As a doctor, Dr. Tao was always conscientious and responsible. Even though he was quite frightened himself and his daughter was so frightened that she couldn't even hold her tea properly, he still asked Shen Wan to sit down and took her pulse when he saw that she was pale.
Shen Wan was somewhat startled, but medicine is three parts poison, so it's best not to take it if possible. Doctor Tao didn't prescribe any medicine for Shen Wan and had Yin Shuang and Hai Tang take Shen Wan back to Mo Yu Xuan.
The two maids' hands and feet were ice-cold, especially Yinshuang. This was the closest she had ever come to death. She had never been this afraid when she was assassinated while accompanying the princess.
If she hadn't given the pastries to Miss Tao, she probably would have eaten them as soon as she left the pharmacy. Even if she had held back, she would have at most waited until she returned to Moyuxuan to share them with Haitang and the other maids, including Dong'er...
Despite the scorching sun overhead, Yinshuang felt a chill creeping through her body, a chill that seemed to emanate from her very bones.
Shen Wan walked towards Moyuxuan. Just as she reached the entrance of Moyuxuan, she heard a familiar, hurried footstep behind her.
Shen Wan turned around and saw Xie Jingyan walking over in two quick steps. In the sunlight, his handsome and otherworldly face no longer had its usual composure and calmness, but only pallor and fear.
Shen Wan had never seen such an expression on his face before, not even when he fell off the cliff at Huguo Temple.
Xie Jingyan walked over without saying a word, but held Shen Wan tightly in his arms, so tightly that she could hardly breathe. However, Shen Wan did not struggle; she could sense that Xie Jingyan was afraid of losing her.
Shen Wan's nose stung with tears. What had she done to deserve such attention from him? She said softly, "I didn't eat any pastries, I'm fine..."
Yes, Shen Wan is fine.
But Xie Jingyan was truly terrified.
As he left the Ministry of Revenue, a servant from the Prince's mansion rushed up on horseback, fell off his horse, and hurriedly reported to him that the pastries bestowed by the Emperor were highly poisonous. He subconsciously thought that Shen Wan had eaten the pastries and been poisoned. In that instant, he felt as if the sky had fallen, and he didn't even have the strength to get back on his horse.
He couldn't imagine what he would do if Shen Wan really ate the pastries, got poisoned, or even...
Shen Wan let him hold her for a while before Xie Jingyan finally let go of her and asked, "Where are those pastries?"
Shen Wan said, "I was at Doctor Tao's place today. Doctor Tao and his family were terrified..."
Before Shen Wan could finish speaking, Xie Jingyan interrupted her, "It's sunny outside, go back inside."
He turned to leave, but Shen Wan grabbed his hand. "Where are you going?"
Xie Jingyan said, "I'm going to find my father."
His voice was icy.
Shen Wan dared not let Xie Jingyan go to see the Emperor. They usually got into arguments after only three sentences, let alone if Xie Jingyan went there in anger.
Shen Wan dissuaded him, "The news that the pastries were poisoned should have already reached Father's ears by now, so there's no need for you to repeat it."
He didn't just say it once.
He was going to investigate who had used the Emperor's bestowed pastries to poison them!
Once Xie Jingyan has made up his mind to do something, no one can dissuade him.
"Keep an eye on the princess."
After saying that, Xie Jingyan walked away.
Shen Wan tried to chase after them, but was stopped by Yin Shuang and Hai Tang. Shen Wan was furious and said, "Whose maids are you two?!"
“We are Your Highness’s maids, but we dare not disobey His Highness’s words. Besides, His Highness is doing this for Your Highness’s own good.”
...
The Imperial Study.
The emperor is reviewing memorials.
Eunuch Yuan served tea to the Emperor, saying, "Your Majesty has been reading the memorials for quite some time. Please have a cup of tea and rest for a while."
The emperor closed the memorial and picked up another one.
Just as the door opened, Eunuch Xiao Xizi rushed in and said urgently, "Your Majesty, something terrible has happened! The pastries sent from the palace to Prince Ling's residence have been poisoned!"
