Who is the opponent?
“Look, Chunhua is doing very well in Shajiesai. They don’t dare to do anything to my little sister,” Fu Qinxiang’s eyes swept over the lines of text, then she raised them with ease, following the wrinkles on Liu Guanhua’s forehead, finally landing on his tearful eyes, “Do you hate me?”
Liu Guanhua suddenly realized what was happening: "How could this be! I'm too busy loving you to even think about it..." His voice trailed off, and he seemed to be talking to himself, but Fu Qinxiang heard him.
"You hate me. You finally managed to use Jiang Heng as a shield to deal with the ceremony for your little sister, but then you had to make her sacrifice herself, and all your efforts were in vain. You must hate me to death." Fu Qinxiang laughed, her eyes devoid of any light. If you pried open the eyelids of a recently deceased person, their pupils would probably look like this.
"No, no, how could I dare... Chunhua has become a princess and married in a grand ceremony. It's a good home, a good home." A tear fell onto the letter, and Liu Guanhua quickly covered it with his sleeve.
“Yes, Princess Tian, so many people dream of becoming her in several lifetimes.” Fu Qinxiang’s tone even carried a hint of envy.
"I hate Jiang Heng. He took the fifty li I gave him and then blatantly disrespected me!" Liu Guanhua said angrily, his fists clenching tightly. "Don't let me get a chance, or I'll definitely report him and make him regret it!"
“Jiang Heng has only just settled into his position, yet he’s already so ruthless. I haven’t felt this kind of knife-pointing feeling in a long time,” Fu Qinxiang said, squinting. “The last one was Zhao Peiming…”
"Hey, with his father keeping him in check, Zhao Peiming can't do anything no matter how wild he is. Even if he has a large army, so what? Once you, Grand Preceptor, bring Tang Ying under your command, I'll see what he can be so arrogant about!" This wasn't originally Liu Guanhua's plan, but he was beaming with excitement on the side. Fu Qinxiang just thought it was a monkey show and her eyes were full of jokes.
"You're too impatient. This kind of thing can't be accomplished in a day. It will take at least three months," Fu Qinxiang said casually.
"Hmph, anyway, things have already gotten messy with Tang Ying, haven't they? The Emperor has long been suspicious. If Tang Yao hadn't been favored, he would have been dismissed long ago. Sending him to the Thirty-Second Bureau is really letting him off easy." Liu Guanhua looked smug.
“Tang Yao feels sorry for her brother, and she’ll definitely be begging the Emperor to transfer Tang Ying back. We’re sisters, and she’ll surely try to ask me first. Once she asks, everything will come to us effortlessly,” Fu Qinxiang suddenly stared at Liu Guanhua, “Want to hear something else?”
Liu Guanhua had no reason not to listen and nodded repeatedly.
Fu Qinxiang beckoned with her finger, and Liu Guanhua stepped forward and bowed respectfully. She whispered a few words in his ear, and Liu Guanhua said in a low voice, "I knew this Jiang Heng was up to no good. He has approached Zhao Peiming five times and given up his small territory to the Sa Taqi. Isn't he obviously trying to curry favor with him? Don't you think their first meeting in court seemed like that of old friends?"
Fu Qinxiang thought for a moment: "Jiang Zhong and Zhao Chen."
Liu Guanhua nodded and said, "That kid Jiang Heng is capable of anything. That day, he went all out to participate in the selection, dressed in fine silks. Who knows if he will dare to take a desperate gamble and feed himself to the tiger today?"
Fu Qinxiang laughed: "I thought he was some kind of upright gentleman, but it turns out he was just putting on an act in front of me. I feel sorry for him going to all this trouble. Liu Zhiluo was a performer, but she made an exception and sold herself to Jiang Zhong. Sure enough, the child she gave birth to also had a bit of a vixen-like quality. Everything can be traced back to this."
Liu Guanhua, unaware of Jiang Heng's background, became quite animated upon hearing this—if a high and unattainable beauty were tainted, she would seem to fall into the dust, becoming inferior to ordinary people, subject to everyone's wild imagination and trampling: "Then Your Highness is currently..."
"Just leave them like this. As long as Jiang Heng stays in Tiansong, in the residence I built for him, he can't send letters, and the two of them can't communicate. Without Jiang Heng's brain, Zhao Peiming is just a tool that anyone can use. He's been strictly controlled by that old man since he was a child, and he doesn't seem to have any self-control, so he's easily bewitched. If they want to play house, we'll play along to the end," Fu Qinxiang said, then pointed a finger at the other person's chest and pushed him away. "Playing the lovebirds in the court, the taste of lovesickness must be unbearable."
Liu Guanhua's soul seemed to gather around that fingertip, and he grinned, "It doesn't feel good, it doesn't feel good."
“Grand Preceptor—” A person ran in from outside the door and knelt at Fu Qinxiang’s feet. “Your Excellency, Consort Li has suddenly fallen ill. The imperial physician said that there was something wrong with her diet over the past two months. His Majesty sent people to investigate and now he wants to invite you to come over.”
Fu Qinxiang's heart sank, and she gave Heng Hui a wink: "Let's go."
—————
"How is it?"
"Your Majesty, this medicine is extremely toxic, and the person administering it was very cautious. The toxicity that would have manifested in one dose was replaced with a two-month-long, slow-acting medicine, mixed into the food, killing silently. Fortunately, Xiao Cai discovered it in time today, otherwise, I'm afraid it would have endangered the Consort's life." The imperial physician raised his sleeve and kept wiping away sweat.
