ebookland Chapter 671 Someone is plotting to murder me (1 chapter)
Chapter 671 Someone is plotting to murder me (1 chapter)
"Master, the one from Zhongcui Palace is actually personally teaching Xunmei. I suspect she will introduce her to the Emperor soon. What preparations should we make?"
An Lingrong continued threading the needle and spoke in a low voice.
"The Emperor's men are taking turns watching over Zhongcui Palace. We shouldn't act rashly at this time."
"I heard that the emperor seems to be suffering from a heat stroke. Please ask Concubine Rou from Changchun Palace to send some heat-clearing soup over."
"Yes, I will send someone to inform them right away."
Not only did Concubine Rou bring soup, she also sang beautifully and melodiously, which pleased the emperor so much that he summoned her to the Yangxin Palace to accompany him for three consecutive days.
However, a palace maid in Zhongcui Palace accidentally broke two vases. Concubine Hua did not tolerate it and directly ordered Songzhi to go to Zhen Huan's house to ask for compensation.
Concubine Hua had good reasons and Zhen Huan gritted her teeth and took out the silver.
Concubine Hua clapped her hands and laughed with glee.
"Lingrong, you don't know, Concubine Zhen's face turned green at that time."
"Come and see the silver I recovered for the Emperor. There are quite a few small notes and change."
Songzhi quickly presented the tray in her hand to An Lingrong.
With just a casual glance, she could see the financial difficulties of Zhongcui Palace.
"Sister Nian, have you calmed down a little?"
The smile on Concubine Hua's face disappeared and she shook her head bitterly.
"I will never forget my brother's death. Actually, I understand she simply saw through the intentions of the person who wanted to attack the Nian family, so she came forward to offer advice. But as a sister... I have no place to avenge myself, so I can only make her, an accomplice, unhappy."
An Lingrong walked up to her, put her arm around her shoulders, and whispered in her ear.
"Sister Nian, it's almost time, just wait a little longer."
Concubine Hua leaned her head on An Lingrong's shoulder, her voice choked with sobs.
"Lingrong, I believe you. I want to see..."
The following words just lingered on her tongue but were never spoken.
An Lingrong gently patted her back, giving her silent comfort.
The emperor suffered a loss in the affairs of the Nian family, and in the past few years, the Nian family's nephews and nieces have been tortured at the border and have made no progress.
She understood the anxiety in Concubine Hua's heart.
After seeing off the unhappy Concubine Hua, An Lingrong, who had nothing to do, saw a strong wind blowing outside the palace.
She personally brought the rabbit into the main hall and fed it with fresh white cabbage leaves. The rabbit, which had been wilting at first, became lively again.
"Bao Que, the carrots are delicious this season. Bring some back from the kitchen tomorrow to feed Jade Rabbit."
"Master, the Emperor likes to cook carrots with minced meat. If we use it to feed the Jade Rabbit, it will inevitably get out..."
Baoque learned a lot about the emperor from her brother, and she was afraid that her master would accidentally offend someone.
"You're right. Let's use the carrot peels to feed the Jade Rabbit."
The rabbits were taken care of promptly by palace servants, and spices were sprinkled in the cages, so there was no particularly strong smell for the time being.
An Lingrong left the rabbit in the main hall and picked up a book to read leisurely.
As the emperor approached, he saw a petite woman leaning on a couch reading a book. In the cage below the couch was a rabbit with its mouth moving constantly.
"Is this the rabbit Hongxia gave you?"
"I give you..."
Before An Lingrong could stand up, she was pushed back by the emperor.
"I came here to take a break. You don't need to be restrained."
"I would like to thank you, Your Majesty."
An Lingrong did not get up from the couch, but she placed the book on the small table and personally placed two soft pillows on the couch on the other side.
"Your Majesty, please sit down and rest for a while."
After the emperor sat down, he glanced around casually.
"Rong'er, have you been reading short stories lately?"
"Your Majesty, I received a rabbit from Hongxia. Zhaohua and Anle saw how adorable it was and vied with each other to name it Jade Rabbit."
"I heard that the Jade Rabbit was the fairy rabbit that accompanied the fairy Chang'e in the Moon Palace, so I sent someone to find a book that recorded it."
An Lingrong looked expectantly at the person holding the book.
"Your Majesty, I heard from Concubine Jing that you are well-read. Could you please enlighten me?"
"Royal Consort, you are so bold that you actually treat me as a storyteller."
The emperor patted An Lingrong's hand lightly, with a smile still on his face.
An Lingrong held his hand in return and spoke softly and coquettishly.
"Your Majesty, have you forgotten that you promised me that you would help me solve my problems?"
"Last time you didn't tell me about Cao Mengde, why don't you even tell me about a rabbit this time?"
The emperor exerted force and easily pulled An Lingrong over.
He held the man in his arms.
