WMSG Chapter 50
by Volare“Pour me a cup of tea.” Ye Yueshen leaned against the wall, reaching out to brace himself against Gong Xunwu, preventing him from embracing him.
Gong Xunwu pressed on his wound: “We’ll have to wait for the Imperial Physician to arrive to know if you can drink tea.”
“I can drink,” Ye Yueshen’s voice trembled, lacking the strength to project, almost whispering, “It’s not a deep wound, my stomach isn’t punctured, because I’m only bleeding, not…”
“Don’t talk,” Gong Xunwu couldn’t bear it any longer and turned his head away. As long as his gaze landed on Ye Yueshen, he could see the injuries.
As if talking to himself, Gong Xunwu asked him, “What kind of person are you, exactly?”
Ye Yueshen sneered inwardly. He was being told not to speak, yet was still being asked questions.
Ye Yueshen dropped a handful of hair he’d been clutching. He’d torn it from someone’s head during the fight, and in the tension of being injured, he’d forgotten to release it, leaving fine, dense marks on his palm. He struggled to say, “I’m a kind, soft-hearted person.”
Gong Xunwu noticed his movement, helping him pick the strands of hair stuck to his palm and throwing them away.
Ye Yueshen, however, thought he didn’t believe him. After all, there was a corpse lying in a pool of blood over there. Under these circumstances, it would be difficult for anyone to believe his kindness.
“Really, every time I counter-kill someone, if the situation allows, I bury them. If they cooperated while alive, even if we were mortal enemies, I’d be willing to end their life with one strike to spare them too much suffering…” Ye Yueshen glanced at the chaotic corpses and shattered low tables, his tone somewhat regretful, “It’s a pity, who told him to be so uncooperative…”
The physician was dragged into the room by Shaou, tumbling to the ground. Instead of getting angry, he seized the opportunity to replace Gong Xunwu and press on Ye Yueshen’s wound.
Finally free, Gong Xunwu covered Ye Yueshen’s mouth. He had heard Ye Yueshen call himself kind, and he had also heard Ye Yueshen’s words make a life sound so light and airy.
He could see that Ye Yueshen was being insincere, deliberately portraying himself as cold-blooded and ruthless, when in reality he was full of unease and confusion.
The physician tore Ye Yueshen’s clothes, reminding him before treating the wound, “It will be very painful, Your Excellency, please bear with it.”
Fear flashed in Ye Yueshen’s eyes, and his chest rose and fell more violently. Gong Xunwu covered his eyes, whispering in his ear, “Are you saying all this because you’re afraid others will feel sorry for you?”
Ye Yueshen fell silent at once, the rise and fall of his chest lessening, his lips tightening, quietly awaiting the arrival of the pain of the wound being treated.
Just as the physician was about to begin, the Imperial Physician who treated the Emperor strode in, pushing the physician aside and kneeling on the ground. While opening his medicine chest, he said, “Let this humble servant do it. This humble servant can stop the bleeding without pain.”
The Imperial Physician rummaged through his tools, snatching the small wine bottle that the physician was tremblingly holding to Ye Yueshen’s lips and throwing it away. “Who taught you to give alcohol to a patient to stop the pain? Go, go, go, get out of here.”
The physician was chased away, and the Imperial Physician began to personally wash Ye Yueshen’s wound.
Only then did Ye Yueshen realize that his “this humble servant can stop the bleeding without pain” was a lie. The stabbing pain that made him see stars caused Ye Yueshen to struggle involuntarily.
But he didn’t struggle for long before he completely fainted from the pain. Gong Xunwu released the hand covering his eyes and patted his face. The Imperial Physician glanced sideways and his hand twitched, nearly dropping the gauze.
Gong Xunwu glared at him, and he hastily admitted his mistake: “Your Highness, please forgive me, Your Highness, please forgive me…” In his heart, he blamed Ye Yueshen for being too beautiful, distracting him.
After the wound was bandaged, the Imperial Physician and Gong Xunwu carefully moved Ye Yueshen to the bed. Perhaps while struggling, his hand had flailed and ended up tucked inside his own clothes.
