Chapter 480: Good Brothers

Xue Shao, who had intended to support them, immediately asked: "Do you have a lot of money?"

He also needs to bribe the imperial prison to ensure his uncle's care.

The Xue family isn't wealthy—just an ordinary landowning household; his father and uncle were upright officials, their household expenses came from their salaries, while their property and savings were entirely managed by his mother and aunt through farmland and shops.

But three years ago, when his uncle fell into trouble, the family sold all their shops and half their land, leaving only half remaining.

Now that his uncle was thrown straight into the imperial prison upon arriving in the capital, more money must be spent on bribes.

He is not Pan Yun.

Torture causes injury, and hunger causes harm—Xue Xuan cannot afford to gamble.

In just these three days, all the money he'd earned recently was spent, and most of the money his uncle brought was gone; he's now writing home for more.

Pan Yue and Pan Yu clearly had no money, yet he could speak so confidently about having it.

He was very interested in how they earned money.

Pan Yue and Pan Yu exchanged glances; remembering that Xue Shao shared their goal and was their younger sister's friend, they took him along.

Xue Shao kindly said: "Would you like to bathe and change your clothes?"

Pan Yue shook his head: "This is fine."

The two slipped to the side gate of a mansion, had Xue Shao hide in the alley, and went to knock.

The gate opened quickly; the gatekeeper's servant, seeing their ragged clothes, didn't even look at their faces, just waved them off: "Go away, beggars! Do you even know where this is?"

Pan Yu growled: "Who's a beggar? Open your dog eyes—look who I am! I'm your Second Master Pan!"

The servant stared, mouth agape: "Y-you—you're Second Master Pan? How did you end up like this?"

"Don't ask. Is your Third Young Master at home?"

"Yes, yes—he's home today; the Imperial Academy is on holiday."

"Go call him out. Say I need to see him."

The gatekeeper hesitated, then opened the door wider: "Second Master Pan, why not come in and wait?"

Pan Yu waved him off: "I'm in rags—it's inconvenient to enter. Just call him out."

The gatekeeper dared not delay; he left the door half-closed and sprinted off to find the Third Young Master.

After Second Master Pan was exiled, Third Young Master cried often; lately, with the Pan family's case reopened, he's been muttering about Second Master Pan again.

Soon after the servant left, a fifteen- or sixteen-year-old boy came running.

Seeing Pan Yue and Pan Yu in rags, he let out a wail and rushed forward, hugging Pan Yu and sobbing: "I thought you died on the border! I wrote you letters several times—you never replied!"

Pan Yu sobbed along: "I couldn't return—why write letters to make you sad? If I weren't utterly desperate, I wouldn't come to you now."

The boy flew into rage: "Are you even my brother? True brothers stab each other in the back for loyalty—do you not consider me a brother?"

Pan Yu wiped his tears with his arm: "My father is in grave danger—anyone who associates with him is doomed. I know your father is in trouble too; he can't openly support my father. Good brother, your heart is enough." The boy clenched his teeth: "Wait—I'll go roll on the floor in front of my grandmother. Begging my father won't work, but my grandmother will force him."

Pan Yu quickly refused: "No—Lord Xue is too powerful, his reputation too clean, his rank too high; even the Censorate dug up everything and found no concrete evidence of wrongdoing, yet they sentenced him to immediate execution on hearsay alone. How could I let your father get involved?"

"If your family suffers because of me, I'd die a thousand deaths to atone," Pan Yu gripped his hand, eyes wet: "So please, don't beg your father. If you ever get a chance, just have him speak one word of justice in court—or at least refuse to join Wang Zhen and others in framing my father."

The boy's eyes welled too: "Don't worry—my father won't side with the great eunuch Wang. But we're classmates—I can't do nothing!"

But what could he do?

The boy looked at his friend, tears falling harder, wailing: "Pan Yu, how did you end up like this? You're still wearing clothes this torn!"

Pan Yu wept: "You don't know what we sacrificed to return. The official documents required us to escort my father back to the capital for retrial; my brother and I were both serving in the garrison, not on the list to return. To come back, we pawned everything, used the money to bribe everyone—from the garrison to the prefecture and county offices—we had to slip two taels of silver just to get the stamped documents. When we finally left Datong, my brother and I had only two hundred cash left."

The boy stared in disbelief: "Then… how did you get back?"

"We ran beside the escort convoy—they rode in carts, we ran after them. They ate from the official kitchens; we dug up wild grass and vegetables. It's spring now—we barely starved…"

The boy's heart broke. He wiped his tears, eyes hardening: "Wait—I can't give you money. Your father's afraid of death and losing his post, so he can't support your father in court—but I can give you money. You need cash to rent a house and eat in the capital, and your father needs bribes in the imperial prison, right?"

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Saying this, he turned and ran into the courtyard; Pan Yu called after him, but couldn't stop him.

After nearly half an hour, the boy emerged, carrying a heavy bundle.

He shoved the bundle into Pan Yu's arms; Pan Yu, unprepared, nearly dropped it.

He felt the heavy weight inside, gazing at the boy silently, moved.

The boy gripped his hand tightly, whispering: "Use it. If it's not enough, come back—I'll visit my maternal grandparents; my two uncles have plenty of good things."

He pulled out a handful of money—banknotes, paper currency—and shoved it all into Pan Yu's hands: "Take all of this."

Pan Yu was stunned: "Where did you get so many banknotes and paper currency?"

The boy lowered his voice: "My New Year's money—my grandmother just gave me some too. The rest I took from my father's room. These paper notes are imperial issue—they're rarely used, cheap, but still useful. Take them all."

Pan Yu hesitated: "Yu Rui, is this money stolen?"

"Shh—" Yu Rui whispered: "Only you, me, and Brother Pan know. No one else will find out."

"... Won't your father notice if he's missing money?" Pan Yu pushed the money back: "Just give me your New Year's money and what you tricked from your grandmother."

He wanted to help his brother in a pinch, not let him stab himself in the back: "If your father finds out, he'll kill you."

Yu Rui beamed: "No he won't—this is my father's secret stash, hidden from my mother. He only checks it every half-month. Two days ago, the bookstore paid him his manuscript fee—he slipped it in then. He won't check again for at least ten days. By then, if I don't tell him, he won't dare say a word."

He added cleverly: "Then I'll think of a way to make my mother angry—have her scowling every day. My father won't dare say anything then."

Pan Yu's mouth hung open. He turned to look at his brother.

Pan Yue gave him a slight nod.

(End of Chapter)