amulet

"Oh dear, this servant greets Lord Wei." Guang Jinfu greeted Wei Qiao, but his face showed annoyance. He and Wei Qiao were old acquaintances, so he didn't try to hide it.

Recalling Xichun's panicked appearance just now, and seeing Guang Jinfu in such a state, Wei Qiao felt that something bad must have happened to Xichun.

"Why does Eunuch Guang look so troubled?" Wei Qiao asked, feigning concern.

"Sigh." Guang Jinfu sighed heavily, then looked around to make sure no one was there before saying, "There's a palace maid named Yuping in Yuanhe Hall who was poisoned to death. It's making people uneasy every day."

Guang Jinfu remembered that he still needed to ask his master for advice on how to handle this matter, so he said, "Lord Wei, I still have to deal with this matter, so I'll take my leave now."

Wei Qiao nodded to him, "Please proceed, sir."

After leaving the Yuanhe Hall, Wei Qiao walked to the duty hall of the Dragon Feather Guard. Upon seeing Wei Qiao, Commander Zhang Wan handed him the list of guards for Yuanhe Hall for March. Remembering Guang Jinfu's words, Wei Qiao glanced at the list and said to Zhang Wan, "I heard you had a son a couple of days ago. I, your superior, haven't had a chance to congratulate you yet. This month, you don't need to lead the guards at Yuanhe Hall; I'll take over. You should go home and spend time with your child and family."

Hearing Wei Qiao's words, Zhang Gao thanked him gratefully. Guarding the Yuanhe Hall at night was a tough job, usually led by commanders like himself. The commander and deputy commander only needed to stay in the duty room and didn't need to go out on night patrols; in case of emergency, someone would inform them. This time, it was supposed to be his turn to lead the night watch for a month, but Wei Qiao was willing to take his place, allowing him to go home and be with his beloved son—a truly wonderful thing for Zhang Gao.

After Zhang Wan left, Wei Qiao summoned Pang Lian, his trusted confidant in the Dragon Feather Guard.

"A palace maid died in the Yuanhe Hall today. Go and find out what happened."

Pang Lian accepted the order and left, while Wei Qiao returned to the duty hall to review the Ministry of Justice's files. Two more murder cases related to the Prince Cheng's residence had occurred in the outskirts of the capital. Although the Prince Cheng's family was obstructing the investigation, he had gradually gathered solid evidence, and only needed further confirmation before a verdict could be reached.

Meanwhile, after Xichun met with Michide, she told him in detail about Yuping's death, and Guangjinfu also relayed what he had seen at the scene to Michide.

“Alright, I understand. I will report this to the Emperor later,” Miched said to the two.

"What do you need to report to me about? Why are you being so mysterious?" Yan Zhongyou's voice suddenly rang out behind the three of them.

Yan Zhongyou was eating the tribute tangerines from the south in the imperial study, thinking that Michide loved them and he was going to reward him with some. But when he turned around, he found that Michide was not in the room. He went out of the imperial study and saw the three of them talking quietly in the corridor.

After Michide finished reporting, Yan Zhongyou angrily said, "What kind of poisoning tricks have you come to use in my Yuanhe Palace? If you dare to poison a palace maid today, will you poison me tomorrow? Michide, you must investigate thoroughly and see who dares to do such a thing under my very nose."

“Yes, ma’am,” Miched replied.

Yan Zhongyou then looked at Xichun, who was bowing her head to the side, and said softly, "You can't live in that room anymore. I'll have Guangjinfu arrange a new room for you."

Xi Chun forced a smile and said, "This servant thanks Your Majesty."

Xi Chun was assigned a room in the east wing of the Yuanhe Hall by Guang Jinfu. Returning to her original quarters to pack her belongings, she discovered that Yu Ping's body had already been moved. The room had been cleaned, and all of Yu Ping's belongings were gone, as if she had never existed there. The memory of Yu Ping warmly helping her pack on her first day in the palace flashed before her eyes, but Yu Ping was no longer there.

