Chen Yun turned to look at him. The expression of someone who has just surfaced from a waterfall and encountered an unexpected problem.
"They're in real pain in there," he continued, with the concerned tone of a physician noting a patient's condition. "The binding edge is pressing at the second rib from this angle. That's—that has to be uncomfortable. Couldn't you be 'merciful,'" he said to the binding specifically, "and give them some room? They're clearly trying to—"
"'Shut up,'" Chen Yun said.
The princess, who had been wringing water from her sleeve with the focused attention of a person who was absolutely not processing what was happening three feet to her left, looked up at the shout.
"What happened," she said.
"Nothing," Chen Yun said.
