Inside the Lanxinzhai Hall of Daye Palace, two female officials knelt in front of the screen with bitter expressions, their heads bowed low, not daring to lift them even slightly. Their shoulders trembled slightly, and they were both extremely flustered.
They had only been assigned to serve Consort Wen for a few days when this happened. They had served her diligently and without the slightest negligence. They still couldn't figure out which link in the chain went wrong, causing Consort Wen to be harmed by someone else.
Yes, the imperial physician just stated that Consort Wen's symptoms came on rapidly and clearly indicate poisoning.
"Have you remembered anything yet? If you still can't remember, you two can forget about your lives today!" Granny Yu, standing in front of them, threatened sternly.
With the Empress's position vacant, the Imperial Concubine holds the highest rank in the entire harem and is in charge of the affairs of the six palaces. Furthermore, Consort Wen is the Imperial Concubine's niece, so naturally, His Majesty has entrusted the matter to the people of Yu Cui Palace.
After all, the imperial physicians had previously stated that although they could see that Consort Wen's condition was due to poisoning, they couldn't determine the type of poison for the time being. By the time they figured it out, it might delay the chances of saving her. Therefore, if they could find any clues during the interrogation, it would be of great help. Thus, Zhu Xian entrusted the task of interrogating the two female officials to Granny Yu.
The two palace maids couldn't think of anything wrong, and shook their heads vigorously, begging for mercy: "Granny Yu, we really don't know anything!"
"Even if you kill me, I will know nothing about Consort Jieyu's poisoning..."
...
When Li Qingchen arrived at Lanxinzhai, he happened to hear the two female officials crying and pleading, and couldn't help but glance at the old nanny.
Granny Yu is making a big fuss here, but she's actually crying wolf. She knows perfectly well who poisoned Consort Wen, and she can even roughly guess the timing and method of the poisoning.
The Emperor stayed at Lanxinzhai all night yesterday, so they certainly wouldn't dare to do anything. Therefore, they could only do so during the time between the Emperor's morning court session and Consort Wen's bedside.
Li Qingchen had just glanced at the incense burner as well. A thin layer of incense ash covered the burner evenly, with no signs of the lid being lifted or the ash inside being disturbed. Therefore, the tampering they made must have been with the lamp oil, not the incense.
After all, once the lamp oil is burned, the traces become difficult to find, making it the most difficult method of poisoning to be detected in the deep palace.
In summary, they must have taken advantage of the Emperor's absence and Wen Jieyu's return to bed for a nap to bribe the palace maids who were lighting the lamps to poison the lamp oil around the bed.
Although Li Qingchen already knew the truth perfectly well, he showed no change in expression or tone when Granny Yu bowed to him, remaining as indifferent and calm as ever: "Rise."
Hearing the commotion from behind the screen, Zhu Xian, who had been sitting in a state of deep sorrow just moments before, immediately brightened up and rose to greet Li Qingchen. Upon seeing that it was indeed Li Qingchen, he hurriedly asked, "Did you bring the divine physician you mentioned?"
Before Li Qingchen entered the palace, he sent a message to Eunuch Cao, saying that he knew a reclusive master who was good at curing rare poisons. If the imperial physicians in the palace were helpless against Consort Wen, he could try to bring the master into the palace to try.
Therefore, after the imperial physician bluntly stated that there was no way to help him, Zhu Xian waited anxiously for a glimmer of hope on his side.
Li Qingchen first bowed to Zhu Xian, and after he excused himself from the formalities, he replied, "Father, I have brought that person here, and he is currently outside the palace."
"Then what are we waiting for? Summon them quickly!" Zhu Xian was impatient, wishing he could go out and personally pull the person in!
However, when the divine physician was summoned in by Eunuch Cao, Zhu Xian was somewhat taken aback. The imperial physicians in the palace were all ranked according to seniority, and the more skilled they were, the older they were. Therefore, he had a preconceived notion that this reclusive master was not young.
However, the visitor was not a vigorous old man with an air of otherworldly wisdom, but a young man wearing a flowing headscarf who looked to be just over twenty years old.
This is the Mr. Lu whom Li Qingchen had previously ordered Gu Zhuang to invite. Despite his scholarly appearance, he is the infamous "King Yama Lu" who strikes fear into the hearts of everyone in the martial arts world!
"Lu Yanwang" used to be a member of Medicine King Valley. However, while his fellow disciples were diligently researching ways to cure diseases and save lives, he was particularly fond of making poisons. As a result, before he had even left Medicine King Valley, countless souls in the world had lost their lives because of him.
The name "King Yama Lu" originated from this.
Later, "Lu Yanwang" was ostracized by his master and wanted by the government, so he became an outlaw and went to Yandang Mountain, becoming a member of the Eighteen Linked Strongholds. He was one of only two people in the entire stronghold, besides the chief, who knew who their true master was.
However, in front of Zhu Xian, "King Lu" could not reveal his identity as a江湖 (jianghu, a term referring to the martial arts world) figure. Therefore, he deliberately applied some powder to his face and carried a medicine box, disguising himself as a doctor who helps the world and saves lives, and followed Li Qingchen into the palace.
So young, his medical skills were naturally hard to believe. Zhu Xian stared at him suspiciously for a while, then looked at Li Qingchen: "Is this the miracle doctor you found?"
"Exactly," Li Qingchen said, seeing Zhu Xian's hesitation. "Father, don't be fooled by his appearance. He is actually over sixty years old."
"Sixty years old?" Zhu Xian wondered if he had misheard. After all, the person in front of him looked to be the same age as Li Qingchen, without a single gray hair. How could he be sixty?
However, Li Qingchen was knowledgeable and experienced, and Zhu Xian believed that he would not be fooled by a charlatan. So there was only one possibility: "Could it be that the divine doctor also knows the art of preserving youth?"
King Lu nodded and chuckled: "I am merely a recluse who has renounced the world, and I dare not accept Your Majesty's title of divine physician."
By downplaying the main issue, he essentially acquiesced.
Zhu Xian was shocked that a man in his sixties could maintain his appearance as if he were a young man in his twenties. However, he remembered that the most important thing at the moment was Wen Jieyu. He nodded to dispel his doubts about the doctor's medical skills and hurriedly led him into the inner room.
Behind the screen was Consort Wen's bedroom. As a physician, King Lu could not interfere, but Li Qingchen could not go there, so he waited outside the screen.
King Lu himself was a master of poison making; every famous poison in the world had passed through his hands. Therefore, he was able to roughly determine what kind of poison it was just by taking Wen Jieyu's pulse.
He took out an antidote pill from the medicine box, pried open Wen Jieyu's mouth, and fed it to her. Then he had a female official bring her a few sips of warm water.
Zhu Xian watched anxiously from the side, and seized the opportunity to ask, "Divine Physician, is my beloved concubine in danger?"
King Yama smiled nonchalantly: "There was one before."
"Then now..."
"Yes."
Zhu Xian: "..."
The other party was, after all, the emperor, the supreme ruler, and Lu Yanwang dared not be presumptuous in front of him. So, before Zhu Xian could ask any further questions, he explained himself: "Your Majesty, the antidote pill that I just fed to Consort Jieyu can only temporarily suppress the effects of the poison in her body. I guarantee that Consort Jieyu will be fine within three days."
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