Mrs. Ling II craned her neck to wait for the news that Ling Xiang had taken effect from the poison, but it was already dinner time and there was still no movement from Ling Xiang.
Thinking about the face and one thousand taels she had lost today, as well as the power of housekeeper in three days, she could no longer sit still and ordered Aunt Zhang, "Go and invite the third young lady to come and have dinner with us."
Ling Xiang fed Xiaoyu some porridge in advance and changed her medicine. When the servants came to invite her, she put on a veil and followed with a smile.
Mrs. Ling Er stared at Ling Xiang's face carefully: "Xiang'er, what's wrong with your face?"
Ling Xiang touched her veil and said, "Maybe I've been in the sun for too long today, so I got some rashes."
"Ah!" Madam Ling feigned worry, but in reality she was delighted. "A girl's appearance is the most important thing. Go and ask Doctor He to take a look."
Doctor He came over and took a look, his face solemn. "Miss Third has been poisoned. The poison is called Faceless, and it's extremely powerful. If it's not detoxified in time, her face will gradually fester. Even if the poison is detoxified, she'll still be left with unsightly scars."
Ling Xiang covered her face in disbelief: "How could this happen? How am I supposed to go to the Prince Qin's Mansion to study tomorrow when I'm like this?"
"Doctor He, a girl's beauty cannot be damaged. You are a skilled doctor, so you can definitely detoxify her, right?"
Doctor He looked at Ling Xiang's face with pity: "The antidote for this poison is extremely difficult to prepare. Even if I prepare the antidote as quickly as possible, I'm afraid it won't be enough to prevent the Third Miss from being poisoned. Third Miss's face..."
Doctor He didn't have the heart to tell the truth, but everyone present understood it, and Ling Xiang could no longer save face.
"Then please ask Doctor He to prepare the antidote as quickly as possible. No matter what, Xiang'er's life must not be harmed. As for her face... there will always be a way!" Mrs. Ling Er looked sad, and she was full of reluctance when she looked at Ling Xiang.
After Doctor He left, Madam Ling Er sent all the servants away, even Ling Yan, and then began her calculations: "Xiang'er, your face..."
"Maybe this is my fate. I don't plan to get married anyway, so let my face be ruined." Ling Xiang seemed to accept her fate and picked up her chopsticks to start eating.
Madam Ling Er sighed: "Xiang'er, you are still young and don't understand the many harsh criticisms of women in this world. If a woman's appearance is damaged, she will be looked down upon wherever she goes. You still have to find a way to save your face."
"I wasn't looked up to much in the first place, and the situation can't get any worse, so let it be." No matter what Mrs. Ling said, Ling Xiang just didn't respond.
"Xiang'er, don't be discouraged. My brother from my mother's family knows a miracle doctor. I will go back tomorrow and will definitely ask the miracle doctor to help save your face."
"Thank you very much, Second Aunt." Ling Xiang put down her bowl and chopsticks, stood up and said goodbye, "Xiaoyu's injury can't be delayed. I have to go out and get her some medicine."
Ling Xiang naturally didn't go out to get medicine, but to file a complaint.
That night, the drums of Shuntian Prefecture were struck.
Yuan Zhengqing, the prefect of Shuntian Prefecture, won the top spot in the imperial examination at the age of twelve, making him the youngest prefect in the history of the Dajing Empire. In his early twenties, he acted upright and would rather break than bend. Even when his own father committed a crime, he showed no mercy.
Therefore, even though he was handsome and had a bright future, no powerful family was willing to marry their daughter to him, for fear that the next family to be killed for the sake of justice would be his wife's family.
Many cases in the original book were solved by Yuan Zhengqing. No matter who was involved, Yuan Zhengqing was never afraid and vowed to defend justice to the death. She can be regarded as the living Bao Zheng in the book. This is also the main reason why Ling Xiang came to find her.
At this moment, he sat high up in the first seat, his eyes full of majesty, and slammed the gavel: "Who is this person in the hall? Why don't you kneel before me?"