Gong Xunwu wanted to adjust his position to make him more comfortable. As he was about to take it out and place it by his side to cover him with the blanket, Ye Yueshen frowned. Opening his eyes seemed to be a difficult task; his eyeballs rolled around several times before he finally lifted his eyelids.
He looked warily at the person beside him, his expression relaxing only after seeing Gong Xunwu. He glanced at the Imperial Physician again, and this time even a whisper was difficult.
Gong Xunwu put his ear to his lips: “What do you want to say?”
“Put, put the jade… on that servant whose arm is stained with red…” Ye Yueshen said before closing his eyes again.
The Imperial Physician, who was close by, heard it all. Sure enough, Gong Xunwu found a jade pendant inside Ye Yueshen’s tucked-in clothing. It was a material that was half green and half white, with almost no impurities.
The front was carved with green trees, gradually transitioning to white, like clouds and mist rising from the mountains and forests, covering the sky and earth. The back was engraved with the character “Yi.”
Gong Xunwu recognized that this was the piece of material that Ye Lingshen had escorted back. This pendant belonged to the Third Prince, Gong Yiyin.
The Imperial Physician glanced sideways, openly muttering, “I thought it was some brilliant scheme to catch the enemy; it’s pure framing?”
Gong Xunwu picked up the jade ruyi from the bedside and was about to smash it at the Imperial Physician. The Imperial Physician had never seen him so angry at him before, and quickly shrank his head and begged for mercy, “Your Highness, spare me, Your Highness, spare me…”
“He’s weak. A spanking would leave him lying in bed for many days.” Gong Xunwu gently placed the jade ruyi down, then adjusted Ye Yueshen’s forehead, saying in a low voice, “Everyone at this banquet is someone I want to kill right now. Instead of brewing nourishing soup, do you think I find you pleasing to the eye?”
The Imperial Physician fled in a hurry. He had no doubt that Gong Xunwu had really wanted to smash him with the jade ruyi, but hadn’t done so only because he was afraid of disturbing Ye Yueshen on the bed.
Although Gong Xunwu was high in position and power, he had never revealed an overly violent side in front of others. His behavior could even be described as gentle and refined.
But those who had been with Gong Xunwu for a long time knew his sinister nature. His indifferent exterior was born from his weariness of expressing emotions, and he never had the desire to confide in anyone, so there was no such thing as an outburst of temper.
“Ju Su.”
The Imperial Physician stopped in his tracks, bracing himself as he turned back. “Does Your Highness have any other instructions?”
“Have Shaou detain Gong Yiyin, arrange for Gong Ruiyin and Gong Xuyin to return to the palace, and find an excuse to send everyone else away.” Gong Xunwu tossed the jade pendant over.
Ju Su quickly reached out and caught it, breathing a sigh of relief when he saw that the jade in his hand was intact. “Yes, this humble servant will go now.”
Just as he stepped out the door, Ju Su was nearly collided with by someone rushing over. He steadied himself and saw that it was Gong Shengyin.
Gong Shengyin looked worried, shouldering past Ju Su, he was about to barge in when Ju Su grabbed him. “Fifth Prince, please wait outside. Young Master Yue is injured and cannot be disturbed. His Royal Highness, Prince Qi, is inside.”
“It’s none of your business.” Gong Shengyin shook off his hand. Ju Su pouted; good advice is wasted on a stubborn fool.
Gong Shengyin spoke harshly, then turned back to barge in, but before he could see the way forward, he was slapped, staggering a few steps and falling to the ground.
Ju Su glanced at Gong Xunwu’s expression, and immediately ran away.
“Royal Uncle…” Gong Shengyin’s eyes were red. He asked, his voice trembling, “Royal Uncle, how is Zhe Rong…”
Gong Xunwu gritted his teeth, kicking Gong Shengyin’s shoulder. Gong Shengyin fell to the side, but quickly righted himself and knelt properly. “Royal Uncle, this nephew…”
“What are you here for?” Gong Xunwu’s voice was unusually calm. Gong Shengyin knew this was the prelude to a great rage.
