Chapter 73
Sunlight filtered through the carved window lattices of the Prime Minister's Mansion Tea Room, casting minute shadows on the blue brick floor. A Biluochun teacup in a Ru kiln cup unfurled like a sparrow's tongue, its delicate aroma curling upwards with steam, yet it couldn't warm the stagnant atmosphere within.
Zhao Wanyong's fingertips unconsciously twisted the hem of his brocade robe, his eyes fixed on the tea leaves floating in the cup, not even daring to glance at the prime minister sitting opposite him.
He had no choice but to come here today. His Majesty had only made a promise to the Crown Princess and did not mention anything else. If he offended the Prime Minister because of this little bit of anger, his future as the Ministry of War would be difficult.
The Prime Minister seemed to see through his thoughts. A faint smile played on his lips, and his fingertips stroked the rim of the celadon cup. His tone was as calm as if he was talking about family matters: "His Royal Highness the Crown Prince wants to have a state wedding. According to convention, marriages between officials must be put on hold for the time being. I'm afraid the engagement of our two children will have to be postponed."
Zhao Wanyong's heart tightened, but he quickly put on an agreeing smile. He picked up the teacup and took a sip, hiding the ripples in his eyes: "Yes, who would have thought that His Majesty would be so eager to arrange a marriage for His Highness."
"There's no need to rush." The Prime Minister casually moved the silver chopsticks beside the teacup, causing the tea to ripple. "Anyway, the Crown Princess has already been chosen, and the selection of concubines will probably be concluded in the next few days."
"You mean... the candidate has been decided?" Zhao Wanyong tightened his grip on the cup handle slightly, and lowered his voice, as if he was afraid of disturbing something.
The Prime Minister finally raised his eyes, and the reflection in the tea soup carried a hint of leniency: "The position of Crown Princess will definitely come from our Ji family."
As soon as he finished speaking, he suddenly changed the subject, his eyes sweeping over Zhao Wanyong like a searchlight: "A few days ago, Your Majesty secretly summoned the Minister, right?"
Zhao Wanyong's face froze for a moment, and the hand holding the teacup shook. He quickly put the cup down and bowed, smiling awkwardly, "It is true. Because of this, I still feel sorry for you, Prime Minister."
"Why should I be sorry?" The Prime Minister lowered his eyes to look at the tea again, his fingertips gently stirring the leaves floating on the surface. His tone was as light as the wind, but it was filled with a heavy pressure. "Minister, don't worry. I told you before, things are not that complicated. Either you join forces with me, or you will be my enemy. It's just a choice."
Outside the eaves, the sycamore leaves were swept by the wind, past the window screen, and landed on the blue brick floor. Silently, it seemed as if the tea fragrance in the room was lurking within, waiting for someone to disturb the surface tranquility. Zhao Wanyong's Adam's apple rolled, and he felt that the cup of tea, once warm, was now too hot to touch.
——
The frankincense in the gilded copper censer had burned to the end, and a wisp of smoke turned into a fine mist in the hall.
Inside Changle Palace, the brocade curtains were half-drawn, and the queen was reclining on a rosewood couch covered with white fox fur, her slender fingers caressing the mutton-fat jade bracelet on her wrist absentmindedly.
Eunuch Zhang bowed his head, holding a gold-painted brocade box in both hands, his fingertips turning white from the force.
He took two steps on his knees and placed the brocade box on the low table in front of the couch. He said softly, "Your Majesty, the clothes found in the side hall have been brought here."
The queen raised her eyelids slightly, and her eyes did not linger when they swept over the brocade box. She just glanced at it casually, and then fell back on the book in her hand.
Amidst the soft sound of turning pages, she spoke calmly, "What does this dress mean?"
"Your Majesty," Eunuch Zhang lowered his head to the ground and lowered his voice, "I see this clothing is very novel, but I don't know why it appeared in the side hall. I am really curious."
Beads of sweat slid down his temples. He didn't dare look up to see the queen's expression. Ever since the prime minister and the queen had argued in the imperial study last month, the queen's temper had become increasingly unpredictable. She could be smiling one moment and throwing a cup in anger the next. Even he, a close attendant who had served her for ten years, had to be on high alert.
The queen suddenly closed the book, and the crisp sound of the jade buckles colliding was particularly clear in the palace.
She propped up her chin, her eyes slightly raised, and a meaningful arc appeared at the corner of her mouth. She feigned surprise and exclaimed, "No way! Although that eunuch has handsome features and is more beautiful than an ordinary woman, if you say he is wearing women's clothes... I have to confirm it myself before I can be at ease."
Eunuch Zhang stiffened, his fingers instinctively clenching around the hem of his shirt. He pondered for a moment, then steeled himself to test the waters. "Your Highness, the Crown Prince is, after all, the heir apparent. If this matter becomes a major issue, will Your Highness... just stand by and watch?" Before he could finish his words, he sensed something was amiss and quickly added, "I'm simply worried about disturbing Your Majesty."
"Stand idly by?" The Queen suddenly sat up straight, her eyes fixed on Eunuch Zhang like cold blades, her tone unrecognizable as emotion. "Of course not."
She stood up and walked to the low table. Her slender fingers lifted the aqua-green skirt, and the pearl buttons swayed gently on her fingertips. "If the prince is truly innocent, he will take the initiative to defend himself. If he is not innocent..." She suddenly chuckled, with a hint of coldness in her laughter. "This will make things more interesting."
Zhang Neiguan lowered his head and stared at the cracks between the blue bricks on the ground, sweat already forming on his back. How could he not know what the queen was thinking?
