Chapter 262 The Secret Inside the Duck's Belly

The eunuch came down the stairs and took the food box handed to him by the waiter: "Here you are."

The eunuch nodded reservedly and walked out carrying the food box.

At the beginning of each month, these people would leave the palace to purchase supplies for Yu Chen Palace. He was specifically in charge of buying roasted duck, as the Imperial Concubine had specifically requested roasted duck from Tao Ran Lou, and of course he would get it for her.

The eunuch walked out of Taoran Tower and headed towards the carriage parked not far away.

He would then meet up with the other shoppers, and they would return to the palace together once everything was purchased.

"Stop that thief!"

The eunuch instinctively looked in the direction from which the shouts came, and saw one person running ahead, with two others chasing behind.

Was he caught stealing in the street?

The thought had barely crossed his mind when the person running in front suddenly bumped into half of the eunuch's body. The eunuch's hand slipped, the food box he was carrying fell to the ground, and the roasted duck inside was thrown out.

"You scoundrel!" The eunuch shouted shrilly as he watched the thief run away like the wind, his face contorted with rage.

While he was burning with rage, a beggar from the base of the wall rushed over, picked up the roasted duck that had fallen to the ground, and ran away.

"Stop right there! This is outrageous!"

The eunuch was even angrier, but the beggar, clutching the roasted duck, ran away at full speed, making it impossible for him to catch up.

Soon the two men chasing the thief also ran past the eunuch.

Two young eunuchs guarding the carriage approached and asked in a low voice, "Eunuch Chen, shall we go after them?"

"What are you chasing? Keep your mouths shut!" The eunuch scolded his attendants with a dark face, and stepped back into Taoran Tower.

It's just one roasted duck; I can just buy another one.

The matter that the Imperial Concubine instructed must be carried out properly. As for today's bad luck, we'll send someone to find out about it later and then deal with those few blind fools.

If he couldn't find out—the eunuch's heart skipped a beat.

What else can we do? If we can't find it, then so be it.

"You'd like another roasted duck?" the waiter asked, somewhat surprised.

"Um."

"Okay, please wait a moment."

A short while later, the waiter handed the packed roasted duck to the eunuch, saying, "Please take care."

As the eunuch walked out of Taoran Tower, he unconsciously clenched his fists tighter over the food box he was carrying.

The beggar who snatched the roasted duck from the ground hugged it even tighter, and after several twists and turns, entered a house and handed the roasted duck to a man.

The man nodded to the beggar without exchanging a word, then took the roasted duck and went into the house.

"Sir, I've got it."

The young man sitting by the window glanced at the roasted duck for a moment, then nodded slightly to the man: "Thank you for your hard work."

The young man was Xue Han.

The roasted duck was placed on a table covered with a coarse cloth. Xue Han used a dagger to cut it open, revealing the ingredients stuffed inside the duck's belly.

Chestnuts, mushrooms, ham... among the enticing aromas of these ingredients, a small brown porcelain bottle is impossible to miss.

He picked up the porcelain bottle, wiped it clean with a handkerchief, and opened the stopper. Inside was a single green pill.

Xue Han brought the porcelain bottle to his nose and sniffed it, then plugged it and ordered his men, "Prepare the horses."

Once outside the city, Xue Han spurred his horse and galloped to Xu Bo's residence.

The courtyard gate was open, and Uncle Xu was drying medicinal herbs in the yard. Hearing the noise, he looked up and asked, "Why are you here again?"

Xue Han walked in and closed the courtyard gate.

Uncle Xu looked behind him: "Did you come alone this time?"

"Uncle Xu, could you take a look and tell me what the pills in here are for?" Xue Han didn't stand on ceremony with Uncle Xu and directly handed him the porcelain bottle.

Uncle Xu frowned in disdain: "All you do is cause me trouble."

Even so, he wiped his hands clean, opened the porcelain bottle, and poured the pills onto his handkerchief.