Xichun sat on the edge of Yuping's bed and broke down in tears. She realized that Yuping had actually died in her place. Guangjinfu said that the bowl of rose cheese was originally intended for her.

Perhaps it was Shi Hai, or perhaps someone else, who wanted her dead. She was innocently implicated by Yu Ping. If Yu Ping hadn't brought back that bowl of rose cheese for her, perhaps none of this would have happened, and Yu Ping could still be alive and well.

Michide, fearing Xichun wouldn't be able to find her way, specifically sent Guangjinfu to accompany her to her new residence. Before Guangjinfu even reached the door, he heard Xichun's cries. She cried without any attempt to hide her grief, her voice filled with sorrow and desolation. Even Guangjinfu's usually hardened heart was slightly moved. However, in the palace, human life was cheap; he had entered the palace at the age of eight and had witnessed too much of this to be unfamiliar.

When they reached the doorway, Guang Jinfu's face had already put on a smiling expression: "Miss Xichun, your master sent me to help you move."

Upon hearing voices, Xichun stopped crying. Looking up, she saw Guang Jinfu. She took out a handkerchief, wiped away her tears quickly, stood up, and bowed to him, saying, "Eunuch Guang."

Seeing that her eyes were red and swollen from crying, and that she looked like a heartbroken rabbit, Guang Jinfu joked, "You cried so loudly, I could hear you from the other end of the corridor."

Hearing him say that, Xi Chun felt a little embarrassed. She looked down at her shoes and then looked up after a while. "Eunuch Guang, do you know where Yu Ping's family is? I have some silver here that I would like to ask you to pass on to her family for me." After Xi Chun finished speaking, she took out a purse from her bundle and handed it to Guang Jinfu. Inside was ten taels of silver that Zhang Yunyao had given her on the day she entered the palace.

Guang Jinfu took the purse, weighed it in his hand, and thought to himself that Xichun, this silly girl, was quite generous. He smiled and said, "Alright, I'll give it to her family for you. Let's go, let's move your things over first. We have to go serve the Emperor, we don't have time to deal with your affairs." After saying that, he went out and called in the two eunuchs who had come with him to help Xichun move her things.

Xichun lived alone in the new house. Miqide, understanding that she had been frightened, allowed her to go back to work in two days. After tidying up the house, she stayed in it.

Two days later, Xichun went back to work at the Imperial Study, and by then the investigation results of Yuping's death had also been released.

Miched said to her, "Xichun, Yuping's death was just an accident. The newly transferred imperial chef originally wanted to send you a bowl of rose cheese to curry favor with you, but at the time, someone in the kitchen was cooking with aconite, and the kitchen was in a mess. A few pieces of aconite accidentally fell into the soup, which is why Yuping was poisoned and died after eating that bowl of cheese. The imperial chef and palace servants involved have been dealt with according to palace rules. This matter has nothing to do with you, so there is no need to blame yourself for Yuping's death."

Xi Chun was somewhat skeptical of Michide's statement, but she couldn't quite put her finger on what was wrong. She nodded, "I understand, thank you, Eunuch Mi."

Inside the Jingcui Palace, Shi Hai was helping Consort Xian with her makeup. Consort Xian had dismissed the other palace servants, leaving only the two of them in the bedchamber. Shi Hai carefully used snail-shell ink to draw Consort Xian's eyebrows, saying, "I must thank Your Highness for the matter at Yuanhe Palace."

Consort Xian pouted, dissatisfied, and said, "I told you long ago that if you're going to do something, you should do it cleanly. You didn't handle things well this time, and you almost dragged yourself into it. If I hadn't threatened that imperial chef's family with their lives and made him confess, I don't know how this matter would have ended up. Don't make any more moves at Yuanhe Palace recently. Since she hasn't jumped out to bite you, we don't need to get rid of her immediately. Let her live."

Shi Hai examined his drawn eyebrows, tossed the eyebrow pencil back into the box, walked behind Consort Xian, hugged her, and rested his head on her shoulder. He said softly, "This servant will obey Your Highness. Thanks to Your Highness's love, this servant is willing to serve Your Highness for the rest of my life."

