Ding Wu lay on the broken mat and called out: “Come back here!”

Wei Caiwei said without turning her head, “I told you, I’m not that stray dog you can summon at will and dismiss as you please.”

Ding Wu was furious with shame and was about to shout again when Wu Dianyong quickly stopped him, “Boss Ding, say a few less words. Doctor Wei is angry right now – if words lead to more words, you’ll end up in a big fight. Right now you’re trapped in prison and still need her to rescue you. Bear with it.”

Only then did Ding Wu shut his mouth.

The jailer came to unlock Wu Dianyong’s shackles. Once freed, Wu Dianyong hurried over to feed Ding Wu the buns.

Ding Wu shook his head, “I have no appetite. You eat.”

Having driven Wei Caiwei away in anger, who knew when the next good meal would come? With this meal but no guarantee of the next, Wu Dianyong wasn’t polite and ate by himself, “I’m not criticizing you, but right now it’s not her begging you – it’s you begging her. When you’re asking for help, you need to act like someone asking for help. Lower your stance, and settle all scores after you’re released.”

Ding Wu said, “It’s not that I don’t understand this logic, but women are different from people. Women need to be tamed – give them ten slaps, then a sweet date to eat. You have to belittle them, make them look down on themselves, say everyone around them is worthless, make them think they can’t live without you and can’t trust anyone else. Only then will they follow you wholeheartedly. Give them too much kindness and they won’t believe you.”

Ding Wu said confidently, “Don’t worry. She’s always like this – saying no, no with her mouth, but when she suffers the slightest grievance from men, she’ll still run to me crying and calling me big brother, begging for my forgiveness, returning to the time when we depended on each other as siblings.”

“These past few years have been like this. She’s long been tamed into my possession. After the couple who raised me died, I’ve actually been living off her these past few years, yet she still respects me as her big brother. I must maintain the dignity of being the big brother – if I lose face, she won’t believe in me anymore.”

Hearing this, Wu Dianyong thought: Tsk tsk, this is the highest level of living off women – living off them with swagger! Brilliant, truly brilliant!

Wei Caiwei left the prison, immediately changing her disgusted expression to a melancholy one, and went to find Lu Ying. Lu Ying asked her to sit and had someone bring her the health-preserving ginseng tea her father often drank, “You’re still sick and shouldn’t have been called here, but this self-torture stratagem can’t be performed without you. Ding Wu’s beating would be for nothing, so we had Wang Daxia bring you to deliver prison food, performing for Wu Dianyong to see.”

Wei Caiwei’s cold hadn’t recovered yet. She looked somewhat haggard, with the rosiness on her face entirely from rouge. She drank a sip of ginseng tea and her complexion improved slightly, “This self-torture stratagem is too risky. He knew I would object, so he only told me after taking the beating. The rice was already cooked – even if I objected, it was too late. I could only cooperate with his acting. Seeing him beaten to a pulp, I—”

Ding Wu suffered, and Wei Caiwei’s heart ached, “I felt terrible, yet still had to argue with him. I know Brother Ding’s character – once he makes a decision, he’s like a stone that won’t turn back. Commander Lu, he’s already sacrificed so much. Don’t let him sacrifice in vain.”

Lu Ying felt sour inside but remained composed on the surface, saying, “Our Embroidered Uniform Guard will naturally cooperate fully with his ‘ruin and disgrace.’ This is just the beginning – more painful things await him. Be prepared.”

“There’s more?” Wei Caiwei set down her ginseng tea heavily on the table, “He has no martial skills, and his current injuries are already at the limit. More torture will cripple him.”

Lu Ying said, “Not physical suffering, but a stab to the heart. We need you to prepare a drug to make Ding Rukui feign death.”

“What?” Wei Caiwei immediately stood up.

Lu Ying said, “To gain the trust of the White Lotus Sect and An Da Khan, the self-torture stratagem and falling out with you is far from enough. We must make Ding Wu’s last hope of turning his life around completely disappear, so his defection has sufficient reason. This is also a necessary measure to protect him.”

