Favoritism

The royal bedchamber.

Uncle Fu brought over a basin of hot water and carefully wiped Qi Yunheng's body.

His master liked to be clean.

If he woke and found that he smelled, he certainly wouldn't be able to stand it.

Splash-

Uncle Fu wrung out the cloth, carefully avoiding the wound.

A flicker of tender concern slipped into his eyes.

The wound on his master's chest had already begun to scab over, but it still looked horrifying.

Just a little closer.

Just a little closer, and the blade would have pierced his heart!

It was bad enough that his mother had always hit and berated him as she pleased, but this time, she had actually used a knife.

She had gone far too far.

No wonder his master had finally hardened his heart and driven her and the others out of the palace.

Ever since his master had returned from the Jin Kingdom three years ago, his mother had seemed like a different person, disliking him more and more.

Not only did she treat him as coldly as a stranger, she sometimes treated him like an enemy, scolding him at the slightest provocation.

She often called him a ruthless monster who killed without blinking.

Yet she never stopped to consider that in this man-eating palace, if his master hadn't been ruthless, he could only have been trampled into the mud.

Besides, those people had all wanted to kill him. What was wrong with fighting back?

They deserved to die.

Hadn't the wealth and honor his mother had enjoyed these past three years all been bought with his master's blood?

Yet she would rather believe other people's divisive lies than stand by her son.

His poor master.

He might appear not to care.

But how could it not hurt to be rejected and belittled like that by the mother he loved and respected?

In the end, those who were favored always took that love for granted.

Seeing that his master was still deathly pale and showed no sign of waking, Uncle Fu couldn't keep the worry from his eyes.

"Master... you've been asleep for three days and three nights. It's time to wake up. Everyone is very worried about you," he told him.

He knew that deep down, his master didn't want to wake.

His mother had always been his concern, his fixation. Now, all of that had suddenly crumbled.

Everything he had done had lost all meaning.

All at once, he no longer knew what to do with himself.

It was one thing for others to hurt him, but now even his own brothers and birth mother wanted him dead.

No matter how strong his master was, his heart surely couldn't bear it.

If they let him keep sleeping like this, he might never wake again.

At a time like this, he needed some outside stimulus.

"Master, Little Seven has already cleared all the remaining poison from your body."

A trace of resolve flashed through Uncle Fu's eyes.

He continued, "Also, Little Seven said Little Eight contacted it over a thousand miles and said it's changed its name to Xiao Ba."

"...I wonder if you still remember Prince Yu, whom the emperor of the Jin Kingdom took as his sworn younger brother."

"The Prince Yu who saved you and summoned an imperial physician for you that time you had a fever and Li Chunlai abducted you."

During his time in the Jin Kingdom, Prince Yu was just about the only person his master had been on friendly terms with.

Uncle Fu hoped he could stir something in his master-even... hatred would do, as long as it gave him something to hold on to and kept him alive.

He abruptly changed tack, his face filling with indignation. "To think this old servant once believed he was different from those people..."

"I never imagined-never imagined he would harbor such... intentions toward you too!"

"I heard he actually confessed right in front of the Jin Kingdom's emperor that he fell in love with you at first sight, and when he couldn't win your love, he wanted to force himself on you! He..."

"He's utterly sh-shameless!"

Qi Yunheng struggled upright.

His face flushed crimson, and his hands and shoulders trembled uncontrollably with rage.

Delight flashed through Uncle Fu's eyes. "Master, you're finally awake!"

Seeing that he was so furious he could barely catch his breath,

Uncle Fu hurried to soothe him. "Master, you've only just woken up. You mustn't get so worked up. Calm down first, calm down..."

Qi Yunheng's eyes were wide with fury, his face livid.

His chest shook uncontrollably.

Through gritted teeth, he said, "Uncle Fu, where's Little Seven? Tell it to tell Little Eight to bite that shameless bastard to death!"

How dare he ruin his reputation? He was asking to die.

Once his wound healed, he would bury him himself!

