Drunk Bamboo

"I've met the prince."

Yunling's voice brought Xie Yuzhu back to his senses.

After Xie Yuzhu entered the room, her eyes involuntarily drifted to Hua Qinming's face. She thought that her cousin Xie Yuyun was already very handsome, but when Hua Qinming appeared, Xie Yuyun could only lean back.

Hua Qinming behaved calmly, gently and politely: "On the day of my third brother and his wife's wedding, my mother was unwell and Qinming stayed in the palace to take care of her, so I was unable to congratulate them on the spot. I should have gone to their house to congratulate them in person, but I was afraid of disturbing my brother and his wife. On the first day of my brother's attendance, he had a dispute with the prime minister because of me, which caused my brother to be punished by my father. I feel really guilty and uneasy."

His voice is also pleasant, like a warm spring breeze, making people feel relaxed and happy.

"We are all brothers, no need to be polite." Xie Yuzhu had forgotten all about coming here to solve the problem with great momentum, and he was so friendly that even the two maids beside him looked at him very kindly, "You all should get up too."

"Thank you, Princess." The maids stood up and retreated to the left and right behind Hua Qinming.

Xie Yuzhu smiled and said, "I also heard from Chaoyang that the prince offended the prime minister because of his outspokenness, and that's why he was punished by father. It has nothing to do with my fifth brother, so there's no need to blame yourself."

Hua Qinming glanced at Xie Yuzhu inconspicuously. She was plain-looking, thin and looked harmless. As the rumors said, the third daughter of the Xie family was mediocre in talent and weak in body.

"Imperial sister-in-law, you don't know that my brother had an argument with the prime minister for me. The prime minister is a veteran of two dynasties, serving as the minister of state and the father-in-law of the emperor. He is highly respected and powerful. Even my father is afraid of what he says. This time my brother rejected his face in front of all the officials, and my father went against his wishes and named me King Wen. I am worried that my brother's twenty or so strokes of the board may not be enough to appease the prime minister's anger..."

Although his demeanor was calm and his voice pleasant, the more you thought about it, the more unpleasant it became.

Xie Yuzhu's smiling eyes slowly opened, the smile on her lips still there.

Looking at Hua Qinming again, his pupils were extremely light in color, without a trace of emotion. After looking at them again, he felt that they were empty and heartless, which was chilling.

Xie Yuzhu immediately withdrew his gaze.

He appeared to feel guilty, but actually pushed all the responsibility onto the prime minister, deepening the conflict between the palace and the prime minister's office. If there had been no spies reporting in advance, if Hua Qinfeng was foolish and could not explain himself, and if he had preconceived ideas based on Hua Qinming's words, he would definitely have resented the prime minister.

Xie Yuzhu: Is this the male version of the white lotus? When he is silent, he looks like an immortal descending from heaven, but when he speaks, he smells like a green tea. What a waste of such a high-end figure and appearance from head to toe.

"The Prime Minister is the head of all officials and should set an example instead of making enemies with the prince for a few words. Moreover, the Hedong Wang family is one of the four famous families and has a reputation as the leader of the aristocratic families. They will definitely not take revenge for personal reasons. Thank you for your concern, fifth brother." He raised his eyes again, smiled even more widely, and politely invited him to sit down.

"It's my duty." Hua Qinming lowered his eyebrows and smiled.

"Fifth brother, don't worry. The prince is in good health and has great martial arts skills. In this Zhongdu city, under the feet of the emperor, who can attack the prince?" Xie Yuzhu sat down slowly, without any courtesy, as if he was entertaining his own brothers. He was very enthusiastic and asked Yunling to pour him tea.

The two maids took the teapot and poured tea for their master themselves.

"I feel relieved that the Empress Dowager can be so at ease." Hua Qinming didn't even look at the tea on the table.

At this time, Hua Qinfeng's complaining voice came:

"How long are you going to talk? I, a patient, am still lying in bed and can't move!"

He had been staring at Xie Yuzhu since she entered the room. He had been waiting for her to comfort him with joy, but now he was angry and jealous. His emotions were surging like the waves. She didn't even look at him. She was chatting happily with King Wen and had completely forgotten about him.

