Wei Lan woke as the light had just broken over the horizon. Luo Wei, still against him in his arms, remained fast asleep. Wei Lan gently set Luo Wei down and before he even dressed himself, he got out of the bed and pulled the covers over Luo Wei.
After he got dressed, Wei Lan left the bedroom. The courtyard outside was silent at this mont. The lanterns at the end of the hall was still lit. He walked down the hall and blew out the candles in each lantern, then lit the remnants of the fuel in the coal basin. After adding a bit more coal, he carried the embers in the basin and took it back to Luo Wei’s room to chase the chill out of the air inside.
When Wei Lan had finished adding the coal, Qi Zi walked in with a yawn, quietly greeting him, “Brother Wei.”
“The young master hasn’t woke yet,” Wei Lan quietly answered back.
“Was he still coughing yesterday?” Qi Zi asked.
Wei Lan shook his head. Luo Wei’s cough seed to have gotten better these last few nights.
“Looks like we can decrease the amount of herbs he’s taking again,” Qi Zi walked up to the bed and looked at the sleeping Luo Wei. Not coughing is a good thing.
Wei Lan walked over as well, and reached out to touch Luo Wei’s forehead. Not too warm and not too cold, just right.
“I’ll go get breakfast,” After making sure Luo Wei was alright, Qi Zi let himself relax a little and turned to Wei Lan, “Brother Wei, wait here for .”
Xiao Xiao ca in at this mont too, quietly as a mouse. He took the clothes Luo Wei changed out of yesterday to wash, then paused to ask Wei Lan, “Brother Wei, where’s your laundry? I can wash it all at once.”
Wei Lan quickly shook his head, “No need, I’ll do it myself.”
“I’m going to have to do the laundry anyway,” Xiao Xiao said, then picked up all the clothes that weren’t folded in the room, no matter if it was Luo Wei’s or Wei Lan’s, “You’re always keeping the young master company, it’s tiring enough, let take care of these little things for you.”
Wei Lan made a move to stop him, he really wasn’t accustod to having soone else do his laundry for him.
“The young master is waking up,” Xiao Xiao said suddenly, and in the ti that Wei Lan turned to check, Xiao Xiao escaped with the clothes.
Luo Wei turned over on the bed, and Wei Lan leaned in to check. When it seed that Luo Wei was still not up yet, he tucked the corners of the covers in under the youth. He rembered what the physicians had said, Luo Wei was not supposed to exposed to any cold.
Qi Zi arrived with the breakfast, both he and Wei Lan ate outside.
“I’ll go and brew the young master’s dicine later,” Qi Zi said while eating, “Those herbs sll bitter enough, the physician keeps saying the young master has no appetite. I’d have no appetite either if I had to drink this everyday.”
Wei Lan had the exact sa thought, but it’s no good if you don’t take dicine when you’re sick either. He can’t not believe in the imperial physician, after all.
Qi Zi kept dishing out his complaints about the physician. He’d already been sleepless for many tis thinking over the reasons why Luo Wei wasn’t eating. It seed that he finally figured out soone to bla it on last night, “Brother Wei, if the physician cos again today, I’ll talk to him about it, maybe beg him to give our young master so herbs that don’t taste as bitter. Say, do you think he’s just unable to prescribe anything not bitter?”
“dicines are always bitter,” Wei Lan didn’t think there was a single dicine on earth that wasn’t bitter.
“Then is there a dicine that isn’t as bitter?” Qi Zi asked Wei Lan.
Wei Lan shook his head, “I wouldn’t know.” If there was, he would also want to find it for Luo Wei.
“Then I’ll ask the physician today,” Qi Zi wasn’t ready to give up, “All that dicine he’s drinking everyday’s making him full, how could he even fit anything else in his stomach? You know, the young master used to love eating sticky rice cake, and I even bought so yesterday, but he turns around and tells that he didn’t like sweets! He’s really changed a lot.”
“The young master’s past…” Wei Lan stopped himself halfway.
“What about the young master’s past?” Qi Zi asked.
