Chapter 153: Searching for evidence on a cold night, talking about scheming over a warm stove and wine
The nights at Shufangzhai were always more lively than elsewhere. The goat-horn lanterns hanging in the corridor swayed gently in the evening breeze, casting the figures on the window paper into a sliver of warm yellow. Little Swallow squatted by the charcoal brazier, rummaging through something, oblivious to the ash stain on her lilac-colored skirt. The pearls in her hair jingled with her movements.
"Found it!" She suddenly raised a small brocade box and brought it to Ziwei as if presenting a treasure. The charcoal fire made her cheeks flush red. "Look at this! This is the 'poison test silver tablet' that big brother gave me last time. It's specially used to test those messy powders!"
Ziwei, sitting at her embroidery frame, sorting the threads, set down her canvas upon hearing this, her fingertips lightly brushing over the multicolored threads. She was still haunted by the "unlucky thread" she had just discovered at Huguo Temple. Looking at the threads now, she felt a sense of awe in each one. She held a strand of silver thread up to the light, her voice soft but tinged with worry, "Tell me... is there really someone in the palace trying to harm us? The Empress and Madam Rong have treated us so well, and Concubine Ling has been so supportive..."
"People's hearts are hidden!" Xiaoyanzi opened the brocade box with a snap, took out a shiny piece of silver, grabbed the sword tassel on the table and rubbed it against the silver. "Have you forgotten your last life..." She suddenly stopped mid-sentence, stuck out her tongue, and quickly corrected herself. "I mean, we should always be on guard against others! Look at this tassel, my brother just said it smells strange!"
The moment the silver scrape brushed against the sword tassel, the shiny surface immediately took on a faint bluish-black hue. Little Swallow let out a cry of "Ah!" and leaped to her feet, throwing the sword tassel onto the table. The bells jingled non-stop, "Sure enough, there's something wrong! How dare this wicked bastard tamper with my sword tassel!"
Yongqi heard her shout the moment he stepped through the door and hurried forward. "What's wrong? What did you find?" He took off his cold cloak and handed it to Mingyue. His eyes fell on the silver pieces and sword tassels on the table, and his brows furrowed. "Is this... poison?"
"It's not poison, it's 'Horse-Tripping Incense' powder!" Xiao Jian walked in, his dark robe still damp with the night dew. He lifted the tassel of his sword and sniffed it, his face darkening. "This powder, when heated, emits a bewitching aura. It's not a large amount, but it's enough to make you dizzy and weak-kneed. If it breaks out during ancestral worship, we'll embarrass ourselves in front of our ancestors, and the consequences will be disastrous."
Ziwei's face turned pale instantly, and the embroidery thread in her hand fell to the ground with a "click": "Then my embroidery thread..."
Falcon immediately examined the silver thread on the embroidery frame. Sure enough, he discovered extremely thin black threads nestled within the cores of several strands. He held the threads close to the candlelight, and the heat caused them to curl slightly, emitting a pungent, burnt smell. "There's something wrong with this thread! If it's embroidered on clothing or offerings, it might be interpreted as disrespectful."
"It's the scent of the crabapple tree again!" Xiaoyanzi suddenly slammed the table, causing the sparks in the charcoal brazier to jump. "That's the scent I smelled this morning at Huguo Temple. That old, pissed-off Nanny Li loves to hang out under the crabapple tree! It must be that wicked Concubine Gao who's behind it!"
Yong Qi held her hand, the warmth of his palm gradually calming her down. "Don't get too angry. We don't have enough evidence right now. If we make a hasty announcement, we'll just alert the enemy." He looked at Xiao Jian, "Is there any movement from that young eunuch that Big Brother was watching at Huguo Temple?"
"I've followed him to the back alley of Jingren Palace." Xiao Jian walked to the window, parted the curtains, and looked at the lights of the palace in the distance. "The young eunuch went into Concubine Gao's side hall and came out half an hour later with a heavy package in his arms. It looked like a silver ingot."
