Chapter 217: Chapter 217. Will Be a Very Powerful Helper
Translator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation
It was a middle-aged man in his forties. He used to have three locks of beard, but now his beard was stuck together. Although he was also as thin as a skeleton, his eyes were not as desperate as the other prisoners. His eyes were very determined. He was a person with strong willpower.
Qin Feng recognized him from his gaze. Wasn’t this the Assistant Minister of Rites, Xing Ruhai?
This Xing Ruhai was a top scholar and talented in literature and martial arts. He was an upright official who loved his people like his own children. He was good and never accepted bribes. He was ostracized because he refused to submit to Prime Minister Wan. He didn’t know why he was exiled this time.
The bailiff returned the money and handed it to Ji Shuisheng. Ji Shuisheng took two pieces of tiger meat the size of a man’s palm from the pot and wrapped them in leaves before handing them to the bailiff.
The bailiff leader felt that it was too little. Forty taels of silver for two small pieces? However, he did not show his anger on his face. Instead, he politely discussed with Ji Shuisheng,
“Brother, we have a lot of people. Can you pick two bigger pieces of meat for us?”
Ji Shuisheng scooped up the meat in the pot with a spoon and showed it to him. “Official, they are all this big.”
He was the one who cut the meat. At that time, he thought that Su Qing would cut the meat the same size every time. He couldn’t be worse than Su Qing, right? Therefore, they were all about the same size.
The bailiff stretched his neck and looked carefully for a long time. Sure enough, the meat in the pot was almost the same size.
“Then…Can we have some meat soup? Those prisoners will starve to death if they don’t eat. Saving a life is better than building a seven-storied pagoda. Please do me a favor.”
“Since the official has said so, bring a basin over!” Qin Feng walked over.
Qin Feng pitied Xing Ruhai. When they were officials of the same dynasty, he felt that Xing Ruhai was a rare talent and admired his upright character and knowledge.
If his grandson could use this person, he would be a competent helper.
“Alright then.”
Ji Shuisheng accepted his grandfather’s offer to help. The bailiff was very happy. Those exiles would not starve to death on the road with the meat soup. He and his men could also get a share of the soup.
Ji Shuisheng didn’t immediately scoop soup for him. The braised pork soup was a little salty. He scooped out all the meat and poured in a bucket of water to boil it before scooping out a soup pot and bringing it over.
When the bailiffs saw that the soup had arrived, they hurriedly took it from the carriage and scooped it into a bowl to drink. The exiles looked at them with eager eyes.
They had thought that these bailiffs were kind enough to give them soup to drink, but in the end, they used their names to ask for the soup themselves.
Fortunately, these bailiffs did not dare to starve these exiles to death, especially Xing Ruhai. He was a recorded criminal who had to be escorted to Jingshi Dao. Anyone could die, but he had to live.
The bailiffs gave the remaining half of the soup to the exiles and threw a bowl to them to queue up for the soup. Each of them was only given half a spoonful.
The prisoners, shivering in the cold wind, felt this was the most delicious food in the world after drinking a mouthful of hot soup. Their frozen bodies felt a little warm because of this hot soup.
Su Qing saw that her merit bar was slowly increasing. These were people who were about to die. Drinking this soup meant saving their lives, so her merit bar increased.
Since that was the case, more than half a pot of meat soup remained anyway. Su Qing scooped another pot for Li Daniu to send over.
The bailiffs were overjoyed when they saw they had brought another bowl of meat soup. This time, they could drink another bowl. They thanked them repeatedly.
When it was Xing Ruhai’s turn, the bailiff filled his bowl. The hot soup warmed his internal organs when it entered his stomach. Xing Ruhai glanced at him and thanked him before drinking in big mouthfuls.
Qin Feng walked over and handed him a cooked potato. The bailiffs all stared at Qin Feng with unfriendly gazes. Qin Feng hurriedly explained,
“Official, this old man received a meal from this gentleman back then. Today, I want to repay this meal.”
Xing Ruhai looked at Qin Feng in confusion. He couldn’t remember when he had given charity to this person. However, he had done this kind of thing many times. Perhaps he did not remember it.
The bailiff looked at the potatoes and drooled. It was the first time he had seen such food. It was golden in color and smelled quite fragrant. Although it was not as delicious as meat, it should be delicious.
Xing Ruhai cupped his fists toward Qin Feng after receiving the potato. “I can’t thank you enough for your kindness. Thank you, benefactor.”
“You’re welcome; you’re welcome.”
Qin Feng pulled him back, and he only realized his body was covered in injuries. Under the heavy shackles, Xing Ruhai could not even raise his head. The fingers of his hands that had written all the beautiful articles in the world have been deformed from the punishment of being clamped with a stick.
Qin Feng could not help but empathize with him. He felt sad in his heart. A traitor was in power. The emperor was incompetent and could not protect his loyal subjects. If his grandson and Su Qing had not saved him, he would have been beheaded or ended up like him.
Xing Ruhai dragged the heavy shackles on his feet to his wife’s side, who was sitting weakly on the ground like a withered man. He was unwilling to eat the potato Qin Feng gave him and left it for his wife and child.
When the bailiff saw this, his brows furrowed into a knot. He wanted to go over and snatch it back, but Ji Shuisheng and the others were watching. No matter how shameless he was, he had to pretend.
“You’ve already drunk the meat soup. Come with me to get water.”
The bailiff left half of the soup for himself and his men, and the rest was given to the prisoners. When they finished drinking the soup, he chased them away to fetch water like ducks.
The men were chased away to fetch water, leaving two bailiffs to watch over the women and children. There was no need to watch them anymore. Even if you let them run, they wouldn’t have the strength to run. Xing Ruhai had to be protected because of the unique situation, so he was left to rest.
Today was a pleasant surprise. Su Qing saw that after Qin Feng gave the potatoes to that person, her merit bar rose rapidly. It instantly increased by two bars. After reaching level eight, the merit increase was very slow. It was almost impossible to see it.
Only one basin was left after the two bowls of soup were distributed. The old and young of Peach Blossom Cove each had half a bowl. Although they felt sorry for the soup spread, no one said anything when they saw how pitiful the exiles were.
Su Qing cut out the braised tiger meat according to the number of people. Each person had a piece of meat, two potatoes, and half a bowl of broth. This was the best meal they had had in a few days.
Su Qing used enough ingredients, and the taste was delicious. The tiger meat wasn’t too mushy and was very chewy. The more you chewed, the more fragrant it became. The potatoes were soft and fluffy. With the meat soup, even an old man without teeth could eat it.
When the exiled women and children saw them eating meat and potatoes, they drooled. Their eyes were filled with the desire for food.
Xing Ruhai’s wife gave the potato her husband had given her to the two children. The pitiful pair of children suffered with their parents. The originally chubby one was now pitifully thin.
The two children took the potatoes and couldn’t bear to eat them themselves. They brought them to their mother and father’s mouths. “Dad, Mom, you guys eat.”
When the bailiff saw Qin Feng coming around again, he pressed the steel knife against the old man’s chest. Qin Feng felt his heart ache as he looked at the two potatoes he had been given. He wouldn’t starve to death if he didn’t eat these two potatoes. Anyway, he still had meat. He walked over again..
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