In the quiet night of the Imperial City, the sound of kowtowing spread far away.
“Third Highness, I beg of you.”
The servant knelt on the ground, his forehead was covered with blood, and looked extremely miserable.
Before that day of the hunting, someone might have seen Ye Linghan who deliberately avoided the limelight to sign up for the competition on the last day of the Baijia Banquet, and gossip spread for a while.
When the news reached Zong Hongjiu, the latter was so furious that he led a mighty group of people into the Proton Mansion. The prince of Great Yuan found an excuse for being disrespectful, to precisely catch and beat him.
Facing Zong Ruichen, there might still be some restraints, but facing this unattended Wei Country proton, Zong Hongjiu could do whatever made him feel good. Not only did he treat Ye Linghan like a dog stradling, but he often beat him until he couldn’t get out of bed for three days. (TL: dog stradling probably meant riding on him like a horse and should not be that kind of “dog stradling” I think)
This time too, Zong Hongjiu was determined to beat Ye Linghan until he couldn’t participate in the hunting. That’s why those servants who were skilled at underhanded methods were merciless from the very beginning. One punched and the other kicked down, and in a few strokes, Ye Linghan’s back turned bruised and purple.
His servant had long been kicked aside and shrank into a narrow corner of the wall.
He raised his head tremblingly, looked through the gaps of the people and saw Ye Linghan gritting his teeth tightly, keeping silent. The corners of his mouth were covered with blood, and he looked miserable.
“Well, how come I didn’t notice that you’re a tough bone on ordinary days?”
Zong Hongjiu said viciously, “Beat him for this Prince! Beat him to death! Break his leg!”
Your Highness the Crown Prince, this again, is this worth the trouble! (TL: Crown Prince here refers to YL)
The servant couldn’t stop crying while begging for mercy.
Tomorrow’s hunting is the only hope of returning to Wei Country. If the leg is really broken today, then there is no need to expect in the days to come.
The servant couldn’t figure out why the master gritted his teeth and refused to say anything, even Ye Linghan couldn’t figure it out himself. He had always been a person who used any means to achieve his goals, but on such a matter, he learned to be a ridiculous, loyal till death person and remained silent.
The sound of punching and kicking resounded throughout the cold palace hall.
Just when Zong Hongjiu asked his men to go get the torture instruments, and wanted to give Ye Linghan a taste of the newly developed criminal law in private, the servant finally couldn’t help but speak up.
“It’s, it’s the Eighth Prince! He’s deliberately pretending to be silly and stupid!”
After these people left, the old servant who had followed Ye Linghan from the Wei Country knelt on the ground, crying and cleaning up the scabs and wounds on his crown prince’s body.
“Your Highness, I’m sorry, it’s this old slave’s fault. This old slave will throw himself at the lake right away.”
The old servant was the only servant he brought from the Wei Country that had followed him till now.
Over the years, the other followers were either the informers placed by the other princes of the Wei Country, or had either coveted the glory and wealth of the Great Yuan, and had long ago run away from the Proton Mansion.
What remained was the master and one servant.
The young man in purple with half-closed eyes said, “Don’t blame you, don’t go.”
The Third Highness showed kindness to his master, and Zong Ruichen was the only friend of the crown prince whom he could speak to in this big Imperial City of Great Yuan.
In fact, the old servant already knew in his heart that if Zong Hongjiu continued to beat him, it would be hard to say whether his master would not be able to persist in snitching. After all, the importance of the hunting was self-evident. Compared with personal relationships, it was clear at a glance which was lighter or heavier, and his master had never been a person who could not distinguish between priority and importance.
But not saying it, after all, was still not mentioning it, and couldn’t be obtained falsely.
However, the old servant didn’t expect anyone, when the Third Highness came to see him at the hunting field, his master didn’t justify himself and told the truth, but instead received the opponent’s sword hard.
Now that the servant spoke out, he only hoped that the Third Highness, who had always been a noble and upright person, would be magnanimous on behalf of His Highness for not telling on someone. He was already prepared for the worst, if the Third Highness still couldn’t restrain his anger, it would be impossible for his despicable life to be spared.
“Third Highness, you have always helped the weak and aided the needy, please save my family’s crown prince.”
Just as the servant’s head landed on the ground and pleaded Zong Luo, Ye Linghan, who was lying on the ground like a puddle of mud, moved his fingertips imperceptibly.
Pain, my whole body hurts like being run over by a carriage.
Let alone an intact piece of skin, the area between his legs was more like it was being torn apart, mixed with blood and a nauseating sticky touch, bluntly splitting him in half.
After the Qingsi, the envoys from the Wei Country would go back.
In the past few days, Ye Linghan had been trying to find a way to hand over a Bai Tie, requesting for an audience to the envoy’s side. (TL: a famous post used when visiting others )
He didn’t care if anyone would find out, because this was his only life-saving straw. If he missed this time, and waited until Wei Country completely abolished the crown prince, then Ye Linghan would have no hope of returning to his homeland in this lifetime.
However, the envoys of the Wei Country seemed to have anticipated it for a long time, they closed the doors to him and didn’t see him, and the Bai Tie that were sent out were like a stone sinking into the sea, with no response.
As a last resort, Ye Linghan had no choice but to inquire about the location of the envoy of the Wei Country.
Tomorrow was the day the envoy returned to the country. During meal time tonight, he finally received news. It was said that the envoy had been drinking and having a good time at Tingwei Bai’s mansion these days, spending every night in sensuality. (TL: I placed Tingwei before Bai because it’s an official name, one of the nine ministers, was in charge of prisons)
Ye Linghan suddenly felt a sense of unease in his heart.
This was the tall branch he had climbed before. Bai Taining was the legitimate son of their family, the chief culprit who humiliated him with words during the Qingsi last time.
He knew it well.
The news was also deliberately delivered before his eyes.
Today’s banquet, I’m afraid it’s a Hongmen banquet. (TL: metaphor for a banquet where murderous intentions were concealed and the guests were plotted to be harmed)
But Ye Linghan couldn’t help but go.
If he gave up completely and maintained a calm state of mind of being a proton in the Great Yuan, he could leave this life, let alone high position and great wealth, at least he could still live a good life.
But Ye Linghan wanted to go back. He was ambitious and wanted to get back everything that belonged to him, and he would do whatever it took for this purpose.
Therefore he went.
As soon as he entered the door, Bai Taining commanded several burly men, which he didn’t know where he had found them, and pressed him to the ground.
The envoy of the Wei Country stood with him, talked lively and jovially, and occasionally sneered a few times, just like a bystander watching a clown.
The next few hours were Ye Linghan’s darkest and most painful, couldn’t bear to look back, could be called hell, type of memories.
During this process, he thought countless times that it would be better to bite his tongue and commit suicide, but the fire called hatred that burned in his heart intensified and almost swallowed him whole.