The Emperor's hand holding the memorial trembled, and Eunuch Yuan's heart leaped into his throat. He hurriedly asked, "Did Prince Ling and Princess Ling eat pastries?!"
Xiao Xizi shook her head repeatedly, "No, neither Prince Ling nor Princess Ling ate."
Eunuch Yuan clutched his chest, his heart aching with fright. He said, "Neither Prince Ling nor Princess Ling ate the pastries, so how did they find out that the pastries were poisoned?"
Xiao Xizi replied, "When the pastries were delivered to the Ling Prince's residence, the Ling Prince was not there. The Ling Princess was about to try a piece, but remembering that someone in the palace had harmed the Jin Princess and that someone had poisoned the pastries sent to the Cheng Prince's heir, she didn't dare to eat them. She asked her maid to take the pastries to Doctor Tao for examination. The poison was hidden inside the pastries, colorless and odorless, and Doctor Tao couldn't detect it. When Yinshuang saw that Doctor Tao's daughter wanted to eat the pastries, and remembering that Doctor Tao had saved the Ling Prince's life, she gave the pastries to Doctor Tao's daughter."
"Dr. Tao's daughter was filial. She brought pastries back for Old Madam Tao to eat. On the way back, she was startled by a dog and knocked over the pastries. The dog ate the pastries and died from poisoning. Only then did they discover that the pastries contained a deadly poison..."
As Xiao Xizi finished speaking in one breath, Eunuch Yuan's heart jumped several times. If it weren't for Princess Ling's vigilance, he would have truly fallen into the trap of the poisoner.
Thankfully, no one ate the pastries, and no one got poisoned.
These people are truly audacious, daring to poison the pastries bestowed by the Emperor. The Emperor and Prince Ling's relationship was already strained; if something were to happen because of the pastries, and the poisoner couldn't be found, Prince Ling would surely blame the Emperor.
Previously, they were only targeting the child in Princess Ling's womb, but now they're putting poison in the pastries, which clearly means they want to poison Prince Ling as well.
Eunuch Yuan suspected that the Emperor's recent repeated promotions of those recommended and close to Prince Ling had made them feel threatened, leading them to want to kill Prince Ling to eliminate any future troubles.
Yuan Gonggong guessed that the Emperor was already furious. "Investigate! I want to see who has the audacity to plot against Prince Ling and Princess Ling!"
The pastries were made in the imperial kitchen, so the investigation must start from there.
Eunuch Yuan accepted the order and went to the Imperial Kitchen to investigate the matter.
However, before he even left the Imperial Study, just as he reached the door, he saw Prince Ling striding towards him with a food box in his arms. Even from a distance, Eunuch Yuan could sense Prince Ling's anger.
Like Shen Wan, Eunuch Yuan was also most afraid of a conflict between Prince Ling and the Emperor and his son, so much so that he couldn't even bother to go to the Imperial Kitchen to investigate the poisoning.
Xie Jingyan carried the food box into the imperial study, walked directly to the dragon desk, and placed the food box heavily on it.
The sound was so loud that even Eunuch Yuan's heart trembled.
This is no different from slamming your fist on the table at the emperor's feet...
He knew that Prince Ling was very angry, and he really couldn't help it, but such disrespect to the Emperor would be enough for Prince Ling to be punished with forty strokes of the cane if the Emperor were to investigate.
The Emperor's expression was already unpleasant, and it became even more so. Xie Jingyan suppressed his anger and said, "This is the plate of pastries that Father Emperor bestowed upon me."
Eunuch Yuan hurriedly said, "His Majesty already knows about the pastries sent to Prince Ling's residence being laced with drugs, and has ordered me to investigate this matter at the Imperial Kitchen."
Xie Jingyan said coldly, "This matter should not be investigated starting with the Imperial Kitchen."
Eunuch Yuan was stunned. "If we don't start by investigating the Imperial Kitchen, where should we begin?"
Xie Jingyan's eyes were icy cold. "Who instigated Father to bestow pastries upon civil and military officials? Investigate from here."
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