23 Poisoning
Seeing Physician Liu's hesitant and reluctant manner, Gao Debao felt a chill and said in a trembling voice:
"Physician Liu, if there is anything that is difficult for you, please speak frankly. I am willing to try anything that is hopeful, and conversely, I have already prepared for the worst."
"General Gao, you can rest assured for now. I just took your daughter's pulse, and it's confirmed that she's been poisoned. Judging from her symptoms, she's been given Seven-Day Seven-Flower Powder. As the name suggests, this poison is made from seven kinds of poisonous flowers. After ingesting it, one will be in a coma for seven days. However, the toxins will gradually erode the internal organs. If the antidote is taken before the seventh day, she will recover completely; otherwise, there will be no hope of recovery," said Imperial Physician Liu with a sigh.
"Then we urge Imperial Physician Liu to develop an antidote as soon as possible."
"General Gao, to be honest, the antidote is not difficult to develop. It only requires the combination of seven other poisonous flowers that counteract each other, using poison to fight poison. However..."
"But what is it? Physician Liu, please speak freely. Is it because the poisonous flower is exceptionally rare? Even so, as long as you ask, I, Gao, will do everything in my power to find it for you." Having finally heard that his daughter could be saved, how could Gao Debao give up?
“General Gao, you don’t know this. It’s not that the poisonous flowers are exceptionally precious. The difficulty lies in the fact that there are countless types of poisonous flowers in the world that can be used to make poison. However, there are too few clues. I cannot accurately determine which seven poisonous flowers the poisoner used, so I have no way to start.”
"Imperial Physician Liu, you are a top-notch imperial physician, how could you not know? Do you even know how to diagnose? Fine, even if you really don't know, can't you try them one by one?" Just when he thought he had seen a glimmer of hope, he was suddenly plunged into despair. It was like falling from heaven to hell in an instant. This extremely bad situation made Gao Debao extremely agitated, and his tone became somewhat anxious and disrespectful.
Doctors are most averse to questions from patients' families. If they have such questions, why bother coming to see them in the first place? Clearly, Gao Debao's slip of the tongue angered Imperial Physician Liu, who rose angrily and said:
"General Gao, I understand your feelings, but that doesn't mean you can criticize or even question me at will. Imperial physicians are just ordinary doctors, not gods. They can't know everything. Moreover, General Gao should understand that fighting poison with poison is not a trivial matter. If the wrong poison is used, causing your daughter to suffer from heart poisoning, she will surely die within a few hours. Who will take responsibility then? If you think your daughter's life is something to be taken lightly, then I have no choice but to accept it. However, I cannot ruin my reputation. I can only ask you to find someone more capable. Farewell!"
After Physician Liu finished speaking, he was about to leave when Gao Debao, realizing his words had been inappropriate, tried to persuade him to stay:
"Physician Liu, please don't be angry or leave. I was just agitated and my words were too harsh. I didn't mean to doubt you at all. Please forgive me if I have offended you! So, in your opinion, are there any other ways to save my daughter?"
“General Gao, there is no other way but to find the poisoner as soon as possible and obtain the formula so that I can start preparing the antidote as soon as possible.” Imperial Physician Liu was not a stingy person. After hearing Gao Debao’s words, he sat down again and said.
After hearing Physician Liu's words, Gao Debao's eyes dimmed, and then he suddenly knelt down before Prince Xiaoyao and said:
"Your Highness, I am guilty, but for my daughter's life, I have no choice but to kneel down and beg Your Highness. As the saying goes, even the emperor is subject to the same laws as the common people. Since the princess is a first-rank princess personally appointed by the emperor, she should be even more law-abiding. How can she knowingly break the law? I beg Your Highness to give me justice!"
"Get up, General Gao. I understand your feelings perfectly. If the Princess Consort has truly committed any illegal act, I will not tolerate it." Prince Xiaoyao glanced at Liu Hanruo, sighed, and personally helped Gao Debao up, saying this.
"Your Highness, if I may speak disrespectfully, the Princess Consort's infamy has already spread throughout the capital. She has been accused of insulting her stepmother and beating her stepsister, with every charge seemingly well-documented. And today's events are obvious to anyone with eyes to see. It must be because the Princess Consort saw my daughter in the limelight and became jealous, so she ruthlessly eliminated her. Your Highness, I ask you, how can such an unfilial and unrighteous person be worthy of being a first-rank Princess Consort? I beg Your Highness to give me justice!" Gao Debao spoke with absolute certainty.
These words left the Prince of Xiaoyao speechless. After all, he had long heard of Liu Hanruo's reputation as an extremely wicked princess. And all the arrangements for today's Dragon Boat Festival banquet were made by Liu Hanruo alone. If we were to talk about suspicion, she would be the first suspect. Gao Debao's suspicion was not without reason. The Prince of Xiaoyao looked at Liu Hanruo quietly. He thought of everything Liu Hanruo had done recently, from her medical skills to her use of poison, to her martial arts, and finally to her way of handling affairs. All of them were completely different from before. He couldn't tell that it was the same person at all.
If this is her true nature now, and everything before was an act, then it has to be said that Liu Hanruo's disguise was very successful. Unlike before, she has now successfully aroused his interest.
If the previous Liu Hanruo was real, then this Liu Hanruo is very suspicious. Not only is she highly skilled in martial arts, but she is also proficient in medicine and poison. So we have to consider who she is, what her purpose is, and why she is disguised and infiltrating the Prince's Mansion. Could she be an undercover agent sent by that person?
Seeing the meaningful look in the Prince of Xiaoyao's eyes, Liu Hanruo immediately understood that it was impossible to rely on him. In the end, she could only depend on herself. She sighed softly, composed herself, and spoke coldly:
"General Gao keeps insisting that I wanted to harm your daughter because I was jealous of her. Well then, I'd like to ask you, General Gao, in terms of status, I am a first-rank princess consort, with rank and position, while your daughter has neither. What makes her comparable to me? In terms of power, I am in charge of the royal palace and, outside, a first-rank princess consort. Which official, high or low, dares to disrespect me? Even you, General Gao, must respectfully address me as Princess Consort. Your daughter, on the other hand, has nothing. What makes her comparable to me? In terms of beauty, I am a renowned beauty in the capital, and I believe I am no less beautiful than your daughter. General Gao, don't blame me for speaking harshly, but consider this: since your daughter is inferior to me in every way, what do you think she has that would make me jealous, so jealous that I would be willing to poison her to death?"
"You...you...you..." Gao Debao was so angry after hearing Liu Hanruo's words that he kept repeating "you" several times.
"General Gao, please don't be angry or agitated. I admit that what I said just now was excessive, but it was only to objectively tell you the truth so that you can understand that I have nothing to be jealous of, and I have no reason to eliminate your daughter, right?"
---Aside---
I recommend my friend Louguantai's novel, *The Very Charming Fruit Farmer*, a rural farming story, one-on-one.
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