Nie Siran X Su Ruhe (7)
Su Ruhe was out before dawn and back after dark for five days running.
One did not know until one investigated, but once he did, there truly were no few vile customs in Yan Cheng.
He was busy dealing with these bad practices, so busy that he could not even properly attend to his three daily meals and cups of tea. The steward watched in anxiety, yet could not persuade this young Prefect, who dressed before dawn and ate after dark in tireless labor for public duty.
Left with no other choice, he could only seek help from the noble young master temporarily staying at the residence.
That day it was raining. When Su Ruhe returned to the residence deep in the night, more than half his robe hem was wet. He ordered a servant to fetch the case files, while he himself carried a lantern straight to the study.
After casually wiping away the rainwater from his body, he had only just spread out paper and brush when the tightly shut study door was pushed open from outside.
Thinking it was the servant returning, Su Ruhe did not even raise his head. “Have you found them all?”
The answer he received was a light laugh.
Su Ruhe’s brush tip paused slightly. He lifted his head and noticed the food box in Nie Siran’s hand.
“Little Lord Su has been so busy he even forgot to eat, so this one had no choice but to come in person and remind Your Excellency to take a meal.” Nie Siran walked over and set the food box on the table.
Originally, Su Ruhe had not felt hungry, but once the fragrance of the dishes reached him, he finally became aware of the hunger in his belly.
“Many thanks. Has Young Master Nie eaten?” Su Ruhe lifted the lid and lowered his head to take out the bowls and plates, unaware that the manner in which he now spoke to Nie Siran had grown increasingly familiar and natural.
Nie Siran said, “Mm. What have you been busy with lately?”
“Nothing more than a few livelihood matters.” Su Ruhe sat down to eat. The way he ate was very refined and quiet, yet not slow.
“Are they difficult to handle?”
“Not particularly. There are simply many matters, and they are all trifling and scattered, so dealing with them is somewhat tedious.”
Nie Siran sat at the side, propping his cheek on one hand as he looked at Su Ruhe’s thin face. “Is it worth it?”
“Mm?” After finishing his soup, Su Ruhe raised his eyes and looked over. His lips, moistened by the broth, shone bright and clear.
“To serve as Prefect of one region and manage the common people of one region, to labor and run yourself ragged for these unrelated people, doing thankless work that is all effort and no reward, is it worth it?” Nie Siran’s tone was ordinary. From his sleeve he drew out a handkerchief and raised a hand to wipe away the trace of soup from the corner of Su Ruhe’s mouth.
Su Ruhe was startled twice, first by his words, and then by his action.
He evaded that hand and fell silent for a moment. After a while, he said, “Why does Young Master Nie not go and ask Prime Minister Nie that question?”
Nie Siran laughed softly. “It is not the same. I only wish to know what you think.”
Su Ruhe said, “Every person has a road he wishes to walk. Since one has chosen that road, one walks it willingly and with contentment. Whether it is worth it or not, it is enough that one understands it in one’s own heart.”
The night was deep, as though it gave people the occasion to lay bare what was in their hearts. Nie Siran gazed at the person before him. “Life is short. If one hangs worldly matters in one’s heart, does that not waste splendid years? Why not live one full and freely to the utmost?”
“I am by nature a worldly man. I have neither great ambitions nor do I understand what kind of life it is of which Young Master Nie speaks, to live freely to the utmost.”
Nie Siran waited for him to set down his bowl, then handed him the handkerchief still in his hand and rose to help him clear away the dishes.
Su Ruhe rose as well and pressed down on his arm. “Leave them. I will clear them away myself.”
“Since Lord Su has not despised me and has let me eat and stay here, at least let me do this small matter.” Nie Siran smiled and removed Su Ruhe’s hand, placing the bowls and dishes back into the food box one by one. When he reached the doorway, he turned back. “Once you are finished with these things, rest early. However many matters there are, they need not all be done in a single day.”
Su Ruhe watched as he walked into the dark night, his figure gradually receding.
Not long after, the servant came running back, carrying a set of clothes in his arms.
“Was I not told you to fetch the case files? Why have you come back with clothing instead?” Su Ruhe asked.