Before entering the palace, Shi Hai had no fondness for Zhang Lining. He wouldn't have agreed to the marriage if his life hadn't been in Zhang Pinxian's hands. Zhang Pinxian claimed his daughter was exceptionally beautiful, and Shi Hai wondered why she would resort to surrogacy if she were truly that beautiful. However, after entering the palace as the eunuch Fu'an, he fell in love with Zhang Lining at first sight in Jingcui Palace. He had never seen a woman more beautiful than her, and being able to stay by her side and bear her child to secure his favor felt like a blessing from heaven.

In Xuesong Hall, Wei Qiao received another letter from his uncle Yan Zhongxing, informing him that the army had already set off and would return to the capital in less than a month and a half. Wei Qiao burned the letter he had just read over a candle. Fu Qing came in and called him to dinner.

Wei Qiao swept the ashes into the wastepaper basket and suddenly remembered that a long time ago, Xi Chun had given him a peace charm on Qingquan Mountain, which he had also thrown into the wastepaper basket.

Seeing him staring at the wastepaper basket, Fu Qing asked, "Second Young Master, did you lose something?"

These days have passed; the amulet would probably have been burned in the Pagoda of Cherished Words long ago, he shook his head, "No."

Fu Qing remembered the amulet she had found in the wastepaper basket earlier. Seeing that it was in good condition, she had kept it in her room. After lunch, Wei Qiao returned to his study to continue reading. Fu Qing brought him a freshly brewed cup of tea.

Wei Qiao noticed that she had been standing beside him after putting down the tea and hadn't left. He looked up at her and asked, "What's wrong? Is something the matter?"

Fu Qing took out the amulet from his sleeve and handed it to Wei Qiao, asking, "Was this what you were looking for, Second Young Master?"

Upon seeing the amulet he had lost and then found again, Wei Qiao was momentarily stunned. He remembered what Xi Chun had said to him when she gave him the amulet that day; she had said that this amulet would protect him and ensure his continued good fortune. Wei Qiao took the amulet and carefully placed it into his purse.

Seeing his expression, Fu Qing felt even more certain about the relationship between him and Xi Chun. However, since the eldest young mistress had already been taken into the palace, it seemed there was no possibility for the second young master and her in this lifetime.

Not long after Fu Qing left the study, A Gui came in again to deliver a message: "Second Young Master, Commander Pang of the Dragon Feather Guard has arrived."

Wei Qiao guessed that there must have been progress on the matter at Yuanhe Palace, and he said, "Bring him in."

After Pang Lian sat down, he explained the details of his investigation to Wei Qiao in detail: "My lord, the matter of the palace maid Yu Ping in Yuanhe Palace is indeed somewhat strange. The truth is not that she died from aconite poisoning, as Guang Jinfu and the others said. The imperial kitchen has strict regulations regarding the use of aconite, and there is a special stove for handling such poisonous ingredients. The imperial chef was bribed by someone from Consort Xian's palace, which is why he admitted to the matter. According to Physician Zhang's examination, the rose cheese that the palace maid Yu Ping ate contained colorless and odorless poison. This bowl of cheese was originally intended for the newly arrived palace maid Xi Chun in Yuanhe Palace. However, for some unknown reason, Yu Ping ate it, which caused her to be poisoned and die."

Pang Lian had been gone for a long time, but Wei Qiao was still thinking about what Pang Lian had said. That bowl of cheese was originally prepared for Xi Chun, and the people in Consort Xian's palace had originally planned to kill her. Wei Qiao walked out of his study and looked towards the direction of Qingwu Garden. The wutong tree in the garden was now lush and green, but the people in the garden were nowhere to be seen.

Meow~

Wei Qiao looked down and saw Mo Zhi with its tail held high running to his feet. Wei Qiao smiled and stroked Mo Zhi's head, and Mo Zhi rubbed affectionately against his hand.

"Ink, do you miss her?"