But suddenly, a sense of unease grew even stronger, and he abruptly said, “Come, someone... prepare a horse for me!”

……

William Bolton arrived at the The Bolton Family, and the The Bolton Family residence was truly grand.

Although Duke Rongguo James Bolton had died in battle, several of his sons—especially the eldest, David Bolton—were quickly put to important use by Emperor Yongle. Now, he already held a high position in court, and at such a young age had been appointed as Associate Commander-in-Chief of the Five Military Commissions.

However, William Bolton did not rush in, but instead cautiously had Michael Bolton go knock on the door first, to ask whether Henry Bolton's elder brother David Bolton was at home.

As for the reason... perhaps it was because his reputation wasn’t very good. According to the memories of his body’s original owner, whenever David Bolton saw him, he always wore a sour expression.

After a while, Michael Bolton returned, excitedly saying, “Young master, I asked—Philip Bolton is still on duty at the Military Commission.”

William Bolton let out a sigh of relief and nodded, “Alright, got it. You wait outside and keep watch.”

Michael Bolton replied energetically, “Young master, I understand.”

The master and servant seemed to have a tacit understanding.

William Bolton couldn’t help but wonder, could it be that the original William Bolton... was also like a rat crossing the street?

He slipped into the The Bolton Residence, following behind a servant, and sure enough, found Henry Bolton in the bedroom.

Henry Bolton had been carried back, lying on his stomach on the bedding, whimpering and howling for a long time. But when he realized that his grandmother and mother, upon hearing he’d been mischievous at school and punished by His Majesty, simply said he’d shamed his ancestors and ignored him, he stopped wailing.

For a while, Henry Bolton stopped crying out, only whimpering softly, sticking his butt out and not daring to move.

At this moment, William Bolton looked around, and seeing that no The Bolton Family relatives were present, he quickly ran in, saying, “I’m here, I’ve come to see you.”

As soon as Henry Bolton heard this, his body trembled. Unfortunately, this tremble pulled at his wounds, so he grimaced in pain and started whimpering again.

But Henry Bolton felt it was a pleasant surprise and said joyfully, “Big brother, you actually came.”

William Bolton came to the bedside, and seeing him lying in such a ‘strange’ position, couldn’t help but sigh, “Third brother, you’ve suffered. As soon as I saw you punished, I rushed home to find medicine for you.”

Upon hearing this, Henry Bolton's eyes filled with tears: “My grandmother and mother ignore me, only knowing how to scold me for being useless. When I was whipped this morning and saw big brother leave, I thought you didn’t care about me either. Who would have thought you’d still be worried about my injuries... Big brother, you really care about me, I...”

As he spoke, tears streamed down his face.

William Bolton looked at Henry Bolton sympathetically.

He might be a bit slow, but... he was genuine, someone you could get along with.

William Bolton took out his porcelain bottle and said, “Although these are just surface wounds, if they get infected, it could be serious. This is a miraculous medicine I found for you. Be sure to use it—just apply it to the affected area, understand?”

Henry Bolton looked deeply moved, nodding like a pecking chick: “Just seeing you makes me feel half better. I... I have no father, my elder brother is strict with me, only big brother treats me well.”

William Bolton: “……”

Henry Bolton added, “Second brother has no loyalty—still nowhere to be seen.”

William Bolton comforted him, “Your second brother is different. He was punished at school too. I’m afraid when he gets home, his father will beat him again. He’s probably getting a thrashing right now and can’t even take care of himself.”

After hearing this, Henry Bolton seemed to find it reasonable and broke into a smile through his tears: “Right, I almost forgot...”

William Bolton again reminded Henry Bolton to remember to use the medicine, saying some complicated things about inflammation and such.

But Henry Bolton just whimpered, and it was unclear if he remembered any of it.

William Bolton had no choice but to set the porcelain bottle with the medicine aside.

At that moment, two servants rushed in at the same time—one was Michael Bolton, the other was Henry Bolton's page boy.

They both said in unison, “Philip Bolton (eldest young master) is here...”

Henry Bolton was instantly annoyed and cursed, “So what if he’s here, why are you wailing? Ow, ow...”

William Bolton instinctively felt a surge of fear, as if... something ingrained in the old William Bolton was acting up. He blurted out, “Take care, brother, I’ll go ahead.”

Not daring to stay even a moment longer, William Bolton dashed out.

Leaving Henry Bolton with his mouth agape, even forgetting to whimper.

William Bolton didn’t want to run—he still wanted to maintain his glorious image as a man and an imperial relative.

But for some reason, his legs just wouldn’t obey.

David Bolton, in history, was a famous general of the Yongle era. Besides that, he had a terrible temper and hated evil with a passion.

So, William Bolton hurried out of Henry Bolton's bedroom, just about to make a run for it, when Henry Bolton's servant said, “You can’t go this way, our eldest young master is already in the front hall.”

“I’m not afraid of him,” William Bolton grumbled.

But as he said this, he headed for the side door. Unfortunately, this was the inner residence, and the so-called side door had been locked for years. Helpless, William Bolton had to find a low wall and climb over it to escape.