Imperial Palace Dragon Palace
Imperial Guards Zhan Jue and Han Yong, along with Imperial Guards Mu Tiankui and Jiang Zhixu, all knelt to plead guilty. The atmosphere in the palace was so heavy it felt like water could be squeezed out, suffocating. The Emperor sat upright on the Dragon Throne, his expression as gloomy as the dark clouds before a storm. "Tell me, what exactly happened?"
The emperor roared angrily, like thunderclap out of nowhere, startling everyone.
Zhan Jue gritted his teeth, his voice trembling, "Your Majesty, this operation has failed. More than a dozen members of the Imperial Guards have been poisoned, and Dong Jinguo's Imperial Preceptor has escaped."
The emperor frowned, his eyes blazing with anger, as if about to burst out: "You bastards! With so many people, you can't even capture an old man? What's the use of you!"
Mu Tiankui knelt hurriedly and kowtowed profusely, "Your Majesty, please calm down. We have tried our best to capture him, but this Imperial Master's movements are so strange, like a ghost, that we finally let him escape."
The emperor slammed the table, shaking it so hard that it seemed to fall apart. "Escape? I don't care what means you use, I will capture him!"
At this moment, Jiang Zhixu, who had been silent the whole time, spoke up: "Your Majesty, this Imperial Master carries all kinds of poisonous insects on him, making it difficult to guard against them."
The emperor's face was gloomy, and his eyes seemed to see through them. "Fools, you said it was foolproof the other day, but today you let him escape. You were the sharpest knives before me, but now you are as dull as rotten wood. How can I sleep peacefully?"
After saying this, the emperor threw the ink stick on the dragon table out like a meteor. Fortunately, it didn't hit anyone, but it left ink stains all over the faces of the four people.
"Your Majesty, please calm down!" Eunuch Guo was so frightened that he didn't even dare to breathe. His Majesty hadn't been so angry for a long time. His anger was like a volcanic eruption, which was terrifying.
The Song Emperor glanced at the four dark-skinned men, his rage uncontrollable. His expression was as if he wanted to devour them alive. "Decree that these four men be punished for dereliction of duty with thirty strokes of the cane each and a one-year salary deduction."
Eunuch Guo bowed, his movements as fast as lightning: "I obey your command!"
"Thank you, Your Majesty, for your grace!" The four of them kowtowed to express their gratitude. Their voices were as soft as those of mosquitoes and flies, as if they were afraid of angering the emperor again.
Everyone obeyed the order and dared not say anything more. They just prayed silently in their hearts that they could find the imperial teacher as soon as possible to calm the emperor's anger.
Zhenguogong Mansion
Second bedroom
Jin Linlin was heartbroken when she heard that Jiang Zhixu had been caned. She quickly prepared some medicine and rushed to Jiang Zhixu's residence.
When I walked into the room, I saw Jiang Zhixu lying on the couch, looking miserable, and Jin Linlin's eyes were red.
She tiptoed to the bedside, her voice choked with sobs: "Husband, are you seriously injured?" Jiang Zhixu turned around with difficulty, and seeing her, she forced a smile: "Linlin, you're here."
Jin Linlin carefully lifted Jiang Zhixu's clothes, looked at his swollen back and torn buttocks, and tears fell from her eyes.
As she gently applied the medicine to the wound, she scolded him, "Why are you so careless? Does it hurt?"
Jiang Zhixu felt her gentle movements, his heart filled with warmth, and he whispered softly, "With you here, this little pain is nothing."
The two were deeply in love. Jin Linlin took good care of Jiang Zhixu, and Jiang Zhixu looked at her affectionately, as if this small cottage isolated them from all the troubles of the outside world, and only their love for each other flowed quietly.
Three bedrooms
Cao Jiao sent someone to the front yard to clean up the room. When Jiang Zhixu returned, he brought all his colleagues who had been poisoned back to the mansion.
