Chapter 79 Poison 5 My husband thinks highly of me, but I don’t know anything about poison.
Su He pressed on, "Master Qi, can you find out what kind of poison it is?"
Qi Huai's face was gloomy. He bowed to Su He, then to Xie Wuhen. "The silver needle can only detect the presence of poison, not the nature of the poison. Considering Old Madam Xie's current condition, I can only prescribe a prescription to save her life. As for the rest, I can do nothing more."
Xie Wuhen secretly clenched his fist and asked, "Master Qi, do you know a poison doctor?"
Qi Huai shook his head helplessly, "Learning poisons is a shameful profession. Doctors all stay away from such people. Naturally, I don't know them."
Su He took a deep breath and hesitated to speak.
She knew about poisons and could tell at a glance that Xu Nanzhi was poisoned, but she couldn't let Xie Wuhen know that she knew about poisons.
After all, her previous methods of killing were all poison.
At this time, Nanny Han started crying and shouting again: "This old slave knew that there was something wrong with the mung bean cake. Young Madam, the old lady is truly compassionate and lenient towards you as her daughter-in-law. She even exempted you from the daily greetings. Why did you still want to do such a cruel thing to the old lady? Oh, God, please open your eyes and take a look..."
Su He replied sternly, "Madam Han, you can eat whatever you want, but you can't say anything you want."
Xie Wuhen also stopped her coldly: "Madam Han, please don't make trouble here."
Nanny Han was unwilling to accept this: "Master, the old lady's life is hanging by a thread, and you are still supporting the young lady. The imperial physician just said that this plate of mung bean cakes is poisonous, and this plate of mung bean cakes was sent by Chunlan, that little hoof. Why am I making trouble out of nothing?"
Upon hearing this, Chunlan quickly knelt down with a plop, tears streaming down her face. "My dear son-in-law, my dear young mistress, I absolutely did not poison the old lady. Even if I were a fool, I would never dare to poison the cakes I made."
Nanny Han retorted, "You, a maidservant, wouldn't dare to do that, but you have the young mistress behind you. If the young mistress ordered you to poison, would you dare not do it?"
Su He replied: "Even if I were a heinous criminal who wanted to poison the old lady, I wouldn't be so foolish as to poison the food in my own courtyard."
She glanced coldly at Nanny Han and said, "Besides, this plate of cakes has been lying unprotected on this table since it was sent from Chunhua Courtyard to the Main Courtyard. Therefore, everyone in the Main Courtyard has had the opportunity to touch this plate of cakes and poison it, including you, Nanny Han."
Nanny Han choked up and was furious: "Young Madam, you are... slandering me like this. It's really nonsense."
Su He replied: "Isn't Nanny Han also talking nonsense?"
As she spoke, she glanced at Xie Wuhen, who was also looking at her.
The gaze was dark and deep, with an unclear meaning.
She thought, even if he didn't doubt her now, he certainly wouldn't believe her completely, right? Unless she could find solid evidence to prove her innocence.
Su He stepped forward, walked towards the table in the room, and then took a closer look at the plate of mung bean cakes.
There were more than ten pieces of mung bean cakes, stacked on the plate. They looked normal in color and shape, except for the two empty pieces at the bottom. They must be the two pieces that Xu Nanzhi ate, right?
She picked up the pastry again and sniffed it, and instantly smelled the faint scent of datura. If she had not undergone months of poison training, she would never have been able to smell this scent.
As expected, a thief never leaves empty-handed. Zhang Qianer did not make this trip for no reason today.
She came here specifically to set her up, and of course, she also took advantage of her.
They are kind to each other!
Su He was calm and collected as she handed the mung bean cake to Qi Huai. "Master Qi, smell it. Does it smell like datura?"
Qi Huai took the mung bean cake and sniffed it, then sniffed it again, "The smell is quite light."
Actually, he didn't smell it.
Su He used her finger to spread a layer of powder on the surface of the mung bean cake: "Look, is there datura powder sprinkled on it?"
The color of datura pollen is very similar to that of mung bean cake, but after she applied a layer of it alone, the difference became particularly obvious.
Qi Huai was shocked when he saw this: "It really is Datura pollen!"
Su He's chest also relaxed, and he said, "That's right."
Qi Huai felt relieved and continued to speak. "This Datura flower is originally a medicinal herb for treating lung diseases, but excessive use will inevitably cause poisoning. In mild cases, it will cause blurred vision and coma, while in severe cases, it will cause delirium, respiratory depression, and even death. Madam Xie's current symptoms are quite similar to those of this poison. Therefore, I can prescribe the right medicine for Madam Xie."
