“Princess, you can’t give these jewels away. How could they dare to accept them? If someone sees them, they’ll immediately know they’re yours.” Hongqiao wondered how Fucha, who was always so meticulous, could make such a mistake.
“Take a closer look at these!” said Lady Fucha.
Hongqiao looked at the jewelry that Fucha had placed on the table with suspicion. Upon closer inspection, she realized that it was not Fucha's jewelry. Although the styles looked similar, there were slight differences in the details.
"Princess, these, these don't seem to be yours!" Hongqiao said in surprise, looking at Fucha.
"Guess whose these are?" Fucha asked with a smile.
Hongqiao looked again, then shook her head, not recognizing the jewelry. In fact, most of the jewelry worn by the women in the Fourth Prince's household came from the Imperial Household Department, or was subsidized by their respective families. Jewelry from the Imperial Household Department sometimes had repeated styles; princesses of the same status might receive similar pieces, differing only in details. The greater the difference in status, the greater the difference in the jewelry they received.
“These all belong to the Liu family!” Fucha said, emphasizing each word.
Hongqiao's eyes widened as she looked at the jewelry in disbelief. No wonder it looked like Fucha's, but upon closer inspection, it wasn't; yet there was a strange sense of déjà vu.
"Princess, how come you have Liu's jewelry?" Hongqiao asked, still puzzled.
"Do you remember that she lost a lot of jewelry at the Yuanmingyuan? Do you remember?" Fucha asked.
“That’s right. They even went to great lengths to search for her back then, but in the end, nothing came of it. It still seems strange now. Where did her lost jewelry go? Is it related to that Master Mu?” Hongqiao said.
"She didn't lose any jewelry at all, but she deliberately said that to frame Master Mu. But later, it seems someone wanted to cover it up. The jewelry is missing, and I think it's still with Liu. Now, based on my memory, I had outside craftsmen make replicas of hers based on my jewelry, and they're almost indistinguishable from the real thing. If anyone notices these pieces, it's none of our business. Liu, on the other hand, doesn't dare to rashly produce the jewelry she claimed was missing. What do you think she should do?" Fucha asked.
Hongqiao looked at Fucha in disbelief and said flatteringly, "Princess, you've thought three steps ahead! Now you've even dragged Liu into this, making her our shield. And you've done it so flawlessly, leaving her with no choice but to admit it or not. We can practically keep a close eye on her."
Fucha nodded and said, "Currently, only Niohuru has not been caught up in this trap. Hongqiao, you should also think carefully about how to get her involved as well."
Hongqiao pondered for a moment and said, "Niohuru holds a very important place in the Prince's heart. I think you don't need to rush. Get rid of Nian first, and then deal with her slowly. If we bring all three of them into this, there will be too many targets, and we might lose our focus."
Lady Fucha frowned, carefully considering Hongqiao's words, and nodded, saying, "That makes sense. Alright, I'll get rid of that Lady Nian first, and preferably Lady Liu as well. The Niohuru clan isn't doing well, so I'll join forces with the Fujin (Lady Fucha) to deal with her slowly."
And so, Xiao Gongzi in the kitchen had to tend the fire for both Lady Nian and Lady Fucha every day, the same things simmering in the medicine pot. Lady Nian's maid, Madam Wu, would nitpick, but Xiao Gongzi dared not be careless, and dared not let Cuiling discover that the bird's nest and snow frog stew was not cooked properly. Moreover, Lady Nian's other meals were also a top priority in the kitchen. None of them dared to be careless, because after the incident with Steward Wu, everyone else in the kitchen naturally dared not be so meticulous. However, the people in the kitchen began to increasingly like one person: Lady Fucha's maid, Hongqiao. Because every time she came, she was always smiling, very polite, and generous, giving gold rings, gold bracelets, and even various small gemstones and pearls. The gifts varied according to the person's rank. For example, stewards like Steward Wu usually received bracelets or jade, while a waiter like Xiao Gongzi naturally received gold or jade rings.
The kitchen staff treated Nian's maids with respect, but secretly they were already cursing them. They, however, were very welcoming to Hongqiao. Whenever Hongqiao came to the kitchen, they would proactively speak to her and offer to select the best meals for Fucha.
Hongqiao would come to deliver bird's nest to Lady Fucha every day, and then snow frog in the afternoon. She came two or three times a day, and the people in the kitchen got used to her. Seeing that the time was right, Hongqiao switched the bird's nests of Lady Nian and Lady Fucha according to Lady Fucha's plan.
It turned out that Lady Fucha had instructed Hongqiao to put the poison into her bird's nest, which Xiao Gongzi would then stew daily. When Hongqiao went to collect the bird's nest, she would secretly switch Lady Fucha's bird's nest with the one in Lady Nian's jar. After pouring Lady Nian's bird's nest into her own food box, she would then, again without anyone noticing, pour the poisoned bird's nest from her own pot into Lady Nian's medicine pot. Because the medicine pots appeared identical to each other, even if someone witnessed it, they wouldn't suspect what Hongqiao was doing; they would simply assume she was dumping Lady Fucha's bird's nest.
On those days, Hongqiao did all these things behind Xiao Gongzi's back, because he could tell the difference between Fucha's and Nian's medicine pots. Xiao Gongzi trusted Hongqiao completely, and each time Hongqiao would find an excuse to send him away.
"Master, it's been more than ten days. How much medicine did you put in that blood swallow?" Hongqiao asked.
“I used a very light dose. Too much would arouse her suspicion. It has to be a gradual, cumulative process for her to be poisoned. Hongqiao, has no one noticed?” Fucha asked.
“They didn’t notice anything, but I think you didn’t just kill her all at once, instead of taking her life little by little,” Hongqiao said.
“If you do it all at once, it will only arouse suspicion. If you do it slowly and gradually, in a very light way, she won’t easily notice,” said Fucha.
Meanwhile, Lanqin remained busy with the affairs of Daqing Hot Pot, completely unaware of the matters concerning Lady Nian and Lady Fucha. The branches of Daqing Hot Pot were also seeing improved business, with daily profits steadily increasing. Lanqin was immersed in the joy of making money, temporarily oblivious to the undercurrents swirling within the inner quarters. Hongzhou also began frequently accompanying Hongli to the South Courtyard, and Lady Geng no longer objected.
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