[R18] Will drink wine – Chapter 3 of “About to Enter the Wine” [English]

Chapter 3 Birds of Prey

Pan Rugui strode toward Duancheng Gate, with the guards in brocade robes standing on both sides, as silent as a cicada.After Pan Rugui stood still and read out the oral edict of Emperor Xiande, the Jin Yiwei immediately took action.

Shen Zechuan was gagged, and Jin Yiwei quickly wrapped him in a thick cotton undershirt and made him lie face down on the ground.

Pan Rugui leaned over to inspect Shen Zechuan’s condition in the cold wind. He raised his fingers to cover his lips, coughed a few times, and said softly: “You are so young and so courageous that you dare to show off in front of the emperor. If you truthfully confess Shen Wei’s treason, you may have a chance of survival.”

Shen Zechuan closed his eyes tightly, his clothes soaked with cold sweat.

Pan Rugui stood up and said, “Put down the stick.”

The imperial guards on both sides immediately shouted in unison: “Put down the stick!” followed by another thunderous roar, “Hit!”

Before he finished speaking, the iron-wrapped and barbed court stick came down with the wind and hit Shen Zechuan hard.

After three sticks, another voice was heard: “Hit us really hard!”

The pain in his flesh burned his body like fire, making Shen Zechuan unable to move and could only bite the blockage in his mouth.I couldn’t swallow the blood, and it was all salty and astringent between my teeth.Shen Zechuan was still breathing heavily, and his eyes were stinging with wet sweat.

The sky is overcast and the snow is heavy.

The imperial staff is not a job that everyone can do. As the saying goes, “Twenty is faint, fifty is crippled.” If this stick is beaten, there are many ways to do it.It’s usually a family craft, and practicing it is no easier than learning a craft.Besides, to do this job you not only need good skills, but also a good eye.Who wants to be light on the outside but heavy on the inside, and who wants to be heavy on the outside and light on the inside? You can tell just by looking at the faces of these eunuchs who have been working for a long time.

Today, Emperor Xiande’s order is to kill him with a stick, and Pan Rugui has no intention of cherishing him. That means that there is no chance of improvement and he must die.These Jinyi guards showed their special skills, and within fifty sticks, Shen Zechuan would die in the West.

Pan Rugui counted the time and saw that Shen Zechuan had lowered his head and remained motionless.He raised his hands to hug Yupo, and was about to give some instructions when he saw an umbrella floating on the road, with a beauty in palace clothes covered under it.

The clouds on Pan Rugui’s face instantly dispersed and turned into a smile.Although he didn’t come forward to greet him personally, the eunuch beside him had already cleverly gone over to help him.

“We would like to pay our respects to Miss Third. It’s such a cold day. If the Queen Mother has any instructions for you, just send someone to convey them.” Pan Rugui said, taking two steps closer.

Hua Xiangyi gently raised her hand to signal Jin Yiwei not to move.She was born delicate and pretty, and she was raised in front of the Queen Mother all the year round. Her eyebrows were somewhat similar to the Queen Mother’s when she was young. Although she was called the third young lady of the Ogi City flower family in Qudu, everyone knew that she was the noble master of the palace. Even the emperor regarded her as his own little sister.

Hua Xiangyi said slowly and softly: “Father, is this Shen’s son Shen Zechuan lying on the ground?”

Pan Rugui followed the steps of the flowers and replied, “This is it. The emperor just issued a decree to kill him with a stick.”

Hua Xiangyi said: “The emperor was very angry just now. If Shen Zechuan dies, the case of Shen Wei’s treason will be unclear. The Queen Mother arrived at Mingli Hall half a moment ago. The emperor has listened to the advice and has somewhat calmed down.”

Pan Rugui said “Ouch” and said, “Your Majesty, please listen to the Queen Mother’s advice. We were so angry just now that we didn’t even dare to speak out.”

Hua Xiangyi smiled at Pan Rugui and said, “The emperor said ‘court stick’, didn’t my father-in-law do as he was told?”

Pan Rugui walked a few more steps and said with a smile: “That’s right. Just now, I hurriedly beat this kid with the word ‘stick’. I wonder what I should do with this guy now?”

Hua Xiangyi glanced at Shen Zechuan and said, “Your Majesty, please drag me back to prison before interrogating him again. This son’s life is of great importance. I hope my father-in-law will tell Mr. Ji to take good care of him.”

“That’s natural.” Pan Rugui said, “How dare Ji Lei turn a deaf ear to Third Miss’s instructions. It’s cold and slippery, Xiao Fuzi, please hold Third Miss steady.”

