwu. I can’t let the conflict between father and son escalate.’
"Does the relationship between me and Marquis Weiyuan even need someone to drive a wedge into it?" Having returned after seeing Zhou Rui off, Pei Shaoqing happened to overhear this and interjected.
"Husband," Xie Qingwu said, trotting over to hug his arm. She whispered, "Our father-in-law and sister-in-law seem to think everything you did in Tongzhou was my idea. They really overestimate me."
"They don’t overestimate you, my dear wife. They just underestimate me," Pei Shaoqing scoffed.
Nalan Yujin took a deep breath and spoke in a gentler tone. "Shaoqing, now that you’ve turned over a new leaf, you should be more sensible. For years, our father-in-law has been cleaning up your messes. Sending you to Tongzhou this time was not only to help you avoid disaster but also to give you a chance to mature..."
"So I’m supposed to thank him for it?" Pei Shaoqing cut her off, his voice frigid. "If he truly cared whether I lived or died, he wouldn’t have sent me off with just a few ordinary Guards instead of a real expert. If I hadn’t been so lucky, I’d have been killed by bandits on the road!"
Nalan Yujin was rendered speechless.
It was an undeniable fact that Pei Shiqing had sent Pei Shaoqing to his post without any expert protection, despite knowing the journey was long and that Noble Consort Wan might be plotting revenge.
"I’ve been granted a title. After my audience with the Emperor, I will request a residence of my own and move out. For the sake of the twenty-some years he spent raising me, I will still call him ’Father.’ But he had better stop treating me like a son," Pei Shaoqing said, his face devoid of expression.
The reason he would still call Pei Shiqing "Father" was because he was constrained by filial piety laws. A son could not be the one to sever the father-son relationship; otherwise, public opinion would turn against him.
At the same time, it allowed him to continue borrowing the prestige of the Marquis Wei Yuan’s Mansion. As long as the ties weren’t officially severed, he would always be the second young master of the Marquis’s Mansion.
After all, the title "Baron of Pingyang" was far less intimidating than the combination of "Baron of Pingyang and Son of Marquis Weiyuan."
This simultaneously achieved his goal of completely distancing himself from the Marquis Wei Yuan’s Mansion. For Pei Shaoqing, it was a win-win.
The color drained from Nalan Yujin’s face. His words were tantamount to severing the father-son relationship in all but name. "Pei Shaoqing, what are you saying?!" she demanded.
"Father will understand what I mean. I’ll trouble you to write him a letter explaining things, Sister-in-law. I can’t be bothered to waste the ink." With that, Pei Shaoqing ignored Nalan Yujin and led Xie Qingwu into the room, his arm around her.
Nalan Yujin watched them go, her chest heaving with rage as she clutched her handkerchief. In her eyes, Pei Shaoqing was being unfilial and utterly outrageous.
’Even if their father-in-law didn’t care whether he lived or died and had banished him to Tongzhou to fend for himself... wasn’t that just because he was so utterly disappointed in him?’
’Besides, no matter how wrong a father is, he’s still your father.’
’A son must never harbor resentment.’
Nalan Yujin stamped her foot and turned to leave.
’I have to write to Father-in-law about this as soon as possible.’
’He misjudged the situation, and that rebellious son has only grown more defiant.’