"Don't move, I'll tell you right away."
"Some legends say that Chang'e swallowed an elixir... and the Rabbit Fairy's youngest daughter was chosen and sent to the Moon Palace to accompany Chang'e."
An Lingrong handed the teacup to the emperor's mouth with a smile on her face.
"Your Majesty, the Jade Rabbit can accompany the Fairy Chang'e for a long time. Do you think this rabbit I raise can accompany me for a longer time?"
"I see that you are still a small rabbit, but you can still eat and drink. You look like you will live a long life."
The emperor likes dogs and there is a special kennel in the palace.
He also became interested in the snow-white rabbit. He accompanied An Lingrong in feeding the rabbit and even picked it up to look at it.
The sharp-eyed An Lingrong saw the emperor's hand wipe the rabbit's mouth. She smiled, lowered her head, and advised softly.
"Your Majesty, the Jade Rabbit has been eating non-stop, so it must be hungry now."
An Lingrong took the rabbit and patiently put it into the cage.
The next day, before dawn, she got out of bed as soon as she heard Su Peisheng's call.
"Your Majesty, I will help you get up."
"Okay, I'll trouble you, Rong'er."
The emperor opened his arms in cooperation.
Before leaving, he reminded her that she was feeling cold and to put a charcoal brazier in the house as soon as possible.
An Lingrong took a look at the rabbit curled up in the cage and stuffed a piece of white cabbage and some carrot peels into it.
The rabbit's mouth didn't move as fast as yesterday. She reached out and touched it twice, then returned to her bedroom.
Su Peisheng also talked about this to the emperor on his way out of court.
"The jade rabbit raised by the Imperial Concubine is really adorable. I even fed it several cabbages this morning."
"The children raised by the Imperial Concubine are well-behaved and obedient, so naturally the rabbits she raises are the same."
The emperor still remembers the touch of the jade rabbit's fur last night, which was different from Baifu's. It was indeed adorable.
"Su Peisheng, ask the Ministry of Internal Affairs to make two sets of clothes for Yutu and send them over."
In his spare time, he once drew clothes for Baifu, and he thought Yutu could use them too.
Su Peisheng agreed happily.
The master is always thinking about the Imperial Concubine, and this is exactly what he hopes for.
Su Peisheng was muttering about the Jade Rabbit in the emperor's ear. After the emperor finished dealing with the memorials, he went to Yongshou Palace again.
As soon as he walked into the yard, An Lingrong rushed over and shouted in horror.
"Your Majesty, someone is trying to murder me!"
The emperor kicked his hind legs and steadily absorbed the impact of An Lingrong's rush. He hugged her and looked her up and down with a concerned look.
"Rong'er, what happened? With me here, no one can hurt you in the slightest."
An Lingrong had tears in her eyes. She grabbed the emperor's clothes in fear, her voice trembling.
"Your Majesty, my Jade Rabbit...it's gone silent. I woke up during a break to check on it, only to find it lying motionless in its cage, black blood oozing from the corner of its mouth. It looked like it had been poisoned."
"The children have grown up and have their own plans, so I've become more concerned about this Jade Rabbit. Today, I changed the Jade Rabbit's cage, fed it, and gave it water. I personally did all of this."
An Lingrong's eyes became even redder. "Your Majesty, I suspect someone must have done this on purpose."
"I have been in the palace for ten years and have always been kind to everyone. Who on earth can't stand me and insists on attacking the Jade Rabbit? Your Majesty, this time it's not the Jade Rabbit that's gone, but maybe next time..."
"The one who could attack Jade Rabbit quietly in Yongshou Palace is definitely not an ordinary person. I beg Your Majesty to find the person hiding in the dark with malicious intent."
After hearing An Lingrong's crying, the emperor's face changed drastically.
"Don't be afraid, Rong'er. I will definitely make the decision for you."
Since the person in the dark could poison the heavily guarded Yongshou Palace, wouldn't he be able to come and go freely in the harem and the princes' residence?
The emperor embraced the frightened An Lingrong and walked towards the main hall, giving stern orders to Su Peisheng behind him.
"Su Peisheng, you must immediately take people to investigate this matter thoroughly."
He wanted to see who was so bold as to poison Yongshou Palace.
No matter who it is, they must rescue the person and punish him severely!
Su Peisheng quickly agreed and hid the carrots behind him to prevent the Imperial Noble Consort from being saddened by them.
When he came over, he was followed by six young eunuchs and four guards.
The first thing Su Peisheng did was to find out who had come into contact with Yutu.
As time passed, beads of sweat appeared on his forehead. After asking around, he found that only the Imperial Concubine and himself had come into contact with the Jade Rabbit.
The Imperial Concubine took care of every detail of the Jade Rabbit and even took care of it personally.
And I just fed it a few pieces of cabbage.
Su Peisheng's first reaction was that someone disliked him and wanted to bring him down.