As soon as Hua Xiangyi left, Pan Rugui turned around and said to the two rows of imperial guards: “Your Majesty said that this man was almost beaten with the imperial staff, so he dragged him back. I heard what the third lady said just now, and that was what the Queen Mother meant. Go back and tell Ji Lei that there are gods involved in this case. If there is anything wrong with someone under his hands.”

Pan Rugui coughed slowly.

“Even if I, the King of Heaven, come down to earth, I can’t save his head.”

Xiao Fuzi came back and helped Pan Rugui. The long road was empty, and he asked in a low voice: “Ancestor, if we just let him go, will the emperor really not blame him if we turn back?”

Pan Rugui stepped on the snow and said, “The emperor knows in his heart that this matter will not happen to us.”

He walked a few steps, and the snowflakes squeezed into the wind collar.

“With a thousand dollars and a promise, the king is most afraid of his orders being changed at night. The emperor is seriously ill again due to the invasion of the Twelve Biansha tribes. In the past few days, he has been thinking about giving the third lady a princess title. This is to please the queen mother. At this time, there is no talk of sparing someone else’s life. Whenever the queen mother speaks, the emperor will comply.”

Pan Rugui said, turning his head to look at Xiao Fuzi.

“When did you see the Queen Mother change her decree?”

No matter what the case is, the one who tells the truth is the real one.

* * *

Shen Zechuan was so burned that he was delirious. One moment, he saw Ji Mu’s appearance before his death, and the other moment, he looked like he was still living in Duanzhou.

The wind in Duanzhou blew the flag, and the mistress came out from behind the curtain, holding a white porcelain bowl filled with dumplings with thin skin and large fillings.

“Call your brother back!” The master’s wife greeted, “If you don’t stop for a moment, let him come back for dinner!”

Shen Zechuan climbed over the railing of the corridor, took a few steps to the master’s side, picked up a dumpling with chopsticks and ran away.The dumplings were so hot that he exhaled. When he went out and saw his master Ji Gang sitting on the steps, he squatted next to Ji Gang.

Ji Gang was polishing the stone in his hand, turned his head and snorted at Shen Zechuan, saying, “Silly boy, how much are the dumplings worth? Look how rare you are! Call your brother back, and the three of us, father and son, will go to Yuanyang House for a big meal.”

Shen Zechuan didn’t answer. The mistress had already picked up Ji Gang’s ear and said, “You don’t like dumplings? You can do it. If you really have money, what kind of wife can you marry? Just take these two silly boys and go there alone!”

Shen Zechuan laughed out loud, jumped down the steps, waved to his master and his wife, and ran out of the alley to find his brother Ji Mu.

It was snowing heavily on the road, and Shen Zechuan could not find anyone.The farther he goes, the colder he gets.

“Brother.”

Shen Zechuan shouted in all directions.

“Ji Mu! Go home for dinner!”

The sound of horse hooves gradually surrounded him, and the heavy snow blocked his vision. Shen Zechuan was deeply immersed in the sound of horse hooves, but he couldn’t see anyone on either side.The sound of fighting broke out in his ears, and hot blood splashed on his face. Shen Zechuan’s legs hurt, and he was pressed to the ground by an irresistible force.

He saw the dead man close at hand again, the arrows were whistling in the wind, the man on his back was heavy, and the sticky and warm liquid was dripping down his neck and his cheek.

This time he knew what it was.

Shen Zechuan woke up tremblingly, sweating profusely and shivering from the cold.He lay on the bed, his eyes barely adjusting to the dimness.

There were still people in the prison cell. The servants were cleaning up the mess and lighting the oil lamps.

Shen Zechuan’s mouth was dry, and the handyman seemed to know it, so he poured a bowl of cold water and placed it on the bed.Shen Zechuan felt cold and hot, and slowly moved the bowl in front of him with his fingers, spilling half of the water.

No one spoke in the prison. After the servants left, only Shen Zechuan was left.He wakes up and faints, the night seems to be endless, and I can’t wait for dawn.

The handyman came back to change Shen Zechuan’s dressing, and he was much more awake.Ji Lei looked at him from across the fence and said in a cold voice: “This time you are destined to be in trouble, and it will bring disaster to you for thousands of years. The Queen Mother will spare your life, but you still don’t know why.”

Shen Zechuan remained motionless.

Ji Lei said: “I know that your master is Ji Gang, a gangster. Twenty years ago, he and I were brothers, and we served together in the Jinyi Guards in the Qandu Forbidden City. I’m afraid you don’t know that he was once a third-level commander of the Jinyi Guards. I also know the Ji family boxing.”

Shen Zechuan raised his head and looked at he.

