Chapter 196: Unrest
On the bed, Wei Mingliang was tied up with silk strips. As he struggled and twisted, the bed shook slightly, making a series of creaking sounds.
Veins bulged on his forehead and neck, his peach blossom eyes were no longer clear, they were bloodshot, his lips were swollen like intestines, and there were countless bloody wounds on them. The blood that flowed out soaked the clean cloth used to gag his mouth.
There were scratches all over his face, neck and hands, as if he had just rolled through a thorn bush.
Because his mouth was blocked, he could only make a mad beast-like "ho ho" sound in his throat, as if he would break free from his restraints and attack people at any moment.
"The doctors we invited are helpless. Sir, please save His Highness." Tuoba Yong grabbed Zhao Shiqi and shook him anxiously.
Zhao Shiqi is a weak scholar and he is also old. How can he withstand such shaking?
I was seeing stars and couldn't even speak.
"Let go of the sir!" The captain of the guards couldn't bear it anymore and snatched Zhao Shiqi from Tuoba Yong's hands.
Zhao Shiqi was so dizzy that he couldn't even stand. It took him a while to find the strength to ask, "What did the doctor say?"
"The doctor said that His Highness was poisoned by the itching powder," Tuoba Yong said, "but after using the antidote, His Highness's symptoms not only did not improve, but became even more severe. He is even unconscious."
Zhao Shiqi asked, "Who was the first to discover that His Highness was poisoned?"
"It's me." The beauty came over and bowed to Zhao Shiqi. "I came into the room to accompany His Highness. His Highness only drank a few glasses of wine and didn't eat anything else. Lord Tuoba has just given the wine pot and wine glass to the doctor for inspection. They are both poison-free."
Zhao Shiqi asked, "Where are the other things in the room?"
"We've checked everything, and it's poison-free." Tuoba Yong glanced at Wei Mingliang, who looked completely different from his usual self, lying on the bed, and said anxiously, "If this continues, His Highness will die of exhaustion. Sir, please think of a solution quickly."
"Don't worry." Zhao Shiqi looked at the chief guard, "Go and get the princess."
The captain of the guards took the order and ran away.
Zhao Shiqi looked at Tuoba Yong again and said, "There should be a master detoxifier in the palace. Take His Highness's token and go to the palace to ask for an audience with His Majesty. Let's borrow a doctor who is good at detoxification."
"Okay." Tuoba Yong took the token and left, riding a fast horse to the palace.
When the Princess of Western Xia learned that Wei Mingliang had been poisoned, she hurried over, dressed in her clothes.
When she first saw Wei Mingliang's miserable condition, she almost didn't recognize that the person lying on the bed was her handsome and elegant royal brother.
She was so frightened that she took two steps back, tears welling up in her eyes. "What happened to Second Brother? Where's the doctor?"
"Princess, don't worry. I have already asked Lord Tuoba to come to the palace to invite the imperial physician. Your Highness will be fine." Zhao Shiqi spoke to comfort her and motioned her to talk to the side.
Princess Xixia followed him and glanced towards the bed from time to time. Tears had already fallen down her face and she couldn't stop them.
Zhao Shiqi knew that the beautiful princess would cry when her emotions fluctuated greatly, so he was not surprised and asked the maid to bring silk to wipe her tears.
Princess Xixia was shaking with tears, her voice choked with sobs: "Sir, what do you want to say to me?"
Zhao Shiqi said, "I would like the princess to recall carefully what you have eaten and touched since entering the palace, especially things that the princess has never eaten or touched."
Princess Xixia did not ask the reason, but wiped her tears and recalled the past.
As she recalled the past, her emotions calmed down a little and her tears flowed less quickly.
She said, "Second Brother didn't touch anything special. As for the food... I sat next to him, and we ate and used the same things. If the food was poisonous, I would probably do the same as him."
Upon hearing this, Zhao Shiqi's brows twisted into a knot.
According to his speculation, Wei Mingliang was most likely poisoned in the palace, perhaps by the one sitting on the throne. After all, they had used this tactic on Emperor Rende before, but because they had no evidence, the emperor suffered a great loss.
Now it is not impossible for a son to avenge his father.
