Not long after Mu Xueshi entered the courtyard, he heard a burst of crying coming from the direction of the Third Prince’s chambers. The closer he came to the chambers, the clearer the crying became. At first, Mu Xueshi did not realize who it was, but after listening carefully for a few moments, he understood who that pleasant-sounding cry belonged to.
After dismounting, Mu Xueshi hurried toward Qingyun Palace. Halfway there, he saw a tiny little figure sitting beneath a tree, hugging several branches and crying in utter misery. Beside him were maids so anxious they were spinning in circles. When they saw Mu Xueshi walking over, a bit of life finally returned to their worried faces.
“Young Master Xue, please go and take a look. The little master has been crying all afternoon.”
Mu Xueshi’s heart tightened, and he quickly walked toward Su Ying.
Su Ying sat beneath the tree, his two little arms hugging his legs as he tilted his face upward and wailed loudly. All around him were all sorts of little toys, but he turned a blind eye to them all and only clutched those few branches tightly.
“Su Ying, Uncle is back.”
Su Ying had probably cried too much. He wanted to see who was in front of him, but his eyes were so swollen he could not open them. Only after Mu Xueshi picked him up did Su Ying’s crying gradually quiet down.
“Uncle,” Su Ying called out to Mu Xueshi between sobs.
Mu Xueshi immediately felt a little distressed and quickly held Su Ying in his arms, carefully coaxing him. Those few branches were the ones Mu Xueshi had played with in front of Su Ying yesterday. Today, Su Ying thought Mu Xueshi had abandoned him and left, so he had clung tightly to those branches and refused to let go.
“What time did he wake up?”
“Noon.”
“He’s been crying ever since he woke up?”
“Mm, yes.”
Mu Xueshi immediately sighed, then carried Su Ying into the room. After a long bout of coaxing and comforting, he finally managed to make Su Ying stop crying completely.
As Mu Xueshi fed Su Ying something to eat, he pondered the things he had said to the Third Prince on the road earlier. As he thought and thought, he suddenly realized the Third Prince was gone, so he quickly got up and walked outside.
Su Ying also followed behind Mu Xueshi like a little tail, stretching his neck to peer ahead.
“Where is the Third Prince?” Mu Xueshi asked Qingzhu.
Qingzhu said sweetly and innocently, “His Highness went out. Did Young Master Xue not see?”
The moment Mu Xueshi heard the words “went out,” his head felt as if it had exploded, and all the blood in his body began flowing backward.
“Went out! He went out and didn’t even tell me?”
Qingzhu, however, defended the Third Prince. “After Young Master Xue entered the courtyard just now, you only cared about holding Su Ying. His Highness was standing to the side, and he even got jealous. When His Highness left just now, his expression looked very bad, and he did speak to Young Master Xue. Young Master Xue simply didn’t hear him.”
“Is that so?” Mu Xueshi revealed a doubtful look.
If he were going to see Yu’er, could his expression really have been bad? In Mu Xueshi’s impression, every time the Third Prince returned from seeing Yu’er, his expression never seemed poor.
“What is it? Could Young Master Xue be afraid His Highness went to see that, um… that Noble Consort Yu?” Qingzhu covered her mouth with a handkerchief and laughed.
Mu Xueshi was like a cat whose tail had been stepped on. Panic instantly rose in his heart, though his expression still tried hard to conceal his nervousness.
“Of course not. He can go see whoever he wants. I have confidence in myself. No one can steal my person away.”
“Wow, Young Master Xue is amazing.” The servants nearby all clapped along with Qingzhu.
Mu Xueshi’s heart, however, became even more tangled. What was all this? Now it felt as if he had a love rival, when the Third Prince was clearly his. Yet somehow, it had turned into a competition. Even worse, every time he encountered matters involving the Third Prince and someone else, he had never once had confidence in himself. No matter how calm he looked on the surface, in his heart, he had already lost half a step first.
What should he do? What should he do? Mu Xueshi paced in circles on the spot.
Su Ying also followed behind Mu Xueshi and spun in circles with him.
That was it! Inspiration suddenly flashed through Mu Xueshi’s mind, and he quickly plunged back into the room.
“Uncle, what are you looking for?” Su Ying tilted his little head up and looked at Mu Xueshi.
Mu Xueshi answered Su Ying carelessly, not even knowing what he had said. He rummaged through boxes and cabinets in the room until his forehead was covered in sweat, yet he still could not find what he was looking for.
“Uncle, what are you looking for?” Su Ying repeated.
Mu Xueshi stood in place, panting, and said to Su Ying, “The silver coin. It’s a round, shiny thing.”
“Is it this?” Su Ying opened his little hand and tried hard to stretch it in front of Mu Xueshi.
Mu Xueshi’s eyes instantly lit up, and he reached out at once. In the end, not only did he fail to get the silver coin, Su Ying ran off with it.
“I’m not giving it to you.” Su Ying giggled at the doorway.
Mu Xueshi gritted his teeth, narrowed his eyes, and threatened Su Ying, “Are you giving it to me or not?”
“No.” Su Ying shook his little head like a rattle-drum.
Two sharp gleams instantly flashed from Mu Xueshi’s narrowed eyes. The sound of grinding teeth came from between his tightly pressed lips. Then his thin lips parted slightly, and he said with calm composure, “If you still don’t hand it over… believe it or not… I’ll go tell your Third Imperial Uncle.”
Upon hearing this, the silver coin in Su Ying’s hand immediately turned into a hot potato and was swiftly thrown onto the ground.
The Third Prince’s authority really was greater, Mu Xueshi could not help sighing inwardly. He quickly picked up the silver coin from the ground, tucked it into his sleeve, and began plotting sneakily.
Although doing this was a little despicable, if I don’t say anything and Su Ying doesn’t understand, who would know what I’ve done?
Thinking this, Mu Xueshi circulated his energy and opened his palm. He stared fixedly at the silver coin in his hand and began muttering in a jumble.
Futile Devices Scans 
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