Climbing on the Sparrow Branch – CH 695

Chapter 695: Four Routes

At the third branch of the Pei family, Pei Xuan had already sent out the secret decree.

Madam Meng brought over a cup of warm tea and stood behind Pei Xuan, massaging his shoulders. “We’ve been keeping our doors and windows closed for quite some time now. Yesterday, a servant who went out to buy supplies encountered some of the Xu family’s servants. Not only was he robbed of his money, but he was also beaten black and blue.”

For over a year, the Third House and her husband had endured much hardship to protect the Pei family’s business.

Now, Madam Meng didn’t even dare return to her maternal home, fearing she might implicate them.

Pei Xuan knew his predicament. “Pei Que was exiled, and after the old master died, we brothers were all in mourning at home. Now, not a single member of the Pei family has any influence in the court. Like a tiger fallen into the plains, we are bullied by dogs. The Xu family wishes we were dead; we’ll remember this debt.”

To say there was no resentment would be impossible.

But the rise and fall of aristocratic families was commonplace. Without this current decline, how could there be talk of a comeback?

Pei Xuan glanced at his wife and asked, “Are you really planning to wait for Qian Jinyu regarding Huan’er’s marriage?”

Madam Meng hummed in agreement and sat opposite Pei Xuan. “Putting aside family background, Qian Jinyu himself has a good character. He’s not a bad person, and we won’t suffer with him. If he achieves great things in the future, that’ll naturally be beneficial. However, after our current setbacks, I don’t crave immense wealth anymore. I just want Qian Jinyu to be devoted to Huan’er.”

“Fine, then I’ll listen to you.” Pei Xuan sighed softly. “At first, I thought Li Ji was all bravado and no strategy, but it turns out he’s a wolf in sheep’s clothing. I just hope Fourth Brother can set off soon. This time, we cannot afford to delay any longer.”

Madam Meng nodded in agreement.

They had endured for too long; their patience was wearing thin day by day.

Moreover, considering the current situation, they truly couldn’t delay any longer.

~

The secret decree arrived in Pei Que’s hands three days later.

Although it was dictated by the Emperor, the secret edict admitted that he had misjudged Pei Que and promised to compensate for all losses upon Pei Que’s return to the capital, even sending men to greet him at the city gates.

Pei Que, after reading the edict and considering the Emperor’s current predicament, summarized it as “self-inflicted.”

The so-called greeting at the city gates was merely a pretext to use Pei Que’s return to the capital as an opportunity to purge the city’s garrison.

However, with the imperial seal affixed, Pei Que could demand even more upon arriving in the capital, thanks to this secret edict.

News of their return to the capital spread throughout the estate, and An Zhi and her people began packing.

It took three whole days of work for An Zhi and her group to pack their belongings, totaling over a dozen boxes.

With so much luggage, transportation became a concern.

And yet, there was still no favorable news from Huian.

An Zhi was somewhat worried. “Xu Wenyong has heavily fortified Huian, precisely to prevent us from traveling by water. If we wait for the Qian family to break through Huian, we might have to wait several months. If we don’t go through Huian, the mountain roads are rugged and fraught with danger.”

Several months later, the Emperor might not even make it to the New Year. If he arrives in the capital then, the situation would be completely different.

“Are we still going to travel by water?” An Zhi asked Pei Que.

“Yes!” Pei Que affirmed, “but not us. We’ll return to the capital in four groups. Those with luggage will go through Huian, to be kept in plain sight for Xu Wenyong to plot against. The other three groups will return to the capital from three different directions. We will not go through Dingnan; we’ll head northeast, with the other two acting as cover.”

“The northeast is Xu Wenyong’s territory,” An Zhi said, frowning, then understood Pei Que’s meaning.

Logically, Pei Que would definitely go through Dingnan, where the most assassins were likely to be.

This return to the capital was different from their previous trip to Huludao.

In fact, there would be fewer ambushes in the northeast, and Pei Que also wanted to check out Xu Wenyong’s territory to see what the situation was like.