Ning Dao Covered with Snow

Chapter 403 Pei Yan (Part 2)

Pei Yan narrowed his eyes slightly, as if recalling scenes from the past.

“Although we survived, we were both taken prisoner. Fu Zheng and I were imprisoned in the Turkic army’s water dungeon. Fu Zheng was terrified, so I suggested that we switch identities. That way, the Turkic army could concentrate their main firepower on me, and I would try to create an opportunity for Fu Zheng to escape. Once he ran back to Daye, I would call someone to rescue me.”

Yan Ciwan asked, "Did he agree?"

"Of course, he agreed very readily." Pei Yan still chuckled as he recalled the scene. "He was so well protected by his uncle and aunt that he was both foolish and selfish. I told him I could save him, and he believed me."

"and then?"

"The Turks couldn't really distinguish us Daye people, just as we couldn't easily distinguish them. When I said I was Fu Zheng, the Turks didn't suspect a thing. They wanted to extract information about the Daye army from me, and I told them everything I knew. Seeing how cooperative I was, they gradually lowered their guard. This gave me an opportunity. I told Fu Zheng to escape quietly, promising to draw the enemy's attention for him. Fu Zheng believed me. No sooner had he run away than I went to inform the Turkic army, who quickly captured him. This alarmed the Turkic commander. The commander gave me a bow and arrow, pointed at the bound Fu Zheng, and said, 'If I kill that man, I will live.'"

Yan Ciwan frowned: "So you killed Fu Zheng?"

Instead of answering, Pei Yan asked, "If it were you, what would you choose? Would you kill that good-for-nothing who keeps stealing your credit and live on alone? Or would you die with him?"

Yan Ciwan fell silent.

Human nature cannot withstand the test, especially in such extreme circumstances.

After a moment, she spoke: "You did this on purpose. You want to gain the trust of the Turks by betraying Fu Zheng."

"Yes." Pei Yan readily admitted. "The Turks love to see us Daye people kill each other, so I'll put on a show for them. I shot my comrade right in front of them. My hands are stained with the blood of my brothers. I can never go back to Daye. I can only stay in the Turkic army and be their dog."

Yan Ciwan watched him quietly. Character determines destiny. Such a ruthless person who would stop at nothing to achieve his goals could not possibly be content to be an ordinary commoner. Even without his uncle and aunt's coercion, he would eventually embark on such a blood-stained path of a ruthless hero.

“I used my knowledge of the Daye army to advise the Turkic commander. At first, the Turkic commander was very wary of me, but after my suggestions helped him win several battles in a row, he gradually lowered his guard and began to truly value me. After more than three years, I gained a foothold by the Turkic commander’s side and became one of his advisors.”

Yan Ciwan couldn't help but ask, "Your simple statement about a few victories implies how many soldiers the Daye army will have to sacrifice?"

"To achieve victory, sacrifices must be made, and the final result proved that their sacrifices were not in vain. When the war between the Turkic army and the Daye army entered a critical stage, I secretly contacted the Daye army and cooperated with them from the inside to fight a brilliant victory. I also killed the Turkic commander. The Turkic army was leaderless and in chaos. They were defeated by the Daye army and quickly handed over the surrender document. This war, which lasted for more than five years, finally came to an end."

Pei Yan smiled as he said this, looking quite pleased with himself.

“I am different from you. You only see the lives of a few people in front of you, but I see the entire war. Back then, the imperial court sent 100,000 soldiers to Youzhou to drive out the Turkic army. Do you know how many of them came back alive five years later when the war ended?”

He raised his right hand and shook it gently. "Less than 50%! More than 50,000 people died on the battlefield! If I hadn't endured humiliation and infiltrated the enemy camp, killing the Turkic commander at the crucial moment, the Turkic army would not have retreated so easily. If they had held out for another five years, how many more soldiers do you think our Daye army would have lost?"

Yan Ciwan remained silent in response.

"In your eyes, I am a villain who impersonated someone else, but in the eyes of those soldiers who returned home alive, I am a hero."

When Pei Yan said the word "hero," his tone rose slightly at the end.

Clearly, he has no remorse for his actions, and even if he were given the chance to do it all over again, he would still make the same choice.

"Perhaps even the heavens thought I had done a good job. Almost all the people in the army who knew me died on the battlefield. The few exceptions were quietly dealt with by me. I returned to Chang'an as Fu Zheng to receive my reward. I also sent people to bring my uncle and aunt to live in Chang'an. I originally wanted to bring Jiang Yan to Chang'an as well, but the people I sent out came up empty-handed. The Jiang family had already disappeared. After inquiring, I learned that Jiang's father had offended the Xie family and had been exiled to the border. Jiang's father and mother died of illness on their way to the place of exile. As for Jiang Yan, she was demoted to a slave and her whereabouts are unknown."

Yan Ciwan asked, "Fu Zheng's parents couldn't possibly not recognize you, could they?"

"They naturally recognized me immediately as not being Fu Zheng. I told them that the reason our squad was ambushed was because Fu Zheng's decision-making was flawed. Later, Fu Zheng was captured, and in order to survive, he revealed a lot of information about the Daye army. If this were to spread, the entire Fu family would be executed. The old couple were frightened by me. Although their son and daughter-in-law were gone, they still had their grandson, Fu Hui. In order to protect the only heir of the Fu family, the old couple decided to keep their mouths shut and help me conceal my identity."

Yan Ciwan said, "You are the one who betrayed the information."

"But other people don't know that."

"You are truly shameless."

“I don’t want this either, but I have no choice. I have to survive, so I can only ask Fu Zheng to make do. In return, I will take good care of his parents and son.”

Yan Ciwan said coldly, "But in the end, his parents and son all died, and all of them died at your hands."

“I didn’t want to kill them, but they were so ungrateful. For so many years I’ve fed and clothed them and let them enjoy all the riches and luxuries. But instead of being grateful, they betrayed me. Since they are unjust, then don’t blame me for being ruthless.”

As Pei Yan finished speaking, he tightened his grip on the hilt of his knife, a hint of ruthlessness flashing in his eyes.

Yan Ciwan said, "You say Fu Zheng is selfish, but you are even worse than him."

"So what if I'm selfish? Just because I'm selfish, does that mean you can erase all the great contributions I've made?"

Yan Ciwan couldn't comment on his character; she could only say, "Merit is merit, and killing is killing; these are two different things."