...and he said

[Erthona]

The "...and he said" means we are coming in on a conversation. That is to say, so and so said such and such, and he said. Whatever came before and he said is covered by the "..." or ellipsis. So, what is written is a response to what was said before. Such as Man A said, "You'll die a happier death if you have lived a life of good deeds!" Then referring to the other speaker, "and he said, ..." The phrase is a thing in itself, but it also allows the reader to play with what might have been said before to elicit such a comment, which of course is very open ended. If that makes sense

dale