"Your Majesty, the Imperial Advisor has arrived."
"Your Majesty," Fu Qinxiang bowed.
"Kneel down!" the emperor roared. Fu Qinxiang remained kneeling, her head bowed.
"I told you to kneel! Are you deaf?" The emperor's eyes were bloodshot as he pointed at the two guards beside him. "What are you two good for?!" The two guards knelt on the ground but did not dare to step forward. Although Heng Hui was Fu Qinxiang's personal guard, he was still a servant after all, so he also knelt on the ground, but his back was straight.
"What does Your Majesty mean by this?" Fu Qinxiang asked, her voice full of doubt.
"What do you mean? Two days of bird's nest soup, three days of porridge, and the tonics from a few days ago were all sent by you! You know very well what you've done!"
“Your Majesty, please calm down,” Heng Hui said, bowing. “Consort Li has always been favored, and there are at least dozens of concubines in the palace eagerly awaiting Your Majesty’s favor. It is not uncommon for some of them to harbor malicious intentions. Since Your Majesty has summoned the Imperial Preceptor, we will certainly follow the Imperial Preceptor’s orders to thoroughly investigate this matter and give Consort Li justice.”
"Where is the imperial physician? Is this poison to be administered continuously for two months, without stopping for even a day?" The emperor was still sitting on the couch, holding Tang Yao's hand tightly. The curtain almost completely covered Tang Yao; from the outside, only a section of her pale arm could be seen.
"Yes, Your Majesty."
"Still trying to deny it?! I have checked Consort Li's food records for the past two months, and only you, Fu Qinxiang, have been sending her food and drink every day for two consecutive months! You're not trying to win favor, yet you've become so ruthless! Guards, take her away and interrogate her properly!" The emperor threw down the string of prayer beads in his hand, and the beads rolled to the ground.
"Who dares?" Fu Qinxiang dismissed the guards on either side. "At this moment, there is no conclusive evidence to prove that I was the one who poisoned the medicine. Would His Majesty rather believe that my tonic was laced with poison than doubt the palace kitchens even a little? And that Xiao Cai, she has been serving Consort Li since she entered the palace, and her diet and daily life should be taken care of in every way. It is entirely possible that she was instructed by evil people and made a mistake!"
Xiao Caiben was wiping Tang Yao on the other side when Fu Qinxiang pointed at her. Startled, she came around and knelt before the emperor, the wet handkerchief in her hand so wet that it dripped water, soaking her skirt. The emperor glanced at the imperial physician, who couldn't be sure it was Fu Qinxiang who did it. Besides, he couldn't afford to offend such a person. He could only tremble as he carried his medicine box and lowered his head.
Seeing Xiao Cai so frightened, Fu Qinxiang said smugly, "Xiao Cai, if you tell the truth, we can be lenient with you. If you hide anything, your entire family will be implicated. So, what do you want to say?"
"..." Xiao Cai couldn't say a word. Her pale lips trembled uncontrollably, and tears streamed down her face.
At this moment, the emperor's hand twitched slightly, and he immediately leaned down and peered into the curtain. Tang Yao whispered a few words to him, and a few seconds later, the emperor peeked out, his brows furrowed. After a long while, he squeezed out a single word through gritted teeth: "Investigate."
"Huh?" The two guards lying on the ground looked at each other and shook their heads, neither of them having heard clearly.
"Investigate this thoroughly for me! Once you find out, execute him first and report later!" the emperor said, glaring fiercely at Fu Qinxiang.
"Yes!" The guards retreated and scrambled out of the door.
“Since Your Majesty has such doubts about me, why don’t you let me handle this matter?” Fu Qinxiang said.
The Emperor looked at Fu Qinxiang meaningfully, but made no reaction. Fu Qinxiang's ruthlessness was indeed only directed at her rivals in court; targeting a favored concubine would bring her no benefit whatsoever. Besides, Jiang Heng had already suppressed her arrogance, so there was no need for him to punish her further. Thinking this, the Emperor subconsciously nodded.
Fu Qinxiang quietly withdrew, and Heng Hui followed behind, saying, "Shuangyue, really?"
“Of course not. Someone else must have put the drug in, or someone with ulterior motives used ingredients to enhance the drug’s effects. I used an extinct species, not a deadly one. I must protect Tang Yao’s life before I have complete control over Tang Ying.” As Fu Qinxiang spoke, a cold wind blew in from the northwest, carrying a bloody smell. She subconsciously covered her mouth and nose and turned her head away.
"Tang Yao can still hold the Emperor's hand, so it seems she's quite a pampered person in your eyes, and you have to treat her like a precious gem at all times," Heng Hui muttered.
"Alright. Of all these people, which one of them have I ever been interested in? It's all just playing around, just for fun," Fu Qinxiang couldn't stand it anymore and tapped Heng Hui's sleeve armor. "The sleeve armor I made for you, is it comfortable to use?"
"It feels great." Heng Hui smiled insincerely, her heart aching—the badge bore the exclusive mark of her household, like a dog tag. She didn't enjoy being treated like a dog, chained up, and didn't want to be just a subservient subject. Her words lingered on her lips, but she finally said, "Shuangyue, is playing with emotions fun?"
Fu Qinxiang hadn't expected her to ask so bluntly. She paused for a moment and said, "Is it interesting? I don't think so. My heart is also a piece of flesh. As long as I have compassion, it will hurt. For me, killing a thousand enemies is like losing a hundred of my own. I'm willing to do it."
"If I could be among those hundred, I would have no regrets in this life," Heng Hui thought.
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