Chapter 50: Your Grace, You Hurt Your Servant; My Nails Need Trimming

Inside the hall.

Wu Shouzhi beamed with joy, pulling Ye Xun into the hall.

"Come on, third brother, let's drink another three hundred cups with your big brother."

"From now on, big brother's wine supply depends entirely on you, third brother."

Ye Xun replied, "Big brother, rest assured. Your wine is fully taken care of by your third brother from now on."

He was not afraid of Wu Shouzhi asking him for favors.

The more Wu Shouzhi asked of him, the closer their bond would become.

Binding the Saint of Medicine to his own chariot was an absolute blessing, as it would at least greatly enhance his influence.

"Hahaha..." Wu Shouzhi laughed heartily, "Good, my third brother is truly a man of honor."

As they spoke, they arrived in the hall.

Wu Shouzhi suddenly stopped in his tracks, turned his gaze toward Wu Yue beside the desk, and furrowed his brows.

Wu Yue was eating voraciously. Seeing Wu Shouzhi's expression, he was momentarily at a loss, then put down the mutton chop in his hand and looked at him with an honest, simple expression.

Wu Shouzhi said in a deep voice, "You rebellious disciple, why don't you come over quickly and pay your respects to your third master uncle."

Ah?

Ye Xun was slightly stunned. He became the third master uncle just like that?

With those words, Wu Yue hurried forward, looked at Ye Xun, bowed, and said, "This humble Wuyue pays respects to the third master uncle."

Ye Xun waved his hands repeatedly.

"No... no need."

"Let's just keep our own separate ways of address. I'll call you brother, and you can call me uncle."

Wu Shouzhi: ......

What kind of messy logic was this?

He hurriedly waved his hand to interrupt Ye Xun, saying in a deep voice, "Third brother, this is propriety, say no more." Then, he turned to Wu Yue and continued, "From now on, you must also listen to your third master uncle's words, and not let anyone bully him."

Wu Yue nodded and replied, "Got it, old Wu, I remember." Then he asked honestly, "Can... can I go back to eating now?"

Seeing this hopeless display of his.

Wu Shouzhi waved his hand helplessly, "You silly boy, go eat. Why on earth did I take in such a piece of work?"

To this sarcasm, Wu Yue turned a deaf ear and hurried back to the desk, continuing to eat and drink.

Immediately after.

Wu Shouzhi pulled Ye Xun to sit by the desk, "Come, third brother, let us drink until we drop today..."

After drinking several more cups with Ye Xun, Wu Shouzhi finally fell drunkenly beside the desk.

Afterward, Ye Xun quickly arranged for people to carry Wu Shouzhi and Wu Yue away to rest.

Since it was already late at night.

Wei Feng and Shangguan Yunqing also took their leave.

Ye Xun dragged his exhausted body back to the inner chambers, bathed and changed, and lay down on the bed, ready to have a wonderful sleep.

After Ling'er finished massaging him, she began to trim his nails.

Ye Xun slightly furrowed his brows and asked, "Ling'er, what made you think of trimming this prince's nails today?"

Hearing this, Ling'er's cheeks flushed, her face turning red as she said shyly, "Your Highness, this maid is trimming your nails so that it won't hurt so much when we are intimate..."

As Ling'er spoke, the blush spread from her jade-like neck all the way to the roots of her ears, overwhelmed with shyness.

Ye Xun had already drunk quite a bit of alcohol. Feeling the warmth of Ling'er's delicate hands and hearing such evocative words, how could anyone endure this?

And so...

...

The next day.

Early morning.

The horizon was tinged with a pale white.

Ye Xun woke up early, did some light exercise in the courtyard, and then headed toward the front hall.

At this moment, he also felt a little uncertain in his heart.

After all, Wu Shouzhi swearing brotherhood with him last night was purely a drunken act. Although the wine Ye Xun drank was of low alcohol content, it still went to his head slightly.

If Wu Shouzhi came to his senses and fled back to Mount Buhuo, that would be troublesome.

Ye Xun then walked briskly toward the front hall.

When he arrived at the front hall, Wu Shouzhi and Wu Yue were already having breakfast, looking full of energy.

