Chapter 549 Acting
Qiao Qinghe wholeheartedly agreed and gratefully said to Mu Jin, "Thank you for saving the children, and thank you for thinking so much about them!"
"Now, the children are in your care."
Mu Jin respectfully replied, "Don't worry, Madam, Mu Jin will certainly live up to your expectations."
Mu Jin went to the side to write out the prescription. To ensure that there would be no health problems for the children, it was necessary to combine acupuncture detoxification with oral medication to regulate their bodies.
These matters will be handled diligently by Mu Jin.
Qiao Qinghe gave a few instructions and then focused all her attention on the child's poisoning.
As Mu Jin said, the child's poisoning must have been intentional.
But what exactly is the purpose?
The child was still so young, and Feng Yuerou had been living alone with the child in seclusion for a long time, never making enemies.
Therefore, it is clear that the person who harmed the child was not targeting the child or Feng Yuerou.
But it lies with... her, or with Lady Annam!
So, we'll find out what the person behind this is really up to by trying.
Thinking about this, Qiao Qinghe pondered it carefully and came up with a plan.
With what Mulan said to Lady Annam just now, the rest is quite simple.
The fact that the child was unharmed was known only to a few people present.
Next, all they need to do is act sad, pained, worried, scared... to create the illusion that the child is really dying.
Of course, with Mulan around, it's understandable that they would delay the child's death for a few days.
Qiao Qinghe shared her thoughts with Feng Yuerou, who naturally agreed without hesitation.
In order to lure out the person who murdered the child, she would gladly offer up her life, let alone cooperate in the act.
Soon after, Feng Yuerou's heart-wrenching cries echoed through the room.
Qiao Qinghe also howled a few times, then with a wave of her wide sleeves, she stormed out of the room, her eyes red as she interrogated the eight people still kneeling in the courtyard.
"Tell me, who poisoned the children?"
Qiao Qinghe took the whip from A Shuang and tried to flick it twice... but it didn't work.
She twitched her lips almost imperceptibly, then loudly commanded, "Zhuxi, beat them! Beat them until they talk!"
"Ah Shuang, go prepare salt water! Soak the whip in salt water and whip it hard!"
Soon, the brine was prepared, and the whip was soaked in the brine as instructed.
Zhu Xi appeared in a flash, picked up a whip, and lashed it at the eight people in the courtyard.
With just one lash, a bloody welt appeared on the bodies of the three people struck.
Zhu Xi's strength was far beyond what Lady Annan could match, and the group instantly collapsed to the ground in pain.
"Please spare us, Madam! We really didn't do it! We know nothing!"
"Madam, please, we really don't know anything!"
"Madam, doing this will do us no good. Why would we poison the young master and young lady?"
"Madam, I am the young master's wet nurse. I love him dearly, how could I possibly poison him?"
...Everyone begged for mercy.
But Qiao Qinghe remained unmoved and coldly ordered, "Keep drawing! Don't stop without my order!"
After giving Zhuxi her instructions, Qiao Qinghe coldly surveyed the crowd, "The child was being cared for by the eight of you. If something happens to the child, who else could it be but you?"
"I advise you to tell the truth, and you might still be able to save your lives, otherwise..."
Everyone shuddered.
A woman, her face deathly pale, looked up at Qiao Qinghe, gritted her teeth, and said firmly, "Madam, I am just Miss's wet nurse, I am not a slave who has been sold into servitude, you cannot kill me!"
Upon hearing this, the other woman quickly nodded in agreement: "Yes! I am also a wet nurse, I am also a law-abiding citizen, you can't kill me!"
Qiao Qinghe scoffed, "Can't I? Ha, do you really have no idea what my reputation is like?"
The two shuddered, and then were struck by the whip that Zhu Xi had lashed out at them, letting out a scream.
“My patience is limited. I’ll give you fifteen minutes. If no one confesses by then, I will consider you eight people to have conspired to poison the child!”
With a stern face and an icy tone, Qiao Qinghe gave the death warning.
Aside from screaming, begging for mercy, and arguing, none of the people admitted to poisoning him.
Just then, Mu Jin came out carrying a medical kit.
Qiao Qinghe quickly turned around and stepped forward, anxiously asking, "How are the children? Can you cure the poison they've been given?"
Mu Jin shook her head dejectedly: "I'm sorry, Madam, I've done my best."
Upon hearing this, Qiao Qinghe raised her hand and slapped Mu Jin hard across the face. "You good-for-nothing! Aren't you a miracle doctor? Aren't you the best in the world? You can't even save two children! What kind of miracle doctor are you?"
Mu Jin lowered her head in shame and said apologetically, "All I can do is try my best to let the child live one more day."
"Useless! Useless!..."
Qiao Qinghe berated Mu Jin again before letting her leave.
As soon as Mu Jin left, Qiao Qinghe glared at the eight people in the courtyard with bloodshot eyes and shouted sharply, "No matter who poisoned them, drag them away and beat them all to death with sticks!"
"If the children don't survive, I'll make you all go down with them!"
Upon hearing this, Zhuxi, Ashuang, and Xiangmu all jumped in, along with the two old women and four servants who had been waiting outside the courtyard, and they all rushed forward to drag the person away.
Because the third branch of the family didn't have many servants to begin with, and Qiao Qinghe had arrived in such a hurry that she hadn't brought many people with her, and yet there were eight people to be tortured, they couldn't subdue them all in one go.
Seeing this, the two clever maids struggled to escape.
Zhu Xi lashed out with her whip, ensnaring one of the maids' ankles and tripping her to the ground. She dragged her back, and the bloodstains from the whip and the dragging marks left on the ground were clearly visible to the others.
So the others struggled even harder to escape.
Unexpectedly, two people actually managed to escape.
One of them was a wet nurse, and the other was a maid.
"Bring them back to me immediately! Don't let a single one of them fire a cannon!" Qiao Qinghe shouted, but when the servants went to chase after them, Zhu Xi stopped them.
By the time they gave chase, the two who had fled had already left the mansion and disappeared without a trace.
Qiao Qinghe ordered the remaining six people to be taken away and detained separately.
Seeing that there was a shortage of manpower here, he asked Ah Shuang to go back and bring twelve people over to help.
The play has been performed; now it's up to the person behind it to react.
"I'll have He prepare some apologies and gifts to send to Doctor Mu later."
To make the scene more realistic, she didn't hold back at all when she slapped Mu Jin.
They saved two children's lives and even acted along with them, only to be slapped for no reason. It's just too much.
Ah Shuang quickly agreed.
After resolving these trivial matters, Qiao Qinghe returned to the house, checked on the child, had lunch with Feng Yuerou, and then left.
***
Meanwhile, after returning to the Marquis of Annan's residence, Lady Annan dismissed all her servants, leaving only her personal attendant, Granny Zhang.
"Madam, don't worry, the two children will be alright," Zhang Mama said softly. "Didn't you have someone check the poison beforehand? It definitely won't harm the children's lives!"
As soon as Granny Zhang finished speaking, Lady Annan slapped the person to the ground.
Her eyes were bloodshot as she glared at Granny Zhang. "Even Doctor Mu said he was powerless! You still dare to say that the medicine won't harm the children's lives?"
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