The servant hurriedly explained, “This humble one happened to run into Young Master Nie midway. He took away the case files, saying that tonight he would not allow Your Excellency to look at them, and that he would return them tomorrow. As for the clothes, Young Master Nie instructed this humble one to fetch them. Your Excellency’s clothes are wet, so it would be best to change quickly. The weather is cold now, and Your Excellency must not catch a chill.”
After hearing him out, Su Ruhe’s gaze could not help drifting once more toward the doorway.
Beneath the vast sky, the dark was deep and still.
Autumn passed and winter came. In the blink of an eye, Su Ruhe had already been in Yan Cheng for two months.
Now the people of Yan Cheng all recognized him and knew him to be a good official who sought benefit for the common people. When they saw him on the road, they would greet him warmly and invite him to drink.
Not only that, but that Young Master Nie who had come from Ye Jing was now inseparable from their Prefect, and the two had a very good understanding. If Lord Su was too busy to attend to something, people with matters would go seek Young Master Nie instead.
The servants of the Prefectural residence chatted among themselves, saying that Master Liu merely bore the empty title, while Young Master Nie was the true Registrar and Merits Officer at Lord Su’s side.
In the end, these words reached Su Ruhe’s ears, leaving him both amused and helpless.
Yet when he thought on it more closely, he also felt no small measure of surprise in his heart.
Even he had not expected that Nie Siran would be able to remain here for so long.
He had, in truth, been of considerable help.
Once the twelfth month began, all the great and little streets and lanes grew busy, preparing for the year-end festival.
Inside the study, a brazier stood in the corner. The window was half closed. Su Ruhe stared blankly at the gloomy sky outside, then suddenly handed the case file in his hand to Nie Siran, rose, and walked out. “Look over this file. I am going out for a while.”
Nie Siran rose after him and followed him to the study door. “It is nearly time for supper. Where is it that you are preparing to go now?”
Su Ruhe had already called for the carriage to be prepared. While changing his shoes, he said, “A few days ago, I ordered them to put up the sheds, and I do not know how they have turned out. Since the sky has not yet fully darkened, I will go and have a look.”
Nie Siran caught hold of his arm. “You may look tomorrow just as well. Once it is dark, the roads are hard to travel, and it will not be safe coming back either.”
Su Ruhe looked worried. “To my eye, it seems this weather is about to turn to snow. Those sheds are meant for the distribution of porridge, so there cannot be the least mishap.”
Seeing that he was determined to make this trip, Nie Siran released his hand and began changing his shoes as well. “Then I will go with you.”
Su Ruhe stood outside the room and stopped him. “It is only a small matter. There is no need for everyone to go. Stay in the study. I will go and return shortly.”
Nie Siran sighed. The feeling in his heart was hard to name, yet his face still wore a smile. “All these case files are confidential matters of Yan Cheng. Properly speaking, I should not be allowed to look at them, yet you hand them over to me so naturally, without the least reserve. Ruhe, is that not putting rather a lot of trust in me?”
Su Ruhe’s gaze was clear and pure. He tilted his head slightly, his face bright and clean as white jade. “Young Master Nie is open and upright. Naturally, I trust you.”
Not to mention how many times Nie Siran had helped him over these two months and how many troublesome matters he had handled in his stead, even the life-saving grace from that night in Wutong Lane was already enough to make him trust him.
Nie Siran was stunned on the spot by those words, spoken so readily.
By the time he came back to himself, Su Ruhe’s figure was already nowhere before him.
“Young Master, Lord Su has already gone. Are we still going?” The servant who had followed Nie Siran all this time came over and asked.
Nie Siran lifted his foot, yet before he had taken a step, it came down again.
“Forget it. Let us wait for him to return. Go tell the kitchen to keep the dishes warm.”
Nie Siran returned to the study and sat down to continue looking through the case files, yet his thoughts were no longer at all as they had been earlier, and he could not concentrate no matter what.
In the end, he simply set aside the documents and took up a brush to write a family letter.
In the last letter from his Ah-Die, he had learned that Ah-Yuan’s date of delivery would be after the New Year, and he would certainly have to hurry back. Yet once he left, Su Ruhe would be alone here for the turn of the year...