Wei Feng did not come today; he still had many matters to handle, and since Wu Shouzhi had already been invited to the Prince Qin's Mansion, the remaining affairs no longer required his personal presence.

However, Shangguan Yunqing had come.

She had promised Ye Xun to help settle this matter.

Since Wu Shouzhi had not yet gone to the palace to treat Emperor Xia, she came early to see if there was anything else she could help with.

Ye Xun paced into the hall, looking at Wu Shouzhi with slightly furrowed brows.

He truly did not know how to bring the subject up.

Wu Shouzhi looked at Ye Xun, beaming with joy, and beckoned, "Third brother, come quickly and have some breakfast. Later, big brother will accompany you into the palace to treat Emperor Xia."

Hearing these words, Ye Xun breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed that although Wu Shouzhi's oath was a drunken act, he had no intention of going back on his word, and his affection was genuine rather than false, quite sincere.

"Yes, big brother." Ye Xun walked forward, sat down at the desk, and smiled, "Big brother, I wonder if you are getting used to living in the Prince Qin's Mansion?"

"Hehe..." Wu Shouzhi chuckled and said, "Used to it, very used to it. It has been a long time since your big brother lived in such a comfortable place."

Hearing this, Ye Xun felt a surge of joy in his heart.

"Then big brother can stay right here in the mansion. Since we have already sworn brotherhood, it is only natural that we share blessings together."

If the Saint of Medicine could be persuaded to stay, that would simply be too wonderful.

Wu Shouzhi, however, shook his head, "Third brother, your big brother is used to the wilderness. Staying for a few days is fine, but if I stay too long, I will inevitably feel out of place. Besides, my ambition is to travel the world, and I cannot stay long in one place."

"However, rest assured, until Emperor Xia's illness is cured, I will not leave."

Actually, when Wu Shouzhi woke up this morning, he was also a bit dazed.

But he was a rather stubborn person with strong principles. Although swearing brotherhood with Ye Xun last night was an impulsive act, since it had already happened, he would certainly take responsibility toward Ye Xun and would never renege on it.

Moreover, he had a favorable impression of Ye Xun. In his impression, anyone capable of brewing such fine wine must ultimately be an intelligent person.

As for Ye Xun's past and various disputes, he cared about them even less.

That was simply how Wu Shouzhi was—following his heart in all things.

Hearing this, Ye Xun stood up and offered a slight bow of respect.

"Since big brother's aspirations lie in the wilderness, third brother will not press you to stay."

"Thank you, big brother, for treating my imperial father."

"Ah..." Wu Shouzhi waved his hand indifferently, "Between you and me as brothers, there is no need to say such things."

Shangguan Yunqing watched quietly from the side.

She had not expected that the two men's impulsive drunken act would truly result in them becoming sworn brothers.

With this relationship with the Saint of Medicine established, many things would become much easier for Ye Xun in the future.

Furthermore, she had already perceived that Ye Xun harbored the intention to contend for the succession once more.

Yet, being born into the imperial family meant just that—wishing to remain aloof from the struggle was utterly impossible, and Ye Xun did not even have the luxury of choosing a side.

For his own sake and for survival, Ye Xun had no choice but to walk this path.

After breakfast, Ye Xun, Wu Shouzhi, and Shangguan Yunqing boarded a carriage and headed toward the imperial palace.

Wu Yue ran alongside the carriage.

In just a short while, Ye Xun and the others arrived outside the imperial palace, before the Azure Dragon Gate.

Ye Xun got off the carriage and walked forward.

The commander of the Azure Dragon Gate, Zhao Kai, blocked Ye Xun outside the gate. "Your Highness Prince Qin, His Majesty previously issued an imperial decree that without His Majesty's written edict, no one is permitted to let you enter the palace."

Ye Xun lowered his gaze and said in a deep voice, "My imperial father is gravely wounded right now, and I have brought the Saint of Medicine to treat him. Can you bear the responsibility if time is wasted?"

"Step aside!"

Hearing this, Zhao Kai remained unmoved. He cupped his fists and said, "Your Highness, rest assured, this humble subordinate will escort the Saint of Medicine into the palace. Please do not make things difficult for this subordinate, Your Highness."