The Lin Duke’s mansion exploded into chaos the moment they learned of the Empress’s predicament.
Lin Zhenfei paced anxiously in his room, while Madam Lin Qin was equally distraught.
“My lord, what should we do about the Empress’s situation this time?” Madam Lin Qin asked fretfully, her voice booming.
“Shut your mouth! I can’t stand the sight of you!”
Lin Zhenfei shot Madam Lin Qin a cold glance, then slammed his hand down on the table with a sharp crack. The table immediately fell apart. His palm stung, but he had to endure it.
Lin Zhenfei’s outburst startled everyone in the room.
Lin Mengzhi looked at her father’s ashen and flushed face, assuming he was thoroughly angered by Madam Lin Qin.
She gently spoke to Lin Zhenfei, “Father, please don’t be angry with Mother. Mother is just excessively worried about the Empress.”
Hearing this, Lin Zhenfei inwardly grumbled: Daughter, your father’s complexion isn’t due to your mother, but from the severe pain in his hand after hitting the table! However, for the sake of his dignity, he absolutely could not admit it.
After composing himself, Lin Zhenfei cleared his throat and said, “The Empress’s affairs cannot be rushed; I need to deliberate on this.”
“Then, Father, what should we do now? The Empress is the daughter our Lin family married off. If something happens to her, it will be very disadvantageous to our Lin Duke’s mansion.”
After saying this, Lin Mengzhi’s eyes darkened, and she became exceptionally calm.
“After I attend morning court tomorrow, I will assess the situation,” Lin Zhenfei replied. He was also troubled by the Empress’s situation. Logically, if the Empress faced trouble, the Lin family would undoubtedly suffer. However, it had been two hours since he learned of her plight, and he had not received any imperial edicts either excusing him or ordering the reduction of his salary. He wondered what was happening.
***
Meanwhile, after returning to their residence, Jun Mohan and Leng Ruoli retreated to the study to discuss matters. Leng Ruoli also sent for Chu Mingxuan to be summoned.
A moment later, Chu Mingxuan arrived at Jun Mohan’s study.
Leng Ruoli took out the two pills Chu Mingxuan had given her from her sleeve.
“Divine Physician Chu, I have analyzed the components of the pills you gave me last time,” Leng Ruoli stated with a composed and emotionless demeanor.
“Wangfei, quickly tell me, what are the ingredients of the pills my master made to control the King’s wolf poison?” Chu Mingxuan asked urgently.
“There’s an umbrella, *dujiao lian*, white gold bars, *bajiao wang*, *qijiao feng*, wild *luotong*, *huaguan mu*… and more. Including both toxic and non-toxic herbs, there are over seventy medicinal ingredients in total. While they use poison to attack poison to suppress the King’s wolf poison, every time the King takes one of these pills, the wolf poison becomes harder to control when it flares up. In fact, the composition of these pills is similar to those made by that fake Physician Liang, except your master’s pills did not include human liver, unlike that fake physician’s perverse concoction,” Leng Ruoli said, her tone astonishing.
Upon hearing this, Jun Mohan immediately began to vomit, and soon after, his face turned pale. Although Leng Ruoli had said his pills didn’t contain human liver, the mere thought of ingesting such a substance made him feel nauseated. He never imagined that the renowned Ghost Valley Divine Physician would be a devil.
Chu Mingxuan felt even worse. He had never expected that for over a decade, he had recognized a devil as his master, a realization that deeply shook him.
“Alright, neither of you should dwell on it. Let’s quickly handle our immediate affairs and then set out to find those two medicinal herbs,” Leng Ruoli comforted them.
“Yes, our most pressing task now is to find the Fire Ganoderma and Snow Root Orchid to cure the King’s wolf poison,” Chu Mingxuan agreed with admiration.
The three then discussed their plan for the upcoming journey. After about half an incense stick’s worth of time, Chu Mingxuan returned to his own courtyard to rest.
After Chu Mingxuan left, Leng Ruoli returned to her room, while Jun Mohan remained in the study to attend to some official business.
However, shortly after Leng Ruoli departed, a woman hidden in the shadows, holding a bowl of soup, approached the entrance of Jun Mohan’s study. This woman was one of the ten women sent to the Cold King’s mansion by the Empress a couple of days prior. At this moment, she was heavily made up, dressed gaudily and provocatively. If one didn’t know she was a proper lady from an official’s family, they would mistake her for a prostitute from a pleasure house.
Yin Chen, hidden in the shadows, saw someone approaching Jun Mohan’s study and immediately appeared at the study door, blocking the woman.
“Who are you? You cannot enter the King’s study without an audience,” Yin Chen stated coldly.
“Guard brother, I am the King’s new concubine. I’ve seen how the King toils over official duties these past few days, so I personally brewed this cooling soup for him,” the woman said in a coy voice, giving Yin Chen a flirtatious wink. The sight made Yin Chen feel like retching.
“Take it back. The King will not drink your soup,” Yin Chen said, suppressing his disgust.
“Guard brother, please let me in. I won’t disturb the King for long,” the woman insisted.
“No, leave immediately, or I will be impolite,” Yin Chen’s tone grew increasingly stern as he saw the woman’s persistence.
The woman, sensing Yin Chen’s unfriendly tone, showed a look of disappointment. She held the soup bowl steady, glanced at the closed study door, and turned to leave reluctantly.
After the woman had moved away from Jun Mohan’s study, Yin Chen immediately concealed himself again to avoid disturbing Jun Mohan while he worked. This was because their King disliked anyone approaching his study when he was handling official business or discussing matters, so only Yin Chen and Ye Ying were stationed in close proximity outside the study. Other guards and hidden guards could only remain hidden fifty meters away. Tonight, Ye Ying was on duty on the study’s rooftop, so only Yin Chen was guarding the outside of the study.
The woman, having gauged the arrangement of the hidden guards outside Jun Mohan’s study, returned to her room and contemplated how to approach Jun Mohan. After a long period of thought, she devised a plan. She changed into an even more revealing dress than before, took an antidote, and carefully opened a packet of powder. She meticulously applied the powder to her fingernails before quickly leaving her room and rushing towards Jun Mohan’s study again.
As she neared Jun Mohan’s study, she feigned terror and shouted loudly, “Snake, snake, I’ve been bitten by a snake.”
Hearing this, Yin Chen, hidden in the shadows, frowned. However, he did not immediately reveal himself, merely thinking to himself, “Why has this woman come here again?”