Chapter 159 The Emperor of Woodblock Comic Strips...

Emperor Hongren not only wrote a secret letter, but after much deliberation, he also sent a trusted envoy and an old imperial physician skilled in poisons to follow them.

That old bastard Dai Xiyu is a master of trickery and deceit; we need a mature and steady person to keep things under control in the shadows.

"Zhao Fuman, you go and investigate too." Regarding the unusual activity in the palace, Emperor Hongren gave a calm order, "Go secretly, don't worry about anyone. Report back to me as soon as you find out."

The investigation was conducted discreetly to avoid alerting the enemy.

He disregarded everyone; his heart was hardened. If it involved the potential instability of the throne transfer… he couldn't stand any of his beloved concubines or sons. The Qi family's empire had to be passed down safely, and his reputation had to be flawless!

Therefore, he will wait and observe the truth at that time.

If the two sons are truly suitable, even if it was his first wife who secretly orchestrated it, Emperor Hongren would be ruthless enough to punish them. If not…

Emperor Hongren coldly weighed the options in his mind; he had already made his plans.

Once the second prince's poison has been cured, he will be ordered to return to the capital to quickly assess the younger prince's abilities. If he is capable, then he should be trained for a few years as soon as possible, before Master Mu completely retires...

After all, Emperor Hongren was not young anymore. Given that his father and grandfather were both of short lifespan, this was his biggest worry.

From childhood to adulthood, he had never paid any attention to this child he disliked.

Who knew the other party would give him such a big surprise.

Emperor Hongren was now filled with impatience, like a skilled craftsman eager to carve a stubborn stone. Although his two sons had done things that impressed him greatly, he was determined to see for himself whether they were qualified crown princes and suitable to hand over the country.

"Go," he said in a deep voice, suppressing his anticipation, and waved the crowd away.

That day, Emperor Hongren went to his private treasury alone, gazing intently at a painting for a while: "..."

It seemed as if it was reminiscing about something.

...

Half a month later.

Dai Xiyu received an urgent secret letter from the palace, which put her mind at ease.

It's not that I'm at peace; it's that my heart has finally died.

...His Majesty really wanted him to find out the truth about Prince Rui's poisoning!

Dai Xiyu had already stopped when he discovered the connection to the palace. Even a fool could guess that getting involved in the succession struggle and princely disputes was a death sentence. It would turn his already limited options for survival into a dead end.

Imagine, he's already offended the powerful Prince Rui. If he goes along with him, he might offend other princes. What will happen after His Majesty passes away? He's still young. Does that mean he can't live his life?

Now that His Majesty has given his approval, he has no choice but to investigate...

With such a deadpan expression, Dai Xiyu had no choice but to climb over the wall one night to reach the cell where Xiao Tao was being held.

It's fortunate that they all live in the east wing; otherwise, it would be much more difficult to get close to them.

"That's great, luckily we had to wait for His Majesty's order a while ago... I heard that when the Prince was first poisoned, the defenses here were particularly tight." One of the guards said in a relieved whisper.

As a result, the defenses on the east side of the courtyard have become increasingly lax, and they don't need to do much; they can simply quietly bypass the two dozing imperial guards at the entrance.

"Hurry, time is of the essence. You—go and interrogate her." Dai Xiyu pointed to a guard who was said to have some experience in interrogation.

We need to pry open the mouth of that palace maid named Xiao Tao and find out what the person in the White House who instructed her looks like, so that we can follow the clues and find out more.

The other guard, however, looked worried. His companion, sensing something was amiss, nudged him and asked, "...What's wrong?"

"I'm thinking about Prince Rui's poison." The guard slowly fell to the back, not daring to let Eunuch Dai in front hear what he said, pretending that he was just too curious. "His Majesty only ordered us to investigate the truth, but what should we do about the poison that the prince suffered?"

The guard didn't think much of it, treating this business trip as a mission, and said in a businesslike manner, "Don't worry, His Majesty will definitely have a way. Prince Rui is, after all, a prince and grandson of the emperor... who can ignore him when he's inexplicably poisoned?"

The guard choked.

That's the logic.

But that doesn't mean it can be saved. With such a careless attitude... what if something goes wrong sometime, or the poisoning further damages his health?

The guards were extremely anxious.

But he knew there was no way to continue the discussion, so he could only hide his worry, shrug, and laugh, "I was stupid."

That same evening, Qi Chengming listened to Youzi's report in the main courtyard: "...the two brothers who are best at acting are guarding the door, so they will definitely not give anything away."

"Don't be so absolute in your statements," Qi Chengming retorted reflexively, his sensitive nerves being touched.

Never plant a flag in your actions or conduct!

"...?" Youzi looked puzzled, but after thinking about it, he realized that this made sense. He knelt on the ground, reflecting on his actions with remorse, "Yes, it was my fault for being too careless."

Youzi usually doesn't have as much contact with His Highness as Commander Mao, so he was surprised to find His Highness so serious. He's usually a carefree and jovial person—except when he's on a reconnaissance mission. Now, he couldn't help but tighten his skin.

Xiao Dezi and Xiao Chengzi exchanged a strange glance.

They assumed it was just His Highness's unusual behavior due to being poisoned and feeling depressed.

Although the virus seems to be under control, who doesn't feel uncomfortable when they are sick?

Xiao Chengzi gestured to Xiao Dezi with his eyes: 'What should we do? Should His Highness go for a walk?'

Xiao Dezi returned the troubled look: 'How can someone severely poisoned go out? All this acting has been for nothing.'

But Your Highness might say this is something you've been holding back.

The two personal eunuchs exchanged glances, trying to come up with a solution.

