Chapter 337 Poisoning
Without thinking much, the maids responded and carried the hot water in to clean Mu Yuanzhen.
The male concubine stood at the door, watching the maids come and go. Not hearing Mu Yuanzhen's voice, a faint smile appeared on his lips.
Then, as if nothing had happened, he strode away amidst the guards' envious or disdainful gazes.
Mu Yuanzhen had kept male lovers for many years, but he never allowed them to stay overnight at the princess's residence.
As soon as the encounter was over, these male concubines would leave immediately and return to the villa where they were housed, and even the most favored one was no exception.
Therefore, the guards didn't pay much attention. After the male concubine left the courtyard, they muttered some complaints and continued to stand guard in the same spot.
Inside the room, the maids gently cleaned Mu Yuanzhen, ignoring the ambiguous marks on her body, only noticing that their mistress seemed to be sleeping too soundly today.
In the past, when Mu Yuanzhen was exhausted and fell asleep, the maids would wake her up no matter how gently they cleaned her, which would result in her scolding and cursing.
Mu Yuanzhen did not open his eyes all day, his breathing became unusually light, and his face was somewhat pale, lacking the rosy glow he had afterward.
The maids murmured amongst themselves, assuming that their mistress had drunk too much wine in the afternoon and had been with her male favorite for more than an hour, so none of them dared to wake her up.
As a result, Mu Yuanzhen slept soundly until the moon rose high in the sky without waking up, and didn't even turn over.
Now, the maids began to worry. They went outside the tent and tentatively called out a few times, but received no response from Mu Yuanzhen.
In that moment, they disregarded everything else and hurriedly lifted the tent flap, calling out to their master while trying to wake Mu Yuanzhen, but they still couldn't rouse him.
A maid noticed that Mu Yuanzhen's face had turned pale, and she reached out with trembling hands to check her breathing.
Upon discovering that her breathing was weak, almost nonexistent, she was so frightened that she collapsed to the ground: "No, no, this is terrible! Quick, quick, fetch the imperial physician! Quick, fetch the imperial physician!"
Princess Pingyuan had already gone to sleep, but upon hearing that Mu Yuanzhen had been in an accident and was unconscious, she immediately got dressed and rushed over.
The imperial physician was taking Mu Yuanzhen's pulse. After a long while, he withdrew his hand and said to Princess Pingyuan with a solemn expression:
"Your Highness, the young lady has been poisoned by a rare toxin. If an antidote is not found within three days, the toxin will seep into her bone marrow, and she may be confined to her bed for the rest of her life."
"What!"
Princess Pingyuan's expression changed drastically. She looked at the imperial physician with a mixture of shock and anger, unable to believe what she was hearing.
The imperial physician flinched, then forced himself to continue, "The Imperial Hospital has no antidote for this poison. Your Highness had better find the person who poisoned you, otherwise..."
Princess Pingyuan's face was extremely ugly. Her gaze fell on her daughter, who was lying unconscious on the bed with a pale face. A surge of overwhelming anger welled up inside her: "Who is it? Who exactly killed my Yuan Zhen!"
Without delay, Princess Pingyuan immediately ordered Wei Ming to investigate who had poisoned Mu Yuanzhen and sent someone to summon all the other imperial physicians from the Imperial Hospital.
The princess's mansion was brightly lit all night, with screams and pleas for mercy echoing from time to time, filling the magnificent residence with a sinister and terrifying atmosphere.
As dawn approached, Wei Ming finally deduced from the accounts of the maids and guards that the person who poisoned the princess was her male favorite who had been staying at the princess's residence for the past two weeks.
As for why the male concubine poisoned the woman, how he did it, and where the antidote is, we'll only know once we catch him.
"Bring him here to me immediately!"
Princess Pingyuan was furious and ordered Wei Ming to personally lead men to the villa to arrest the male concubine. Her eyes were filled with a chilling coldness: "I want to see him alive or dead!"
"yes!"
Wei Ming accepted the order and quickly dispatched men to the villa to arrest the person, but he had no confidence whatsoever.
