Chapter 116 Chapter 116 Detoxification
After spouting a bunch of nonsense, Shang Yuji felt refreshed and her recent irritability dissipated. As she walked out of the Ministry of Justice, the night breeze swept away the strange smell of the prison that clung to her.
Thick clouds obscured the moonlight, suggesting the weather might not be good for the next few days.
On their way back to the mansion, Shang Yuji belatedly realized that since arriving in the capital, they always went out at night and did all sorts of petty thefts that were best left unseen.
As she had predicted, it rained continuously for several days afterward. Spring rain is as precious as oil, and it would have been even better if it hadn't confined her to the mansion.
Because she had been busy with other things, she was not used to having so much free time after arriving in the capital. Even Jiang Xi was busy cutting new clothes, but she was wandering around like someone with nothing to do.
Shang Yuji decided to pick up the math and physics knowledge she both loved and hated in Yangzhou and start memorizing it. Since Xuanming said he was unsure whether Cheng Liupo or Cheng Xiao was the real agricultural genius, Shang Yuji decided to take a two-pronged approach: helping Cheng Liupo while also teaching Cheng Xiao about agriculture.
As for Cheng Xiaogang's limited literacy skills, how could he possibly understand agricultural science? It's not important. If he becomes a future agricultural genius, he will surely overcome such minor difficulties.
If she mistaken someone for someone else, it's fine. At worst, she can just give it to the child as extracurricular reading material. Which child who is studying doesn't like to read extracurricular books?
In short, during this period she mainly recorded things related to planting.
—Since Tian Mu went to prison, her dreams have evolved further, upgrading from only being limited to math, physics, and chemistry that she had studied in her previous life to including even major subjects like agriculture that she had never studied.
The upgrade is great, but it doubles the pain.
She vaguely sensed the medium of the upgrade.
Cheng Xiao was pleasantly surprised to receive the booklet from Lord Jiang Changtian. Her face, now rounder and fuller, was beaming as she thanked him.
Seeing that he was able to learn to read while studying the basic laws of agricultural development with great enthusiasm and determination, and looking like he was studying seriously, Shang Yuji felt much more at ease.
Even if he isn't exceptionally talented, he can still become one of the main forces driving agricultural development in Da'an in the future.
The Tian family mansion was in chaos. After hearing that Tian Mu had been arrested, Yi Sha and Xiang Fengyun could no longer contain themselves. They climbed over the wall and beat up Tian Yi, Tian Er, Tian San, and others who had done bad things for Tian Mu.
Because martial artists' breathing is more restrained than that of ordinary people, the two of them used the difference in breathing frequency to grab and beat people. It must be said that this method successfully avoided beating up ordinary people in the Tian family who had never practiced martial arts.
So what if the people in the manor see them? Robbing the rich to help the poor and upholding justice are the same chivalrous spirit of the martial arts world. If anyone dares to stop them, their guards, who are beaten black and blue and powerless to resist, will be the greatest deterrent.
After they've calmed him down, they throw him in front of the criminal investigation department.
As for what the officials of the Ministry of Justice thought when they saw the inhuman guards bound and thrown in front of the door, we will leave that aside.
A light drizzle fell, but good news finally arrived.
Doctor Yan Qing arrived in the capital, accompanied by Huo Wei, whom he had met along the way and traveled north together. Lin Mingshan drove the horse, with Huo Wei and Huo Shengge sitting inside the carriage.
The three of them originally intended to escort Old Man Yan to the Jia residence and then leave, but Miss Shang surprised them for a moment and then invited them into the residence.
In the unremarkable two-courtyard house in the east of the city, suddenly, many top martial arts masters, known as the "Hidden Dragons," arrived.
Yi Sha, Xiang Fengyun, and Huo Wei are good friends, so the task of entertaining them temporarily falls to the two of them. Shang Yuji and Hui Gu leave with Elder Yan. Huo Wei watches the three leave, his expression unchanged, but his eyes are full of contemplation.
How strange.
He met his old friend's gaze, paused for a moment, and shook his head to indicate that he didn't know either.