“This nephew, this nephew is worried…” Gong Shengyin knew he had made a mistake the moment he said it, because Gong Xunwu’s eyes quickly turned bloodshot, looking as if he wanted to kill him on the spot.
For a long time, Gong Shengyin almost lost the ability to react, able only to stare blankly at Gong Xunwu, waiting for his judgment, his entire being in a state of paralysis.
Gong Xunwu seemed to emit a cold snort from his nostrils. “You don’t care about thwarted ambitions, and are now talking about romance? Are you worthy?”
Gong Shengyin didn’t understand, thinking the focus was on “thwarted ambitions,” but subconsciously sensed an incomprehensible danger, and instinctively expressed his loyalty for survival: “This nephew was worried that Young Master Yue would be injured in the estate. If there was an accident at the banquet, this nephew would be derelict in his duty…”
But Gong Xunwu was still not satisfied, kicking him over again. This, connected to the earlier suggestive question, made no sense. “He fainted from the pain, and you’re still worried about your banquet? Are you really only fit to eat leftovers for the rest of your life?”
In the overwhelming pressure and fear, a trace of rebelliousness uncontrollably arose in Gong Shengyin. Gong Xunwu had never humiliated him, nor had he expressed any disdain for him.
This scolding was simply inexplicable, but he quickly adjusted his expression, lowering his head and admitting his mistake: “It is all this nephew’s fault. Royal Uncle, please punish this nephew as you see fit.”
Gong Xunwu told Gong Shengyin to get lost. Gong Shengyin reluctantly got up, his gaze sweeping over the corpses lying scattered, recognizing at a glance that they were the attendants he had brought from the palace, those whose names and faces he knew, reliable inner court officials who had never disclosed anything.
So someone had already infiltrated his palace with spies. In addition to shock and anger, Gong Shengyin immediately realized that he knelt forward, pleading, “Royal Uncle, I beg you, Royal Uncle. At the Fifth Royal Uncle’s estate-founding banquet, a guest got drunk and drowned in the lake. The late Emperor not only scolded and punished the Fifth Royal Uncle, but even today, people still say the Fifth Royal Uncle is an unlucky omen. This nephew is willing to take any punishment, I only ask that Royal Uncle not report this matter to Father…”
The more he begged at this moment, the angrier Gong Xunwu became. Gong Shengyin also realized this, and he quickly said, “This nephew has just gained a bit of favor in Father’s eyes; this nephew can’t afford to gamble. This nephew guarantees that he will thoroughly investigate this matter and give an explanation to Junzhu and Marquis Ye. I beg Royal Uncle to give this nephew a chance to make amends…”
Gong Xunwu felt dizzy with heartache. He felt that he needed an explanation more than Junzhu and Marquis Ye. Even with Shaou personally following to protect Ye Yueshen, something like this had still happened. The other party was willing to expose the spies hidden in Gong Shengyin’s palace, so eager to put Ye Yueshen to death.
He regretted not having locked up all the princes earlier and subjecting them to harsh interrogation, which had allowed the culprit to be so arrogant. He felt utterly useless for not being able to protect Ye Yueshen.
But now, further blaming Gong Shengyin would not help, only adding to his annoyance: “Get out.”
This was considered tacit approval that he wouldn’t report to the Emperor. Gong Shengyin immediately obediently left Gong Xunwu’s sight, but stood on the outer corridor, unwilling to leave. He cared about whether he could win the throne, but he wasn’t indifferent to Ye Yueshen either; it was just a matter of priorities.
As the guests dispersed, according to Gong Xunwu’s original arrangement, the Crown Prince and the Fourth Prince, Gong Xuyin, should have left, but the Third Prince suddenly collapsed from poisoning, clutching tightly to the Crown Prince’s robes, as if grasping at a life-saving straw.
In the end, only Gong Xuyin was dismissed, while the Third Prince, with a greenish face and foaming at the mouth, was dragged by Shaou to the outside of the side room where Ye Yueshen was resting, and dumped on the corridor steps.