So much time has passed, that male favorite must have run away after leaving the princess's residence, making it like finding a needle in a haystack.
But Mu Yuanzhen couldn't wait any longer.
If the antidote isn't found within three days, she'll be confined to her bed for the rest of her life, waiting to die.
As expected, Wei Ming and his group rushed to the villa only to find it empty.
The male concubine was summoned to the princess's residence yesterday and has not returned since.
When the other male concubines saw that he had not returned, they all assumed that Mu Yuanzhen had made an exception for him and kept him at the princess's residence overnight.
In private discussions, they even felt that this colleague had won Mu Yuanzhen's heart, and that Mu Yuanzhen wanted to give him a formal title.
Unexpectedly, this person dared to drug Mu Yuanzhen and had already fled and disappeared.
Wei Ming left the villa and arranged for people to go to the various city gates to keep a close watch on people leaving the city. If any suspicious persons were found, they were to be detained and taken to the princess's residence immediately.
If anyone else did this, it would inevitably attract attention from all sides and invite impeachment from the censors, but the princess's residence was not afraid.
Upon receiving news that the person had escaped, Princess Pingyuan was not surprised. She remained by Mu Yuanzhen's bedside and, without looking up, instructed Wei Ming:
"Take my token and order the Five Cities Garrison to do everything in their power to track down the fugitive."
"yes!"
Upon receiving orders from Princess Pingyuan, the Five Cities Military Command immediately began setting up a massive net to arrest people without reporting upwards through the ranks.
Despite Princess Pingyuan's order to keep quiet and forbid anyone from spreading the news of Mu Yuanzhen's poisoning, the news still spread like wildfire, reaching the capital in just one morning.
Xu Jinnian, who was repairing incomplete historical records at the Hanlin Academy, learned of this matter from his well-informed colleagues.
Song Zhihang strolled over to him, teacup in hand, and said gleefully, "Finally, someone has stood up for what's right and is acting on behalf of Heaven."
Xu Jinnian continued writing without looking up, saying, "Be careful what you say."
"Don't be so careful with your words. I don't believe you're not secretly enjoying yourself."
Song Zhihang pursed his lips, looking like he knew exactly what was going on.
Xu Jinnian looked at him helplessly: "The murderer hasn't been caught, so everyone is a suspect. If what you said gets back to those who are interested, the princess's mansion might suspect that you were behind it."
Song Zhihang seemed frightened, retreating repeatedly with a look of terror on his face: "Human life is at stake! How could someone as kind as me do such a heinous thing!"
Xu Jinnian: "..."
Is this an insult directed at him?
Xu Jinnian ignored Song Zhihang and picked up the history book next to him to find supporting evidence in order to prevent the repaired historical records from having loopholes.
Song Zhihang glanced at him silently for a moment, then suppressed his suspicions and strolled away.
After finishing his shift in the evening, Xu Jinnian, as usual, took a detour to the pastry shop and asked the owner to pack two freshly made jujube paste cakes for him.
As the money was being handed over, the shopkeeper whispered, "The man has already infiltrated a merchant ship on the high seas and left the capital smoothly. No one will be able to find out where he went."
Xu Jinnian said with a gentle smile, "The boss has excellent skills and has never made a mistake. My wife never gets tired of this dessert and loves it the most."
The shopkeeper's face broke into a smile, a smile tinged with obsequiousness: "I'm glad you like it, madam. Please come again, sir!"
Xu Jinnian nodded slightly, picked up the two packets of pastries, and left.
As he passed a street corner, he saw the soldiers of the Five Cities Garrison holding portraits and asking questions at every shop along the street. Xu Jinnian concealed the sharpness in his eyes and continued walking forward.
When the officials saw that his appearance was very similar to the person in the portrait, they were about to rush up to arrest him when they discovered that he was wearing official robes. They immediately looked disappointed and went to ask the next person.
Xu Jinnian didn't mind, a faint smile playing on her lips, her heart filled with the joy of returning home.
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