Yan Xiao then asked the court physician and several of his assistants to go and check on everyone present. Yun Xi was silent for a moment, sensing something strange that greatly disturbed her.
She then asked the servant who was serving the tea.
"As far as I remember, I gave you two boxes of tea. Only one box was served, the one in front of you, right?"
"Yes, that's right, Madam."
"But wasn't all the tea poisoned? Why was it only the third prince who reacted to the poison?"
Hearing this, the servant's face immediately turned pale. She immediately knelt down and begged for forgiveness.
"Forgive me, Madam! I really didn't know that this tea was poisonous. This morning... this morning, Madam Zhang Zhi Ning came to the kitchen and said that this tea was only to be served to the third prince, so I brewed different tea for the members of the emperor's family and other guests."
"Aha... Zhang Zhi Ning."
"Nonsense!!! What kind of lie are you telling, Hah???" Zhang Zhi Ning shouted upon hearing the maid mention her name.
"Wait, Miss Zhang Zhi Ning, your hands..."
The palace physician's assistant saw Zhang Zhi Ning's hands covered in purplish-red spots, exactly like the symptoms described by the second prince. Realising this, Zhang Zhi Ning immediately hid her hands behind her robe.
'Ah, how stupid... What's the point of hiding it like that?' Yun Xi sneered inwardly, and Mu Sumi, who was beside Yun Xi, also smiled mockingly.
Yun Xi then said softly to her personal servant.
"An ill-conceived plan, executed by fools. They really ended up looking ridiculous, didn't they, Aunt Mu?"
Mu Sumi nodded. She did not expect Yun Xi to be so calculating. Her mistress's quick thinking amazed her. Truly a good example.
"Bring Zhang Zhi Ning here!" the Emperor suddenly exclaimed.
Liu Qin Mei turned pale. She wanted to say something but was afraid that people would suspect her, especially Yan Ling. Meanwhile, Zhang Zhi Ning looked at her pleadingly, begging her to save her. The two stared at each other in fear and confusion. Before they could find a solution, Zhang Zhi Ning was dragged by the guards to face the Emperor.
"Is it true that you did it?" asked the Emperor. His voice was deep and heavy, calm yet menacing, making Zhang Zhi Ning's hair stand on end.
"Answer my question! Did you really poison my son?!" The Emperor asked again, his tone rising, accompanied by a sharp gaze that seemed to peel Zhang Zhi Ning alive.
Zhang Zhi Ning did not dare to speak, which made the Emperor even more furious, but her silence meant that she indirectly admitted to her actions.
"If you don't want to confess, then I will also throw your mistress in prison!"
Degh!
Liu Qin Mei froze, her body suddenly trembling, afraid that Zhang Zhi Ning would say something about her. Yan Ling noticed this and turned to Liu Qin Mei with a cold and disappointed look. Liu Qin Mei also saw this, and her eyes immediately turned red.
"My husband..."
Yan Ling was unwilling to listen, so he turned his face away coldly. Liu Qin Mei bit her lip so hard that it almost bled.
"Your Majesty, please punish me! I did it of my own accord! I wanted to do it for my mistress without telling her! Please punish me, Your Majesty!" Zhang Zhi Ning cried out. The Emperor was furious and immediately stood up from his seat.
"Insolent!!!! Throw her in prison and give her 100 lashes. She will be sentenced to death after the trial!" Bang!
The Emperor kicked the table so hard that it overturned, then left the hall in a rage, followed by the third concubine and the Queen Mother, who was supported by her personal servant.
Meanwhile, the Empress stared coldly at Zhang Zhi Ning, who was crying while prostrating herself in front of her. Her expression clearly showed her displeasure. She left the hall in a foul mood.
Zhang Zhi Ning was dragged to prison. During that time, she kept looking back at Liu Qin Mei, but her mistress only bowed her head in silence. Zhang Zhi Ning left in disappointment.
Yun Xi felt that there was nothing left for her to do there, so she asked Mu Sumi to leave and return to her pavilion.
"Yun Xi," Yan Ling called out. But Yun Xi only glanced back briefly and said,
"I think your beloved wife needs your support right now. I'm leaving now, goodbye." Yun Xi looked at Liu Qin Mei with contempt, then walked away gracefully, passing the two of them.
On the way to the palanquin, Yun Xi made several requests to Mu Sumi. She was about to get into the palanquin when someone suddenly reprimanded her.
"My sister-in-law is really out of line. You didn't even glance at me after I successfully helped with your plan."
