"Isn't it a peach blossom?" Wei Hong asked, puzzled. "But when I asked the people around here, they all said it was some kind of willow-leaf peach!"
“Willow-leaf peach? It does have that name, but its real name is oleander, and the entire plant is poisonous,” Song Xibai explained. “It’s a medicinal herb, but it’s so toxic that few doctors use it. It can strengthen the heart, relieve pain, promote urination, improve joint mobility, and…”
At this point, Song Xibai paused, a glint of light flashing in her eyes.
Abortion.
Upon hearing this, Wei Hong's face turned deathly pale. She hurriedly picked up the scattered flower branches on the ground, threw them away, and then knelt down with a thud.
"This servant has made a mistake, please punish me, Master!"
Song Xibai stood up, and then pulled Wei Hong up as well.
"You don't know, the fault isn't yours."
Wei Hong gritted her teeth: "This servant almost let Master get involved with this stuff. If anything happens to Master or the young master, this servant will be guilty of a thousand deaths."
"Alright, alright, what's the point of getting angry here? You might as well think about who advised you to pick these flowers?"
Song Xibai patted her arm, offered a word of comfort, and then asked the most crucial question.
When Wei Hong went out to pick flowers and didn't return for half a day, Song Xibai didn't think much of it. But now that she thinks about it, there's clearly something wrong.
She only took Wei Hong with her this time. Wei Hong isn't the type to be playful, so how could she forget the time because she was picking flowers?
"After I went out, I originally wanted to pick the peach blossoms at the back, but those flowers weren't very pretty. It seemed like it had rained, and the petals had all been knocked off. I was just about to come back when I ran into a maidservant from Princess Wu's side. The maidservant said she was there on the Princess's orders to deliver something, so I stopped and exchanged a few polite words with her."
"Speaking of picking flowers, the maid said that there was a kind of peach blossom with willow leaves on the back mountain, which was different from ordinary peach blossoms and was particularly beautiful and elegant. Then, she took me to the back mountain."
After hearing this, Song Xibai's brows furrowed deeply.
"The maidservant of Princess Wu?"
That doesn't make sense!
First of all, Princess Wu was unaware that she was pregnant. Furthermore, given the current good relationship between King Wu and the Crown Prince, Princess Wu would not possibly want to harm her.
Finally, if the Princess of Wu really wanted to do something, she wouldn't be foolish enough to send out her own maid, would she?
Song Xibai thought for a long time but couldn't come up with a solution.
"What does that maid look like? Are you sure she's from Princess Wu's entourage?"
Wei Hong nodded confidently: "I've seen her twice! She must be from Princess Wu's entourage. By the way, should I ask the gatekeeper what she brought with her?"
"That makes sense. Quickly have someone bring the things over."
Song Xibai urged.
Wei Hong rushed out and returned shortly afterward. She took the opportunity to wash her hands and face and change her clothes, afraid that she might have picked up some pollen or something that might affect Song Xibai.
"Master, this is it."
Wei Hong was holding a brocade box in her arms.
The box was a bit big, but not heavy. Song Xibai was about to step forward and open it when Wei Hong took a step back.
"Master, we don't know if that person is good or bad. You should stay away. I'll take care of it."
As she spoke, she placed the brocade box on a small table near the door, making sure the opening faced the doorway.
Then, she held her breath and carefully opened the brocade box.
Surprisingly, there was no danger inside.
The large brocade box was empty, and on the pale pink cloth, there was a much smaller octagonal porcelain box.
The little box is decorated with gold and silver, and features a lovely pomegranate design.
Song Xibai moved closer, examined it for a while, and then gestured for Wei Hong to open it.
Wei Hong took out the porcelain box, twisted it open, and opened it directly.
Surprisingly, this small and exquisite box contained fine powder, white with a hint of pink.
"It smells so good! What kind of scented powder is this?"
Wei Hong subconsciously sniffed and couldn't help but say.
Song Xibai frowned slightly.
"Look at what's engraved on the bottom."
Wei Hong held the brocade box higher and saw the words "Imperial Made" on the bottom of the porcelain box.
"Things from the palace?"
Wei Hong looked surprised.
"Judging from its design, it doesn't seem to be something from the last two years."
Song Xibai muttered to herself, hesitated for a moment, then dabbed a little powder from the box with her little finger and brought it to her nose to sniff.
She didn't know how many kinds of spices were added to this face powder, but even a tiny bit made it smell wonderful to her.
Nowadays, women of all ages like to apply face powder and even body powder, so rouge shops have the widest variety of face powders, including various floral scents as well as many strange and unusual fragrances.
The ingredients are also diverse. Ordinary people use rice flour, those with a little money use talcum powder, and the top noble families use pearl powder.
The box in front of Song Xibai was made with the finest pearl powder and contained at least seven or eight different fragrances.
But when Song Xibai smelled it, he could only detect rose dew, jasmine dew, agarwood, and sandalwood.
She stared at her hands for a long time before she had to accept the fact.
Her sense of smell isn't as sharp as it used to be!
Actually, if she tried a few more times, she could guess them all.
But now that she's pregnant, and Song Xibai doesn't dare take the risk because she doesn't know what's added to this stuff.
Song Xibai flicked her little finger, took out a handkerchief and carefully wiped it clean, then instructed Wei Hong.
"Keep it safe. Find someone you trust to take it back to my house and give it to my brother so he can check what's inside."
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