As he spoke, he clasped his fists towards Su He with a look of satisfaction: "Thanks to Madam Shaoqing for her keen eyesight and recognition of this poison. I will prescribe a prescription right away." After saying this, he hurriedly bent down and sat down, picking up the pen to write the prescription.
Nanny Han finally felt relieved, but she was still unforgiving. "Even the imperial physician couldn't identify the poison, but the young lady was able to identify it at a glance. If the poison wasn't given by the young lady, who would believe it? Do you believe it? Do you, young master?"
Xie Wuhen paused and looked at Su He silently.
She was injured and had caught a cold. He couldn't bear to doubt her, but how could he explain the situation before him?
Zhang Xiuhua was so angry that she stepped forward and shouted, "Don't forget, my cousin was also in the main courtyard today, and her husband has lung disease. This datura pollen might have been brought by her."
After she responded, the room instantly became quiet.
Even Xie Wuhen paused, as if waking from a dream.
Even Nanny Han felt a little guilty, "Qian... How could Qian'er harm the old lady?"
Zhang Xiuhua sneered, "The old lady didn't help her marry into the first wife's family. She's barely had time to blame her, so how could she possibly care about her? Besides, if she put the datura flower poison into the cakes that the young lady gave to the old lady, if the old lady gets poisoned, the young lady will be incriminated, and the son-in-law will hate her to death. In this way, she's killing two birds with one stone."
Nanny Han suddenly recalled that she had mentioned to Zhang Qian'er that the young lady had sent cakes to the main courtyard. Her mind was a little dazed, but she still said stubbornly, "Impossible! This is just an excuse."
As soon as he finished speaking, Erlang suddenly ran in from the back door, barefoot, holding a kite in his hand, and yelling, "That's her, that's her."
Xie Wuhen's face fell for no reason when he saw his brother, and he asked coldly, "What about her?"
Seeing his brother, Xie Erlang trembled with fear and quickly shrank behind Su He: "I'm scared...Brother...I'm scared..."
Su He comforted him: "Don't be afraid, Erlang, brother is a good man."
After Erlang calmed down, she tentatively asked, "What did Erlang just say 'it's her'?"
Erlang glanced at Xie Wuhen timidly, then murmured, "It was that cousin... I saw her sprinkle foam on the plate."
Su He was startled and immediately pointed at the plate of mung bean cakes on the table: "Erlang, look carefully, Miss Cousin is sprinkling foam into this plate?"
Erlang nodded repeatedly: "It's this plate. I... I was hiding at the back door... I saw it." As he spoke, he pointed towards the back door.
The room fell silent again.
Everyone was silent, especially the maids and servants.
Others may lie, but Erlang is simple-minded and would never lie.
If I had only suspected Zhang Qian'er before, now it was confirmed.
If that cousin really poisoned the old lady, the first and third branches of the Xie family would be irreconcilable, and there would be no peace between the Xie family and the Li family.
Eventually, this matter will be exposed to the world!
Seeing that no one said anything, Xie Erlang felt very scared. He tilted his body and slipped away through the back door.
Xie Wuhen walked up to Su He and said something else: "I thought my wife knew poison."
Su He smiled gently: "My husband thinks highly of me. I don't know anything about poison."
She added, "It's just that Li Jianye suffers from lung disease and often uses this datura flower as medicine. Therefore, I am quite familiar with this medicine."
She didn't say "poison" but "medicine".
His expression remained unchanged, but the doubt in his eyes had disappeared. "Thank you so much for today, my lady. I'm sorry for putting you through this."
Su He replied: "As long as my mother is well, I don't feel wronged."
The two looked at each other for a moment, and trust grew again like a sprouting seed.
Xie Wuhen then instructed Nanny Han: "Hurry up and take the prescription to get the medicine, and then boil the medicine for the old lady to feed her."
Nanny Han was still unsure, but she hurriedly stood up and replied "yes".
Xie Wuhen thanked Qi Huai again and then sent him out of the yard.
He arranged the affairs of the courtyard, and then he and Su He returned to Chunhua Courtyard along the corridor of the mansion.
It was getting late and the dew was heavy. The sound of the second watch clappers could be heard from the distant streets.
The sky is bright with a bright moon and sparse stars, and there is a slight chill in the evening breeze.
He asked, "Are you cold, ma'am?"
She replied, "Not cold."
He asked her again if the wound hurt.