They led Old Man Yan into an empty room, where Shang Yuji explained the situation to him in detail, while Hui Gu filled in any gaps in her explanation.
After listening to the whole story, Yan Qing's expression turned grim: "Such a thing actually happened..."
He had heard that Yi Sha and others had roamed the martial world when they were young, but the martial world was so vast that new things were happening every moment. Unless necessary, no one would pay attention to every detail of other people's adventures in the martial world. In addition, the journey was long and the correspondence and news dissemination were very troublesome. Generally, what could be spread were major events in the martial world.
If only a few of them knew about this, and then lost their memories afterward, no one would remember what happened unless someone like Shang Yatou traced the past nearly twenty years from the smallest clues.
"Leave this matter to me. Rest assured, it concerns the imperial court and the martial arts world. I will do my best no matter what."
Back in the courtyard, Old Yan, who couldn't reveal the truth after being given a breath, got straight to the point, saying he wanted to take the pulses of the three elders.
Even though they didn't understand why, the three elders had incredibly sharp intuitions, and coupled with their trust in Elder Yan, they all reached out their hands.
He then conducted a full-body examination on the three elders. Finally, when he opened the door, Shang Yuji turned around and looked at Elder Yan. His face was ashen, a far cry from the confident demeanor he had when he treated Jiang Xi.
Her already tense heart leaped into her throat, fearing that Dr. Yan would pronounce a death sentence at any moment.
Fortunately, they discovered it in time and still had a chance to save the three elders before the King of Qi launched his attack.
"He can be saved, but you need some time to prepare and test the medicine..."
Shang Yuji secretly breathed a sigh of relief: "Elder Yan, please try it. Just tell me what you need and I'll find it for you."
Upon hearing that she was poisoned and had been poisoned for a long time, not only were the three elders surprised, but Huo Shenge was also shocked. However, she quickly calmed herself down and said to the two of them, "The Wanshang Alliance has a special pharmacy with many rare and precious medicinal herbs. If you need anything, just ask me, and our Wanshang Alliance will do its best to support you."
Upon seeing this, Shang Yuji did not refuse and thanked him in response.
Medicines capable of curing such stubborn poisons must not be common. Rare and precious medicines are like gold nuggets in any pharmacy, usually kept as prized possessions and rarely sold. Even if they are sold, they are extremely difficult to acquire.
With the support of the Wanshang Alliance, it would be even better. The alliance, which has managed to expand Fulai Inn to occupy half of Da'an, naturally has the confidence and strength to back it up.
Before preparing the medicine, Yan Qing called Hui Gu away. This poison was not a simple poison; it was a combination of poison and Gu (a type of venomous insect). However, the potent poison masked the scent of the Gu worms, making it impossible to detect their presence. Furthermore, the poison only affected a small part of the head, hiding it very well and avoiding areas that a typical doctor would examine with his traditional methods of observation, listening, questioning, and palpation. If Shang Ya Tou and Hui Gu hadn't been certain that the three elders had been affected, and if he hadn't insisted on a thorough search of their entire bodies, he wouldn't have discovered it either.
The matter of detoxification was left to Elder Yan and Aunt Hui. Xiang Fengyun was in the manor to test the medicine, so Huo Wei and his group left first.
At the same time, Zhou Ao acted even faster than they expected.
With the emperor bedridden, Zhou Ao used the pretext of caring for his father to pass messages to a young eunuch serving the emperor.
Eunuchs were among the people who had the closest opportunity to meet the emperor. Many of them were ministers who were summoned to the palace to present gifts, hoping to inquire about the emperor's mood and whether summoning him to the palace was a good or bad thing. Knowing this information in advance was essential for them to prepare for their audience with the emperor.
However, the timing was wrong. The emperor was currently bedridden, and it was unclear what he would think if he saw his child communicating with the person closest to him. In any case, he would not think that the child was particularly filial, and he would treat him differently.
At such a critical and sensitive juncture, even the slightest disturbance could reveal a weakness.
When the emperor heard from his subordinates that the second prince looked radiant before leaving the palace, it seemed that something good was about to happen.