Yun Xi laughed, then signalled to Mu Sumi to take the servants away. She also had to tell Yan Xiao that her father was willing to provide troops to help Yan Xiao, who was going to the Yu Long mountains to investigate the black magic further.
After Sumi and the servants left, Yun Xi said.
"Couldn't we be accused of having an affair if we suddenly appear to be very intimate?"
"Then, what about this? We are talking alone."
"Hihihi, well, what can we do? I also have important information to tell you."
"Really? What information is that?"
"My father has replied to my letter, he is willing to lend you his secret army!"
"Great! I know that Lord Wang Yibo is very kind. The army will be of great help to me, thank you."
Said Huan Ran, Yun Xi nodded with a smile. Then she seemed to be thinking.
Yan Ling had been acting strangely lately, and last night he suddenly stayed overnight at the Peach Pavilion. The man also said that he would treat her and Qin Mei fairly. If Yan Ling visited her often, then her room for manoeuvre would become increasingly limited. Meanwhile, she had a lot of things to do, one of which was to spy on her wicked uncle, Wang Kaibo.
"Hey! Sister-in-law??! You like to suddenly daydream?!"
"It seems that from now on, I can't go to the Pomegranate Pavilion freely."
"Why? You're usually there from morning until evening. Do you have new things to do now?"
"Yes, taking care of your brother."
"My brother? What's wrong with him? I heard that you and he don't get along, so why do you have to take care of him in the morning now?"
"Your brother seems to be possessed by a ghost. He has been acting strangely since a few days ago. I am tired of the burden on my mind, so I chose to stop arguing with him and obey his wishes."
"What does he want?"
"He said he wants to be fair to me and his second wife, so now he divides his time to accompany us both fairly. Tomorrow will be my turn for the next three days. I'm so fed up, but I can't win every argument with him. It's so annoying!"
Yun Xi said irritably, wrinkling his facial muscles, and Yan Xiao, who saw this, immediately burst out laughing.
"Hahahaha! Sister-in-law, You are really funny."
"What's funny about it! You're just like him, instead of comforting me, you're laughing at me!"
"Hahahaha." Hearing that, Yan Xiao laughed even harder, then playfully pinched his sister-in-law's cheek.
Their intimate interaction was seen by Yan Ling, who was walking with Liu Qin-Mei.
Yan Ling looked annoyed and unconsciously clenched her fists so tightly that her knuckles turned white.
'She can laugh like that with him, but she's always cold towards me!' Yan Ling gritted his teeth silently.
Liu Qin-Mei saw all this, and of course she didn't want to miss the opportunity. She then stroked Yan Ling's large, sturdy arm and said,
"My husband, since when have they been so close? Mei'er didn't know that Yun Xi could easily get close to her brother-in-law, even though her brother-in-law was not an easy person to approach."
What Liu Qin-Mei meant was, in other words, Yun Xi must be good at sweet-talking, which was why the usually cold Yan Xiao could now be close to her.
As for Liu Qin Mei, Yan Xiao was very indifferent and fierce.
Yan Ling did not answer, but she pulled her arm away from Liu Qin Mei's grip a little roughly, making the woman gasp in surprise. Yan Ling then said coldly,
"Go home first. You know there are many things you have to explain to me."
Degh!
Liu Qin Mei immediately turned pale. She knew that what Yan Ling was referring to was the case of the third prince's poisoning.
"My husband..." Liu Qin Mei looked at Yan Ling with teary eyes, but seemingly unaffected, Yan Ling said,
"I have to go back to my office. There is a lot of palace work that I have yet to finish."
Without waiting for Liu Qin-Mei's response, Yan Ling stormed off, his eyes still watching the interaction between Yun Xi and Yan Xiao, who were still laughing happily. Meanwhile, he felt his body burning up.
Liu Qin-Mei stamped her foot in annoyance. She looked at Yun Xi with resentment, then turned and left. Two servants who had been deliberately waiting for her then hurriedly followed her.
She had gone to such lengths to arrange everything, even pretending to be pregnant, but all her plans had failed miserably and Yun Xi was still fine! Now Yan Ling was even suspicious of her!
This could not be allowed to continue!
Liu Qin-Mei did not return to the Rose Pavilion. She headed for the Empress's residence.
She had to ask that person for help. She couldn't just stand by and slowly lose Yan Ling. She wanted her Yan Ling back the way he used to be.
She was absolutely unwilling to share that man's heart with anyone, especially not with that slut Yun Xi!
She had to destroy that woman's reputation so that Yan Ling would hate her again! She had to!