116. Poisoning
The winter nights were long and it was still dark. Rong Se was sleeping in Liang Shenyu's arms when she was suddenly awakened by a hurried knock on the door.
"…What happened?"
Rongse was a little tired and couldn't sleep that night.
Liang Shenyu had already stood up and put on his outer robe, and asked, "Who is it?"
"It's me, Yunchu." Yunchu spoke quickly, which was unusual for her. "Your Highness, something happened in the palace."
Liang Shenyu opened the door and let Yun Chu, who was holding the palace lantern, in.
"What's wrong?"
Rong Se had already put on his outer robe and walked out from behind the screen with his hair loose, rubbing his eyes. He seemed not to have woken up yet, and his voice was filled with laziness.
Yun Chu said in a deep voice: "The palace urgently summoned the imperial physician, who said that His Majesty was vomiting blood and fainting, which seemed to be a sign of... poisoning."
"Poisoned?" Rongser suddenly woke up, "Is it true?"
"I don't know yet." Yun Chu said solemnly, "Prince, the poisoning of His Majesty this time is strange. Whether it is true or not, the people in our palace have touched the food today."
Hit the point with one word.
Rong Se didn't care about Rong Jing's life or death, but he cared about who attacked Rong Jing. After all, the chef of the Regent's Mansion prepared the meal himself today, and Rong Jing happened to get into trouble at this critical moment. Rong Se might be blamed for his crime while he was at home.
Liang Shenyu remained calm as always and asked, "How is it now?"
"Lord Cao has already entered the palace." Yun Chu said, "The emperor being poisoned is no small matter, but the news should not have spread yet. Apart from the Cao family, we are the only ones who know about this."
The Regent Prince had many spies, so news naturally spread quickly. Yun Chu received the report right after the incident and hurried here.
"No, I have to go and see too." Rong Se said immediately, "The emperor being poisoned is no small matter. As the emperor's uncle who is acting as the emperor, I should go and see him. Yun Chu, send a message to Yun Zhi and have him go to the Imperial Guards immediately to guard the palace gates and be on guard against any trouble from the Xuanji Camp and the Cao family."
Yun Chu nodded: "Yes."
"I'll go with you." Liang Shenyu pondered for a moment, "The palace must be in chaos right now. It's possible that this is a trap to lure you into a trap. Besides... Your Majesty, Zheng Fu is in the palace, and Cao Lun has planted as many spies in the dark as you do."
Rong Se believed it deeply and agreed naturally.
After the two of them packed up, Yun Chu had already prepared the carriage. As night fell, the deserted street seemed calm and peaceful. The carriage sped past, and dust and smoke rose up and spread.
.
In Zhaoyang Palace, the imperial physician and attendants hurried in and out. Inside the bedroom, Jing was lying on his side on the dragon bed, his face pale and bloodless. The imperial physician held a bowl of black medicine and poured it into him, but after only two sips, he vomited it out into the prepared spittoon.
Cao Lun stood aside with a gloomy face and anxious eyes, "What's going on? What happened to your majesty?"
The imperial physician who was waiting on the side wiped the sweat from his forehead and leaned forward and said, "Look, the symptoms seem like poisoning, but we don't know what the poison is, and there is no antidote. We can only use medicine temporarily to make Your Majesty vomit out the food in his stomach first, maybe it can save his life!"
The more Cao Lun listened, the uglier his expression became. He said solemnly, "Then it's Doctor Lao. No matter what, your Majesty's body must not be damaged!"
At least before having a child, Rong Jing was safe.
The imperial physician knew that this was a very serious matter, and he kept saying, "I obey your order."
Cao Lun took another look at the emperor who was vomiting violently into the spittoon, then turned and walked out of the hall. The palace maids in charge of serving the emperor were already kneeling all over the yard.
"What's going on? What did your Majesty eat in the evening?"
The palace servants looked at each other in bewilderment. The eunuch who served him said tremblingly, "No, nothing else. When His Majesty came back from the palace banquet, he said he was drunk and wanted to rest. He sent all the servants outside the palace to guard him. Except... except for the food at the palace banquet, His Majesty did not eat anything else, not even tea or snacks!"
"…Palace Banquet."
Cao Lun almost instantly thought of the Regent's Palace, but found it unlikely. If Rong Se wanted to poison the emperor, how could he do it so brazenly?
"Where is the person who tests poison for Your Majesty?" Cao Lun pressed. "Everything Your Majesty eats should be tested by someone first. Who is that person?"
The young eunuch trembled and said, "Dead, dead..."
Cao Lun's eyes turned cold, "How did he die?"
"No, I don't know." The little eunuch shook his head. "After your majesty fainted, we went to look for the eunuch who tested the poison, but he was already dead, and his body is still outside!"
The man who tested the poison also died.
Cao Lun seemed to be thinking about something.
It must be poisoning without a doubt. The poison takes effect slowly, so the person who tested the poison was unable to detect it. Now both of them have been poisoned at the same time. Your Majesty is still alive, but the eunuch who tested the poison is dead.
As he was thinking, a report came from outside: "The Regent has arrived—"
Cao Lun looked up and saw the young Prince Regent hurried into the courtyard, accompanied by Marquis Dingbei. The two men looked calm. When they approached, Rong Se asked calmly, "How is the emperor?"
Naturally, he didn't care about Rong Jing. They both knew the truth, so he was too lazy to pretend.
Cao Lun looked at him inquiringly, then said, "The imperial physician is still trying to treat him, but the eunuch who tested the poison for Your Majesty today has died."