Ji Lei opened the door, and when the handyman went out and there was no one around, he sat next to Shen Zechuan’s bed.

“Later, he committed a crime, and it was something that would cost him his head. But the late emperor was kind and did not kill him after all. He was exiled outside Guanma Road.” Ji Lei propped up his knees and grinned at Shen Zechuan in the backlight, “Your master – he has no ability, and he is lucky as a wimp. Guess heHow do you survive?Just like you did today, I am afraid you don’t know who your master is.I tell you, your master’s name is Hua Pingting, and the Dicheng Hua family is the current empress dowager’s family.”

Ji Lei bowed his head and whispered.

“But who knew that your wife had died in the rebellion? I said Ji Gang was a loser. His father died twenty years ago, and his wife and son died twenty years later. Who is the culprit, are you not sure? You know best in your heart that the culprit is Shen Wei!”

Shen Zechuan’s breath froze.

“Shen Wei opened the defense line of Chashi River, and the Biansha cavalry rushed in. The scimitar cut your wife’s throat. Before she died, what happened would make Ji Gang’s life worse than death.”

“Duanzhou fell, you said it was your brother who rescued you.” Ji Lei leaned back in his chair, looked at the back of his hand, and said, “Ji Mu, you have been raised by Ji Gang, Ji Mu is your brother. He is Ji Gang’s only son, that is Ji Gang’s only bloodline, and the only continuation of the Ji family, but because of Shen Wei, because of you, heHe is also dead.Thousands of arrows pierced his heart, and his body will still be left in the sinkhole to be trampled by the horse hooves of the Biansha cavalry.If Ji Gang is still alive, he doesn’t know what to think when he goes to collect his son’s body.”

Shen Zechuan suddenly raised his body, and Ji Lei pushed him back with ease.

“Shen Wei, he is a traitor and a collaborator. You must bear this debt. Today, if you want to survive, tens of thousands of innocent souls in Zhongbo will cry loudly. You fell asleep at night and slowly distinguished who was your wife and which was your master! You are still alive, but this life is already more painful than death. Can you forgive Shen Wei? You have forgiven Shen Wei, for heExcuse me, I’m sorry for your master’s family.After all, you have been raised by Ji Gang, how could you do such an unfaithful and unfilial thing.”

“Besides, even if you are still alive, no one in this world will understand you. When you come to Qudu, you are Shen Wei. Nowadays, the people are outraged, and there are countless people who hate you to the core. You are bound to die. Instead of dying in an unknown way, it is better to speak frankly to the emperor and fully explain Shen Wei’s crimes, which can also comfort your master’s spirit in heaven.”

Ji Lei suddenly stopped talking and saw Shen Zechuan, who was pressed down on the bed, smiling. A cold look appeared on the young man’s pale face.

“Shen Wei did not collaborate with the enemy.”

Shen Zechuan chewed each word one by one.

“Shen Wei is not a collaborator!”

Ji Lei lifted up Shen Zechuan and hit it against the wall. There was a “bang” sound, and some soil crumbs were rubbed off, making Shen Zechuan cough.

“There are too many ways to kill you.” Ji Lei said, “You ungrateful little bastard, you were lucky enough to steal a life this time. Do you really think you can survive today?”

He turned around and dragged Shen Zechuan across, kicked open the cell door and walked out.

“I act impartially and obey the Queen Mother’s will. But there are many people in Zhou Dynasty who can do whatever they want. You are so stupid, so I will follow your wish. You want someone to kill you, and this person is already here!”

The city gate of Qudu suddenly opened wide, and a column of dark heavy horses rushed in from the outside like driving thunder.

Shen Zechuan was dragged in the road, and the Jinyiwei suddenly dispersed.The dense crowd also split into two to make way for the heavy cavalry column.

Birds of prey from Libei were hovering in the sky, and the sound of their armor beating against their hearts was heavy.The sound of horse hooves was approaching. Shen Zechuan opened his eyes and saw the heavy horse headed by him charging straight towards him.

The horse under the heavy armor was like a ferocious beast. It was running a few steps away, breathing hot air, and suddenly reined in the horse just when it was about to collide.The horse’s hooves were raised high, and when it stopped, the man on the horse had already turned over.

Ji Lei stepped forward and said loudly: “Xiao…”

The visitor didn’t even look at Ji Lei and walked straight to Shen Zechuan.Shen Zechuan just moved the shackles, but this man kicked Shen Zechuan in the heart with lightning speed!

The force of this kick was so strong that Shen Zechuan could not even endure it. He opened his mouth and saw blood. His whole body was already tumbling out, and his internal organs were about to be vomited out.