He also sent someone to invite Aunt Zi to come and take the pulse, and sent several more servants to serve. There were actually a large number of people, and more than thirty people were poisoned.
After Cao Jiao finished all these, she went to the kitchen and asked the chef to make more nourishing dishes.
At this time, Jin Linlin came out of Jiang Zhixu's room and saw Cao Jiao's busy figure. She couldn't help but said distressedly:
"Don't be anxious, be careful. There are so many people poisoned by the Gu. Don't exhaust yourself. You should focus on yourself first."
Cao Jiao stopped and said, "What are you talking about? They are in this situation because they served Your Majesty. We should take good care of them."
Jin Linlin stepped forward to support Cao Jiao: "Having said that, I do feel bad that you're pregnant."
Cao Jiao smiled faintly: "You, since I became pregnant, you have been like a porcelain doll, not allowing me to do anything. Don't be too precious to me. It's not easy to give birth, let me move around."
After saying that, she went back to her own business. Seeing Aunt Zi coming, she walked straight to the front yard and began to take the pulse of the person who was poisoned.
Cao Jiao asked the servants to help pass medicine and take care of him, and she was very attentive. Seeing this, Jin Linlin didn't know what to say and returned to her room.
Cao Jiao continued to arrange everything in the mansion in an orderly manner, determined to make those who were poisoned recover as soon as possible.
Aunt Zi’s medical skills were indeed amazing. She cured the patient within two days and prescribed some tonic medicine.
Cao Jiao personally supervised the boiling of the medicine to ensure its efficacy. Just when everyone thought the matter was over, a Jinyiwei who had recovered from the poison suddenly ran over in a panic, panting and saying:
"Oh no! There seems to be traces of poisonous insects in the mansion!"
Everyone was horrified. Cao Jiao made a prompt decision, "Don't panic, search carefully!" So everyone searched everywhere in the mansion like headless flies.
Jin Linlin also came out of her room to help. In the front yard, among the flowers, she found a poisonous insect emitting a strange glow, like a strange meteor in the night sky. Just as Cao Jiao was about to approach, the insect suddenly took off like an arrow and pounced on Jin Linlin.
Jiang Zhixu was quick-witted and quick-handed, pulling Jin Linlin behind him like a gust of wind. However, the poisonous insect was not as ferocious as other poisonous insects. It did not bite people, but just followed Jin Linlin like a shadow.
Jiang Zhixu took a closer look. Wasn't that the poisonous insect that flew out of the Imperial Master's hand? How could it appear here? Wasn't it trapped in a clay pot? How did it get out? Couldn't the pot contain it?
Jin Linlin looked at the insect, which looked like a hungry baby, clamoring for something to eat. She mustered her courage and whispered, "Are you hungry?" The insect seemed to understand, circling in the air a few times.
Jiang Zhixu frowned, thinking about the origin and purpose of this insect.
Cao Jiao, standing by, warned worriedly, "Don't get close to it easily. I don't know what's wrong with this insect."
Jin Linlin, however, felt the insect had no ill intentions. She returned to her room, fetched some pastries, placed them in her palm, and held them out to the insect as if offering a treasure. The insect slowly landed on the pastries like a falling leaf and began to devour them.
Everyone stared at this bizarre scene in astonishment. Just then, Aunt Zi hurried over, carefully examining the insect as if it were her prey. She said, "This insect is being kept by someone. Leaving it here might help lure out the person behind it, like luring a snake out of its hole."
Jiang Zhixu nodded in agreement and arranged for someone to secretly monitor the insect. At night, the insect suddenly flew away. Jiang Zhixu and others followed it quietly and found that it was heading towards the palace.
Everyone was shocked. Could it be that the person behind this was inextricably linked to the Imperial Palace? They quickened their pace, ready to investigate.
However, the poisonous insect flew back as if it had realized its mistake, and went straight into the room of the second wife, Jin Linlin. It landed beside Jin Linlin's pillow and fell asleep like a sleeping baby. The strange light on its body gradually disappeared like the tide.
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