Chapter 428 Poisoning
Shen Qingtan's eyes flashed with surprise: "The Feng family has just lost a family, and Madam Feng is visiting our residence. This is really taboo-free."
"Feng Xiaozhong was beheaded for his crimes. Ministers friendly to the Feng family have all distanced themselves from them to protect themselves." Zhao Yi held Shen Qingtan's cool fingers. "His son, Feng Zhihuan, is the governor of Yongqing County. He exploited the people and disregarded their lives, triggering a riot. Now there's no one to mediate on Feng Zhihuan's behalf within the court. If the situation gets out, he'll be dead."
"Mrs. Feng is here to ask us for help?" Shen Qingtan said, then immediately denied it: "No, I always feel something is wrong."
Zhao Yi did not interrupt Shen Qingtan's thoughts and gestured for her to express her thoughts.
Shen Qingtan analyzed, "The Prince of Qi is imprisoned, the Empress is guarding the imperial mausoleum, and the Northern Qi Emperor's only legitimate son has withdrawn from the fight for the throne. According to ancestral precepts, the eldest son should inherit the throne."
"But your bloodline is not pure. Not only will the Northern Qi Emperor not appoint you as the Crown Prince, but the court officials will also oppose you becoming the new Emperor of Northern Qi."
"And the virtuous prince far away in his fiefdom is the best candidate for the crown prince. Now that the virtuous prince is about to rise to power, I'm afraid the concubine who was banished to the cold palace will also rise to power."
"The palace maids are very good at adapting to the situation and acting accordingly. If Concubine Shu shows any signs of turning the tables, they will definitely continue to be loyal to her."
"The Feng family and Concubine Shu are cousins, and they're also members of the Xianwang faction. Feng Zhihuan will probably give a portion of the profits he gained from exploiting the people to honor Concubine Shu and her son, right?"
"Now that Feng Zhihuan is in trouble, Concubine Shu will not ignore him. After all, she is the one who benefits the most."
After a pause, Shen Qingtan asked, "Does what I said make sense?"
"Your analysis is correct. Madam Feng is desperate and will place her last hope on Concubine Shu and try every possible means to contact her."
Zhao Yi said, "Madam Feng came to visit the palace in person. She is either doing something for Concubine Shu, or because Concubine Shu was unable to help her, she had no choice but to surrender to us."
Shen Qingtan thought about it and decided to meet Mrs. Feng.
"You can go to the palace." Shen Qingtan said softly, "The cook has made some rice dumplings for you to eat when you come back."
"Okay." Zhao Yi smoothed the messy hair beside her ears and instructed, "Be careful of her."
Shen Qingtan nodded, watched Zhao Yi leave, and then went to the front hall to wait for Mrs. Feng.
In a moment, Mrs. Feng came to the front hall under the guidance of the servants.
Shen Qingtan looked up and saw Mrs. Feng wearing a plain dress with a white silk flower in her hair. She looked haggard and walked towards her with a weak gait.
"Your humble servant pays respects to the princess." Madam Feng bowed to Shen Qingtan and said rather awkwardly, "There was a recent family death, so it would have been inappropriate for me to come to the palace to visit you. However, due to the urgency of the matter, I lost some of my composure. I hope you will forgive me."
"The Feng family is in trouble, and I understand that you've lost your manners." Shen Qingtan smiled slightly and said, "Every family has difficulties. If I blame you for this, it would seem that I'm unkind."
Mrs. Feng's expression froze. She clutched her handkerchief nervously, not knowing how to respond.
At this time, the maid brought hot tea.
Madam Feng seemed to have found an opportunity to show off. She took the cup of tea from the tray and knelt on the ground. "Princess, my master absolutely did not frame the concubines. I don't know what happened. His Majesty will sentence my master to death."
Shen Qingtan took the tea handed to her by Madam Feng and asked, "Do you want to ask the prince to overturn the verdict on Lord Feng's behalf?"
"No, no, no, how could a case personally decided by His Majesty be a wrongful conviction? It's just... it's just a charge... If I ask the prince to find out the truth, it might anger His Majesty and implicate the prince."
