Chapter 670: Ruyi is Truly Wicked

At Ruyi's words, Ping'an merely lowered his head and gave a sheepish chuckle, scratching his head.

Only someone this dense could serve as an official and end up utterly destitute—let alone as the Metropolitan Governor.

"Why did you kick me, Sister?"

Ruyi kicked him again. "Look at you, acting like an idiot."

Ping'an opened his mouth, but after pondering for a long while, he couldn't find a single word in rebuttal.

Ruyi scoffed lightly. "Let me ask you this. You haven't gone back all this time—not because you were too busy, but because you didn't have travel money. Right?"

Ping'an hesitated. "I..."

"So I was right."

Ruyi continued, "A certain someone wrote such lovely letters, bragging about how they were living large in the Capital City, about how much wealth they had. But in the end, it was all just a stubborn front. Where are your silver taels?"

Ping'an explained, "There are so many people in the estate, so naturally, they need to eat."

Ruyi asked, "If you're in such dire straits, why are you keeping so many servants?"

Ping'an parted his lips, but after a moment of thought, no words came out.

"I'm asking you a question!"

"They..."

Ping'an sighed. "A few years ago, a terrible blizzard struck Shangjing City. It was a devastating year; many died, and countless others were left homeless. His Majesty, harboring compassion for the common people, permitted the officials to take those without a livelihood into their estates as servants, so they could at least earn a bite to eat."

Ruyi stared blankly. Opening her mouth, she asked, "Were there really that many? You have over twenty servants in this estate alone, and there are so many officials in the Imperial Court."

Ping'an stammered, murmuring, "Well... at the time, it entirely depended on how many each official was willing to take in. Those who were willing took more, and those who weren't took less..."

"So did you take in a lot, or a few?"

"I took the most."

Ruyi was so furious she nearly laughed.

"Lord Wang!"

The moment this faintly mocking title was spoken...

Ping'an jumped in fright. "Sister, please don't be like this."

"Lord Wang truly has the heart of a bodhisattva! You can barely afford to feed yourself, yet you insist on providing for so many others?"

"Sister, keep your voice down. It wouldn't be good if they heard."

Hearing this, Ruyi lowered her voice a fraction.

"Never mind that, then."

Ruyi pursed her lips and pressed on, "What about your official stipend? I heard people say His Majesty favored you and rewarded you with a hefty sum of silver taels. Where did all that go?"

"It went toward building bridges and paving roads..."

"Building bridges? What bridges? And what roads?"

Ruyi glared at him, her eyes wide. "Isn't that the Ministry of Works' job? Shouldn't the required silver taels come from the Ministry of Revenue? What does any of that have to do with you?"

Ping'an flinched and hurriedly explained, "According to protocol, the Ministry of Revenue should allocate the funds, and the Ministry of Works should handle the construction. But the problem is... the Ministry of Revenue ran out of money..."

"After I became the Metropolitan Governor, I traveled the countryside to inspect local conditions. I discovered many hardships, and the biggest issue, truthfully, was the roads."

"The commoners coming from the countryside to sell their wares in the city have to walk dozens of li. Thirty li south of Shangjing City lies the Xun River. Its waters are fierce and turbulent, and with no bridge, anyone wishing to cross must detour over twenty li!"

"But for those trying to get into the city, taking that detour means they won't arrive in time. The markets in Shangjing City are busiest in the morning. Once that window passes, it's incredibly difficult to sell anything."

"Waking up at the crack of dawn is an option, but many have bedridden elders at home or wailing infants waiting to be fed. Between all their chores, they would have to wake up impossibly early—and the old and young certainly can't rise at such hours alongside them."

"Once, I watched an old man, nearly fifty, wading across that river. He was shivering uncontrollably in the biting wind, yet he only dared to move through the water with excruciating care. When I asked him why he didn't hurry, he pulled open his coat to reveal a bundle of eggs tucked inside. He told me he couldn't move any faster or they would break, and his grandson was relying on those eggs to buy medicine."

"I couldn't bear the sight. So, I paid out of my own pocket and pleaded with the Ministry of Works."

Listening to this, Ruyi stared at him, remaining silent for a long time.

Ping'an lowered his head before suddenly speaking up with a rare trace of stubbornness. "Sister, the bridge is already built."

"I can't take the silver back now."

Ruyi didn't know whether to laugh or cry. "Who told you to take it back?"

She looked at Ping'an, parting her lips as if wanting to speak yet holding back.

In the end, she only squeezed out a single phrase.

"I can't even be bothered to scold you anymore."

Leaving him with those words, Ruyi stood up and walked out.

"Eh, Sister?"

Ping'an watched her go, a bewildered look in his eyes.

What did Sister mean by that?

What does she mean she can't be bothered to scold me?

Standing alone in the study, he actually breathed a sigh of relief once his sister was gone.

Truth be told, he was still rather afraid of her. Whenever his sister lectured him, he never dared to talk back. It had been this way since they were young, and nothing had changed now that they were adults.

Ping'an simply couldn't wrap his head around it.

...

Stepping outside, Ruyi caught sight of shattered roof tiles scattered beneath the eaves. She glanced up. One of the protruding tiles was missing a large chunk; from the looks of it, it had been left in disrepair for a very long time.

She wondered how she had ended up with such an idiotic younger brother.

His own roof tiles were broken and desperately needed mending, yet all his thoughts were consumed with building bridges and paving roads for others.

"Haa..."

Ruyi's heart ached.

The ache stemmed from the fact that Ping'an had indeed become a good official, yet deep down, she had never wanted him to be one.

Good men rarely met good ends.

It was true in the jianghu, and it was just as true in officialdom.

Ruyi understood this better than anyone.

But she also knew Ping'an was no longer the little kid he used to be. Anything she could figure out, Ping'an could figure out just as well—but knowing the risks, he still chose to do it anyway.

Ruyi didn't know what to make of her foolish younger brother.

She scolded him fiercely, forcing him to kneel and making him stand while he ate; every word she spoke dripped with reprimands. But in truth, Ruyi's heart ached terribly for him.

Ruyi always felt that when their mother named him Ping'an—meaning peace and safety—it was so he would live safely, not so he would sacrifice himself to bring peace to others.

Had he completely misunderstood their mother's intent?

Ruyi couldn't understand it. She was narrow-minded; all she cared about was Ping'an living a safe and peaceful life.

Ping'an, on the other hand, seemed to want peace and safety for everyone he met. He wanted those who suffered to find early solace and happiness.

Ping'an had truly grown up...

The Tabby Cat padded over from behind, coming to a halt at Ruyi's feet.

"What is Ruyi looking at?"

Ruyi lowered her head. Seeing it was Lihua, she crouched down. "Nothing in particular."

Lihua gave her a look. "Ruyi has something on her mind."

Ruyi opened her mouth, but ultimately said, "I'm just feeling a little sad."

"Huh?"

Ruyi said, "When we were little, I used to bully Ping'an all the time, and he never once talked back. Even when I was being completely unreasonable, he never talked back. But now that we're older, I have to find excuses to pick on him. He still won't talk back no matter what I say, but if I don't have a good reason, I have no way to scold him anymore."

The naive, innocent Lihua looked at Ruyi, speaking with a hint of disbelief.

"But Ruyi made Ping'an kneel. Doesn't that count as bullying?"

Ruyi paused. "That's different."

"How is it different?"

"Eh, it's different. It's different."

Lihua stared at her in bewilderment before saying, "Ruyi is truly wicked."

"Hmm?"

"You bully people, yet you still try to find excuses for it."

"..."