The inner court official who had been smeared with red paste on his arm by Ye Yueshen was also brought along. The Crown Prince stood guardedly beside the Third Prince, as if supporting him.
The Crown Prince was also afraid of Gong Xunwu’s misunderstanding, and explained, “Old Three was holding onto me and wouldn’t let go.”
Gong Xunwu ignored him, glanced at Shaou. Shaou received the instruction and immediately searched the inner court official, and after a moment handed the jade on the inner court official’s body to Gong Xunwu in front of everyone.
The Third Prince, who had originally looked as if he was on his last breath, immediately reached out to touch his waist when he saw the jade, widening his eyes and shouting, “Royal Uncle, Ninth Royal Uncle, who wants to harm this nephew? Who poisoned this nephew? Please, Royal Uncle, do justice for this nephew and find the mastermind so this nephew can be at peace.”
Gong Xunwu found it disgusting to even look at him. His gaze passed over his head, and he said sternly, “Ye Yueshen said that an inner court official had been acting strangely, repeatedly spying on him, and had even attempted to approach his food, so he took the precaution of leaving a bit of red on the inner court official’s arm.”
The inner court official immediately shouted injustice. Shaou quickly covered his mouth, then raised his arm to show everyone. Sure enough, there was a patch of bright red dye on the inner side of the upper arm.
Gong Xunwu smashed the jade on the Third Prince’s head, and the Third Prince clutched his head, stunned.
Watching the jade fall to the ground and shatter into pieces, the Crown Prince beside him seemed to see his own end, and so he forcefully tore off the restraint he couldn’t break free of earlier, taking two steps to the side to distance himself and draw a line.
The Third Prince despaired shouted, “This nephew is wronged!”
Seeing the enmity in Gong Xunwu’s eyes that seemed to want him dead, the Third Prince chose to turn back to seek the Crown Prince, choking as he pleaded, “Second Brother, Second Brother, save me, Second Brother, this person has nothing to do with me, Second Brother, you know that…”
The Crown Prince avoided him like the plague, saying while watching Gong Xunwu’s expression, “What do I know? I don’t know anything. Don’t be anxious and talk nonsense.”
But the Crown Prince still took a step forward and knelt down. “Royal Uncle, this is not the place to talk, how about…”
“How about what?” Gong Xunwu stared at him. “You can’t wait to settle accounts either?”
The Crown Prince’s pupils dilated in fear, and his tone suddenly filled with defensiveness: “This nephew doesn’t understand. What does this matter have to do with this nephew? I hope Royal Uncle will clarify.”
“If you don’t understand, shut your mouth. If it has nothing to do with you, then get out of here. I told you to leave, but you insisted on staying to watch the show?” Gong Xunwu treated all his nephews with the same disdain, even scolding the Crown Prince.
Ju Su, carrying a pot of nourishing soup, wanted to sneak past them, but Gong Xunwu turned back and took the scorching-hot lid off the soup bowl, unhesitatingly smashing it on the Crown Prince’s head.
The Crown Prince was only knocked slightly off balance, not daring to say a word, bowing and silently leaving.
The Third Prince was still struggling: “Second Brother, Second Brother, tell Father for me, let Father do justice for me. I’m wronged! Second Brother, are you really going to stand by and watch me be wrongfully killed by Prince Qi? Second Brother! I’m poisoned, I’ve been poisoned, why only listen to Ye Yueshen’s side of the story, ignoring the fact that I’m poisoned? What are Royal Uncle’s intentions?”
The Crown Prince hesitated, finally stopping, but not coming forward, only standing in place and bowing to Gong Xunwu. “Royal Uncle, how about having Imperial Physician Ju take a look at Old Three as well?”
A voice came from inside the room, faintly reaching outside “… Young Master, please don’t harm me!”
Gong Xunwu realized something and rushed into the room, but Ye Yueshen had already been helped to the door by Ju Su. Gong Xunwu wanted to pick him up, but he was blocked by his shoulder.
Ye Yueshen’s voice was very weak: “I can only sleep peacefully after watching him argue fruitlessly. Don’t try to persuade me.”
