Chapter 39 Chapter 39 I can’t read any further!
"It's about the death of Madam Wen'an, Madam's mother..."
Xie Zhi vaguely sensed something, "Wu Fan is my mother's man, how could he be related to the Yongyi Marquis's Mansion?"
"Madam Wen'an's death was the result of Concubine Noble's instructions to Jiang." Ling Zhu carefully examined Xie Zhi's expression. "And Wu Fan was the one who passed on the message."
Xie Zhi's eyes suddenly shook.
Even though he had guessed something from Ling Zhu's few words, once the truth was revealed, the hatred for their mother's murder lay between them.
If she knew...
His brows furrowed. "Why would Mother attack Madam Wen An?"
"This Wu Fan doesn't know." Ling Zhu shook her head. "She only said that the two of them had no previous interactions, but for some reason, the Imperial Concubine suddenly had this idea. She simply ordered her to find Jiang and take action against Madam Wen'an."
Ling Zhu paused, "According to Wu Fan's private speculation, perhaps Madam Wen'an was once on good terms with the late Queen, and the Imperial Concubine harbored a grudge against the late Queen, and therefore took her out on him."
Xie Zhi did not comment.
If he was just venting his anger, he could have taken action long ago. Why did he suddenly have such thoughts?
He asked in a cold voice, "Madam Wen'an died suddenly, but no one in the Yongyi Marquis's Mansion noticed anything unusual?"
"No. Firstly, Madam Wen'an was already suffering from melancholy, but Marquis Yongyi didn't take it seriously, and General Anxi was far away in the northwest. Secondly... by then, Jiang had already taken control of the Marquis's household, and the poison in the palace was difficult to detect. Therefore, everyone believed that Madam Wen'an was melancholy and suffered a short life."
"I understand." Xie Zhi's expression was serious. "First, keep an eye on Wu Fan. Don't let her die, and don't alarm Mother."
"yes."
Xie Zhi's tone paused slightly, "Don't let Madam know about this for now."
At the very least, we must first find out the purpose of my mother's attack on Madam Wen'an.
"I understand." Ling Zhu heard him mention Nie Xiangyi and continued, "Also, Wu Fan also said that the Chinese medicine in Madam's palace at the Chunhua Palace Banquet that day was also Jiang's work."
Xie Zhiwei nodded, "You can leave first."
The fatigue of the past few days made him close his eyes heavily.
No one in the inner palace has clean hands. Xie Zhi, having grown up in the inner palace, knows this all too well. Even if his mother favors the crown prince, he believes it's simply because she's wary of the crown prince's future power and is deliberately trying to please him.
But why would she attack Madam Wen An who had nothing to do with the matter?
"Your Highness?" The girl's soft call interrupted his deep thoughts.
A furry head poked into the study, and Nie Xiangyi looked at him like a kitten, blinking her round eyes.
She had already washed up and was wearing only a cherry pink nightgown, which made her skin look white and tender, like a round cherry, delicious and attractive.
Her long hair fell on her shoulders like a waterfall. When she tilted her head, a few strands of hair fell down and gently brushed against the faintly visible snow-white skin on her chest, making her look quite charming and attractive.
But she looked so innocent and naive, and she looked at him pitifully with a pair of tentative eyes.
The night wind suddenly brought with it a familiar sweet fragrance.
Xie Zhi's Adam's apple moved slightly, "Why haven't you slept yet?"
She walked in with small steps, her movements were sneaky and cute, and looked up at him obediently, "I'm here to bring medicine to His Highness."
Xie Zhi lowered his eyes to look at the round bowl in her hand. The milky white ointment exuded a faint herbal aroma.
"What is this?" Xie Zhi vaguely felt that the fragrance was familiar.
He remembered that the female family member who asked him if he was allergic to sheep's blood also handed him a box of ointment with a similar smell.
"This ointment works really well!" Nie Xiangyi boasted. "If I get a pimple, I apply this ointment and it goes away in a day!"
As she spoke, she opened the celadon lid and scooped some ointment from the round bowl with her slender fingertips. "Your Highness is allergic, I think this will work. Let me apply the ointment on you?"
"No need, just leave it there, I'll do it myself."
"The red spots are all on the neck. It may not be convenient for Your Highness to apply the medicine yourself." Nie Xiangyi looked at him eagerly, with the same expression as always, unable to bear to be rejected.
Xie Zhi seemed helpless, his dark eyes fixed on her, and then his slender jade-like fingers began to slowly and methodically unbutton his clothes.
It seemed that no matter what he did, he could make it so pleasing to the eye. Even when he took off his clothes, he still exuded elegance and dignity.
Nie Xiangyi stared in amazement.
It wasn't until the gray-white undergarment was exposed that Nie Xiangyi seemed to react. With a red face, he stammered, "Your Highness... Why are you taking off your clothes?"
But his eyes seemed fixed and had not moved away at all.
Xie Zhi pursed his lips helplessly, "There's also on my back..."
"Oh...oh..." Nie Xiangyi's face turned red like a tomato. She moved in front of him, her eyes almost unsure where to look.
The first time she saw Xie Zhi's figure while she was sober, she suddenly felt shy.
His seemingly handsome figure was shrouded in his clothes, with a broad back, a slim waist, and smooth muscles. He seemed to be carved from jade. Above his fair skin, the beautiful lines of his abdominal muscles were revealed, winding down...
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Nie Xiangyi's face was red, her eyes were wandering, and she stood in front of Xie Zhi, at a loss, and had forgotten what she was supposed to do.
Xie Zhi chuckled softly, "Ah Si, aren't you going to apply medicine for me?"
