Chapter 165 Shocking Scam

Chu Yue stood up straight, neither humble nor arrogant, and her voice was clearly heard by everyone.

"Your Majesty, this is not witchcraft."

"It's just a little trick that any ordinary person can do."

She paused and began to tell the story, her voice full of calmness that seemed to show she knew everything.

"Your Majesty, do you know anything about alum?"

"My lady, simply dissolve alum in water, then mix in a little egg white and glue to make a special kind of 'ink'."

"Use this to write on paper. After it dries, the writing will disappear and it will be the same as ordinary white paper."

"Then, real ink is used to cover it with other writing."

Her eyes swept across the shocked faces of everyone in the hall, and a faint smile appeared on the corner of her mouth.

"Alum, egg white, and glue are all fire-resistant substances."

"When this paper is set on fire, the part with ordinary ink will burn quickly and turn into ash."

"And those words written in 'refractory ink' beforehand..."

"Because it doesn't burn easily, it 'survives' the flames, creating a stark contrast to the burnt paper ash."

"It looked like a miracle. The fire could not destroy it."

"This is the truth behind the 'blood-letter appearance'."

the truth.

The truth again!

One cruel truth after another was torn open in bloody detail and laid out before everyone!

If Zhou Yan'an's "resonant reed" shattered the majesty of God's will.

Chu Yue's casual comment about "unbreakable by fire" completely dethroned this "miracle" and turned it into...

A complete, utter scam!

The emperor stared at the charred piece of paper, his veins bulging on his hands that were gripping the armrests of the dragon throne.

His face turned blue and then white.

In the dead silence of fear among the king and his ministers, Chen He's cold voice, like a drop of cold water dropped into boiling oil, exploded again.

"His Majesty."

She bowed slightly, but her eyes never left the charred piece of paper.

"The ancient book has left a trick. Master Chu has already explained it to Your Majesty."

"only……"

Shen He changed the subject, with a hint of just the right amount of doubt in his voice.

"There is one thing I still don't understand."

"What kind of miracle is this so-called 'blood coagulation into a fetus'?"

"Please ask the Chu doctor to help Your Majesty and this minister clear up some confusion."

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone's attention was once again focused on the female doctor who had a frail figure but seemed to possess infinite power.

Chu Yue faced everyone's gaze, her expression remaining calm.

She bowed again.

"Your Majesty, Miss Shen."

"This 'blood coagulation into a fetus', like 'writing left in an ancient book', is not a miracle."

"Again, just a... little trick."

As she spoke, she took out a warm, white jade plate and a dagger that gleamed with cold light.

Chu Yue placed the jade plate on the ground in front of her.

As everyone watched with bated breath, she slowly stretched out her left hand and opened her palm.

Then, she clenched her right fist and slashed her left palm with force!

"ah!"

Some of the timid concubines could not help but let out a low cry and subconsciously turned their heads away.

A bright red liquid flowed out from between Chu Yue's fingers, dripping onto the flawless white jade plate.

The "blood" fell on the plate and did not spread out like ordinary blood.

A strange scene is happening again!

The bright red liquid, as if guided by an invisible hand, slowly wriggled, gathered, and condensed in the center of the jade plate...

But it only took a few breaths!

A lifelike, gorgeous blood-red peony suddenly took shape on the plate!

The petals are stacked layer upon layer with clear outlines, as if they were carved by magic!

The sound of people gasping for air was heard again in the hall.

Even the emperor, who had been furious just now, was now filled with surprise and suspicion.

Chu Yue slowly opened her clenched right hand.

Only then did everyone see clearly that there was no wound in her fist at all!

The dagger lay quietly on the tray from beginning to end!

In her palm, there was only a small shriveled skin bag with a tiny tear at the tip.

"Your Majesty, please look."

Chu Yue held the leather bag high up.

"This is what is called 'divine blood'."

"This is not human blood."

Her voice was clear and calm, and every word she said was like a hammer, shattering the superstitions in everyone's hearts.

"It is colored with cinnabar to obtain its bright red color."

"Temperature it with honey to make it thicker."

"And then mix in the finest fish glue, which solidifies quickly when it gets cold."

She paused, her eyes swept over the bloodless faces of the Third Prince and the Queen, and uttered the most crucial words word by word.

"Among them, the most important one is——"

"Purple Marrow Powder."

Purple marrow powder!

As soon as these three words came out, the expressions of several imperial doctors in the Imperial Hospital changed suddenly!

Chu Yue continued to explain to the emperor:

"Your Majesty, this paste only needs a little heating to turn into a liquid. I will place it in a blood bag in my palm, using my body heat to keep it liquid. Once it is squeezed out and placed on the cold jade plate, the fish glue and purple marrow powder will rapidly cool it and solidify it into shape."

"This is the truth behind the ability of 'blood' to solidify into a solid form."

the truth!

The truth again!

Each one is more absurd than the last, yet each one is more irrefutable than the last!

"But...but why did it condense into the shape of a peony?" The Queen asked in a shrill voice, unwilling to accept the result. "Is this also a coincidence?!"

"It's certainly not a coincidence."

The corner of Chu Yue's mouth curled up into an almost cruel sneer.

She picked up the jade plate containing the blood peony, walked to the candlestick, and turned the side of the jade plate towards the firelight.

"Your Majesty, ladies and gentlemen, please look."

Under the slanting light of the flickering candlelight.

Everyone finally saw the "true face" of the jade plate!

I saw that the white and smooth bottom of the plate was covered with very fine and shallow dents that were difficult to detect with the naked eye!

Those indentations, outlined in the shadows of candlelight...

It's a peony!

"this……"

The emperor's pupils suddenly shrank!

Chu Yue's voice, like the final judgment, rang out clearly.

"This jade plate has long been carved by a skilled craftsman using a very fine chisel, or perhaps using the acid etching method from the Western Regions, to create the faint outline of a peony."

"The incision is so shallow and fine that it's difficult to discern with the naked eye under normal light. It looks just like an ordinary jade plate."

"But when the 'blood plasma' mixed with purple marrow powder flows into the dish, it will flow and converge along these slightly concave grooves."

"Ultimately, after cooling and solidifying, it naturally becomes a peony that is exactly the same as the engraved mark."

"This is the entire secret of 'blood coagulation into fetus'."

So far, all four miracles were man-made!

The last trace of color on the queen's well-maintained face faded away completely. She collapsed to the ground, muttering to herself, but not a single word was clear.

Xiao Jingren looked as pale as death, and his whole body was shaking like a leaf in the wind.

It’s over!

It's all over!

In this deathly silence, a cold and firm voice sounded again, like a sharp sword drawn from its sheath, pointing directly to the core!

"His Majesty!"

Chen He walked out of the crowd slowly, each step was steady and powerful.

She didn't look at anyone, her eyes were fixed on the emperor sitting on the dragon throne.

"Empress Dowager!"

She turned slightly and bowed from a distance to the empress dowager, whose face also looked ashen.

"The so-called auspicious sign from heaven, conception on behalf of heaven..."

Her voice was not loud, but it was clearly heard in every corner of the hall, and every word was powerful.

"From beginning to end, it was all directed by Lord Lu of the Imperial Observatory..."

Chen He's gaze suddenly became as sharp as a knife, sweeping across the limp queen and Xiao Jingren, and finally fixed on Lu Jiuxiao, the chief supervisor of the Imperial Observatory who had already been pinned to the ground by the imperial guards.

“…A shocking hoax!”