As one of the capital’s finest restaurants, Five Flavors House’s wine patrons all came from extraordinary backgrounds. To satisfy these distinguished guests, everything from cups and bowls to tables, chairs, and screens was exquisite and proper—the washrooms were no exception.

There were two washrooms for patrons to use. Each door hung a wooden plaque—when the plaque’s design faced outward it meant unoccupied, when the characters faced outward it meant occupied.

Yang Zhe and Han Baocheng went together. Seeing only one washroom was empty, they deferred to each other.

“Brother Yang, you go first.”

An embarrassed expression appeared on Yang Zhe’s fair face: “Brother Han should go first—I might need a bit more time.”

“Then I’ll go first.” Han Baocheng stopped declining and strode inside. He emerged shortly after. “Brother Yang, go quickly.”

“I’m going in then. Brother Han, go back first.” Leaving these words, Yang Zhe hurried inside.

Between two grown men using the washroom there was nothing much to wait for. Han Baocheng went up to the second floor, had an attendant stationed outside the private room serve him while washing his hands, then pushed the door open and entered.

The room was permeated with wine fragrance, the atmosphere in full swing.

“Brother Han, how come only you returned? Where’s Brother Yang?” Zhang Liangyu asked with a smile.

“Only one washroom was empty. I went first—he’ll be here soon.” Han Baocheng said casually as he walked over and plopped down.

With his return, exchanging barbs with Zhang Liangyu from time to time, the scene became even livelier.

After a while the door was pushed open again and Yang Zhe entered.

“Brother Yang, you’re finally back. No way—you must drink a penalty.” Zhang Liangyu called out.

Han Baocheng also joined in: “Penalty, penalty! I’ve already drunk several cups since coming back—you’ve dodged them all.”

Yang Zhe sat down and asked helplessly with a smile: “What’s the penalty?”

Zhang Liangyu’s cheeks were flushed with drink: “At least you should toast everyone one cup each.”

The Crown Prince smiled: “Don’t make things difficult for him.”

“Brother Yang, His Highness protects you so—he’s the one you should toast most.” The group laughed and joked.

Yang Zhe picked up the wine pot and first filled the Crown Prince’s cup, then poured himself full, raising the cup with both hands: “Your Highness, Zhe toasts you.”

The Crown Prince raised his cup to touch his, tilting his head back to drain it in one gulp.

Seeing this, the group called out their approval.

“Who will Brother Yang toast next?”

“I’ll start with Brother Han.” Yang Zhe didn’t push and pull over a few cups, but cheerfully toasted the entire circle.

After that came mutual toasting, no different from any drinking table scene when things got going.

Yang Zhe’s brow furrowed and he stood up again: “My apologies, I need to use the washroom again.”

“Go, go quickly.” Seeing his embarrassed expression, the group didn’t ask more questions, just smiled and waved their hands.

Yang Zhe cupped his fists and hurriedly pushed the door open to go downstairs.

Yang Zhe’s departure didn’t affect the liveliness inside. Han Baocheng and Zhang Liangyu began a finger-guessing game and pulled Wen Feng and Li Lan in.

“Your Highness, want to join in?” After winning, Han Baocheng asked the Crown Prince.

Though the Crown Prince was somewhat tempted, considering the guards stationed outside the door, he smiled and politely declined.

“You all play.” He toyed with his wine cup, his mood bright as the morning sun.

At this moment, he had the status of heir apparent, congenial friends, and a brilliant future ahead. That dim, drawn-out life of the past seemed as distant as events from a previous lifetime.

The Crown Prince’s lips curved in a smile as he watched the laughing group, when suddenly his expression stiffened and he clutched his chest, beginning to cough.

Hearing the coughing, the group looked over and were greatly alarmed.

“Your Highness, what’s wrong?”

The Crown Prince’s breathing was rapid, his face turning green. The hand clutching his collar showed bulging veins from excessive force.

“Cough, cough, cough.”

