Climbing on the Sparrow Branch – CH 602

Chapter 602: Mourning Music

The word “master” brought tears to Chunlan’s eyes. She turned to wipe them away but found they would not stop.

An Zhi felt something was amiss. Thinking of the previous raid on their home, and with Binglu not around, a bad feeling crept into her heart. “Say something! What happened to the master? And where’s Binglu?”

An Zhi’s voice rose slightly, and Nanny Wang, who was guarding outside, heard her and came in.

“Binglu fell into the water and caught a chill; she’s resting now,” Nanny Wang said, carrying a bowl of hot soup. “It’s good you are awake. Let Chunlan feed you something to drink. This old servant will go and call the doctor.”

An Zhi grew increasingly confused. Although her mind was still muddled, she was not oblivious to Nanny Wang’s and the others’ deliberate avoidance.

After Nanny Wang left, An Zhi refused Chunlan’s attempt to feed her. “Tell me the truth, what’s wrong with the master? If you do not tell me, I will not drink.”

Chunlan’s nose stung, and her thin, rosy lips trembled uncontrollably. Seeing the madam’s grave expression, she could only kneel down. “Madam, you’ve slept all day. Drink some soup first; it will give you strength.”

An Zhi shook her head, refusing to drink. At this moment, Huiping entered with the doctor and Nanny Wang.

“Drink the soup first, and I will tell you after you are done.” Huiping’s eyes were red, but there were no tears, as she had already cried. Seeing An Zhi purse her lips and remain silent, she emphasized, “I always keep my word. Listen to me.”

With that, Huiping sat on the edge of the bed, picked up the soup bowl, and personally fed An Zhi the chicken soup.

After taking An Zhi’s pulse, the doctor said, “Madam’s pulse is weak. She lost too much energy during childbirth and needs to rest for a month. Fortunately, there are no other serious problems. I will go and write a prescription now.”

Hearing the doctor’s words, An Zhi was not reassured. Given the Pei family’s current situation, how could she possibly rest peacefully?

“Sister-in-law, please tell me quickly,” An Zhi eagerly pressed.

Huiping sighed and told Nanny Wang to prepare some food. “Before I tell you, you need to prepare yourself mentally. Do not get excited.”

An Zhi hummed in agreement, took a deep breath, and quietly looked at her sister-in-law.

“Pei Que has been sentenced to beheading, and the date’s set for the fifth day.” Huiping’s face was full of worry. She had only eaten a couple of mouthfuls of porridge that evening and had no appetite at all. Seeing An Zhi’s eyes instantly fill with tears, she said with heartache, “You must not cry; quickly stop crying. Your brother has already gone to the Qian family, and I went to see my mother during the day. They will help find a way.”

When Huiping entered the Pei Mansion in the morning, An Zhi was asleep. Upon hearing the news of Pei Que’s execution, she immediately went to see her mother.

An Zhi could not control her tears. After hearing her sister-in-law’s account of what happened in court, she bit her thin lips until they bled, the taste of blood filling her throat, instantly sobering her up.

“A tyrannical ruler!”

An Zhi cursed in a low voice.

“Stop talking!” Huiping hurriedly turned around. “Keep these words to yourself. The Pei family’s still under surveillance. You must protect yourself first before you can save Pei Que!”

“Heh.” An Zhi suddenly sneered.

In the years that An Zhi and Pei Que had been married, they had been through a lot together. Their life together had just begun when a sudden tragedy struck.

An Zhi’s tears soaked her pillow. She no longer felt the physical pain but rather the deep sorrow in her heart. “Sister-in-law, what can we do?”

She shook her head. “Brother’s not the Great General now. Going to the Qian family will not help. The Qian family’s on good terms with the Bai family, not the Pei family. If Uncle were in the capital, his words would carry weight. But he’s far away in the Northwest; just sending a message would take several days. As for Her Highness the Grand Princess, she’s in an awkward position. The current Emperor’s not the late Emperor; he does not have the same respect for her. The Emperor and the Yun family are determined to kill Pei Que; they will not change their minds because of a few words from the Grand Princess.”

An Zhi knew everything.

She wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes with the back of her hand and tried to sit up, supporting herself on the bed.

“Do not move!” Huiping hurriedly helped An Zhi up. “Even if your brother and my mother are not very effective, there’s still the opposition from Duke Cheng and many court officials. Plus, Old Master Pei died at the palace gate. If the Emperor still insists on killing Pei Que, it will be difficult for him to establish his authority in the future.”

“What? What did you just say?” An Zhi’s eyes widened in disbelief. “What happened to the old master?”

Huiping realized she had said too much and quickly covered her mouth, but the words had already been spoken, so she could only tell the truth. “Old Master Pei was a man of iron will. At this time, he would certainly not accept such humiliation. He proved his innocence with his death, which temporarily saved the rest of the Pei family.”

The tears that had stopped flowed again.

“Ah…”

From anger to a helpless scream, An Zhi used all her strength.

Through teary eyes, she grasped her sister-in-law’s hand. “Sister-in-law, please prepare a sedan chair for me. I need to leave the city for the temporary palace. No one can save Pei Que now; only I can!”

“You can save him? How can you? Do not scare me!” Huiping thought An Zhi was delirious with grief and talking nonsense. “The Empress Dowager lives in the temporary palace!”

Originally, the Empress Dowager could had returned to the palace on the 29th of the plan, but because of the decapitated Buddha statue in Baohua Hall, coupled with the divination by the Imperial Observatory, she had to remain in the temporary palace.

Therefore, the Empress Dowager wished she could skin Pei Que alive. If An Zhi went there now, she would certainly not get away with it.

“I must see the Empress Dowager!” An Zhi said firmly. “Sister-in-law, do not say any more. Even if my brother and the Grand Princess try their best, they can only get Pei Que a whole corpse. Right now, the only one who can suppress the Yun family and Minister Xu is the Empress Dowager.”

“But you just gave birth. If you go out now, what if you develop a chronic illness?” Huiping said worriedly.

“As long as Pei Que’s life is saved, my little ailment’s nothing,” An Zhi said, her mind made up.

Huiping hesitated. She thought for a moment, “The city gates are closed now; you cannot go out even if you want to. How about this: let’s wait another night. If there’s still no news of your brother and the others, I will take you to see the Empress Dowager first thing tomorrow morning, alright?”

An Zhi did not have the power to open the city gates for her, but she had to do it.

She did not know Pei Que was seriously injured. Just thinking about him suffering in the imperial prison was enough to make her heart ache.

Huiping stayed with An Zhi all night. At dawn, An Xu arrived, but there was no progress. The Qian family said they would help submit a memorial. But at this point, simply submitting a memorial was useless.

An Xu initially refused when he heard his sister wanted to see the Empress Dowager, but with no other way out, he had the sedan chair carried into the house, sealing every crack and crevice tightly, before carrying An Zhi into the sedan chair. Shortly after the sedan chair was carried out of the house, An Zhi could no longer see the outside world, but she heard mournful music in the distance, and her chest immediately ached terribly.