The Crown Prince's state wedding is next month, and women's clothing has been found in the East Palace. If this is brought to the attention of His Majesty, at best the Crown Prince will be considered immoral, and at worst the state wedding will be postponed.
But he didn't dare to point it out, and could only think to himself: The Queen knew that the Prince would not give up, but she chose to provoke him at this critical juncture. Is it because of the Prime Minister's matter, or is there another plan?
The queen put her skirt back into the brocade box, and the sound of the coffin being closed fell heavily on Zhang Neiguan's heart.
She walked to the window, looked at the osmanthus tree outside the palace, and murmured to herself: "Preparations for the national wedding are in full swing. If some 'accidents' happen at this time, it will remind some people that the position of the Eastern Palace is not something that can be held securely by everyone."
——
Calming incense burned in the gilded copper censer in the inner chamber, and the smoke curled up and wrapped around the cobwebs on the beams.
Luo Sanying sat on the gilded stool with her head down, her fingertips unconsciously twisting the plain palace sash, and she didn't even come to her senses when the copper bell on the eaves rang three times.
It was not until a shadow came over her, bringing with it the sweet scent of a box of snacks, that she suddenly looked up and saw Xiaopang standing in front of her with a food box in his hand. There was still some flour on the cuffs of his navy blue eunuch uniform.
"Eunuch Luo, your soul is about to fly out of the palace gate." Xiaopang put the food box on the low table next to him and reached out to touch her arm. "What's wrong?"
Luo Sanrong's eyes suddenly lit up, and as he stood up, the legs of his stool scraped against the blue bricks, making a soft sound. "Little Fatty! Others say you know how to identify poisons. Do you really mean it?"
Xiaopang retracted his hand and said, "Don't listen to their nonsense. I just learned some methods of identifying poisons from the old owner of the pharmacy when I was a child. It's not a real skill." He scratched the back of his head and explained.
The light on Luo Sanrong's face dimmed instantly, and his shoulders slumped. Fatty couldn't bear to watch, so he took a half step forward and lowered his voice even more: "If you're having trouble, why not tell me? Maybe I can be of some help."
"It's your Majesty's meal." Luo Sanrong glanced around, reached out and grabbed Xiaopang's sleeve and retreated to the corner of the hall, his voice trembling, "The meal sent from the imperial kitchen was found to be poisonous! But the remaining soup was fed to the birds in the cage and the hunting dogs outside the hall, and those living creatures were fine..."
"But the silver chopsticks and silver bowls are all black?" Xiaopang suddenly interrupted, his fingertips clenching his handkerchief in his sleeve. Seeing Luo Sanrong nodding rapidly, he pondered for a moment, then suddenly raised his eyes. "I do have a plan. Take me to see His Highness."
Soon, the two arrived at the side hall of the East Palace.
Xiaopang knelt in front of Li Yin holding a silver bowl, and took out a cloth bag from his arms, which contained half a piece of dried soapberry.
He put soap nuts into a copper kettle and boiled them until they bubbled. Then he took a clean cotton towel, soaked it in the soapnut water, and rubbed it repeatedly on the black spots on the silver bowl. Wherever the cotton towel passed, the black marks faded like ink, revealing the luster of the silverware underneath.
"Your Highness, please look." Xiao Pang held up the silver bowl and presented it, his tone becoming increasingly certain. "If it were a highly poisonous substance like arsenic or arsenic, soapnut water would not be able to wipe off the black rust on the silver. Now that the black mark has faded, it means that the food was not added with poison."
Li Yin's knuckles turned white as he gripped the silver bowl, his eyes darkening as he asked, "Why did the silver turn black?"
"This...I don't know either." Xiaopang replied with his head down.
That afternoon, Li Yin changed into a plain brocade robe and left the palace alone.
The bamboo curtain of the teahouse outside the city was half-rolled up, and Mr. Chashan was sitting by the window grinding tea. The blue-gray tea powder fell into the bamboo plate, like a pile of fine snow.
Upon hearing what happened in the palace, the tea grinder in his hand suddenly stopped, and the celadon teacup hit the table with a "clang", and a few drops of tea splashed onto the plain silk handkerchief.
"Poisoned?" Mr. Chashan raised his eyes, his white hair trembling slightly as he moved. "Did Your Majesty accidentally eat anything?"
"Fortunately, the Imperial Kitchen checked it in time, and Father didn't even touch his chopsticks." Li Yin sat opposite, his fingertips pinching the edge of the teacup, his voice filled with anxiety. "It's just that the anonymous leaflets a few days ago disturbed the people, and now this has happened again. Father can't sleep well at night, and he's even skipped several court meetings."
Mr. Chashan was silent, stroking the rim of the celadon cup with his fingertips, his eyes fixed on the window. Outside the teahouse, two farmers were rushing in with a sick child on their backs, their clothes still stained with mud from the fields.
Seeing that he remained silent for a long time, Li Yin waved his hand in front of his eyes and said pleadingly, "Sir, when are you willing to return to the court? Although there are capable ministers in the court now, there is no one like you who can calm the situation."
"Your Highness," Mr. Chashan finally spoke, his voice gentle but firm. "My hands are used to holding medicine pestles and silver needles, not memorials and red brushes. There are many people like that child in the village below waiting for treatment. I cannot abandon them."
"But this time is different!" Li Yin stood up suddenly, pressed his palm on the table, and the teacup shook. "It's for a wronged child! He was falsely accused of collaborating with the enemy and now he is imprisoned in the Sky Prison and his life is in danger. Sir, only you can clear his name!" As he spoke, his Adam's apple rolled twice, and his eyes turned red.
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