13. Withdrawn

"Chen Yan, your family did not make it. They had died before you were brought here. The physicians weren't sure if you would even make it but here you are in less than a day.", Li Zicheng explains to him.

"How..." Yue Yan tried to ask but as if on cue, the memories started to pour in. He remembered all everything from yesterday.

He remembers that he was still conscious when his family were planning on what to do with their lifeless bodies.

All the other three in the room were quietly observing him, waiting for his reaction to the bad news.

After what looked like an eternity, Yue Yan got up from his seat and wobbled his way out of the room without saying anything.

"And where are you off to?", Li Zicheng who had followed him out the door with the other two in toll asked with concern in his tone.

"To see my family.", Yue Yan anwered still in a daze from the shocking news.

"And you know where they are?", Li Yunfeng asked him with raised eyebrows.

"I think you should still rest and get better first before we take you to see them. Their bodies have been deposited into the mortuary.", Xu Bao said as he helped the now staggering Chen Yan back to the room he's been given there.

"I don't think he is himself.", Shi Benyou said as he joined the two brothers just as Xu Bao was taking the dazed Chen Yan to his room.

"Your Highness.", both brothers greeted the crown Prince at the same time after he made his presence known.

"Your Highness, it's almost dark now. Would you be staying over so I prepare..." Yunfeng was cut off

"No. I'll be leaving." Prince Benyou said and turned to Li Zicheng,

"I'll leave him in your care. Update me on everything that happens. I'll turn in an official notice of leave for you so don't come to the capital yet till things calmed down here.

With the left Prime minister watching my every move, I don't think I would be coming here much. Send a message to me when you have something urgent to report.", Prince Benyou paused for about five seconds and continued,

"Do not spare any expenses in taking care of him with whatever he might need. Try not to overwhelm him with too much information. There would be more time for that later.

Also help him with the burial of his family. And watch out. You know what I mean.", he whispered the last part into Li Zicheng's ear and left after waving both siblings goodbyes.

"I think I should take him to my place.", Xu Bao told the two brothers as they entered the room.

"Why? What is wrong with him staying here?", Li Zicheng asked.

"He is usually alone here because everyone is always occupied with something, attending to their own business which is understandable.

Since this place is a guild and it's expected to be that busy and noisy, it could hinder his mental healing.

He needs to be at a place that's peaceful and where someone would solely focus on him. I can do that if he were at my place. That way, I can take care of both him and my mama together.

It will reduce the stress of having go to and fro that I have been doing each day now. I can be around for him and my mama every time as compared to him being here. Please.", Xu Bao explained.

"See him now.", Xu Bao pointed to Chen Yan who was now sitting on the floor at a corner of the room with his knees folded in the front, head against the corner wall and his arms wrapped around himself.

"I don't know anything about him but at least I can tell that he is not himself mentally. Before you came in, he was quite aggressive when I tried to get him off the floor to lie on the bed.

He pulls back whenever I take a step further towards him.", Xu Bao reported, shocking the two brothers with this new development.

"What? Since when? Wasn't he just outside and you brought him in less than ten minutes ago? How come?" Li Zicheng was quite perplexed.

"He may be right, elder brother. Maybe you did not know this because you were not closer to him but the same thing happened when his parents died.", Li Yunfeng said.

"At that time, we were only teenagers. Mama and dad had stopped you from playing with us because like every parent, they said you are a may and so you shouldn't play with Hems at that age.

Prince Benyou was the only may who still played with us because he was so obsessed with Chen Yan though this fool was the only one who was still unware of that.", Li Yunfeng said with a sad smile.

"Chen Yan closed himself up when his parents passed away. He was withdrawn from everyone and everything. He even bit the crown Prince at one time when he tried to feed him. That period was so draining for all of us then.", Yunfeng recounted.

"So how did he come out of it?", Li Zicheng asked. "I meant what did you guys do to help him get back to the way he was?".

"Nothing specifically. We tried a number of things and when that did not work, we just let him be. The only thing we did was that we still spent time by his side and we would all be chatting and talking about how our days went, who had pissed us and every other gossip there was until one day we realised he didn't pull away when we got closer to him anymore.

From then on, little by little he started coming around until one day he talked. We were all really surprised but very happy as well.

He started with asking small questions about the things we told him and before we knew it, he was up and about.

All of us then were so happy but Prince Benyou was the loudest in the jubilations. I sometimes feel very bad for the Prince.

He too has gone through so much because of Chen Yan but Chen has never returned his feelings. Tsk. Anyway that's what happened." Li Yunfeng said.

Sighed. "So now what do we do? Should we hire some people to be chatting around him like you guys did?", Li Zicheng asked with genuine concern.

"I don't think that's necessary. I can take him to my place. Mama and I can keep him company.?" Xu Bao offered again.

"That will be great. I'll cover every expense and give you wages as well.", Li Zicheng added.