He thought long and hard, until a drop of ink from the brush tip fell and ruined the letter paper. Even so, he could never bring himself to write down a definite date for his return.
As he thought and thought, his mind drifted farther and farther away.
It was not until the servant called from the doorway, “Young Master, it is snowing heavily now,” that he abruptly came back to himself.
He rose and strode outside, pushing open the door. Countless snowflakes were falling soundlessly through the night. Looking up at the sky, Nie Siran’s brows gradually knitted tight.
“Prepare the carriage,” he said to the servant, then immediately lowered his head and began changing his shoes.
The servant said, “Ah? Young Master is going out at such a late hour?”
“More than an hour has already passed. I am going to find him.” Nie Siran took the cloak from the servant’s hands and walked out two paces before turning back. “Forget it. The carriage is too slow. Go and bring the horse.”
Mounting the horse, Nie Siran rode out through the snow and wind.
He circled once around the grass sheds and found no one. Asking the nearby residents, he learned that Su Ruhe had already left half an hour earlier.
On the way here, Nie Siran had not met Su Ruhe’s carriage. Since he was not returning to the residence, then he must have taken another route. He urged the horse and sped off in that direction.
Along the way he asked at several more households. One woman had seen the carriage and knew where Su Ruhe had gone.
“The ones living at Tianzhong Quarter are all poor folk. Their houses are cramped together, many and disorderly. On snowy days something is always likely to happen there. When I went out to pour away water, I saw the Prefect’s carriage heading that way.”
Covered in snow from head to foot, Nie Siran’s handsome face had turned uncharacteristically stern. “Just now, what did you mean when you said that something is likely to happen at Tianzhong Quarter on snowy days?”
“Every winter, quite a number of households in the city have their roofs crushed by snow. Among them, Tianzhong Quarter has the greatest number. The houses there were all built by the government in earlier years, but corners were cut in the work and materials, so within a few years they kept having problems. The Prefect likely feared something would happen there, which is why he specially went over to see.”
After taking his leave of the woman, Nie Siran immediately spurred his horse and rushed toward Tianzhong Quarter.
When he had left the residence, it was already snowing. By the time he reached Tianzhong Quarter, the snow on the ground had already piled up thickly.
“Young Master, Tianzhong Quarter is too large. How are we to begin searching in so short a time?” The servant, who had run all the way after him, asked while breathing clouds of white vapor.
“Tie the horse here, then light another torch. You search the east side, and I will search the west.” Nie Siran swept his eyes over the ground. The great snow had already covered the footprints from before. Without a moment’s hesitation, he gave the order.
Just now they had already seen Su Ruhe’s carriage by the roadside, but he himself was nowhere inside it. At this late hour, nearly every household had already put out its lamps. Standing outside, they could hear no sounds within, so there was no choice but to split up.
Within Tianzhong Quarter, the houses stood pressed tightly together, leaving only narrow lanes wide enough for a single person to pass. Many people had also piled up various odds and ends at their own doors, making the passageways all the more cramped. With furrowed brows, Nie Siran moved quickly through the alleys, the snow crunching beneath his feet, while the white hem of his robe was stained with melted snow and mud.
As he ran swiftly, he kept alert for the least sound from the homes on both sides.
He did not know how much time had passed when, from far away, he heard people shouting. The voices were too distant, faint and mixed together, and he could not make out the words clearly.
He stopped in place and listened with held breath for a moment. Once he confirmed the direction of the sound, he immediately turned and ran that way.
The wind whistled by his ears. The cold air cut against his face like knives. Sweat rose in Nie Siran’s palms, and for reasons he himself could not say, one eyelid suddenly began to jump violently.
Then from somewhere ahead came a sound like thunder, a single great crash.
Nie Siran’s steps halted sharply.
“Something terrible has happened! The house has collapsed!”
✧ A Word from the Author ✧
One more chapter, and the Nie-Su extras will be finished. The Yu-Shen extras will probably only be three or four chapters as well. My back pain has grown very serious. Now if I sit for too long, it starts hurting. Once this book is finished, I am going to rest for a while first. Thank you all for your support and affection.
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