Pei Ji looked at his nephew.
His tone was calm, as was his expression, as if this was a very ordinary thing.
Pei Ji retracted his gaze, paced to the window of the study, and sighed softly.
"Xiao Yuan, you still can't let go of what happened back then—"
Pei Xiaoyuan did not respond. He neither admitted nor denied it.
Pei Ji stood there for a long time, looking at the night outside the window.
"When you were born, it was the peak period of the Jingsheng Dynasty."
Suddenly, he said slowly.
"At that time, the court seemed peaceful and prosperous, with people from all over the country coming to pay tribute. In fact, the people below were divided and in danger. The old saint was no longer the wise monarch he was in his youth. He was closed-minded and indulged in pleasure. He was surrounded by flatterers. What he worried about most was how to guard against his sons."
"Although Ye Zhongli was an official, he always had a heart to serve his country. He saw clearly the hopelessness behind the so-called prosperous times and was extremely disappointed. That's why he left after working so hard to complete that long scroll mural. That long scroll was his way of thanking the late emperor for his favor. It also expressed his wish that everything he painted, the indigo mountains and the cities, could be blessed by the gods in the sky."
"After he left, my uncle also made many appeals, hoping that the late emperor would wake up in time, stay away from villains, employ wise ministers, and prevent disasters before they happen. However, looking around the country, the whole world is peaceful and prosperous. How could the old saint listen to my advice? I am very ashamed that my uncle could not do what the wise ministers of ancient times, Bigan and Wuxian, did, and chose to resign and retire."
"You know what happened next."
He turned around and faced Pei Xiaoyuan.
"My uncle left the capital the year the present emperor ascended the throne. People at the time said that I took too much credit for myself and caused dissension between the emperor and his subjects."
"My uncle was once the teacher of the late Emperor's Crown Prince Jingsheng, and your father was also from the Donggong House when he was young. Our Pei family, whether in the eyes of outsiders or in reality, has long been inseparable from Crown Prince Jingsheng."
"There are many kings who found a country, but it is hard to find a king who can revive the country. The current sage is wise and decisive. He was in the midst of chaos and dared to turn the world around. After the chaos was quelled, he was able to govern the country. It is not an exaggeration to call him the king of revival. But apart from this, he is also suspicious by nature. Even if I have no second thoughts, after the sage replaced Prince Jingsheng and ascended the throne, how can he truly regard me and my Pei family as being of the same mind? Even if your father's incident had not happened, your uncle would not have stayed in the court."
This was the first time in a long time that Pei Xiaoyuan heard Pei Ji talk to him about his old story of leaving the capital, and he listened attentively.
"After the victory over Xifan three years ago, the whole world seemed to be united again. The saint was probably old and sick, so he indulged in cultivation. However, his temperament became more violent and unpredictable. Last year, he killed Huazhi, a scholar of the Jixian Palace. It was said that he was angered by a painting of Huazhi."
It is rare for a scholar to be killed because of a painting. But it can also be seen that the true character of this "sage" is probably far from being summarized by Pei Ji's "sincerity".