"Oh yes... apply the medicine, apply the medicine." She took the medicine bowl as if waking up from a dream, stretched out her fingertips to touch Xie Zhi's skin tentatively, and then quickly moved away as if she was burned.
It's like a kitten's cautious test.
Xie Zhi lowered his eyes and fixed them on her flushed face. He was calm and did not interrupt her.
The touch from my fingertips was soft yet firm, unlike myself, who was all soft flesh without a single firm muscle.
She pursed her lips, and seeing that Xie Zhi didn't react, she slowly dug out the plaster and applied it to him.
"It will be a little cold, Your Highness." Her voice was soft and sweet as she reminded him gently.
Xie Zhi's abdominal muscles suddenly became tighter.
The soft fingertips slowly moved across the back, the cool touch of the plaster and the heat of her fingertips intertwined like ice and fire, bringing an extremely unbearable slight itch.
The aroma of herbs mixed with the fragrance of gardenias, uncontrollably drifting into Xie Zhi's nose. Xie Zhi lowered his eyes to look at Nie Xiangyi. Her thin figure was shrouded in his shadow, her soft hair casually spread out, framing her palm-sized face. Her expression was clever and serious, very cute.
Xie Zhi's eyes moved slightly.
"Your Highness, bend down a little." Nie Xiangyi stood on tiptoe, looked up at him, and ordered him seriously, "I can't reach the part on your neck!"
Xie Zhi raised his eyebrows and leaned closer to her with a strong attitude, almost touching the tip of Nie Xiangyi's nose.
The sudden increase in distance caused Nie Xiangyi to step back in panic, tripping and nearly falling backward. She subconsciously wrapped her arms around Xie Zhi's neck to steady herself.
A smile flashed across Xie Zhi's lips, "Can I apply medicine like this?"
That handsome face enlarged in front of him, and the sudden chuckle was like the sudden brightness of the waves, breathtaking.
Nie Xiangyi blushed and buried her head in his arms, her soft voice muffled, "Your Highness did it on purpose..."
The soft hair brushed across Xie Zhi's chest, like a small brush, bringing a slight tingling sensation. But she was still restless and subconsciously rubbed her forehead against it.
Xie Zhi said in a hoarse voice, "Alright. Apply the medicine quickly."
After some trouble, Nie Xiangyi finally applied the ointment all over Xie Zhi's body and nodded with satisfaction.
"This ointment is a secret recipe specially made for my grandmother, ordered by my grandfather! My mother and cousin Lingyu are both using it! It's guaranteed to work!"
Hearing her mention her mother, Xie Zhi stared at her for a moment, then suddenly asked, "What does your mother... look like?"
Nie Xiangyi was startled, then shook his head in frustration, "I can't remember... I used to remember it, but I don't know when I forgot it..."
Her voice gradually faded, and her expression seemed to be lost in reminiscence, with a hint of melancholy.
"I only remember that she was a very gentle person, always smiling. She loved to rub my head and peel loquats for me. Later, when my mother learned of Jiang's existence, she often took me to live at Liuyun Temple, and she didn't smile as much anymore."
Mentioning Jiang Yun'e, she instantly revealed a strong sense of resentment. "When my father brought Jiang back home, Nie Yuanwei was already the same age as me. It's clear that they had been having an affair when my mother was pregnant! If it weren't for Jiang, my mother wouldn't have died of worry!"
Xie Zhi fell into a long silence.
He knew that the cause of her mother's death was not so simple, but he could not say it out loud. If Nie Xiangyi knew, how would she treat him, the son of the enemy who killed her mother?
He had been in charge of the Divine Strategy Department for many years, and prided himself on being fair and strict. But today, he had developed such biased and selfish thoughts...
He held Nie Xiangyi in his arms and said softly, "Do you still remember... what year your mother passed away?"
"When I was six years old." Nie Xiangyi thought about it in his mind, "That was the late spring of the eleventh year of Jing Gan."
The eleventh year of Jinggan?
Xie Zhi frowned slightly, feeling that there were some minor details that had not been clarified.
Why would my mother attack Madam Wen'an, who had nothing to do with her?
He presented the gift on behalf of the prince on the winter solstice of the tenth year of Jinggan, and then she died suddenly in the late spring of the eleventh year.
If the person who noticed that he was allergic to sheep's blood and gave him the ointment was Nie Xiangyi's mother, Madam Wen'an, then could his mother's attack on her in the eleventh year of Jinggan be related to him?
Seeing that Xie Zhi hadn't spoken for a long time, Nie Xiangyi held up her chin and asked him, "Your Highness, what are you thinking about?"
"Perhaps, your mother... once gave me such an ointment."
"What!" Nie Xiangyi's eyes widened suddenly when he heard this. "Why would mother give this to His Highness?"
"That year, I performed the tribute ceremony on behalf of the Crown Prince, and afterwards I developed a rash. Actually, the rash was hidden by my collar and not very noticeable, but somehow she saw it."
Xie Zhi said slowly, "She asked me if I was allergic to sheep's blood, and then gave me this box of ointment."
Nie Xiangyi's eyes sparkled brightly, "So my fate with His Highness started so long ago!"
She chuckled innocently, "I used to always feel sorry that my mother had never met my husband. Now, it turns out she'd seen you when she was little!"
Her excited look made Xie Zhi forcefully curl the corners of his lips, but his brows were still slightly furrowed, as if he was worried.
Nie Xiangyi seemed to have discovered something incredible, muttering excitedly to herself, "Mother is amazing! She saw at a glance that His Highness was allergic to sheep's blood! When I examined him today, I thought His Highness had been bitten by an insect."
Wait! In a split second, Xie Zhi suddenly had a clear idea in his mind.
He had never had any contact with Madam Wen'an, so why was she so sure that she was allergic to sheep's blood and not something else?
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