“Either don’t do it, or do it completely – it must be absolutely realistic. Lord Lu has already agreed and informed His Majesty. Since His Majesty didn’t object, that means he agrees. Lord Lu will secretly send Ding Rukui to Yunnan after his feigned death, where he’ll live under a false identity, forever free from prison. After Ding Wu succeeds, His Majesty will pardon Ding Rukui’s death sentence and reunite father and son.”

Lu Bing agreed to this bold plan not only because of Ding Wu’s determination to destroy himself and infiltrate the enemy, but also because of his own repeated strokes and deteriorating health – he could collapse completely at any time.

Lu Bing was a man who planned ahead. After his first stroke, he immediately had Zhang Tianshi help him choose a cemetery plot in Sanli Village and built sacrificial fields and houses around it, so that even if his family was confiscated in the future, his descendants would have a place to shelter, since property used for worship was exempt from confiscation.

Yan Shifan had also discovered his little trick of helping Ding Rukui escape during year-end death sentence reviews. If he tried the same trick this year, it would be difficult. But what if he died? For Yan Shifan to kill Ding Rukui would be as easy as turning his hand.

But Ding Wu proactively proposed this plan to destroy himself, infiltrate the enemy camp, achieve merit, and redeem his father’s sins.

Regardless of whether Ding Wu would succeed, even if he failed later, at least Ding Rukui would have “died” and wouldn’t die again. Ding Rukui could escape prison and continue living without worrying about Yan Shifan’s threats – because he was already dead.

Weighing the pros and cons, the benefits outweighed the drawbacks, so Lu Bing secretly memorialized Emperor Jiajing. Emperor Jiajing despised the White Lotus Sect that had nearly caused the Ming Dynasty to fall. Temporarily sacrificing Ding Wu’s reputation and turning Ding Rukui, a useless piece who had been in prison for ten years, into a dead piece caused no loss to the Ming Dynasty. This deal was worthwhile, so Emperor Jiajing naturally agreed.

Wei Caiwei hadn’t expected the plan’s true cruelty lay here. She shook her head repeatedly, saying, “No, Ding Rukui would absolutely never agree to trade his son’s life for his own.”

Lu Ying said, “Wang Daxia is explaining this matter to Ding Rukui right now. To be honest, Lord Lu has suffered his third stroke this time – half his body is paralyzed. It’s not an injury from falling, and we don’t know how much longer he can hold on. If something happens – with my power alone, I can’t protect Ding Rukui. After all, even I depend on Lord Lu to have a place in the Embroidered Uniform Guard.”

Lu Ying was so frank, laying out the difficulties. Wei Caiwei slumped back into her seat. As a doctor, she understood too well how serious the consequences of Lu Bing’s three strokes in just three months were. Once this huge protective umbrella disappeared, people would abandon you when they lost power. By then, forget about Ding Rukui – even whether Lu Ying and Wang Daxia could continue working in the Embroidered Uniform Guard would be questionable.

In the imperial palace, Chen Jingji was still studying in the Inner Study Hall, Shang Shouning hadn’t entered the palace as a maid yet, and Li Jiubao hadn’t entered Prince Yu’s mansion either. Future helpers and backers were still in their infancy – it would be a long time before they grew into trees that could shelter from wind and rain!

In the dungeon, when Ding Rukui heard Wang Daxia’s explanation, he naturally objected, “No, I cannot trade my son’s life and reputation for my own life. I’d rather stay here in prison and wait to die.”

Wang Daxia was also conflicted, but as a son himself, he could understand Ding Wu’s desperate gamble, saying, “I also have a father. My father has never shown me a kind face, always ordering me around. Even when I do good things, or when he does things for my benefit, he still uses disparaging and sarcastic words to suppress me. It’s as if he’s uncomfortable if he doesn’t scold me. I’ve always found him annoying.”

“But if my father faced the same problem as you, I’d probably make the same choice as Ding Wu. Take a gamble rather than watch my father wait to die. If it goes smoothly, I could even redeem past sins and find life in desperate circumstances.”

Wang Daxia spoke from the heart.