After a violent coughing fit, blood wound its way out from the Crown Prince’s mouth and nose.

“Your Highness!”

“Someone come quickly!”

The group was scared out of their wits, cups and saucers falling to the floor.

The door was violently kicked open. The guards stationed outside rushed in. Seeing the Crown Prince with a greenish face collapsed in Wen Feng’s arms, they all drew their long sabers, pointing them at the group.

“Save His Highness first!” Han Baocheng shouted hoarsely with a choke.

“What happened?” A mild voice came from outside the door. Seeing the situation inside, his expression changed. “Your Highness—”

A guard held his saber horizontally, grabbed Yang Zhe and shoved him toward Han Baocheng and the others: “Nobody move.”

His voice was ice-cold, yet couldn’t conceal his panic.

If anything happened to the Crown Prince, not one of them charged with close protection would survive.

“Cough—” The Crown Prince coughed again. His throat seemed blocked, his breathing growing more and more rapid, more and more difficult.

“Your Highness, Your Highness, please hold on—the physician will be here shortly!” The group incoherently tried to comfort him.

The Crown Prince’s gaze fixed intently ahead, yet didn’t actually focus anywhere. His face was twisted in agony.

Pain and suffocation left him unable to think, only the instinct to struggle remaining.

“Your Highness!” Someone cried out in panic—unclear who.

The Crown Prince’s head lolled powerlessly to one side. He showed no response.

“Your Highness, Your Highness!”

This commotion spread downstairs. The patrons drinking in the main hall all stood, looking up toward the stairs and quietly speculating.

“A’Shuo, it seems like the Crown Prince is having trouble upstairs.” Lin Hao stood beside Qi Shuo, speaking in a low voice.

As a seasonal delicacy, Five Flavors House’s crab-stuffed oranges naturally couldn’t be missed. Lin Hao and Qi Shuo had also arranged to come sample this delicacy—they hadn’t expected trouble to break out before the dishes even arrived.

“The physician has come!” With a shout, a guard charged in from outside carrying an old man with a medicine box on his back, racing upstairs.

“Changning, get the restaurant attendants to guard the shop entrance—don’t let these patrons leave for now.” Qi Shuo instructed the servant in a low voice.

Changning hastily complied.

“Let’s go up and look.” Qi Shuo said this to Lin Hao and lifted his foot toward the stairs.

Palace guards blocked the second-floor stairway entrance. The restaurant manager gripped the stair railing with his whole body gone soft, already scared witless.

Unlike the patrons in the main hall below who were still speculating, he knew all too clearly who had met with trouble upstairs.

It was the Prince of Wei who came every year at this time to eat crab-stuffed oranges—now the Crown Prince!

What exactly had happened to the Crown Prince?

The manager craned his neck with all his might but could only see tall backs one after another.

Qi Shuo walked past the manager with Lin Hao.

The guard stationed at the second-floor stairway entrance recognized him: “Heir?”

“Has something happened to His Highness? I’ve come to see if help is needed.”

“The Heir should wait in the main hall for now.” With the Crown Prince in trouble, anyone could be a suspect. The guard naturally wouldn’t let anyone up, even the Crown Prince’s cousin.

Blocked by the guard, Qi Shuo said no more, nodded, and turned back downstairs.

“I wonder if the Crown Prince is alright.” Lin Hao’s voice was very low, worry on her face.

Regarding the Prince of Wei becoming Crown Prince, she was pleased to see it—at least he was a hundred times better than the deposed Crown Prince. If something happened to the Crown Prince, chaos would erupt again.

Qi Shuo’s brows drew together slightly, his heart not optimistic.

Just then a disturbance broke out at the entrance.

“We came to drink wine. We’ve finished—on what grounds won’t you let us leave?”

“A noble personage has met with trouble. For now no one can leave—please understand.”

The person making noise had clearly drunk too much. He shoved the attendant who was trying to reason with him: “What does that have to do with me? Get out of my way!”

He took a step forward and was kicked back by someone who hurried in from outside.