Gong Xunwu closed his eyes, helplessly ordering Shaou, “Go get a soft couch.”
Except for the Third Prince and the inner court official who were being held down, the Crown Prince and Prince Qi were standing, while Ye Yueshen, whose status was the lowest, was sitting on a soft couch, but no one dared say anything.
The Third Prince immediately said, “Royal Uncle, at least listen to this nephew’s words. This nephew is about to be poisoned to death. This nephew is your blood relative! That Ye Yueshen…”
Ye Yueshen’s fingers clenched into fists. The Third Prince didn’t continue, but glanced to the side at his attendant, Yuanbao.
Yuanbao took a step forward shakily, kneeling on the ground with a thud. He was extremely afraid of standing against Prince Qi. “This humble servant… this humble servant saw Young Master Yue entering the banquet, passing, passing by the Third Prince. Young Master Yue had half of his hand hidden in his sleeve, holding a pouch, shaking it, and powder floated out, a lot of it falling into the Third Prince’s bowl… Also…”
The inner court official, who had been smeared with red paste by Ye Yueshen, suddenly realized something, abruptly looking up at Ye Yueshen, Ye Yueshen calmly returned his gaze.
Yuanbao couldn’t stand being stared at by Gong Xunwu, closing his eyes in advance and saying through gritted teeth, “Before the banquet, Young Master Yue had exchanged pleasantries with the Third Prince, but the Fourth Prince was also present. He had repeatedly approached the Third Prince. Looking back now, it’s really strange!”
Ye Yueshen reached out and grabbed Gong Xunwu’s sleeve, not allowing Gong Xunwu to speak, but weakly explaining himself, “I didn’t poison him, and if I really used the pouch to poison him, then since you saw me acting strangely, why didn’t you speak out and protect the Third Prince on the spot?”
“This humble servant originally thought it was just the pouch’s fragrance powder.” Yuanbao said, completely giving up on trying to survive, “Young Master Yue’s prostituting appearance, carrying the skills of a seductress…”
Gong Shengyin, who had always been playing it safe, couldn’t hold back after seeing Ye Yueshen walk out with blood on his abdomen. He stepped forward and slapped Yuanbao, preventing him from continuing.
Instead of getting angry, Ye Yueshen laughed, his pale lips slightly curving. “You say I used a pouch to poison him, but I lost the pouch long before entering the banquet, and even asked someone to help me find it. The attendants of the Fifth Prince’s estate can testify to this; I’m sure they remember.”
Ye Yueshen’s gaze fell on the inner court official who had been smeared with red. Shaou kicked him. “Young Master Yue is asking you a question, how dare you play dead?”
The inner court official lowered his head and said nothing. Gong Shengyin asked people to ask, and soon several attendants were brought over, waiting outside the moon gate. Shaou had them enter one by one, asking them what they had heard.
The wording of several people was almost identical, proving that Ye Yueshen had really lost the pouch.
The liar was trapped in a situation where he could no longer argue. The Third Prince was so frightened that his eyes widened, and after a moment, he fainted.
Gong Shengyin, as the host, could finally legitimately speak. “Ninth Royal Uncle, since it has been proven that the Third Prince framed and intended to harm Young Master Yue, please Royal Uncle do justice for this nephew and give an explanation to Marquis Ye and Junzhu.”
“The Third Prince, Gong Yiyin, sent someone to assassinate Ye Yueshen, the Third Young Master of the Loyal and Upright Marquis’s estate, causing him abdominal injuries. After the incident, he attempted to frame him, adding to his crimes. Furthermore, he has spies to attack his brothers, deserving of death. Now that there is irrefutable evidence, he will be executed immediately.”
After Gong Xunwu finished speaking, he reached out and covered Ye Yueshen’s eyes. The crowd hadn’t yet recovered from the heavy sentence of “executed immediately” when they were shocked by Gong Xunwu’s action of covering Ye Yueshen’s eyes. He was actually going to have the Third Prince’s death sentence carried out on the spot.