He trotted into the main hall and knelt down in front of his two masters with a plop.
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty, I have questioned all the servants in Yongshou Palace, and no one has come into contact with the Jade Rabbit today."
"We also checked the cabbage and carrot peels the Jade Rabbit was eating, and everything was normal."
"Your Highness, I fed Jade Rabbit a few cabbages this morning, but I have absolutely no ill intentions. Please understand!"
An Lingrong didn't expect that the third person to come into contact with Jade Rabbit was Su Peisheng.
She gently wiped the corners of her eyes with a handkerchief and answered in a hoarse voice.
"Eunuch Su, you have served the Emperor for so many years, so I trust you. You meant well, so there is no need to panic."
After An Lingrong finished speaking, she looked at the person holding her hand with red eyes.
"Your Majesty, even Eunuch Su hasn't found anything abnormal. How can I rest assured?"
"If anyone has done anything to the children, or even to you...I beg the Emperor to thoroughly investigate this matter!"
"Rong'er, don't worry, I will definitely investigate this matter thoroughly."
The emperor took one look at the rabbit with black blood on the corner of its mouth, his face dark as water.
"Su Peisheng, please send someone to invite a royal physician."
The palace maids serving in Yongshou Palace could not find out anything here, so they could only start by finding the poison that the Jade Rabbit had been infected with.
Su Peisheng directly sent someone to invite Wei Lin. On his way, the young eunuch hurriedly told him what had happened in Yongshou Palace.
Wei Lin was quick-witted and he quickly thought of what the Imperial Noble Concubine had said about preventing the Emperor from taking the elixir.
As soon as he arrived at Yongshou Palace and paid his respects, he took the stiff rabbit to the small room.
Baoque was worried and followed him in.
"Doctor Wei, the Jade Rabbit only used white cabbage and carrot peels today. Everyone in the palace knows that the Empress has recently raised a Jade Rabbit... Please find the clues as soon as possible."
Bao Que spoke with a serious face and reached out to touch the soft fur of the Jade Rabbit. She flipped her hand and a note appeared in her palm.
Wei Lin quickly wrote down the names above and was stunned when he saw the last one.
Those warlocks are really bold.
He cursed countless inappropriate words in his heart.
Wei Lin had a way of checking poison. He first inserted a thin silver needle into the rabbit's body, then pulled it out, and it instantly turned black.
After confirming that the Jade Rabbit had died of poisoning, they collected its blood and cut its meat to feed the few little rabbits they had brought with them.
After being busy for half an hour, he organized his words in his mind and stepped into the main hall again.
"Reporting to the Emperor and the Imperial Concubine, the Jade Rabbit did die of poisoning. However, my humble knowledge is limited. I can only identify that the poison contains cinnabar, sulfur, saltpeter, and..."
The emperor's heart skipped a beat when Wei Lin told him what the poison contained.
He has always been cautious, and it seems that these are the materials that the sorcerer used to make the elixir for him.
As soon as Wei Lin stopped talking, the emperor had a bad feeling.
He demanded sharply.
"Wei Lin, why don't you continue and tell me if you have found any important clues?"
Wei Lin kowtowed respectfully to the two people sitting there.
"Your Majesty, I have discovered something that is truly difficult to understand, and the taste... is truly difficult to describe."
The more he did this, the more the emperor wanted to know.
A sharp gaze swept over Su Peisheng, and he spoke quickly.
"Doctor Wei, the Jade Rabbit's poisoning has far-reaching consequences. Please don't hide anything."
Wei Lin took a deep breath and slowly uttered the word "aphrodisiac".
The emperor was so shocked by these two words that every time he took the elixir made by the sorcerer, his heart would surge, his body would become hot, and he would feel full of energy.
If the sorcerer added aphrodisiacs to the elixir, wouldn’t that correspond to the results Wei Lin found on the Jade Rabbit?
Just now, when Su Peisheng was kneeling and begging for mercy, the emperor remembered that the imperial concubine was worried last night that Jade Rabbit could not accompany her for long. He was moved by her sorrow at that time, so he took advantage of her inattention to feed Jade Rabbit a hard-earned pill.
The emperor had wanted to take credit for the achievement to the imperial concubine many years later, but he did not expect that the rabbit would die after just one night.
Su Peisheng checked the people in Yongshou Palace and found that no one except himself and the Imperial Concubine got close to the Jade Rabbit.
A huge panic arose in the emperor's heart. Was the rabbit poisoned by the elixir?
If the little rabbit died from a small pill, wouldn't it be the same for me who had been taking it for several years...
The emperor's expression changed, and it took him a long time to calm down.
He patted An Lingrong's hand gently and comforted her in a deep voice.
"Rong'er, I will send someone to investigate Yutu's death. From now on, all your food will be tested for poison, so you can relax."