"This case should be thoroughly investigated. Should it be reported to the Ministry of Justice and the Dali Temple?" Rong Se remained calm.
"Not yet. The incident happened suddenly, and your Majesty was poisoned, so this is a serious matter." Cao Lun did not directly question the Regent King, but said in a roundabout way: "The palace servants said that your Majesty has not had any tea or snacks since the palace banquet."
This means that the poison must have come from the food at the palace banquet.
"The matter has not been determined yet." Liang Shenyu took over the conversation, "Where is the body of the eunuch who tested the poison? People cannot die in obscurity. First examine the body. If it is really the same poison that your Majesty was poisoned with, we can prescribe the right medicine. It is urgent to save your Majesty first."
Liang Shenyu's words were sincere and reasonable, so there was no reason to refuse. So they went to check the eunuch's body, but as soon as they arrived at the eunuch's room, they learned that the eunuch's body had already been carried away.
"Who told you to move the corpse?" Cao Lun shouted angrily.
A group of eunuchs knelt on the ground out of fear. One of them said tremblingly, "Yes, it was the chief steward's order. He said it was unlucky and told them to throw it out."
The rest of the people responded.
Rong Se had a clear conscience, so he sneered and said, "Okay, the truth hasn't been found out yet, but you're in a hurry to destroy the body."
Cao Lun was also a little confused. He listed Rong Se as a suspect, but the other party was always open and honest. Could it be that this matter had nothing to do with the Regent's Palace?
"Someone come here." Rong Se shouted.
The imperial guards stepped forward immediately.
"Search for me, who carried the body and where it went, you must bring the body back to me. If you can't find it, I will do it." Rong Se looked at the servants kneeling on the ground and threatened, "Let them all be buried with me."
As soon as these words were spoken, the eunuchs were so frightened that they trembled like chaff and immediately revealed the whereabouts of the person who carried away the corpse.
Rong Se's impartial attitude was obvious, and the body of the eunuch who tested poison was actually found. The palace dealt with the bodies of palace servants by either returning them to their families or sending them to mass graves outside the city, but this body was different, as the imperial guards fished it out of a dry well.
"To deal with the body, just throw it into the well." Rong Se looked down at the two eunuchs who threw the body, and felt that something was fishy. Finally, his eyes fell on the chief eunuch who was in charge of these people, and he said slowly, "Did you let them do this?"
The eunuch lowered his head and said nothing, shaking like a sieve. Suddenly he stood up and slammed his head hard on the ground. Blood splattered all over the ground, and bloodstains were formed on the ground. The eunuch lay on the ground, twitching a few times, and then he was silent.
"You..." Rong Se was shocked by this unexpected scene. His eyes widened in shock. He couldn't remain calm and took a few steps back involuntarily.
As soon as he died, the other two young eunuchs who handled the corpse were terrified and began to cry and kowtow to beg for mercy, repeating the same thing over and over again - they knew nothing.
The situation is chaotic.
At this time, Liang Shenyu, who had seen the eunuch's corpse being tested for poison, came back with a normal expression. He whispered in Rongse's ear, "He died of poisoning, but there are some strange injuries on his body, as if he was forced to drink the medicine. The poison is also very strong, like the stuff used in prison to execute prisoners without anyone noticing. It kills people immediately, punctures their intestines and rots their stomachs. Drinking it is hopeless. This poison has a special feature. The death of the poisoned person is like a sudden death from an acute illness. You can't tell anything from the outside."
For this reason, this poison was often used in the palace. For example, besides the open and aboveboard method of executing palace maids by beating, there was also this method that was done secretly without anyone noticing.
Rong Se thought for a moment and whispered, "Don't make it public yet. Let the imperial guards send the two bodies to the Dali Temple. Send the living one as well and have them take good care of it."
Someone poisoned the eunuch who tested the poison, the chief eunuch who ordered the disposal of the corpse also committed suicide for unknown reasons, and the emperor was also poisoned...
There seems to be a connection between the two.
"Yeah." Liang Shenyu agreed, his eyes darkening, "It looks like a trap, but I don't know who it's aimed at."
Rong Se raised the corners of his lips coldly, "I think it's directed at me."
Although most of them were based on intuition, the eunuchs were silenced one after another in front of him, the person who poisoned the emperor has not been found yet, and the chef of the Regent's Palace also prepared a meal at the palace banquet today. Various signs indicate that the Regent's Palace is inseparable from this poisoning case.
After a few words, Cao Lun also came over. Seeing the bloodstains all over the ground, he understood something and said, "It seems that the clue is broken."
"Not really." Rong Se did not say anything more to him, and said calmly: "Lord Cao, please take good care of His Majesty. There is no one in His Majesty's harem, and I'm afraid there is no one to take care of His Majesty. The court officials have all gone outside the Xuanzheng Hall. His Majesty cannot attend the court today, so naturally someone has to take charge of the situation. I will go there first."
Cao Lun looked at him silently.
Rongse also looked back calmly without showing any weakness.
The confrontation lasted only a moment, and Cao Lun said slowly: "Your Majesty is right. No matter what, we must find out who poisoned Your Majesty."
"Of course." Rong Se agreed coldly, "I also want to know who is so bold."
After Rong Se and Liang Shenyu left, Cao Lun looked at the pool of blood thoughtfully. After thinking for a moment, his eyes suddenly changed slightly, and then he turned around hurriedly, as if he suddenly thought of something.
The direction he was heading was Zhaoyang Palace.