She said it didn't hurt.
Later he simply stopped and carefully picked her up.
Under the frosty moonlight, only the tall figure of a man holding a woman remained.
Zhang Xiuhua and Chunlan followed behind them and both breathed a sigh of relief.
This night is destined to be a sleepless night.
After washing up, the two of them went to bed.
Xie Wuhen was afraid of touching her wound, so he just held her lightly in his arms.
The candles in the house had gone out, leaving only the gauze lantern outside the window swaying in the wind, casting an ambiguous light and shadow.
Su He knew he couldn't sleep, "Husband, are you still thinking about Zhang Qian'er?"
The Xie family made him upset, so he never mentioned it and always avoided it.
He sighed and remained silent for a long time.
She asked, "Is my husband in trouble?"
His tone was serious: "I'm afraid I can't do what my lady wants?"
She understood instantly: "My husband wants to arrest Zhang Qian'er and put her in jail?"
"That's right. She hurt my wife and harmed my mother today. If I can't punish her according to the law, I would be unworthy of being a husband and a son, and I would have wasted the empty title of Shaoqing of the Dali Temple." His words were sonorous, and his words were filled with suppressed anger.
This man is aloof and conceited. He is gentle when compromising and stubborn when sticking to his principles.
This stubbornness may be his principle and also his bottom line.
Su He no longer made things difficult for him: "Husband, do whatever you want. I will accompany you back to the Li family tomorrow."
"My wife is still injured."
"Don't worry, my husband. I can handle it."
He kissed her forehead and said gently, "Okay, I'll listen to you."
The next morning, after dinner, the two went to the main courtyard to visit Xu Nanzhi.
By then Xu Nanzhi had slowly woken up, and when she saw her son and daughter-in-law, she burst into tears.
She had already learned about what happened yesterday from Nanny Han. She had mixed feelings in her heart and a thousand words stuck in her chest, but she didn't know how to start.
Finally, she murmured to Su He: "Shuli, I'm sorry."
Then he asked his son, "Qian'er..."
Xie Wuhen interrupted her: "Mother, please don't say anything more. I have my own plans."
After saying that, he was too lazy to say any more nonsense and pulled Su He up to say goodbye.
Xu Nanzhi looked at the two people's backs as they left, and felt sad again.
Nanny Han comforted her: "The old lady's health has just improved, don't be sad anymore."
Xu Nanzhi wiped her tears and said, "I just can't understand why Qian'er... could be so cruel."
Nanny Han gritted her teeth and said, "Why is the old lady still mentioning that heartless thing? If it weren't for the young master, the old lady's life would have been in her hands."
She choked up again as she spoke: "Of course, the young lady also helped a lot."
Xu Nanzhi nodded and sighed, "I just didn't expect that she would be so unscrupulous at such a young age. Well, I'll just cut off all contact with her from now on."
Nanny Han raised both hands in agreement: "It's better to break it off. It should have been broken off long ago."
Finally, he asked, "I wonder how the young master will deal with her?"
Xu Nanzhi replied: "Let him do whatever he wants with it. We don't care."
After Xie Wuhen came out of the main courtyard, he asked Su He to wait in the carriage first, and then he went to the mansion of the third wife.
The third house was not big, and only one master, Zhang Biyu, lived there.
After Xie Wuhen entered the house, he briefly recounted what happened yesterday.
Zhang Biyu was so frightened that she almost fainted, and she kept complaining, "She's so bold! She's so bold! How dare she... how dare she take someone's life!"
Xie Wuhen said bluntly: "I came here specifically to tell Third Aunt that I will deal with Zhang Qian'er according to the law. I hope Third Aunt will forgive me."
Zhang Biyu was so angry that she was a little dazed. She nodded and said, "Just follow the rules. I... I have nothing to do with her anymore. Whether she's dead or alive is irrelevant to me."
Xie Wuhen clasped his fists, bowed, and turned to leave.
Seeing him get into the car with a solemn expression, Su He asked, "Aunt San doesn't blame her husband, does she?"
His eyes softened, "No, don't worry, my lady."
Wu Sheng whipped the horsewhip, turned the carriage around, and galloped towards the Li family.
In less than half an hour, they arrived at the gate of the Li family.
At this time, there was a mourning banner hanging at the gate, and the scene was pale.
Su He was a little confused. Could it be that Li Taian had passed away?
She went up to the boy cleaning the door and asked, "Did something happen to my father?"
The servant replied respectfully, "My lady, something happened to the young master last night."
Li Jianye is dead!
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