In his previous life, Wang Daxia had castrated himself because his father Wang Qianhu had both legs blown off by the White Lotus Sect, his back burned, yet he alone shouldered all responsibility, was stripped of rank and title, and in the heavy snow their family was driven from the mansion they had lived in for a hundred years.

In the middle of the night, Wang Daxia watched helplessly as his father died in agony from ineffective treatment. Grief-stricken and furious, he wielded the blade to castrate himself and took the shortcut of becoming a palace eunuch. His initial purpose in entering the palace was also to make up for his father’s mistakes and eliminate the White Lotus Sect.

In the human tragedy at Toutiao Hutong where everything was burned to ash overnight and four people were burned alive, both Wang Qianhu and the then-Embroidered Uniform Guard Chen Qianhu undoubtedly bore responsibility. Chen Qianhu again bribed Yan Shifan to shift all blame onto Wang Qianhu. The Wang family suffered catastrophe, and Wang Daxia later didn’t spare Chen Qianhu either, joining the anti-Yan faction and becoming a key player in toppling the Yan family.

This was the father-son relationship between Wang Qianhu and Wang Daxia – seemingly always on the verge of breakdown and falling out, but actually solid as rock, no weaker than the bond between Ding Rukui and Ding Wu.

For his father, Wang Daxia castrated himself in his previous life; in this life, Ding Wu disgraced himself to infiltrate the enemy, ruining his reputation.

Being a father is difficult, and being a son isn’t easy either.

Wang Daxia had taken the same desperate gamble as Ding Wu in his previous life. Although the Wang family hadn’t suffered catastrophe in this life, forcing him to castrate himself and take desperate measures, rivers may change course, but human nature is hard to alter. He naturally understood Ding Wu’s difficult choice and admired his courage to seek life in death.

Wang Daxia hoped Ding Wu’s plan would go smoothly and succeed quickly, so he voluntarily requested to come to the dungeon to persuade Ding Rukui, “…Just consider it not for yourself, but to fulfill Ding Wu’s wishes. Ding Wu can’t take the imperial examinations or pursue an official career. He calls himself a commoner and never mentions it, but he’s actually unwilling to accept it.”

Under Wang Daxia’s persuasion, Ding Rukui finally agreed to cooperate with the feigned death.

Back in the prison cell, Wu Dianyong helped Ding Wu apply ointment daily. Wei Caiwei’s ointment had the effect of healing putrid flesh, and after ten days, Ding Wu could even turn over and walk a few steps.

However, since falling out with Wei Caiwei, she no longer came to deliver prison food, only entrusting Wang Daxia to bring two jars of ointment and internal medicine pills. Ding Wu’s injuries healed rapidly, but eating only prison food with not a drop of oil in the vegetables daily, he had lost weight.

Ding Wu put on a facade of proud satisfaction, bragging to Wu Dianyong, “See, I told you she wouldn’t really abandon me, didn’t I?”

Wu Dianyong was still counting on him for escape, so he agreed, “Boss Ding has masterful skills in managing people. I admire you greatly.”

The next day, Wang Daxia came and ordered the jailer to open the cell door, “The White Lotus Sect member who falsely accused you has recanted. You’re innocent and can leave.”

Ding Wu felt very wronged, “I said I wasn’t guilty! You people just wouldn’t listen! I suffered physical pain for nothing and spent all these days in prison eating food that even dogs wouldn’t eat. Is that just it? Shouldn’t the Embroidered Uniform Guard compensate me somehow?”

Wu Dianyong quickly went over and said, “What about me? Lord Wang, you remember me, right? I’ve confessed everything I should. When can I leave with Boss Ding?”

Wang Daxia glared at him, “Your matter requires Commander Lu’s word. I can’t control that.” He then handed Ding Wu a set of white hemp mourning clothes, “This is what Doctor Wei asked me to prepare for you. Put it on quickly – your father is dead. See him off on his final journey.”

Author’s Note: Ding Liuye: I clearly contributed Oscar-level acting, yet you all only care about how big Banxia’s feet are… I’m so unwilling to accept this!