The pills were about half the size of a lotus seed and had a faint, cool aroma.

"Uncle Xu, how is it?"

Xu Bo glanced at Xue Han and said, "Look how anxious you are. I'm not a god; I can't tell what it is just by looking and smelling it."

Seeing Xue Han's awkward smile, but his eyes never leaving the pill, Uncle Xu understood that the pill was probably very important to him. He carefully said, "Based on experience, this should be a beneficial medicine."

Poisonous substances often have an unpleasant odor.

"Is this pill safe to use? I need to do further tests."

Xue Han answered without hesitation, "Yes."

Some things require careful planning, while others need to be dealt with decisively. Since the snake is already alarmed, we should at least find out what the bait is that's luring it out of its hole.

"Just wait." Uncle Xu took the pills to the pharmacy.

Xue Han didn't go inside, but sat in the small courtyard where medicinal herbs were drying, letting the warm, gentle sunlight bathe him, and the fragrance of herbs lingering in the air. He suddenly thought that it wouldn't be bad to have a small courtyard to live in on the outskirts of Beijing with Aheng.

Qiu Heng had already arrived at Yu Chen Palace by then.

"Greetings, Your Highness the Imperial Concubine."

"It's been a while since I last saw Miss Qiu, and she seems even more beautiful now." Consort Yu took a sip of her tea and calmly instructed, "Fang Rui, serve Miss Qiu tea."

Qiu Heng felt a slight stirring in her heart upon hearing how Consort Yu addressed her.

The palace is a place where status is paramount, and by all accounts, Consort Yu should have addressed her as Princess Suiyun. However, Consort Yu repeatedly referred to her as "Sixth Miss Qiu," which implied that although the title of princess was bestowed by the emperor, she could choose not to acknowledge it.

This shows that Consort Yu has begun to take notice of her; one doesn't need to make any pronouncements to someone as insignificant as an ant.

Was it the storm stirred up by Xi Jiang that caught the attention of Consort Yu?

"Miss Qiu Liu, please have some tea."

Qiu Heng looked at Fang Rui, who was dressed as a palace maid.

It had been some time since I'd last seen her. The once arrogant and proud young woman had become quiet, her eyes heavy and devoid of emotion.

"Thank you," Qiu Heng said.

Fang Rui held the tray without moving.

Should I have her take it?

Qiu Heng wasn't deliberately putting on airs. Whether she was at home or visiting other households, the maids would always gently place the teacups on the table when serving tea.

"Does Miss Qiu Liu not want to drink the tea served by Fang Rui?" Consort Yu's voice rang out with a smile. "I heard that you and Fang Rui have some past grievances. Is that why?"

"I didn't think that much about it," Qiu Heng said, reaching for her teacup.

Fang Rui tilted the tray in her hand, and some of the tea spilled onto Qiu Heng's sleeve.

"This servant deserves to die! It's all because this servant didn't hold the position properly!" Fang Rui knelt down with a thud.

Qiu Heng lowered her head slightly, silently looking at the tea dripping from her sleeve, then at Fang Rui kneeling on the ground begging for forgiveness, and was shocked.

Is this... the legendary palace intrigue? Isn't it a bit too simplistic and crude?

Next, is she supposed to go change her clothes?

"You're so clumsy. What are you still kneeling for? Take Miss Qiu to change her clothes."

Fang Rui stood up: "Sixth Miss Qiu, please come with me."

Qiu Heng also stood up and sighed inwardly.

It's not about how clever the method is, but about who uses it. With Consort Yu's power and influence in the harem, she could call a deer a horse. Getting her sleeves wet first and then making her change them is actually quite lenient.

"Qiuheng." Fang Rui suddenly called out on the way to the changing room.

Qiu Heng looked at her.

"When we first met at the Prince Kang's residence that year, if I had known you were so good at stirring up trouble, I should have crushed you."

(End of this chapter)