When Xue Heng came in, Shen Youying was still trying to persuade him. Xue Shen was only wearing his undergarments and was leaning against the soft couch, his eyes closed in a restrained manner, his brows full of suppressed gloom and ferocity.
"Is it hurting again? If you really can't bear it, I'll tell Father and send you back to the capital first." This wasn't the first time Xue Heng had seen his old ailment flare up, and he understood immediately from his appearance.
Instead, he looked at Shen Youying with surprise.
Xue Shen's illness was partly due to his leg ailment and partly due to the severe damage to his internal organs that occurred when he fell from his horse years ago.
The late emperor sought out renowned doctors, but they could only keep him alive for a short time; they could not cure his ailments.
Xue Heng had seen him suffer from an attack of his illness. Such an unyielding person could be tormented by pain to the point of wanting to die.
So Xue Heng could understand whatever became of him later.
Fate had been too unfair to him.
"No need." Hearing his voice, Xue Shen opened his eyes, his whites filled with bloodshot veins.
What are you doing here?
His tone when speaking to Xue Heng was unlike usual; it carried a strange hostility and impatience. Even Shen Youying noticed something was wrong and looked up in surprise, her gaze sweeping between the two of them.
Xue Heng seemed quite used to it.
Over the years, Xue Shen has suffered from illness, which has changed his temperament a lot. Especially when the pain flares up, he hardly gives anyone a pleasant look.
Now that his tone was slightly harsher, Xue Heng felt much more at ease, guessing that his attack was not as severe as before.
"I was worried about you, so I came to check on you. I'll be leaving right away. If you don't want to talk, then don't. I need to say a few words to my sister-in-law."
Xue Shen's expression grew even more impatient, but he didn't speak. Instead, he closed his eyes to avoid further trouble.
Xue Heng called Shen Youying to the outer room and explained the precautions to her in detail.
After saying that, he hesitated and said, "When Yuan Jin's old injury flares up, he is bound to be in a bad mood. If he says something hurtful or accidentally hurts you, don't take it to heart. He didn't mean it. It's just that the pain is too unbearable."
Shen Youying nodded. Ever since returning to Wenhe Hall, she could feel Xue Shen's restraint almost every moment.
“I know, and the prince didn’t get angry with me.”
Xue Heng felt somewhat relieved upon hearing this: "Perhaps you are different. If you can, spend more time with him."
At this point, his expression suddenly became much heavier. After much deliberation, he said to Shen Youying, "When he used to have an attack, he would only take the doctor and endure it all by himself."
Shen Youying actually felt that she might not be that important. The Crown Prince had too high expectations of her and entrusted her with too heavy a responsibility, which she might not be able to bear.
But perhaps it was because Xue Shen was too serious when he taught her archery in the hunting grounds, or perhaps it was because his words "Don't be afraid" on the training platform were too gentle, she still did not refuse, but whispered, "I will do my best."
"If you need any help, just send someone to me."
Xue Heng gave a few more instructions, knowing that Xue Shen didn't want to see anyone at this time, and then turned and left.
*
Following the Crown Prince, Prince Chen also came to visit with his entourage.
He wasn't as sincere as the Crown Prince; he was more interested in seeing Xue Shen's miserable state.
But before they could even enter the inner hall, they were splashed with water by teacups thrown out from inside.
Chen Wang sneered with a dark face: "Didn't you say that your old injury had flared up and you were about to die? But you look perfectly fine to me."
He didn't lower his voice intentionally, and then there was another dull thud as something fell to the ground, followed by Xue Shen's gloomy and hoarse voice: "Wang Deshun, get those people out of here."
Wang Deshun, without hesitation or fear of offending anyone, actually led his guards out to chase the people away.
Chen Wang was so embarrassed that he could only leave cursing.
When the news reached Emperor Cheng'an's ears, he was so angry that he threw down his memorial: "I never realized before that Prince Chen was so stupid!"
The memorial was just presented by Zhou Qing, and it described how the white tiger broke through the defenses of the hunting grounds.
Zhou Qing glanced at the document and broke out in a cold sweat for his nephew.
The emperor was startled by a white tiger, suspecting it was the work of an assassin, and ordered him to lead an investigation. However, the investigation failed to uncover the assassin, but instead led to the arrest of Prince Chen.
The reason the white tiger was able to bypass the hunting grounds' defenses was that Prince Chen had secretly offered a large reward for its capture, ordering the imperial guards protecting the hunting grounds to search for its tracks. As it turned out, some of the guards were incredibly audacious, lured by the reward, and neglected their duties, abandoning their posts to search for the white tiger in the surrounding area.
This oversight allowed the White Tiger to bypass the defenses and break into the training ground.
But Prince Chen was his own nephew, so he naturally couldn't report everything to the emperor. He only vaguely mentioned that some imperial guards, upon hearing that Prince Chen was offering a large reward for the whereabouts of the White Tiger, secretly deserted their posts for the reward, giving the White Tiger an opportunity to take advantage of the situation.
The statement, which is a mixture of truth and falsehood, can both exonerate Prince Chen and not completely deceive the emperor.
Unexpectedly, just as he submitted his memorial, the eunuch sent by the emperor to visit the Prince of Qin returned with news that the Prince of Chen had been driven away by the Prince of Qin.
The eunuch not only said that, but also vividly recounted their conversation, which angered Emperor Cheng'an.
Zhou Qing was anxious, but he dared not show it on his face. He simply prostrated himself on the ground, waiting for Emperor Cheng'an to continue.
"Summon the Prince of Chen."
Zhou Qing's heart skipped a beat, but knowing the emperor's temperament, he dared not plead for mercy at this moment and could only retreat.
He waited outside the palace for a while, and then he saw Prince Chen come over with the summoned eunuch.
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