But from what the princess said, it didn't seem to be the case.
He thought for a moment, then asked, "Did you encounter anything strange on the way back to the inn?"
Princess Xixia shook her head, "Everything went well when I came back."
"That's strange." Zhao Shiqi paced back and forth with his hands behind his back. He felt that he might not have woken up yet and his mind was not clear, so he asked someone to bring him a cup of strong tea to wake him up.
Upon hearing this, Princess Xixia had an idea and exclaimed, "Hey."
Zhao Shiqi immediately turned to look at her: "Princess, have you thought of anything?"
"If you say that only the Second Prince ate something that touched something, then there really is one." Princess Xixia pointed at the tea served by the maid, "A palace maid fed the Second Prince a cup of tea."
Zhao Shiqi's eyes lit up, feeling he had grasped the key, and asked hurriedly, "Which palace maid?"
Princess Xixia said, "It's the palace maid that the Third Prince said kicked the Second Prince in public and wanted to commit suicide by hitting her head against a pillar."
This was a shameful matter, and Wei Mingliang had deliberately concealed it from Zhao Shiqi, who knew nothing about it. He was about to ask about it in detail when he heard everyone exclaiming that Wei Mingliang had actually broken the straps that bound him.
Without asking any more questions, he ordered the guards to go forward and arrest the man.
The room was instantly in chaos.
On the other hand, things were not peaceful in the palace either.
Cai Baolin of Chengbi Hall suddenly fell ill and his whole body was covered with red rashes. His condition was horrifying, so he summoned the imperial physician to see him overnight.
The noise was so loud that even the queen was alarmed and she brought people to visit.
Xiao Jingfan also received the news and went to Chengbi Hall.
When he arrived, Concubine Shu and Concubine Chun, who had also received the news, had already arrived.
"Your Majesty, may you be well." Everyone knelt to greet him.
"Everyone, get up." Xiao Jingfan sat down at the main seat and asked, "What's the situation?"
Empress Zhong, who arrived first, said, "Your Majesty, Cai Baolin's condition is critical. He has just been given a bowl of medicine, and Imperial Physician Li is treating him inside."
As he was speaking, Doctor Li came out carrying a medicine box.
He was about to salute Xiao Jingfan, but Xiao Jingfan interrupted him with a wave of his hand, "No need to salute, how are you?"
Doctor Li bowed and said, "Your Majesty, Cai Baolin's life is no longer in danger. He only needs to apply medicine to the rash on his body, and he must continue to take herbal decoctions. He will need to recuperate for about a month."
Xiao Jingfan frowned. He was fine when he was delivering the soup. How could he suddenly become like this?
He asked, "Why did Cai Baolin suddenly fall ill?"
"Your Majesty, Cai Baolin's condition isn't a sudden emergency, but rather poisoning," said Doctor Li. "I found oleander juice and a small amount of almond powder in the jade cream Cai Baolin used. Oleander is highly toxic, and Cai Baolin is weak, which is why he developed a rash all over his body."
Consort Chun was surprised, "Only concubines and above have Jade Cream in their rations. How could Cai Baolin have it?"
"I heard from Cai Baolin that it was given to her by Concubine Zhu when she visited her at Chengbi Hall," Empress Zhong said. "As for how Concubine Zhu came into possession of the Jade Face Cream, I don't know."
Hearing this, Xiao Jingfan turned around and instructed Zhou Yuande: "Send the beautiful lady a greeting."
*
"Your Majesty, I pay my respects to you. May your Majesty be well and safe." Zhu Hanyu knelt down to salute. Her long black hair was loosely tied up with a sandalwood hairpin. A few strands of hair hung down on the sides of her face, adding a bit of charm.
Xiao Jingfan gestured to Doctor Li to show her the Jade Beauty Cream, "Did you give this box of cream to Cai Baolin?"
Zhu Hanyu looked up and saw a scratch in the middle of the box. She nodded and said, "This is a gift from me to Sister Cai."
Empress Zhong asked, "Doctor Li found oleander juice in this box of Jade Beauty Cream. Cai Baolin developed a rash and nearly lost his life. How do you explain this?"
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