Not long after the New Year, Liuzhou Academy was on holiday, and Hu Hong and the other students had time to get together and have fun, but their prince was unable to go out.

Now that things have come to this...

Only one person was chosen.

The next morning, after a brief hint from Eunuch De, Bai Xuan hurriedly came to the Prince's residence to visit the ailing prince.

In the North, there's a saying, "A wife, children, and a warm bed," and although this is the South, Bai Xuan's clingy nature made him particularly suited to staying home doing nothing, and he thoroughly enjoyed it for a while. Of course, he wasn't foolish enough to sever ties with the Prince's Mansion.

Unlike before, when he would report to the prince every single day, his focus inevitably shifted to his family during his wife's pregnancy and childbirth.

Now, his secret has been exposed, with people saying that the prince has been poisoned and is hiding it in his residence, which is very frustrating.

Bai Xuan was startled and immediately rushed to the door.

He was already in a state of seeking favor with the prince, and the prince had helped him a lot on the day of his safe delivery, so he was too grateful to even think about it.

"Master Bai." Manager Liu, who was in charge of receiving guests, greeted him politely, his gaze falling on the food box Bai Xuan was carrying, and he asked with some surprise, "This is...?"

“I heard that Your Highness has not had a good appetite lately, so I brought some inexpensive side dishes—this is tender willow leaves mixed with tofu, and this is steamed yellow croaker, both are rustic and delicious,” Bai Xuan said.

In early spring, we eat cheap vegetables because wild vegetables are the most delicious at this time of year.

Bai Xuan couldn't openly admit that he knew the prince was suffering from poisoning and couldn't eat, so he could only pretend to be innocent.

River delicacies should not be given to patients indiscriminately, which proves that he was unaware of the situation.

Steward Liu glanced at the dish, then asked him to wait in the flower hall, his smile undiminished. Everyone in the Prince's mansion understood each other without saying a word.

Qi Chengming received the message and came over, both amused and exasperated: "What did you say... Bai Xuan brought two dishes with him?"

Did Bai Xuan really think he wasn't getting enough to eat while acting?

To fake his poisoning, Qi Chengming did indeed eat much less at every meal, but his system space already contained some scattered rewards he had obtained while traveling. These included instant noodles, Coca-Cola, cream bread, taro tarts, and even a terrifyingly large KFC family bucket.

These are all junk foods with little off-flavor; Qi Chengming deliberately avoided selecting instant noodles, hot pot, or similar reserve foods.

...and then we ate to our hearts' content.

The best part is that you get to eat it all by yourself, making it even more enjoyable.

Xiao Dezi and Xiao Chengzi assumed that someone was secretly delivering meals each time, so they would tacitly avoid it, only pretending to offer some persuasion when His Highness's food arrived:

"We haven't brought in enough food today... Your Highness, please eat more." "This won't do, the dishes haven't been touched much..."

Bai Xuan still brought his dishes to the flower hall.

Qi Chengming genuinely believed Bai Xuan had come to visit him in his illness; he was even eager to try the willow leaf-stirred tofu dish, imagining it to be incredibly fresh and tender. But Bai Xuan, as if presenting a treasure, pulled out a strange new object:

“Your Highness, look—this is what’s popular in Jiangnan right now. I bought it to cheer you up.”

This is the real killer weapon he brought today.

Qi Chengming took a closer look and discovered that it was actually a woodblock print comic book with a very advanced aesthetic and design.

The lifelike comic books are exquisite, but when were they invented? Did they exist in ancient times?

Qi Chengming was both surprised and delighted.

Before he transmigrated, he had found some old, tattered comic books when he was a child. They were all incredibly beautiful, and the stories were captivating. Later, as he grew up and times changed, those things faded from his memory.

"This is the latest version—the story of a poor boy who becomes the top scholar and bravely fights against the evil salt merchants in his hometown." Bai Xuan had obviously already read it, and he spoke of it with great enthusiasm and knowledge.

Qi Chengming admitted that the gift truly touched his heart, and he was very interested in it.

He opened it and the contents seemed somewhat familiar...

"Was this made by people from Jiangnan?" Qi Chengming looked at the background information, which showed salt merchants and local customs, all of which had a strong regional flavor.

"Yes, it started as an anonymous book, but later the woodblock-printed comic books somehow became a huge hit. Everyone liked this kind of illustrated storybook..." Bai Xuan's keen business sense kicked in again. "It's a pity we don't know the names of the people behind it. They're quite capable, though, but we can't find out no matter what we try..."

"You'd better not get involved." The more Qi Chengming flipped through the pages, the more familiar the thing seemed. He warned, "Did this become famous in Yangzhou?"

"Your Highness, you guessed so accurately!" Bai Xuan raised his eyebrows in disbelief, praising him in surprise.

Qi Chengming remained silent.

A poor boy, a top scholar, battling a salt merchant in Jiangnan. Add to that some subtle descriptions in the story…

Others might not know.

But having read the original story, he immediately thought of Xie Zhongyun, the salt commissioner of Yangzhou.

He was also an outstanding minister who had a side story in the original book.

He had secretly run away from his fiefdom to recruit them, but he had to turn back halfway because of the harassment from his scoundrel brothers, the Third Prince or the Seventh Prince...

Thinking about this fruitless attempt, Qi Chengming became envious of Lord Xie, whom he wanted to recruit.

So what's the current status of these woodblock prints?

Qi Chengming pondered for a while, then decided to call the caravan members over to investigate the specifics.

—In any case, this is related to Lord Xie.

He keenly realized that another opportunity for him to intervene had come!