Mrs. Feng watched Shen Qingtan bring the teacup to her lips, ready to take a sip.
Her heartbeat was getting faster and faster, and her voice couldn't help but tighten. "I... I just want to ask the prince for help to retrieve the master's body so that he can rest in peace."
After hearing what Mrs. Feng said, Shen Qingtan roughly understood why Mrs. Feng came.
I guess she is here to help Concubine Shu.
Although people believe in being buried in peace, Feng Zhihuan's matter is obviously more important than retrieving Lord Feng's body.
Mrs. Feng never mentioned it.
Someone must have promised her that they would help her resolve the riot in Yongqing County.
Shen Qingtan suppressed the thoughts in his eyes and placed the teacup on the small table: "You said that His Majesty is still angry. If the prince goes to the palace to ask for Master Feng's body, His Majesty may be furious and punish the prince."
Mrs. Feng pinched her fingertips, regretting that she spoke at this critical moment, so much so that she didn't let Shen Qingtan drink a sip of tea.
Her eyes turned red with anxiety and she wanted to say something else.
At this time, Shen Qingtan picked up the teacup again and took a sip.
Mrs. Feng breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that Shen Qingtan's lips were moist and sheeny, and there was a swallowing movement in her throat.
"I... I just thought... If we don't get the master's body back, it will probably be thrown into a mass grave, left to lie exposed in the wilderness." Tears rolled down Madam Feng's cheeks as she sobbed, "You're the only one I can turn to. If you don't help me, I don't know who else to turn to... If you can help me, I'll definitely repay you."
"I understand your feelings very well. If we can help, we will definitely do you a favor." Shen Qingtan sighed softly: "You also know the prince's situation in Northern Qi..."
Shen Qingtan didn't say the last half of the sentence, but just smiled bitterly.
Mrs. Feng was naturally aware of Zhao Yi's status. Because his bloodline was not pure, the Emperor of Northern Qi was suspicious of him.
They can't even protect themselves, how can they help her?
Mrs. Feng had achieved her goal, so she stopped arguing with Shen Qingtan: "I am indeed forcing you." She wiped her tears and slowly stood up: "I will not bother you any more. I will take my leave first."
Shen Qingtan did not try to persuade her to stay, and told Liu Yue, "Go and see Madam Feng off."
"Yes." Liu Yue hurriedly escorted Madam Feng out of the house.
Shen Qingtan waited until Mrs. Feng disappeared in the front hall. His face suddenly turned cold. He took out a handkerchief to wipe his lips and stared at the teacup with unclear eyes.
Tingxue sensed something was wrong and quickly asked, "Princess, is there something wrong with this tea?"
Shen Qingtan was very sensitive to other people's emotions and expressions. When she was drinking tea, Mrs. Feng was clearly staring at her.
She has always been cautious. Thinking that Madam Feng had touched the cup of tea and being certain that she had ill intentions, she placed the cup on the small table with a tentative intention.
Sure enough, Mrs. Feng's mood changed slightly.
She deliberately brought the tea again, but did not touch the tea. She just moistened her lips with her tongue and then pretended to swallow.
Mrs. Feng's expression visibly relaxed.
Shen Qingtan ordered, "Tingxue, go ask the imperial physician to come over and test this cup of tea."
Tingxue realized that the tea was poisonous. She was so angry that she gritted her teeth and went to find the imperial physician cursing.
The imperial physician arrived quickly, examined the tea, and then tested it for poison. When he got the result, his face changed: "Princess, this poison looks like it was developed by Zhongyuanshi."
He wondered, "This is really strange. Zhongyuanshi has disappeared for more than 20 years. Where did this poison come from?"
Shen Qingtan didn't know what he was thinking about, his expression became solemn, and he told the imperial physician to keep the secret and not disclose what happened today, and he also told him a few words.
The imperial physician agreed and left with a heavy heart.
On the other side, in the imperial palace, the riot in Yongqing County was reported to the censor, who asked the Emperor of Northern Qi to make a decision.
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