Even without fully understanding what kind of "good thing" it was, for an emperor who values power, it was tacitly assumed that the "good thing" was coveting his throne.
He had barely shown a hint of fatigue when the vigorous young lion roared at the aged lion king, displaying his youthful physique and sharp fangs.
...
Recently, the emperor has been forbidding anyone from visiting him, and Zhou Ao's requests for permission have all been refused.
His refusal to let anyone visit him indicates that his condition has worsened to the point where he dares not let anyone notice his weakness.
This was good news for Zhou Ao, but in order to show his sincere willingness to serve at the sickbed, Zhou Ao went through the proper procedures to request entry into the palace.
While urgently dealing with Tian Mu's matter, the eldest princess kept a close eye on Zhou Ao's actions.
Zhou Ao is currently preoccupied with the news of the emperor's serious illness and has little energy left to rescue Tian Mu. She must resolve Tian Mu's related cases before the emperor dies.
If the emperor dies of illness, the execution of Tian Mu can only be postponed. However, when a new emperor ascends the throne, he will likely grant a general amnesty. There is too much room for maneuver in this process, and in the end, he might be able to escape death.
Only when a person dies can the dust settle.
In a rush, the eldest princess's faction maneuvered with Tian Mu's remaining troops and evaded the Second Prince's probes, finally killing Tian Mu in front of the execution ground.
The head rolled off, the body severed from the head, and the executioner's broadsword was stained with blood. Blood slid down the blade and exploded into blood flowers on the ground.
Some in the audience were terrified, some cheered, some were disgusted, and some cursed angrily. The girl, protected in a corner by the guards, silently shed tears. The nightmare ended lightly, and the midday sun was scorching, dispelling the nightmare that had haunted them for so long.
Tian Mu was sitting at his desk, his mind already in decline. He could put the matter aside for now. If it weren't for Zhou Ao's actions, which were like thorns piercing the emperor's heart, the Tian family affair would have been over long ago.
However, suspicions had already arisen. To test Zhou Ao, the emperor allowed him to enter the palace when his health improved. He asked him that although the case of Tian Mu had been closed, the Tian family's relatives had not been properly dealt with, and what punishment should be given to them.
Before entering the palace, Zhou Ao exchanged a few words with Eunuch He. Eunuch He said that the emperor had recently been very impressed with the eldest princess's keen observation and impartiality.
He believed he had grasped the Emperor's mind, so he bowed and lowered his brows, saying, "The Tian family must have been aware of Tian Mu's trip, but instead of stopping him, they helped to suppress the news. They can be treated as accomplices. They can be spared the death penalty, but they cannot escape punishment. The able-bodied men in the family should be exiled thousands of miles away, and their wives and daughters should be sold into slavery."
The emperor stood before him with his hands behind his back, praising him as he helped him up: "Jing'er, you are upright and impartial, and I entrust you with the full responsibility for this punishment. As for Chaoyun, I will speak with her and hand the matter over to you. Just go ahead and do it."
Zhou Ao thanked him repeatedly, accepted the imperial decree and left the palace, leading his soldiers straight to the Tian residence without stopping.
Emerging from the palace, he could decide the life and death of nearly a hundred people with just a few words. He had only tasted one of the highest powers—the power of life and death—and was already addicted to it, unable to stop.
The allure of such power is truly irresistible.
When the Tian family learned that the Second Prince was in charge of them, they couldn't help but feel relieved, thinking that given the relationship between the two families, they would be given a lenient punishment.
But she was too happy too soon. Exile and being sold off came crashing down on her, scaring the old lady so much that she fainted.
After many days of hard work, the Princess's Mansion finally resolved the Tian Mu case, only to have the Emperor hand over the fruits of their labor to the Second Prince with an imperial edict.
Before they could even begin to criticize or condemn the Second Prince for reaping the benefits of others' labor and stealing the fruits of his labor, upon hearing the punishments he had imposed on the Tian family's relatives, not only the people of the Princess's residence but also Shang Yuji, who was busy buying medicine, couldn't help but exclaim in astonishment:
"No way, is he crazy?!"
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