“Uncle Xia Hou, please rest assured. I was very careful when I came here, and no one discovered me.” As Xia Houduan relaxed, Li Shimin continued, “I imagine when we arrived at Xuanjing Observatory today, the person Master Wang was meeting was Uncle Xia Hou, wasn’t it?”

Xia Houduan replied, “That’s correct. As soon as I received word from Guard Duan, I knew something terrible was afoot. Wang Yuanzhi is a world-renowned Taoist priest, skilled in fortune-telling and physiognomy. For His Majesty to visit Xuanjing Observatory at this time was definitely not a momentary whim – it must have concerned Your Highness. Therefore, I rushed to arrive at Xuanjing Observatory before you did.”

Li Shimin said gravely, “Although Father dismissed me when he was playing chess with Master Wang, preventing me from hearing their conversation, judging by Father’s expression when we descended the mountain, the matter should have turned out favorably for me, correct?”

“Indeed. Wang Yuanzhi told His Majesty the same thing I did – that Your Highness has lost your imperial aura due to excessive killing. Being distant from the court and having an established reputation, his words carry much more weight than mine. His Majesty should no longer harbor suspicions about you.”

Upon hearing this, Li Shimin immediately bowed deeply in gratitude. “Uncle Xia Hou’s kindness is truly beyond what Shimin can repay!”

Xia Houduan quickly helped him up, saying, “Your Highness is too kind. You have fought bloodily for the Great Tang, disregarding your own safety. How could I bear to see you suffer harm without cause?”

Li Shimin smiled bitterly. “Uncle Xia Hou keeps me in his thoughts and considers me in all things, yet Father… based on mere fortune-telling and physiognomy, he regards me with suspicion everywhere. It truly chills the heart. Since Mother passed away, Father and Elder Brother have been the people closest to me. In the past, I never imagined they would treat me this way.” At this point, he sighed deeply. “Sometimes I wonder if things might have been better if we had never rebelled against the Sui eight years ago, never seized the realm.”

Today, the Li clan sits atop the realm, enjoying incomparable honor and glory. Yet while savoring all worldly riches, the once-deep familial bonds between them have become extraordinarily fragile, even vulnerable to collapse.

“From the moment His Majesty ascended to that position in Taiji Hall, everything changed and can never return to how it was before. Your Highness must understand this.”

Li Shimin took a deep breath and nodded. “I understand. It’s just that I occasionally feel some regret.” After a brief pause, he asked with some curiosity, “Speaking of which, how did Uncle Xia Hou persuade Wang Yuanzhi? From what I know, this person has a rather arrogant temperament and rarely gives face to others.”

Xia Houduan stroked his beard with some pride. “He may not give face to others, but he cannot refuse to give me face.” Seeing Li Shimin’s puzzled expression, he revealed the answer: “He and I both come from the Zhongnan Mountain school – I am his senior brother!”

Li Shimin looked completely astonished, never imagining that two seemingly unrelated people could have such a relationship. This time, his narrow escape from danger was truly thanks to Xia Houduan.

Seeing his dazed expression, Xia Houduan couldn’t help but laugh. “Quite surprising, isn’t it? Very few people know about this matter. It’s precisely because no one knows that my junior brother’s words before His Majesty carried such weight.”

Li Shimin came to his senses and nodded. “It truly is surprising. Although when I had Zhihong notify you, I anticipated that Uncle Xia Hou would guess the meaning and rush to Xuanjing Observatory ahead of us, I had no confidence whatsoever in whether you could persuade Master Wang. Who would have thought that after such a roundabout way, you’re still fellow disciples!”

Xia Houduan laughed heartily. “Perhaps in the mysterious workings of fate, Heaven is protecting Your Highness. If His Majesty had chosen someone else to consult today, I would have been completely helpless.” At this point, he spoke earnestly: “Although this matter has been concealed for now and His Majesty won’t take action against Your Highness in the short term, Your Highness should still be extra careful. After all, there are still the Crown Prince and Prince of Qi. Who knows what other incidents might arise.”

Li Shimin nodded. “I understand. Thank you for the reminder, Uncle Xia Hou.” As he prepared to leave, he suddenly stopped and turned back with a complex expression. “Uncle Xia Hou, am I… truly destined by Heaven?”

Xia Houduan met his gaze and replied, “The Mandate of Heaven has always been with Your Highness and has never changed. It only depends on whether Your Highness chooses to follow Heaven’s will!”

Li Shimin said nothing more and silently left the Xia Hou mansion. Over the following days, Chang’an remained peaceful, and Li Yuan made no moves. It seemed he truly believed Wang Yuanzhi’s words and accepted that Li Shimin had lost his imperial aura and would pose no threat to Li Jiancheng’s throne.

On July 22nd, Li Yuanji’s birthday, Li Shimin prepared a sword as a congratulatory gift. Though it didn’t match the Zhanlu sword he had given Li Jiancheng years ago, it was still an extraordinary piece. Li Yuanji loved it dearly, playing with it for quite a while before having someone take it away. As for Li Jiancheng, his gift was even more valuable – an estate with several hundred acres of farmland.

The three sat together and talked for a while. Then the steward of Prince of Qi’s mansion came in to report that dinner had been prepared in the side hall. Li Yuanji stood up and said, “Elder Brother, Second Brother, let’s go. Tonight we won’t return until we’re drunk.”

Arriving at the side hall, Li Yuanji personally filled the wine cups for Li Shimin and Li Jiancheng, raising his cup and saying, “Come, let’s drink this cup first!”

“Good!” After draining the cup of slightly harsh wine in one gulp, Li Shimin said with some emotion, “I remember the last time we drank together was seven years ago, when Father had just ascended the throne.”

Li Jiancheng nodded. “I remember too. That day, we drank a great deal. In the blink of an eye, seven years have passed – how quickly time flies! In these seven years, we’ve never found another opportunity to drink and talk together.”

Li Yuanji jerked his chin toward Li Shimin. “If Elder Brother wants to blame someone, blame Second Brother.”

Li Shimin was startled, then laughed. “How did the blame suddenly fall on me?”

“All these years, Second Brother has been constantly campaigning east and west, spending more than half of each year away from Chang’an. How could we possibly find him to drink with us?”

Hearing this, Li Jiancheng couldn’t help but laugh. “That’s right, that’s right. We should blame Shimin. How about we make him drink three cups as punishment?”

Li Yuanji shook his head. “Second Brother has a good capacity for alcohol. A mere three cups isn’t nearly enough – at least thirty cups would be about right.”

Li Shimin said with a mixture of laughter and tears, “Are you deliberately trying to get me drunk? With your wine, if I really drank thirty cups, I’d probably be unconscious for several days.”

“Second Brother has killed countless enemies over the years. Surely you’re not afraid of a mere thirty cups of wine?” Before Li Shimin could respond, Li Yuanji had already ordered servants to bring exactly thirty wine cups. After filling them all, the previously full wine jar was empty.

“Second Brother, it’s up to you now.” Faced with Li Yuanji’s challenge, Li Shimin smiled bitterly. “I truly cannot drink this many cups. Ten cups – ten cups is my limit!”