Denghuangtai

"Just sending a message?" Yun Zheng raised an eyebrow, a half-smile on his face. "Is General Pei making a losing deal?"

"There's nothing I can do," Pei Qingyan said, shrugging. "The Grand Minister of Works is a man of great power and influence, and ordinary gold, silver, jewels, and rare antiques are unlikely to catch your eye. As a dying man imprisoned here, if I wish to ask for your help, I must offer some sincerity."

Pei Qingyan leaned forward again, winked at Yun Zheng, and asked, "So? Is the Grand Commandant willing to make this deal?"

Yun Zheng remained silent, leaning against the back of the armchair as if deep in thought. Pei Qingyan didn't urge him, but straightened up, poured the cold tea from his cup onto the ground, and poured himself a fresh cup.

However, as she picked it up, her vision suddenly went dark, and her body swayed slightly. If she hadn't steadied herself in time, she would have almost dropped the cup on the ground.

"What's wrong with you?"

Yun Zheng felt his heart skip a beat. He couldn't help but reach out, but seeing Pei Qingyan steady himself by holding onto the table, he silently withdrew his hand.

The words of concern lingered in his throat, then turned into sarcasm.

"General Pei, is this a scheme that failed to entice you with bribes, so you've come up with another one? This delicate and weak posture might soften my heart if it came from a frail woman, but General Pei, you..."

Yun Zheng sneered, "You have an iron body, yet no one can feel any pity for you."

"Yun Zheng, you son of a bitch."

Originally, Pei Qingyan thought she needed his help, so she tried her best to endure Yun Zheng's repeated sarcasm and didn't directly confront him.

However, Yun Zheng's repeated provocations were intolerable, and Pei Qingyan finally couldn't hold back any longer, so he "friendly"ly greeted Yun Zheng's relatives.

"General Pei, is this your attitude towards making deals?"

Upon hearing this, Pei Qingyan deflated like a punctured raft, instantly losing her temper. She gritted her teeth, forcing a smile, and looked at Yun Zheng with a forced, insincere grin. "The Grand Commandant is right; I have been insolent. What do you think of this deal?"

"I think..." Yun Zheng deliberately dragged out his words, pondering, "In the current situation, besides me, no one else dares to send a message out for you. Therefore, exchanging this opportunity to deliver a message for the military seal in your hands is somewhat of a loss."

"So?" Pei Qingyan clenched his fists, gritting his teeth. "What other conditions do you want to add?"

"How can I, an official, be so petty as a merchant?" Yun Zheng tilted his head, a smile on his face. He was already handsome, and this slight tilt of his head with a smile completely masked his sinister and cold demeanor.

Pei Qingyan almost had a moment of disbelief, thinking he was seeing the boy from his past whose smile was as warm as a spring breeze.

"That's enough."

The "young man" slowly spoke, "Since you are a dying man, I'll do you a good deed. This losing deal is done."

Splat!

The vague phantom of the "young man" in Pei Qingyan's mind shattered instantly. She rolled her eyes and chuckled twice, "It must have been tough for the Grand Marshal."

Yun Zheng waved his hand very "generously," saying, "It's nothing, just consider it as me doing a good deed and accumulating merit for the day."

"No matter how much good you do, you'll still end up in the deepest hell!" Pei Qingyan cursed inwardly.

"Tell me, what message do you want me to pass on to others?"

"Send someone to the Princess's residence for me."

"and then?"

"Then help me kowtow a few times at the entrance of the Princess's residence."

Yun Zheng couldn't believe it. "That's it?"

"That's it." Pei Qingyan said calmly.

"Pei Qingyan, if you can't come up with a way to escape, wouldn't it be better to just wait to die? What's the point of all this fuss? Are you playing me?"

Yun Zheng finally couldn't hold back any longer. He slammed his hand on the table, stood up abruptly, pointed at Pei Qingyan's nose, and scolded him with exasperation. He truly hadn't expected that the deal Pei Qingyan made, risking his military seal, would turn out to be this!

If they really can't think of a way to get out of this predicament, could they at least have him secretly send a distress message to someone?

After going through all this trouble, all just to kowtow to the princess? What's the point?!

Pei Qingyan crossed his arms and looked up at Yun Zheng's gloomy face. "Grand Marshal, you're overthinking it. What would I want from you? I'm only doing this because it's the last wish of a dying man."

She paused, a hint of melancholy flashing in her eyes, "Even though the Princess took the initiative to sever ties with my Pei family after the Pei family's incident, she still owes me a debt of gratitude for raising me. Is there any problem with asking someone to kowtow to her a few times before I die, to say goodbye?"

"Does this kind of thing really need to be exchanged for a military tally?" Yun Zheng was furious.

"Since I'm going to die anyway, the military tally will just end up in someone else's hands after I'm gone. So why not use it for a trade?" Pei Qingyan said calmly, raising an eyebrow at Yun Zheng. "Besides, wouldn't exchanging something as important as the military tally for you show more sincerity?"

"Pei Qingyan, you're really something." Yun Zheng was so angry that his temples throbbed, and he couldn't help but curse her fiercely.

"You flatter me." Pei Qingyan still smiled. "Grand Minister, it's getting late. Could you please send someone over to kowtow for me?"

"Just send anyone?"

"If the Grand Marshal is willing to personally go and kowtow on my behalf, I wouldn't mind."

Upon hearing this, Yun Zheng sneered, too lazy to argue with Pei Qingyan any longer, and stepped out of the cell.

Inside the cell, Pei Qingyan felt a wave of dizziness wash over him again, his entire body feeling as if it were being gnawed by insects, a mixture of pain and itching that seemed to penetrate to his very bones.

"What's wrong with me?" she murmured softly.

Leaning back against the armrest behind him, his vision was blurry, and he was sweating profusely.

"Luckily, Yun Zheng left, otherwise if he saw me in this sorry state, he would have mocked me again." Even though he was in so much pain that his face was pale and he had almost no strength left, Pei Qingyan was still thinking about his rivalry with Yun Zheng.

"Hey, wake up."

After Yun Zheng returned from arranging for the people to leave, he saw Pei Qingyan leaning against the wall with her eyes closed. He was furious and kicked the cushion under Pei Qingyan.

Pei Qingyan opened his eyes, feigning nonchalance, and looked up at Yun Zheng, "Can't I close my eyes and rest for a while since I have nothing to do?"

"Hmph." Yun Zheng snorted coldly, "With your attitude, you'll have plenty of opportunities to sleep forever in the future."

"Then what's it to you?" Seeing that his goal had been achieved, Pei Qingyan stopped being subservient and retorted directly, "Even if I really do die one day, I won't lie obediently in the ground. I will definitely crawl out of my coffin and stand by your bedside every day. I won't stop until I scare you to death."

"Heh." Yun Zheng sat back down, stroking the rim of his teacup. "Still talking so much nonsense when you're about to die? General Pei's mentality is truly admirable."