The Crown Prince couldn’t help but speak. “Royal Uncle, Old Three is a prince, the Emperor’s own son. If he is executed directly without the Emperor’s permission, I’m afraid the Emperor will be furious. At that time, Royal Uncle’s loss of face is a small matter; what’s more concerning is the potential for estrangement…”
Ye Yueshen frowned as he listened. The Crown Prince’s words were superficially persuasive, but that wasn’t really the case. It sounded like he was deliberately provoking Gong Xunwu, forcing him into a position where, for the sake of face, he had to execute the Third Prince on the spot.
Ye Yueshen pulled down Gong Xunwu’s hand covering his eyes, shaking his head at him. “Don’t, I have evidence. I don’t want you to act rashly and cause this matter to become controversial.”
So Gong Xunwu changed the execution to one hundred strokes of the board, but Ye Yueshen had tasted the pain of being beaten with the board, and he was a little afraid that the Third Prince would be beaten to death, begging Gong Xunwu to change one hundred strokes to twenty.
But looking at Shaou’s eager expression, these twenty strokes would be enough for the Third Prince to suffer.
Gong Xunwu was going to personally enter the palace to explain the matter to the Emperor, otherwise he wouldn’t feel at ease sending anyone, after all, he was the Emperor’s own son, and he couldn’t guarantee that the Emperor wouldn’t soften.
Before entering the palace, he first brought Ye Yueshen back to Prince Qi’s estate. Ye Yueshen’s wound originally shouldn’t be moved, but he felt insecure in an unfamiliar place where he had lost his ability to move, and decided to return to Prince Qi’s estate, which had many guards.
On the way, he was held in Gong Xunwu’s arms, with Ju Su watching by the side in case of accidents.
Seeing that Gong Xunwu’s expression was much better, Ju Su couldn’t help but speak up again. “This humble servant has finally understood. Today, the Third Prince had prepared two plans. He wanted to assassinate Young Master Yue, and he also wanted to poison himself to clear himself of suspicion. After realizing that things were going awry, he jumped over the wall in desperation and framed Young Master Yue.”
Gong Xunwu said maybe not. “The poisoning seemed like an impromptu plan; it should be because he realized that the matter had blown up and he couldn’t get out unscathed, so he took the risk.”
“In any case, it was thanks to Young Master Yue’s cleverness and intelligence that he threw away the pouch.” Ju Su asked admiringly, “Young Master Yue, how were you able to predict that they would frame you for poisoning with the pouch?”
“I didn’t know,” Ye Yueshen said, “I threw away the pouch just to destroy the evidence.”
Ju Su looked at him in confusion, so he had to explain further, “There was poison I had prepared in the pouch; I originally did intend to poison them, but today was too strange.”
Ju Su suddenly showed a shattered expression. “So that’s how it is. Turns out Young Master Yue is a serpent beauty.”
“Didn’t get to use it…” Ye Yueshen murmured, seeming somewhat regretful, but he quickly became relieved. “At least the prepared weapon came in handy.”
He found that the weapon hidden in his hair was still the most useful. Sure enough, the choices of the ancestors were all experience. The image of Du Ruxiang killing him with a hairpin and the scene of him stabbing the inner court official with a sharp weapon overlapped and appeared in his mind.
Gong Xunwu put his hand under the blanket, covering it, and used a handkerchief to wipe the sweat from his forehead. Although he didn’t say anything, the pain from the wound was getting stronger and stronger.
Ye Yueshen was in so much pain that his thoughts were somewhat jumbled, and many details of today began to flood his mind in a chaotic manner. When he remembered Ju Su saying “the Third Prince had prepared two plans” earlier, his heart sank, and an inexplicable panic spread throughout his body.
He couldn’t help but repeat, “Two plans…”
Ye Yueshen’s eyes suddenly widened. He covered his wound with his hand, then moved it a little towards the middle based on his feeling. He looked up at Ju Su, calling out, “Lord Ju.”
Ju Su asked him what was wrong, his tone weak. “The Third Prince really did prepare two plans.”
He cautiously looked up at Gong Xunwu, saying guiltily, “I just remembered that I seem to have been poisoned too.”