"Master, that might be a little difficult. Little Seven can no longer reach Little Eight!" Uncle Fu said awkwardly.

Qi Yunheng was so angry he laughed. "Little Eight, that traitor!"

"He's only raised it for a few years, and it's already switched loyalties!"

"Sure enough, nothing can be trusted, whether it's a person or a snake!"

Qi Yunheng's fury suddenly erupted like a volcano, pouring out beyond all control. "Fine! Very well!"

"Everyone in this world betrays me. Everyone in this world betrays me!"

"Then I shall slaughter them all!"

Uncle Fu couldn't help wiping the sweat from his brow again and again.

...It seemed he had provoked him a little too much.

He hurriedly changed the subject. "Master... are you hungry? Shall this old servant bring you something to eat?"

With that, he rushed out of the bedchamber.

Hopefully, his master would feel better once he had eaten his fill.

Whatever his master wanted to do then,

he would accompany him.

After all, his master had already suffered enough.

What harm was there in indulging him a little?

After Uncle Fu left,

Qi Yunheng was the only person remaining in the vast bedchamber.

It was empty, so quiet that even an echo seemed audible.

Qi Yunheng gradually calmed down.

Then he suddenly thought of Xiao Yu again.

He recalled every little moment of their past encounters.

He had never imagined that Xiao Yu had already harbored such filthy intentions toward him back then.

And that illustrated book he had accidentally dropped that time-had he been fantasizing about doing those things with him?!

Blood suddenly rushed to his head, and he lashed out in mortified fury. "Filthy! Disgusting! Indecent!"

He took a deep breath, trying his best to calm himself.

It wasn't worth working himself to death over this now.

Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted a tiny figure sneaking around the doorway. His gaze sharpened. "Come out."

The little boy startled and immediately shrank back into the corner.

Seeing this, Qi Yunheng

said in a suddenly icy voice, "I'll say this one last time. Come out!"

The little boy immediately tottered out, trembling, and approached him. "Royal Brother..." he murmured timidly.

Qi Yunheng asked, "Who are you?"

"R-Royal Brother, I'm Little Eleven," the boy answered.

Seeing that even his legs were shaking with fear, Qi Yunheng softened his tone a little. "What are you doing here?"

In a soft, trembling voice, the boy said, "I-I heard you were hurt... I-I came to see you, Royal Brother."

Qi Yunheng froze.

Then he asked, "You... aren't afraid of This King?"

"N-no," the little boy replied.

Qi Yunheng gave a cold snort.

He might have believed him if he hadn't been shaking like a leaf.

Seeing that Qi Yunheng hadn't scolded or hit him,

the little boy suddenly gathered his courage and stepped forward. "Royal Brother, this is for you to eat. You have to get better soon."

Looking at the candy in his hand, Qi Yunheng suddenly recalled what had happened before and violently shoved him away-

Thud!

"How dare you! Even you have come to poison This King?!"

Qi Yunheng flew into a rage. "It seems everyone truly thinks little of me! Do you think that just because I'm wounded, anyone can hurt me?"

The little boy fell onto the floor from the shove, scattering candy everywhere.

He was terrified.

Holding back the tears that threatened to fall,

he explained, "I didn't. I didn't poison it... if you don't believe me, Royal Brother, I'll eat it and show you..."

With that, he picked up the candy that had fallen on the floor and put it in his mouth.

He didn't forget to tell Qi Yunheng, "Royal Brother, look. I ate it. I'm fine. I didn't poison it..."

Qi Yunheng: "..."

He turned away and said flatly, "Get out. Roll away."

A little while later,

he looked back and saw the boy was still there, and blood rushed to his head again.

With a trace of displeasure in his voice, he said, "What? Do you need This King to see you out?"

The little boy said miserably, "Royal Brother... can I walk instead? I can't see where I'm going when I roll..."

"..."

Qi Yunheng felt his head buzzing.

He shouted, "Uncle Fu! Uncle Fu! Carry him out!"

If the boy stayed here any longer, he feared he wouldn't be able to resist hitting him.