"We have both the witnesses and the evidence!" Xiaoyanzi rolled up her sleeves and was about to rush out, but Yongqi grabbed her and said, "Where are you going?"
"Let's go settle the score with that old hag surnamed Li!" Xiaoyanzi struggled to get free but couldn't. She stamped her feet in anger, and the pearls in her hair wobbled. "If she dares to plot against me, I'll tear her mouth apart!"
"Nonsense!" Xiao Jian shouted at her, his eyes softening as he turned around. "If we go find her now, she'll definitely deny it. We have to wait for the right moment to leave them with no chance of explanation." He walked over to Ziwei and picked up the embroidery thread on the ground. "Keep Ziwei's embroidery thread and Xiaoyanzi's sword tassel as evidence."
Ziwei nodded, her fingertips gently stroking the cool silver thread, and whispered, "I understand. They want us to embarrass ourselves at the enthronement ceremony and ancestral worship ceremony, but we must go smoothly and let their plans fail." She raised her head, her usually gentle eyes now brightening surprisingly. "But... what should we do?"
Yongqi pondered for a moment, his gaze falling on the sword tassel on the table. "Take advantage of their strategy." He picked up the tassel, weighed it, and a faint smile played on his lips. "This 'Horse-Tripping Incense' powder only works when heated, so just avoid charcoal fire. As for the swords we'll use during ancestor worship, we can replace them in advance."
Falcon also chimed in, "Ziwei's embroidery thread can be replaced with new ones. We can keep the ones mixed with 'unlucky threads' as evidence. We just need to find out what occasion they are planning to tamper with? Is it the enthronement ceremony or the ancestral worship ceremony?"
"It's probably for the ancestor worship!" Xiaoyanzi suddenly clapped her hands, her eyes sparkling. "There are so many people at the enthronement ceremony, it's hard for them to do anything. The ancestor worship ceremony is solemn, and if something goes wrong, it will be easier to convict! I guess they've tampered with other things, such as..." She rolled her eyes and suddenly looked at Ziwei's dressing box, "Your jewelry! Or the dress for the sacrifice!"
This reminded everyone, and Mingyue Caixia immediately started searching. Xiaodengzi ran in with a heater in his arms. Seeing everyone's serious expressions, he couldn't help but gasp, "Wow, boom! What's going on? I just heard a noise outside and thought there was a burglar!"
Little Mosquito followed behind, holding a freshly baked sweet potato in his hand, and mumbled, "Little Stool was just saying he was going to tell the story of Sun Wukong's three fights against the White Bone Demon. He said that the demon used all kinds of methods to harm people, just like here..."
"Stop talking nonsense!" Xiaoyanzi glared at them, then her eyes lit up. "You've come just in time! Little Stool, aren't you the best storyteller? Go find out tomorrow what's going on in the palaces lately, especially the people in Concubine Gao's palace, to see if they've bought anything strange or outlandish!"
The little stool immediately straightened up, patted his chest and said, "Leave it to me! I promise to find out everything for you! But you have to promise me that you will listen to the story before you go!"
As she was speaking, Caixia suddenly exclaimed, "Princess! Look at this dress!"
Everyone gathered around and saw that the apricot-yellow dress, prepared for ancestor worship, was embroidered with a small, inconspicuous dark flower on the cuff. The stitching of the petals was concealed by extremely fine silver threads, invisible without careful observation. Xiao Jian used a silver hairpin to pry apart the threads, and the silver threads immediately turned black, emitting a faint, strange smell.
"This is 'Bone-Eroding Silk'!" Xiao Jian's face darkened. "It looks like ordinary silk thread, but it's actually mixed with saltpeter powder. It will corrode the skin when it comes into contact with sweat. While not fatal, it will cause redness, swelling, and itching. Scratching during a sacrifice is also a serious crime of disrespect!"
