âYoung Master, donât go to the Prince Muâs Mansion! Youâll get yourself in trouble!â At the gate of the Yuelai Hotel, Lianshan was grabbing the young man by the clothes with an anxious look. âYoung Master, please! Letâs go home!â
âBut Lianshan, I already took down the notice. If I donât go and cure the prince, Iâll be beaten up with sticks!â The young man had made up his mind to go, so he pushed Lianshanâs hand, trying to get rid of him.
However, instead of letting go of him, Lianshan applied more strength to his grip. âYoung Master, itâs not a big deal to be beaten thirty times. But if your dad knows about what youâre doing, you, youâ¦â
âSaving lives is the duty of a physician, so Iâm sure dad wonât blame me for that,â the young man straightened himself while speaking righteously.
âBut⦠but you didnât tell your dad before you left home!â Lianshan was reluctant to give in.
However, what he said didnât work. Pattering him on the shoulder, the young man promised with a solemn look, âCalm down, Lianshan! My dad wonât know Iâve gone to the princeâs mansion. Just imagine the amount of candied haws and mutton kebabs Iâll buy you as soon as I get that ten thousand ingots of silver!â
âYoung Master, go home with me, please! I donât want the candied haws and mutton kebabs!â
âLianshan, come on! Why are you so stubborn? Let go of me right now, or Iâm gonna beat you!â
âNo way! Young Master, even if you beat meâ¦â
âWhy donât you two go get a room?â the officer who had been waiting by the gate couldnât stand their nagging anymore and he turned to them with a poker face. âIf you dare make a scene in the Prince Muâs Mansion, youâll know how weâll teach you a good lesson with sticks!â
âLianshan, did you hear what he said? If I get beaten, itâs your fault!â The young man didnât take the officer seriously and he only tried to take this opportunity to get Lianshan to let him go.
âHuh, my fault?â Lianshan was rendered speechless. After all, he was only a child at the age of twelve. Looking at the officer, he found the latter staring at them with a grim look as if he were going to pick a fight with them at any time. âIf my young master is annoyed and fights with him⦠the consequences could be serious!â
Weighing the pros and cons, Lianshan had to loosen his grip on the young man. âYoung Master, you have to promise me that youâll come home with me as soon as you finish the diagnosis!â he reminded.
âYou have my word!â the young man nodded with a smile and then striding forward, waving his fan.
After quite a while, they finally arrived at Prince Muâs Mansion. Several guards were standing near the closed red-painted gate, looking as ferocious as the two copper lions on either side.
âWait! What are you doing here?â As soon as they came up the steps, they were stopped by a guard.
The officer immediately put on a flattering smile and handed over the notice that the young man had taken down. âHeâs here to treat Prince Mu!â
Taking the notice, the guard glanced at it and then shifted his gaze to the young man in white, who looked only seventeen or so. âWhatâs your name? Where are you from?â he asked expressionlessly.
The young man unfolded his fan and answered with a smile, neither too humble nor too arrogant, âIâm Ling Xiao. I come from a medical family in Qingzhou. I have some prescriptions which were passed through generations in our family for incurable diseases. On my way to visit my relatives, I heard that Prince Mu was sick, so Iâm here to see how I may be of service to him.â
Looking them up and down for a while, the guard snatched the medical kit from Lianshan and examined carefully before letting them in.
With a squeak, the red-painted gate was opened from inside, and a middle-aged man with mustache walked out. âSir, this way please,â he motioned to Lingxiao in respectfully.
Lingxiao nodded politely and then strode into the mansion, but no one had noticed the flash of resentment on his face. âXiuxiu, you must have been forced to marry that lascivious prince! Your fiance is coming to get you out of here!â