“Nothing,” Wei Lan decided not to ask any further. If Luo Wei wanted to tell him, he would, if he didn’t want to, Wei Lan didn’t need to know.
Luo Wei slept until ten in the morning before he got up. When he opened his eyes, the first thing he saw was Wei Lan guarding him by his bedside.
“Is the young master awake?” Wei Lan saw Luo Wei’s eyes open, and quickly rushed to grab his clothes.
“What ti is it?” Luo Wei laid still in his bed as he asked Wei Lan.
“Almost noon,” Wei Lan answered.
“Noon already,” Luo Wei wriggled and rolled under the covers a few tis. It was so warm, he almost couldn’t bear to get himself out of it.
Wei Lan had already arrived with his clothes, but seeing as how Luo Wei didn’t seem to want to get up, he said instead, “Should I go and bring the young master his al?”
“No need, I’m not hungry,” Luo Wei answered.
“You can’t just not eat,” Wei Lan heard that Luo Wei wasn’t hungry and imdiately started to worry over it.
“You’re frowning again,” Luo Wei peeked at Wei Lan, then laughed, “It’s not as if I’m going to starve myself to death.”
“Then I’ll bring you so ginseng soup,” Wei Lan said. He didn’t know what to do with Luo Wei.
When the overseer of the household had finished his lunch, he ca to Luo Wei’s part of the estate, which was already the third visit today. The sight that greeted him was Xiao Xiao sitting in the courtyard, looking dazed, “Has the young master gotten up?”
Xiao Xiao brought himself to attention and quickly answered, “Brother Wei is feeding him so ginseng soup.”
“He still has no appetite?”
“He said he wasn’t hungry.”
The overseer sighed. If the young master keeps this up, he might as well start cultivating himself to beco an immortal.
“Do you have sothing important to tell the young master?” Xiao Xiao stood, “He’s not up yet, but you can go and speak to him in the bedroom.”
Luo Wei had already finished his ginseng soup by now, and was resting on the bed with his eyes closed. He was still feeling drained.
“Young master,” The overseer called out from the outer chamber.
“Enter,” Luo Wei recognized the voice, and responded.
Wei Lan was about to stand up when Luo Wei held onto his hand and pressed down, “Sit.”
The overseer was already inside by this ti. He made no reaction to the sight of Wei Lan sitting on Luo Wei’s bedside, only making a gesture of respect to Luo Wei, “Young master, the mistress of the house wanted to co and see if you were awake.”
“Mother needs to see ?” Luo Wei asked.
The overseer answered, “The young master may be unaware, but last night, Consort Li gave birth to another prince. The chancellor and the second young master has gone to the palace in celebration. The emperor said that you were not feeling well, and ordered no one to disturb your rest.”
“They went to the palace last night? Then are they back yet?”
“Not yet.”
Luo Wei felt a mixture of emotions as he heard that Consort Li has given birth. In the past lifeti, Emperor Xing Wu only fathered nine princes in total. Even if he cherished Consort Li before, she’d never managed to give him a child. If it weren’t for Consort Liu losing favour by failing her plot to hurt the Empress in this lifeti, perhaps Consort LI wouldn’t have gotten pregnant in that ti. Consort Li, of clan Li of Chang Huai. This extra prince in this lifeti wasn’t soone that would be easy to deal with.
“Young master?” The overseer called out again as he saw Luo Wei lying on the bed, staring at the ceiling quietly.
“I understand.” Luo Wei finally responded, “You must have other matters to attend to, overseer.”
“Then, will the young master enter the palace as well?” The overseer asked.
“I probably wouldn’t be able to partake of the feast they’re putting on in the palace anyway,” Luo Wei answered, “I won’t head in today. Though I am going to head out later with Wei Lan and the rest of them, go inform my mother.”
“I shall,” The overseer got the response he was looking for, and excused himself.
“Are you really going to go to the Hu Guo Temple today?” Wei Lan asked.
“Mm,” Luo Wei sat up, “there are a few things I’d like to ask the Imperial Grand Master, a few things that I hope he could guide in.”
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