Ziwei was so frightened that she took a step back and held on to the embroidery frame to steady herself. Her voice trembled: "They...they are so cruel..."
Xiaoyanzi was trembling with anger. She grabbed the dress and was about to tear it into pieces, but Yongqi stopped her, "Don't be impulsive! This is also evidence!" He looked at the dress, a cold look in his eyes. "It seems they are determined to make you look bad during the ancestral worship. We must be more careful."
Xiao Jian put away the formal attire and said in a deep voice, "I'll go check tonight to see who delivered these things to Shufangzhai. Tomorrow, you guys prepare according to the original plan and pretend you didn't notice anything, so as to lure them out of their mischief."
In the dead of night, the side halls of Jingren Palace remained brightly lit. Nanny Li was kneeling on the ground, answering a question, the charcoal basin before her burning brightly, casting a half-bright, half-dark shadow on Concubine Gao's face. She toyed with a golden hairpin, the rubies on it gleaming coldly with her movements.
"...Everything has been done as the Empress ordered. The 'Horse-Tripping Fragrance' powder has been mixed into Princess Huanzhu's sword tassel, and the 'Bone-Eroding Silk' has been embroidered on the cuffs of Princess Mingzhu's dress. And those 'unlucky threads' are enough to make them look bad during the ancestor worship!" There was a sense of pride in Nanny Li's voice, but she kept glancing towards the door, afraid that someone would hear her.
Concubine Gao snorted coldly and threw her hairpin onto the table, making a crisp sound. "Well done. But this is not enough." She stood up, walked to the window and looked towards the distant Shufangzhai, a sinister smile curling her lips. "I don't want a small fight, I want to make sure they never get their turn! Fang Ci is just a wild girl from Jiangnan, why does she occupy the position of Huanzhu Gege? And that illegitimate daughter of Xia Yuhe, is she worthy of being named Gege?"
"Don't worry, Your Majesty. I have a backup plan." Nanny Li stepped closer and lowered her voice. "I've bribed the eunuch in charge of the sacrificial music. When the time comes, I just need to feed Huanzhu Gege's horse some 'softening powder'. I guarantee she'll fall off the horse during the ancestral worship and make a fool of herself!"
Concubine Gao nodded in satisfaction, took out a gold ingot from the box and threw it to Madam Li: "This is your reward. Remember, do it cleanly and don't leave any evidence behind."
Nanny Li happily accepted the gold ingots and kowtowed in gratitude, "I saved you the trouble! I guarantee it will be done without anyone noticing!"
She didn't see that in the shadows outside the window, a pair of eyes were watching all this coldly. Xiao Jian retreated silently, blending into the thick night. The silver hairpin on his sleeve gleamed coldly, just like his eyes at that moment.
The lights in Shufangzhai stayed on late. Xiaoyanzi sat on the kang, hugging the heater, listening to Xiaodiao's story of how Sun Wukong saw through the White Bone Demon's tricks, occasionally clapping her hands in applause. Ziwei leaned against her side, embroidering a new amulet. Her stitches were shaky, but her work was more determined than before. Yongqi and Fuerkang, under the lamplight, discussed the ancestral worship process, occasionally exchanging whispers.
The charcoal fire in the brazier burned brightly, filling the room with warmth. Xiaoyanzi looked at the scene before her, and a sudden warmth welled up in her heart. In her previous life, she had lived a life of wandering and wandering, so how could she have had such a peaceful and stable time? She quietly held Ziwei's hand and whispered in her ear, "Don't be afraid, I'm here. In this life, I will never let anyone bully you."
Ziwei raised her head, tears glistening in her eyes, but she smiled and nodded: "Well, I'm not afraid as long as you are here."
Moonlight streamed in through the window lattice, falling on the silver pieces and dresses on the table, as if silently heralding the coming storm. But the warmth within Shufangzhai dispelled any chill, filling everyone's heart with strength. This silent battle had only just begun.
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