Taizong waved his hand indicating the maidservant to fill their cups with plum honeyed wine. Thereafter, another gesture, and the maidservant bowed then scurried away.
Taizong exchanged glances with Shufeng; and suddenly stretched out a hand and held his shoulder, the contact causing the latter to writhe a little on the wobbly stool.
Shufeng's brow twitched, really surprised at the hesitant and sad expression on his brother's face. "I fear father is like a lamp that has used its oil."
Shufeng gasped a lungful of air. "I have known for some time of his ill-health." He blinked away the sudden stinging in his eyes. He hadn't cried for his father since he was a little boy and he wasn't about to now... All his tears were purely for his mother.
But, if his father wasn't long for this world, it might be too late then for hopes of building a strong filial bond. And this thought suddenly hit him with great sadness.
