A soldier guarding the gate had no idea who Huangfu Zedan was, saying he had never heard of him, which made Facai cross his arms and curse loudly in front of the camp. “What the hell, does this master Facai look like someone who hasn’t seen an official before? This master Facai is the most talented in the Tianying Gate. What, this master Facai has unparalleled martial arts, invincible in battle, with countless heroes defeated under my hand. Who are you to put on airs before master Facai? What the hell, a mere gatekeeper, have you fought the Turks? Haven’t you, you punk? Last year, this master Facai turned a Turk salt merchant into a eunuch. Want to be a eunuch? This master will grant your wish.”
A few gate soldiers became enraged, rolling up their sleeves to fight Facai. Facai’s martial arts weren’t great, but more than enough to deal with these small fries. After a few rounds, he had knocked them all to the ground.
The military camp was extremely strict, with twenty-four large crossbows at the gate. Each crossbow could shoot over a thousand arrows at once, and if all twenty-four fired simultaneously, the arrows would rain down like a storm, turning even hundreds of Facais into porcupines.
The low-ranking soldiers weren’t qualified to operate the crossbows, but finding help was always an option. They simply claimed there was a spy trying to infiltrate the camp. Immediately, a squad of sword-wielding soldiers came out and quickly tied Facai up.
Facai had feared only his master, grandmaster, and later his master’s wife. Now captured, he continued cursing, addressing everyone’s ancestors. A soldier found his language offensive and slapped him twice.
After being slapped, Facai showed some restraint, avoiding cursing ancestors and instead focusing on their women, knowing these soldiers were unmarried.
The soldiers planned to take him to the dungeon and hand him over to their superiors. Passing the training ground, they saw a massive formation of 100,000 troops. Infantry with bows and crossbows were at the front, the black-armored Xuanjia cavalry in the center, with cavalry in bright armor on both sides.
The scene was majestic, with soldiers shouting in unison, drowning out the war drums and horns. Facai had never seen such a spectacular sight and forgot to curse.
The escorting soldiers, seeing his stunned look, felt triumphant. “Hurry up and move!” they shouted.
Facai retorted, “I’ll go, it’s nothing. My master’s master is a high-ranking official here. If he finds out you’ve bullied Facai, he’ll beat you all so badly your parents won’t recognize you.”
A soldier scoffed, “Who’s your master’s master? Tell me his name and I’ll believe you.”
“I’ll tell you something that’ll shock you. Listen up, punk. My master’s master is Huangfu Zedan, the head of Tianying Gate, a big shot in the military camp.” In truth, Facai had no idea about his master’s identity and never imagined the famous Prince of Chu was his master’s master.
“Never heard of him,” the soldier said dismissively. “There are many people with the surname Huangfu who want to claim relation to our Prince, but you need to prove you’re worthy.”
“I’m talking about that person. He’s my master’s master,” Facai pointed.
The soldier followed his gesture and was shocked.
Under the red sun, the most dazzling spot on the training ground was the flagpole with a golden-edged flag bearing the ancient character for “Huangfu”, proudly overlooking the elite troops.
Huangfu Zedan sat in full military attire on the reviewing platform, with his confidants Zhou Xun and Shang Hong beside him, surrounded by various officers and a hundred personal guards.
“Your master’s master is the Prince?” the soldier asked, stunned.
“Yes, those two beside him are my senior brother Zhou Xun and uncle Shang Hong,” Facai boasted, not caring whether his master was actually the Prince.
“Apologies, master Facai,” the soldier quickly untied him, familiar with Zhou Xun and Shang Hong’s reputations.
Facai’s position was conspicuous. Huangfu Zedan noticed him immediately and, frowning, told Zhou Xun to investigate why he was there.
Zhou Xun descended, spoke to Facai, and returned with a grave expression, reporting that the mistress had suffered severe burns and requesting an immediate return.
Huangfu Zedan’s expression changed. He handed the drill to General Qian Buren and rode away urgently.
Arriving home and rushing to the Conghang Pavilion, he asked Old Ten about the incident, demanding to know why they hadn’t protected the mistress.
Old Ten explained that the mistress was developing a new weapon when an explosion severely burned her. Huangfu Zedan criticized her recklessness, but Old Ten defended her, praising her intelligence and the potentially devastating nature of her invention.
Entering the bedroom, Huangfu Zedan found Ye Hui unconscious, her body showing signs of the explosion, with burns and blisters marking her skin.
Huangfu Zeduan’s heart was completely twisted, and he trembled as he reached out to lift the corner of the blanket. Seeing several blisters on his shoulder and arm, his heart ached with pain and urgency. He said to Doctor Zhou, “Do you have the confidence to treat this? If not, pack up and return to the capital immediately. We don’t need you here.”
Doctor Zhou hurriedly paid his respects: “This subordinate has given the empress a calming pill to help her sleep. I applied burn medication and honey externally to prevent infection and scarring. Fortunately, she covered her face early on, so her appearance won’t be damaged. Please be at ease, my lord.”
“But why is she still unconscious?” His wife’s injury made him unable to stop worrying.
“This subordinate saw that the empress was in too much pain, so I gave her a sleeping medication, hoping she would suffer less in her dreams. Later, she’ll drink a bowl of cooling tea to help expel the internal heat toxins. By the way, my lord, would you like some calming medicine? I feel the empress’s mood is not good, as if she’s been frightened.”
Huangfu Zeduan’s eyes narrowed, and he reprimanded, “What are you waiting for?”
“No need for calming medicine,” Mochi, who knew his master well, said: “The young lady wasn’t frightened, she… she’s just in too much pain.” He wanted to mention missing Secretary Qin but swallowed the words.
The Eleventh Prince deeply blamed himself: “It’s my fault that I harmed the empress. She had warned me that the gasoline tank must be handled with extreme care, but I didn’t pay attention.”
Huangfu Zeduan didn’t know the details, but now wasn’t the time to ask. He told two guards, “Go down and receive eighty lashes from Manager Lin. I’ll settle accounts with you later.”
“Yes, sir!” The two guards bowed and willingly went to receive the punishment. Especially the Eleventh Prince, who already felt guilty about his guard responsibilities, and now that he had caused her injury, he would gladly give his life if it would help her recover.
Ye Hui had not breastfed her child for almost a day and night, and her chest was so swollen she could barely breathe: “Husband, can you bring the child here?”
He was silent for a moment: “It’s better not to. You’re so injured, how can you have the energy to take care of him? Let’s wait a few days, okay?”
Ye Hui frowned and shook her head, pointing to her chest: “It’s swollen and painful here.”
Because she couldn’t be covered with a cotton quilt, he had someone heat the room and covered her with a white silk cloth. When she mentioned it, he lifted the silk and looked, seeing her two full breasts were extremely swollen, likely filled with so much milk that it was causing her great discomfort.
