He was already drawing his soft sword, pointing it directly at Zhou Hu and the other man. Facing a Prince Xiao with a weapon and profound inner energy while fighting bare-handed, the two were clearly no match.
The soft sword, vibrated by the inner force and feeling as hard as steel in Xiao Wangye’s grip, allowed him to even use his free hand to fend them off. He pushed them back repeatedly. Even after they fell off the stage, Xiao Wangye didn’t stop. The sword was mere millimeters from piercing Zhou Hu’s throat, a sure death.
Ye Qingcheng shouted, trying to halt his actions, “Xiao Wangye! Stop!”
Xiao Wangye looked towards the source of the sound as if a person startled from their sleep, murmuring, “Qingcheng, is that Qingcheng?”
The soft sword returned to its original position, but it still grazed Zhou Hu’s neck, leaving a shallow scratch. It wasn’t deep, but it looked unnerving.
“Zhou Hu!” Le Hu rushed through the crowd, his voice choked with tears as he reached his side. “Are you alright? Don’t touch it with your hands yet, let me stop the bleeding first.” He was clearly terrified.
Zhou Hu touched Le Hu’s face, looking at him tenderly, “Don’t worry, it’s not a deep wound.” Le Hu’s heart finally settled after he examined the wound.
Meanwhile, on the stage, Xiao Wangye’s soft sword was snatched away by Ye Qingcheng, who had rushed onto the stage. His expression was one of unprecedented confusion, as if his soul had been lost. He resembled a dusty machine, just activated by a kind soul.
“Xiao Wangye, what’s wrong?” Ye Qingcheng asked uncertainly.
“I don’t know, what is happening to me? In that moment, my body wasn’t under my control. My mind only had one voice telling me to…” The unspoken words were clear.
Ye Qingcheng had never seen Xiao Wangye like this – lost, bewildered, like a child who had made a mistake.
Zhou Hu, holding Le Hu’s hand, walked over and asked with concern, “Your Highness, are you alright?” Deng Dahu and a few generals also stepped forward, worriedly inquiring, “Little Doctor Ye, what’s wrong with His Highness?” It was obvious to everyone that His Highness had been acting strangely just now.
“We don’t know the situation yet. Let’s have him return to his tent for a thorough examination.”
One general was left to manage the situation, while the others accompanied His Highness to his tent. The soldiers below, though somewhat suspicious, were quickly placated by the general’s official explanation.
“Everyone, please do not worry. The competition between His Highness and the generals was a friendly match. What happened just now was merely a bad habit of martial arts practitioners, a moment of impulse, just impulse.”
The soldiers below nodded, asking no further questions. At the same time, a soldier standing far from the competition stage revealed a triumphant smile.
Inside the tent, Ye Qingcheng was taking Xiao Wangye’s pulse. Zhou Hu and several other generals waited anxiously for the results.
“San San, do you know the reason?”
“Host, I really don’t know. The original work’s description of this part isn’t very detailed; it’s almost a passing mention. I can show it to you.” With that, it projected the content of the original novel describing this event into Ye Qingcheng’s memory.
The book stated that several generals observing the situation, seeing that something was wrong, rushed forward to stop Xiao Wangye. However, due to the sharp sword and the inner energy it carried, three generals were injured. They were not fatal, but they required seven days of healing.
“He truly looked like a patient suffering from a mental breakdown, exceptionally frantic, in that state just now.”
“But we can’t investigate his entire ancestry, can we?” San San asked doubtfully.
“Yes, and in this world, another possibility is a problem with the cultivation of internal energy techniques.”
After all, Xiao Wangye’s body was more robust than that of ordinary people.
“Little Doctor Ye, what happened to His Highness?” Zhou Hu asked worriedly, looking at Ye Qingcheng’s unusually serious expression.
Ye Qingcheng snapped back to attention, “Ah, yes. His body is perfectly fine. His muscles are well-developed.”
Le Hu inwardly felt a bead of sweat, still joking at a time like this. Xiao Wangye also rolled his eyes inwardly, calling her a shameless woman.
The surrounding generals also felt a bead of sweat, truly worthy of being the Consort.
“I didn’t ask you to talk about such things,” Xiao Wangye’s voice carried a hint of gritted teeth.
“Actually, I really haven’t found any problems with your body. As for the situation just now, excluding physical reasons, I can only attribute it to the cultivation technique you’ve been practicing.”
Ye Qingcheng’s statement enlightened everyone present. Xiao Wangye’s internal energy cultivation technique was a long-lost martial arts secret manual, its name long forgotten. However, it was rumored that anyone who practiced this technique did not live long.
The generals exchanged glances. None of them offered any explanation for this technique; perhaps they dared not. After all, it seemed the Consort was unaware of the matter concerning the technique, and it would be better for the couple to explain it themselves.
“Well, since His Highness’s body is fine, we’ll leave now. Hahaha, Master Ye, please take good care of His Highness.” They nudged each other and walked out.
Strange, why did no one explain the reason for this to me?
“Hey, you still haven’t told me about this technique,” Ye Qingcheng called out hastily from behind them.
“His Highness will tell you this himself,” Zhou Hu’s loud voice replied.
“Xiao Wangye, tell me, does this technique have any dangers?” Her voice carried a seriousness it usually lacked.
Xiao Wangye looked into her eyes, which were filled with worry and seriousness. Should he tell her? Should he tell her about his own affairs?
Ultimately, he followed his heart and told Ye Qingcheng everything, including things Zhou Hu and the others didn’t know. The dangers of the technique had been explained to him by Doctor Wen when he was only ten years old.
“Yer, I truly don’t want you to take this path. Can we give up this technique? I can’t guarantee if this technique will have other accompanying symptoms.” His master gently stroked his face, speaking kindly, his tone filled with concern and obstruction.
“Master, Yer understands your worries. I promise I will take care of you in your old age, alright?” The young Xiao Wangye, already reaching his master’s chest, said this with the naive innocence unique to youth, which was both amusing and touching.
After hearing his explanation, Ye Qingcheng felt a pang of bitterness. “Do you know the reason why you still do it?”
“At that time, Master stayed by my side at my mother’s dying wish. To secure his heir’s position, the former Emperor naturally had to remove anyone who might pose a threat. Master only requested to join the military camp then. Otherwise, with his abilities, the head of the Imperial Hospital would have long been his.”
Xiao Wangye spoke of the past events in an exceptionally calm tone. The hardships behind them were immeasurable.
Heaven seemed to enjoy piling suffering onto those who already had nothing, as if only then could they have a unique life.