Xie Yuzhu then remembered Hua Qinfeng who had been beaten. She put down the teacup, immediately went to the bed, and asked anxiously: "Prince, how are your injuries? Does it hurt? Let me take a look." As she spoke, she lifted the quilt to check the injury.

"You..." Hua Qinfeng felt a chill down his body, extremely embarrassed. He had just applied the medicine and had not had time to change his pants, which were now torn and could not cover anything.

"Why is there blood on my pants! Where's the doctor? Why hasn't he come yet? I'll go find Chaoyang..." Xie Yuzhu was horrified and her face turned pale. Hua Qinfeng's lower part below the waist was covered in bright red blood.

Chaoyang entered the room upon hearing the noise, and seeing what was happening inside, he retreated silently to the door without saying a word.

"...The doctor has examined you and given you medicine. Don't be nervous." Hua Qinfeng had never seen Xie Yuzhu panic. She was always calm and composed, but at this moment she was a little at a loss.

"Why is it still bleeding after applying medicine? Your Majesty, will you be able to walk in the future?" Xie Yuzhu's hands were shaking and she didn't dare to touch the scars.

"You just said that I was in good health. It's just a few spankings. Nothing will happen." Hua Qinfeng no longer had any anger in his heart at the moment. He wasn't even embarrassed by being stared at his almost naked butt. He first comforted Xie Yuzhu.

Xie Yuzhu sat on the edge of the bed, her eyes moving from the wound to Hua Qinfeng's face, feeling ashamed for what she had just said: "I thought caning was just a few spankings on the buttocks. I, I've never seen it before. I didn't expect my lower body to be covered in blood. I, I..."

Hua Qinfeng forced a smile and tried to soften his voice: "There was no one in the house. The doctor applied the medicine, and Lao Liu followed the doctor to get the medicine and boil it. Chaoyang went to pick you up, so he didn't have time to change his pants. These are all smeared with blood, which looks scary, but in fact not much blood was lost."

"The prince's face is pale, and he said he didn't bleed much? What if the prince can't walk anymore?" Tears flowed unconsciously. She had never seen such a bloody scene before. Even a cut on her finger would make her feel sad, let alone Hua Qinfeng's current appearance.

"Don't... don't cry... Xie Yuzhu, I'm really fine, otherwise I'll get up and walk a few steps to show you, this little injury will be fine in a few days!" Seeing her crying, Hua Qinfeng was completely panicked. He turned over and wanted to get out of bed to prove it to Xie Yuzhu, as long as she stopped crying.

"Your Highness, please don't move. I believe you. It's uncomfortable to wear bloodstained pants for a long time. When they dry, they will stick to your legs, and you will tear your wounds if you take them off. I will help you change into clean pants." Xie Yuzhu wiped away her tears and stopped Hua Qinfeng from moving.

Yun Ling: "I'll go get some water."

Xie Yuzhu was just about to go to the ear room to get Hua Qinfeng's clothes, but she noticed that Hua Qinming's eyes were always on her and Hua Qinfeng.

She forgot that there was someone else in the room and was shocked when she saw Hua Qinfeng's injuries.

If Hua Qinming knew that they and their husband slept in separate rooms, he would definitely make a big fuss about it.

She sadly wiped away the tears from her eyes and apologized, "Fifth brother, I'm really sorry. I didn't entertain you well today and the house is in a mess. Next time, I'll find time to formally invite you to dinner at the palace."

"Then I won't disturb my brother's rest." Hua Qinming stood up and told the maid, "Chun'er, leave the Ice and Snow Scar Ointment."

Chun'er respectfully handed over a small green ceramic bottle.

"Royal brother and sister-in-law, this Ice and Snow Scar Relief Cream is made from hundreds of rare herbs. It is the best medicine for healing scars and is extremely precious in the palace. I hope you will not refuse it."

Xie Yuzhu accepted it without hesitation.

Xie Yuzhu: Refusing? Why didn't you bring out such a good medicine earlier? You've been here for so long and are just standing there watching the fun!

Hua Qinfeng said with a smile: "Thank you, fifth brother. We have to prepare for the ceremony of crowning the king. There must be a lot of things to do recently. Go back and don't worry about me."