Ling Xiang stood in the Shuntian Prefecture government office and truthfully stated her identity: "I, your humble servant Ling Xiang, am the legitimate daughter of the Marquis of Zhenguo. I pay my respects to Lord Yuan."
Since ancient times, officials have not been subject to punishment. With the title of Marquis of Zhenguo, Ling Xiang does not need to kneel.
Yuan Zhengqing's face was expressionless. "Miss Ling, why are you beating the drum?"
Ling Xiang unveiled her face: "Someone has poisoned me, intending to destroy my appearance and even my life. Lord Yuan, please help me!"
Yuan Zhengqing stared at Ling Xiang's face for a moment and ordered, "Call the palace doctor."
The court physician's examination results were almost the same as those of Doctor He. Yuan Zhengqing's face, which had been expressionless until now, showed a hint of emotion. After carefully inquiring about Ling Xiang's food and beverages for the day, he led everyone to the Marquis Zhenguo Mansion.
In the Marquis Zhenguo Mansion, Madam Ling Er was giving Master Ling Er a tender and loving massage. She was secretly feeling proud of herself and was thinking about how to control Ling Xiang to relieve the depression in her heart.
However, she didn't feel proud for long, because the housekeeper came hurriedly to report: "Second Master, the Shuntian Prefecture Governor has brought a large group of people to investigate the case, and they have already entered the gate!"
No mansion that had been inspected by Lord Yuan of Shuntian Prefecture was clean. Master Ling stood up and walked out in a hurry.
Madam Ling Er hurried over and asked, "Second Master, what's going on? Why is Master Yuan here?"
Master Ling stopped her: "Don't follow me, settle the backyard well, there can't be any trouble!"
When Master Ling Er saw Yuan Zhengqing, they exchanged greetings and asked, "Why did Master Yuan lead the group here?"
Yuan Zhengqing looked at Ling Xiang behind him and said, "Someone has poisoned Miss Ling. I suspect the murderer is in the Marquis of Zhenguo Mansion. I have come here to find the murderer. I hope Mr. Ling will cooperate."
Master Ling looked at Ling Xiang, ignoring the rash all over her face, and said disapprovingly, "Xiang'er! We're all family here, how could anyone harm you? Did you accidentally eat something wrong?"
Yuan Zhengqing is upright, but he is not ignorant of the ways of the world. Seeing that Mr. Ling didn't care about Ling Xiang at all, he immediately distanced himself from the matter and became increasingly indifferent to Mr. Ling:
"I have always believed in evidence. Whether it's true or not, we'll know after we investigate. Please, Master Ling, give the order that everyone remain where they are. Anyone moving around will be considered attempting to destroy evidence and will be taken away!"
Although Mr. Ling was in charge of the Zhenguo Marquis Mansion, he himself held no official position and did not dare to challenge Yuan Zhengqing. He could only vent his dissatisfaction on Ling Xiang:
"Xiang'er! You've been poisoned. Just tell me. I will definitely take care of it for you and do my best to detoxify you. It's such a small matter, why would you bother Master Yuan?"
"Uncle, you are wrong. It is because Xiang was poisoned at home when she was a child that we need to rely on outsiders to find out the truth. Otherwise, the villain behind the scenes dared to poison me today, and there is no guarantee that he will not poison Uncle tomorrow! To ensure any eventuality, we must find the villain!" Ling Xiang bowed to Yuan Zhengqing.
"Thank you for your help, Master Yuan."
Yuan Zhengqing is a man of action. "Shamelessness" is a poison that enters the mouth, so he first took people to check the kitchen.
Mrs. Ling Er was not in a hurry at all when she heard the news. After all, the things used to drug Ling Xiang had been destroyed, and Yuan Zhengqing could not find any evidence. In the end, Ling Xiang would have made a big fuss but gained nothing, and would only end up with a bad reputation, which would make it easier for him to control her.
However, what she never expected was that Yuan Zhengqing actually found a soup bowl with "Wu Yan" residue in it in the kitchen!
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