Ye Yingfeng followed suit and finished the wine in his bowl, but left the bowl on the table.
He tilted his head back, staring at the head of the bandits in front of him, a sneering smile playing on his lips.
"Li Feilong, five years have passed, and you still haven't improved a bit."
Ye Zhinan's surprised gaze shifted between the two of them. She really couldn't figure out what her elder brother was up to.
Addressing the head of the bandits by his full name was a bit too arrogant, wasn't it?
"I wondered who it was. So it's Vice - General Ye. I didn't expect that after years of fighting on the battlefield, you'd end up as a prisoner!"
The two of them mocked each other, hitting each other right where it hurt.
Ye Zhinan couldn't stand it anymore. If they kept drinking, they'd never get down to business.
"Brother! Have you forgotten why we're here?"
She winked and nudged to remind him. Ye Yingfeng slapped his forehead and his eyes regained clarity.
"For the sake of our first encounter as foes, I'd like to advise you to surrender to the government. You can't fight against the authorities. The past grievances should have ended long ago. There's no need to involve others."
Li Feilong held the bowl in his hand, his eyelids drooping as he remained silent for a long time.
His hand tightened constantly, the veins popping out. Finally, he crushed the large bowl in his hand, and a cut appeared on his palm.
"Then who should pay for my elder brother's life?"
Qin Yihuai let out a long sigh, then stepped forward boldly and took out a transcribed dossier from his bosom.
"The former prefect has been exiled. At the beginning of this year, news came that he had..."
"What kind of useless dossier? I don't want to see any of it! Have you ever mentioned the fire? Have you ever mentioned my elder brother's life?"
Maybe it was the alcohol kicking in, and the last bit of his rationality disappeared, leaving only boundless grief.
He was in charge of this large mountain stronghold. He knew that surrendering to the government was the right choice, but he couldn't get over the hurdle in his heart.
Li Feilong hugged the wine jar and sat on the steps, crying with his eyes swollen.
"Everyone around me says I'm colluding with the government, but I have to make a choice in the end. You're right. I can't punish the present people because of the past."
He'd received the news of the former prefect's death at the beginning of the year.
At that time, he'd decided to go down the mountain and make peace with the government. Even if he had to sacrifice his own life, he wanted to give the people on the mountain an explanation.
But too many things had happened in between, and with Chen Fangzhi's repeated obstruction, it was finally delayed.
"If so, why did you burn the crops? Those were also painstakingly planted by the common people. What crime did they commit?"
Mentioning the crops, Li Feilong held back his tears.
He picked up the wine jar and staggered towards Ye Zhinan, glaring at her with blood - red eyes.
Qin Yihuai quickly stepped forward to protect her behind him.
Li Feilong sneered, took out a jade pendant from his bosom, and gently stroked it.
"The government abducted my son. This is the punishment they deserve!"
"Who told you this?"
Qin Yihuai finally couldn't stand it anymore. He had a close relationship with the prefect and knew that the prefect wouldn't do such a thing.
If it wasn't a misunderstanding, then someone must have deliberately framed them.
And the person behind all these things was the mastermind in the past three years.
Even though Li Feilong was drunk, he still maintained a semblance of sobriety when it came to major issues.
He took out a crumpled piece of paper from the wooden box and threw it heavily in front of Qin Yihuai.
"Take a look for yourself. Isn't this the writing of your government?"
Qin Yihuai just glanced at it, his eyes slightly changing, but he still remained calm.
Ye Zhinan noticed his reaction and carefully examined the paper, but found nothing suspicious.
"It's the government, but not the one we're talking about."
Li Feilong was obviously enraged. He smashed the wine jar on the ground and lunged forward to grab Qin Yihuai's collar.
"I'm warning you. Don't play word games with me. No matter which government it is, they can't abduct someone else's son at will."
Arguing with a person who wasn't sober was useless no matter how much you said.
Qin Yihuai walked to the water tank, scooped up a ladle of water, and splashed it directly on Li Feilong's face.
The cold stinging sensation spread throughout his body. He shook his head, and the chaos in his eyes dissipated a bit.
Qin Yihuai said in a deep voice,
"Even when appealing to the emperor, both sides should be heard. Why don't you listen to my explanation first, and then decide whether to surrender or not."
He took out a land deed from his bosom, on which was written the name Shen Beiting.
Ye Zhinan remembered it well. The land deed in his hand was written by Shen Beiting stroke by stroke. She'd seen it with her own eyes at that time, so there was absolutely no mistake.
Her gaze shifted back and forth between the two pieces of paper, and finally she noticed something wrong.
If you didn't look closely, there was no difference in the handwriting on the two papers.
"Prefect Shen was used to stretching the vertical strokes when writing, and his left - falling and right - falling strokes were very natural and smooth. But the writing in your hand is cramped and the lines are not smooth enough. It's obviously a copy."
Li Feilong snatched the two pieces of paper and compared them repeatedly in the sunlight.
Ye Yingfeng snorted and turned to look at him.
"Stop pretending. You're literate and have studied in a private school. This little trick can't escape your eyes."
Li Feilong's face changed several times. He slumped to the ground, his hands trembling, as if he'd remembered something.
Fushou Mountain was heavily guarded, and no outsiders had invaded for many years.
The village at the foot of the mountain was the only way to the mountain. Whenever there was any sign of trouble, the villagers would send a warning.
It was simply impossible to take the child away silently.
He'd really been panicked at that time and hadn't noticed so many details.
"No matter how careful we are, we can't escape the eyes of your informants. We just met your son. He's really a naughty and cute child."
Qin Yihuai was good at being cryptic. He only said half of what he wanted to say, leaving infinite mystery and imagination.
He didn't like to expose the truth directly because what was hidden behind it was the darkness of human nature.
There was anger on Li Feilong's face. He waved his hand, and a young servant beside him quickly stepped forward.
"Go and bring Chen Fangzhi to me."
Ye Zhinan roughly understood what was going on. What Qin Yihuai meant was to warn Li Feilong that only someone familiar could take the child away.
So there was a spy on the mountain.
When Chen Fangzhi walked in, he looked extremely proud. He lifted his chin and glanced at them, with a hint of pity in his eyes.
As if he was looking at the lambs waiting to be slaughtered on the chopping block.
"This guy can't even read the situation. Are you sure he's the spy?"
Qin Yihuai shook his head. The two of them got closer and whispered.
"It's not my conclusion. It's what Li Feilong thought. Since he's identified him, there must be a reason."
Ye Zhinan nodded. She didn't seem to be here to help but rather to gain experience.
She turned her gaze back to Chen Fangzhi, ready to watch the show.
"Head of the bandits, I knew these people had bad intentions. Hand them over to me. I'll surely make them die a horrible death."