"Master, do you think Wu Ruyue might betray us?" Hongqiao lay wrapped in a quilt on the bamboo couch next to Fucha's bed. Neither she nor Fucha could sleep, because they, mistress and servant, were the ones who had caused all of this today.
"No, because she's afraid of being exposed. This little girl, if used well, could be a well-planted bomb. Getting her involved was truly an accident," Fucha said, her eyes wide open. Seeing Nian Shi unconscious before her, she couldn't suppress her excitement and exhilaration. The person who caused her and her unborn child's deaths in her previous life was finally going to die in front of her.
“Master, when I secretly put that pearl flower into that room, I was almost caught. Luckily, I had lived in the East Courtyard for a while before and was familiar with the place,” Hongqiao said.
“Everything is under my control. This time, we used the Wu family to cover up the poison that the Nian family was poisoned. If we can eliminate the Nian family, the Wu family, and the Liu family in one fell swoop, it will be absolutely worth it,” said Fucha.
“But the prince has already gone to the palace to find the imperial physicians. If they come and save Consort Nian, then all our efforts will have been in vain,” Hongqiao said.
"Hmph, let's see if those old fogies have the ability. Even if they find out, it'll be too late. The poison I planted in those bird's nests has been there for so long; Lady Nian would never dream that what she's been eating is a series of death warrants," said Lady Fucha. Even in this second life, she still vividly remembered the horror of being poisoned in her previous existence. She was pregnant at the time, and the nausea and vomiting caused by the poison were mistaken for normal pregnancy symptoms. Thinking back to being several months pregnant, only to lose her appetite and vomit after eating, she became nothing but skin and bones.
“But now they’ve concluded that the poison was administered after the dishes were served, and Wu’s suspicion seems to have been cleared,” Hongqiao said.
“Niohuru, I underestimated her. I didn’t expect her to have sorted things out so quickly. However, when I went over, I took advantage of Nian’s unpreparedness and put the poison into the stewed abalone on her table,” Fucha said.
"Master, do you think they might think of you?" Bai Qiao asked.
“They have no evidence whatsoever. They only have suspicions. But I will not leave any evidence for them,” said Lady Fucha.
“Master, this servant doesn’t understand why you had to do this. Lady Nian has been poisoned for so long, why did you have to attack her in front of so many people?” Hongqiao felt that doing this was too risky.
"That's to confuse the issue. To prevent them from finding out the real reason why Lady Nian fainted so quickly," said Lady Fucha.
Meanwhile, the Fourth Prince had already returned with two palace physicians. They immediately began treating Lady Nian. On the way, the Fourth Prince had already explained Lady Nian's condition to the imperial physicians.
After the two imperial physicians took Nian's pulse in turn, they looked on with suspicion and deep thought. The poison that Nian had been given was indeed very tricky; neither of the two imperial physicians could immediately determine what kind of poison she had been given.
"Your Highness, let's stop the poison in Consort's body first. Otherwise, I'm afraid she'll take effect before we can figure out what's wrong with her," said Physician Zhang.
"Alright, treat her quickly, no matter what method you use, you must cure her." The Fourth Prince's heart began to sink, even the imperial physician could not immediately determine the nature of Nian's poison.
Seeing this, Nian Gengyao breathed a sigh of relief. The Fourth Prince and he sat down in the main room outside the bedroom, and the two called out several of Nian's maids. They stood there, unable to offer any help.
"The concubine was poisoned right there in the seat she was sitting. Someone secretly put something into the dish. You were all standing behind her. Did anyone see anything?" The Fourth Prince asked, glancing at the four maids.
The four women exchanged glances, racking their brains, but couldn't find anything amiss. They hadn't noticed anything suspicious.
"What an incompetent fools! The concubine was poisoned right under your noses, and none of you knew. Really..." Nian Gengyao was surprised to see that these four maids were all from the Nian family and were trusted confidants. How could they be so careless?
"Besides you, has anyone else approached the concubine's table? Anyone other than you and the servants who served the food?" the Fourth Prince had no choice but to ask. He understood that this was undoubtedly another power struggle within the inner quarters.
Cui Ling, Bi Rou, Zi Ning, and Bai Zhi all carefully reviewed all of Nian Shi's actions that evening. It seemed that Nian Shi had exchanged a few words with Fu Cha Shi in seat zero, and then Fu Cha Shi came over to offer a toast.
Bai Zhi thought about it carefully, but apart from her own people and the servants who served the dishes, it seemed that only Lady Fucha had ever been near her master's table.
Could it be her?
Bai Zhi was shocked, but she seriously doubted her own speculation. How could Lady Fucha be so ungrateful? She was her master's ally, working together against the Niohuru clan. Moreover, Lady Fucha had only gotten her chance because of her master; how could she repay kindness with enmity? It made no sense at all.
Seeing the various expressions on the maids' faces, the Fourth Prince thought that if the matter of Lady Nian couldn't be resolved, the Nian family wouldn't let it go. Moreover, the Fourth Prince also felt disgusted by this kind of vicious woman; were his previous wives like this? Had another wicked woman appeared in his own household?
"Well, do you have any ideas?" Nian Gengyao asked when he saw that the maids remained silent.
Bai Zhi was unsure whether she should voice her earlier suspicion. After all, Lady Fucha was her master's ally, and revealing it now would break the alliance. However, Lady Wu had indeed not been to her master's table, although her hairpin had been there; there was no way she could have poisoned it.
"Your Highness, if there's anyone else who has touched Consort Nian's table, there's one more person. I don't know if she's a possibility." Bai Zhi thought for a moment, then said, "Now that Lady Nian's life hangs by a thread, we can't let go of anyone who might be involved."
"What are you dawdling for? Who is it?" Fourth Master said immediately.
“Princess Fucha. Only she came over to toast the concubine,” Bai Zhi said.
Cui Ling looked at Bai Zhi in astonishment, stammering, "Princess Fucha, that's impossible! She often comes to pay her respects to our Consort, and they have a very good relationship. How could she possibly be like that?"
“Nothing is impossible. Since she was the only one who went near the concubine’s table, she is highly suspicious,” Nian Gengyao interrupted her.
"Is Lady Fucha and Shilan usually quite close?" Fourth Prince asked, raising an eyebrow. He then realized that his growing favor towards Lady Fucha seemed to be related to Lady Nian.
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