On the eighth day of the eleventh lunar month, snowflakes began to flutter again.
Li Jingyun spent her days in the imperial city sleeping after eating and eating after waking up. Sometimes she would chat with Sister Mingda or practice calligraphy. Her life was extremely dull.
Today, she finally got a chance. Eunuch Feng told her that her third, fifth, and sixth elder brothers were having a drinking session and asked if she wanted to join in the fun.
She thought to herself that something was amiss. The third and sixth elder brothers were full - blooded brothers, and the third elder brother always took good care of the sixth. It was normal for them to drink together, but what about the fifth elder brother? How did they get together?
Out of curiosity about this amazing combination, Li Jingyun decided to go and take a look.
"Feng Feng, how did my fifth elder brother end up there? Weren't they always at odds?" Li Jingyun asked Eunuch Feng on the way there by carriage.
Eunuch Feng forced a smile. "Princess, if you're asking me, who can I ask? How can I fathom the relationships among the princes?"
"This is so absurd. It's like the sun is rising from the west." Li Jingyun leaned against the soft pillow, yawned, and held a cup of milk tea. How could this stuff be so delicious? How could she never get tired of it no matter how much she drank?
Man Jing guessed, "Could it be that Shi An arranged this? I noticed that His Highness the King of Qi values him quite a lot."
"That's possible, but who cares? It's a good thing anyway." Li Jingyun sipped her milk tea, smiling sweeter than the milk tea itself.
She had heard her father and mother complain many times about how the fifth elder brother was always out of the group and how his mouth was too venomous, and how they should discipline him. Shi An was like a magic pill.
Wasn't the situation much better now? The fifth elder brother could even have a meal with his elder brothers.
At the mansion of the sixth elder brother, Li Yin, as soon as the young servant at the gate saw Li Jingyun getting off the carriage, he quickly stepped forward with a beaming face. "I was wondering why I kept hearing magpies chirping. It turns out that Princess Chengyang is here! Please come in quickly. It's windy outside. Don't catch a cold."
Before entering the door, Li Jingyun paused for a moment. Magpies chirping? Were there still magpies at this time of the year?
Never mind. Let's get to the point.
"My three elder brothers are having a meal here? I've come to see what delicious food they're having." Li Jingyun said with a charming smile. "Please lead the way quickly and take me there."
"Yes, Princess." The young servant responded and walked in front.
This mansion was bestowed upon them at the same time as Li Jingyun's. They were similar in size and decoration, and the scenery in the courtyards was almost identical. However, there were so many rooms that no one knew which room Li Yin had chosen for the meal today. So someone had to lead the way.
Speaking of which, more than half a year had passed since they were bestowed these mansions. Li Mingda's mansion had hardly been lived in and had been empty all the time. Li Jingyun only stayed there occasionally, while Li Yin lived in his mansion every day.
As they walked past the pavilions and towers, they could hear the continuous sound of music, which was extremely pleasant. There were also people singing.
Li Jingyun became even more interested. Her elder brothers really knew how to enjoy themselves.
Stopping in front of the door of the Changhe Hall, Li Jingyun pushed the door open and walked in. "Elder brothers! What are you eating? Let me take a look!"
"Hey, it's freezing outside. How did you come out?" Li Yin put down his chopsticks and quickly walked over. He held Li Jingyun's hands and felt even more heart - ache when he saw her nose red from the cold.
"I came to have a look. It's so boring to be cooped up in those halls in the imperial city all the time."
Li Jingyun smiled brightly and looked around. There were three tables, and only the fifth and sixth elder brothers were there. She wondered where the third elder brother had gone. The dancing girls were dancing gracefully, the music was melodious, the charcoal was burning slowly, and the room was filled with the smell of wine and delicious food. It was as warm as spring and made people feel intoxicated.
"Come on. Your third elder brother has gone to the next room to sober up. Sit in his seat and taste the cooking skills of the chef in my mansion."
Li You also stood up and pulled Li Jingyun towards Li Ke's seat.
"No, no. I have to go and see my third elder brother."
Li Jingyun's heart skipped a beat. The voice of the immortal master rang in her ear: Hurry to the side room to find Li Ke. Something's wrong with him.
She darted over in a flash.
Whenever the immortal master mentioned her relatives to her, no matter who it was, it was never a good thing.
"What's going on?" Seeing Li Jingyun's anxious expression, the other two, whose brains were now numb from alcohol, finally realized that something was wrong.
The three of them walked into the side room together. Li Ke was lying quietly on the bed. There was only a young eunuch around, who was also unconscious on the long chair. The windows and the door were tightly closed.
Li Jingyun didn't care about anything else. She quickly asked someone to carry Li Ke out and move him to an empty room opposite. That room was quite cold.
"Go and call a doctor quickly!" Li Yin's mood for the meal instantly plummeted. He pointed at the door and shouted.
Li Ke's sudden accident left them all in a panic.
At this moment, the voice of the system rang in Li Jingyun's ear: Let Li Ke lie on his side, untie his collar to ensure smooth breathing, and add a thin quilt to prevent him from getting frostbitten...
Li Jingyun did as she was told one by one. Finally, the doctor arrived. After feeling Li Ke's pulse, the doctor said, "Fortunately, it was discovered in time. His Highness the King of Wu will wake up soon. I'll prescribe two more medicinal formulas for him to drink, and then he'll be fine."
The young eunuch was also carried over and placed in another room. Eunuch Feng watched how Li Jingyun did it, and then did the same for the young eunuch. The young eunuch was not poisoned deeply and soon regained consciousness.
As for Li Ke, he woke up after the doctor arrived.
Li Ke looked at his younger brothers and sisters beside his bed and an unfamiliar old doctor with a confused look on his face. But why was it so cold? This didn't seem to be the place where they had just had the meal.
"Third elder brother, how do you feel now? Do you feel uncomfortable anywhere?" Li Yin asked anxiously. "You don't know. If it weren't for Hong Xuan looking for you, we wouldn't have found you suffering from carbon monoxide poisoning in the side room. You were on the verge of death."
"I'm okay. I just feel dizzy." Li Ke coughed twice and sat up straight. "Could you please give me another quilt? It's so cold here."
"Coming, coming!" The maid in Li Yin's mansion brought a newly made quilt and wrapped Li Ke up like a zongzi.
Li Jingyun let out a long sigh of relief. There were cold sweats on her forehead. What a scary thing this was!
"Fortunately, nothing serious happened. Otherwise, we would all be in big trouble." Li You felt the same way. He had a feeling of having survived a disaster.
He was getting along better and better with his brothers now, and they were becoming more and more like a family.
If Concubine Yin saw this, she would be so angry. She had spent so much effort to raise her son to be hostile to the Li family, but now he was easily changed back by a young eunuch.
Li Shimin and Empress Zhangsun would only say that after all, blood was thicker than water. They were brothers, and this was how it should be.
The young eunuch staggered over and knelt in front of Li Ke's bed, crying loudly. "Your Highness the King of Qi, this servant failed to watch over you. We almost had a big accident. It's this servant's fault. Please forgive this servant!"
"Stop crying. Your crying is giving me a headache. I'm not dead yet, so what's the hurry to cry?" Although Li Ke was weak, his power was still there. After just a few words, the young eunuch immediately dared not say anything more and didn't even dare to cry loudly. "No one is going to blame you. Go down."
"Yes. Thank you, Your Highness the King of Qi, for sparing this servant's life."