Dingxiang practically rushed to the bedside, reaching out to touch the necks of both children with her hands.
After confirming that her pulse was normal, she breathed a sigh of relief, patted her chest, and sat down.
"You scared me to death! Why are you crying all of a sudden? I thought..."
Halfway through her sentence, Dingxiang snapped out of her reverie, quickly clasped her hands together, and began to chant.
"Pah! I didn't say or think anything! Gods, Buddhas, and Bodhisattvas in heaven, please don't listen to my nonsense."
She finally felt relieved after repeating those words.
But Song Xibai's heart was still clenched!
Stop nagging and go check on the child!
Dingxiang rolled up her sleeves and glared at her: "Did you drink last night?"
Song Xibai was stunned for a moment.
How did you know?
"Zhao Jing and Zhao Yan are clearly drunk, that's why they've been sleeping until now without waking up."
After Dingxiang finished speaking, she took out the needle case she always carried with her.
"After I give you two acupuncture treatments, the smell of alcohol will dissipate and you'll feel better."
Song Xibai was stunned, as if struck by lightning, and stood there for a long time before she came to her senses.
“I drank alcohol last night and didn’t feed the child.”
She murmured softly, then looked up at Dingxiang.
Are you sure?
Dingxiang didn't even turn her head: "I'm sure, I've seen it with Grandpa several times! Some adults like to tease children and always feed them all sorts of random things, like rice porridge, fish soup, meat soup, or even dry rice for babies... and even more of them feed them alcohol. Especially during the Lunar New Year, it's very common to see babies getting drunk by adults."
Song Xibai hadn't thought of this.
Because in her previous life, she had never encountered anyone feeding alcohol to a baby who was only a few months old!
In addition, Song Xibai herself was not particularly skilled in pediatrics, so she didn't think of it for a while.
"Won't it leave any lasting effects?"
She started to worry again.
“Normally not. But the two children were unconscious for half a day, how much did they drink?” Dingxiang couldn’t help but complain, “I’ve only been gone for a few days and something happened, this palace is too unsafe.”
Song Xibai pursed her lips tightly, anger surging in her eyes.
Now that the cause has been identified, another question arises.
Where did the wine come from?
People in her palace were not allowed to drink alcohol.
Song Xibai gently touched the children's cheeks and instructed Dingxiang, "Thank you for your help. I'll be going out for a bit."
After saying that, she suddenly stood up and strode outside.
Upon arriving outside, Song Xibai immediately summoned Eunuch Lai and ordered a thorough investigation of those who had been drinking the previous night.
The old man was so frightened that he broke out in a cold sweat and was filled with lingering fear.
His young apprentice brought food and wine over last night, but the old man refused to accept them.
At the time, all the masters were at the banquet, and he was the only senior steward in Changqing Palace, so he dared not be careless.
Fortunately, he thought it over at the time. If it had been back in the small kitchen of the Eastern Palace, Eunuch Lai would not have thought twice and would have accepted his apprentice's kindness directly.
In that case, if something happens today, I'll be the one who suffers the most.
The old man took out a handkerchief to wipe his sweat and immediately led his men downstairs.
He first called Anping over, gave him a good scolding, and then grabbed his ear, asking, "Did you let anyone touch the alcohol along the way?"
Anping cried out, "Master, be gentle! You're going to pull my ear off... No! That wine of mine is imperial wine, it's precious! I secretly saved it for you, Master, how could I dare let anyone else know?!"
Anping still felt wronged. He secretly left some good wine for his master, but his master didn't accept it. So he sent it back to the imperial kitchen untouched, and almost got seen by others.
The eunuch thought his young apprentice wouldn't have made a serious mistake, but he didn't dare to hide it from his master, so he reported everything to him.
Besides Anping, it was also discovered that many other people had secretly drunk alcohol.
They dared not drink alcohol while on duty, but quite a few would gather around a table or two in their rooms to drink, eat, play drinking games, and gamble.
After hearing this, Song Xibai had a terrible headache.
Too many people have been identified!
But she still couldn't understand how the person who did it managed to deceive so many people.
It's no exaggeration to say that there were more people in the side hall than in her own residence. With layers upon layers of protection, how could an ordinary person possibly get in?
Besides, the two wet nurses on night duty stay in the inner room, so they can't miss even the slightest movement.
Song Xibai stood in the main hall of the side hall, frowning and remaining silent.
At this moment, Wei Hong brought Li Chun in to serve tea.
"Your Majesty, please rest for a while and have some tea!"
Song Xibai sat down by the table and waved his hand.
"Just put it on this table!"
Lichun put down her teacup, glanced at the box on the table, opened the lid and looked inside, then casually said, "This box is empty. I'll take it away and have someone bring up a new one."
She reached out to take the box.
Suddenly, a thought flashed through Song Xibai's mind, and he raised his hand to stop her.
"etc!"
Lichun paused, looking puzzled.
Song Xibai waved his hand: "Bring it over so I can take a look."
The box was handed to her.
This food box has two layers. The upper layer is shallower and is usually used to store melon seeds and dried fruits, while the lower layer is deeper and is used to store pastries.
Song Xibai removed the top layer and checked each compartment one by one.
Suddenly, her expression shifted slightly.
With an exceptionally keen nose, I detected a faint, unusual odor.
"There was definitely something wrong!"
Song Xibai moved closer and examined it inch by inch, not missing the bottom or the lid.
"Found it!"
She picked up the top shelf, flipped it over, and turned it so the bottom was facing up.
Wei Hong leaned closer to examine it more closely, and suddenly exclaimed, "Huh? Why is it a little damp here?"
Song Xibai dipped his fingertip in the liquid, brought it to his nose and smelled it, then his face darkened.
"Such a thoughtful mind."
This liquid is clearly high-proof liquor!
This mortise box is made of porcelain. It should be warm in a room where charcoal is burning, but one particular spot feels rather cold to the touch.
After thinking about it carefully, Song Xibai guessed the method used by the perpetrator.
The other party somehow learned how to purify alcohol, turning ordinary liquor into high-proof spirits, and then freezing it into ice cubes.
The ice cubes adhered to the bottom of the layer above, which must have been quite thin, so they went unnoticed.
Then, taking advantage of the moment when no one was looking, the food box was put back. Due to the indoor temperature, the thin layer of ice wine slowly melted, and the wine dripped onto the food below.
Last night, Jin's wet nurse went out in the dark to find food. She only carried a lamp, so she couldn't see clearly and just ate whatever she could find.
"What kind of pastries did Wenniang say were stored here? I think they were milk cakes? Bring Wenniang and Jin Nainang over."
Song Xibai looked up and gave an order to the outside.
Soon, the two were brought over.
Song Xibai pointed to the box and asked, "Was yesterday's milk cake any different from the ones we usually eat?"
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