Shen Qingqing said softly, "Don't worry, I'll only ask simple questions, nothing that concerns you. Just answer truthfully as I ask."
"Okay, I will tell the truth."
Hong Sao clutched the cup tightly, her fingertips turning pale.
Shen Qingqing asked, "Think back, was there anything unusual about the King yesterday?"
Hong Sao thought very carefully, then shook her head, "No, the King was busy all day yesterday. He said it was because of Pei Xi, and there were a lot of messes to clean up."
"What about the food he ate, was there anything unusual?"
Hong Sao became anxious at the question, "No, I was in charge of the food. I'm sure there was no problem with the food!"
"Why are you so sure?"
"Because before the food was sent in, someone had to taste it."
"There's such a rule?" Shen Qingqing had never heard of this before.
Hong Sao said, "Actually, there used to be such a rule, but later the King felt no one would be so insane as to poison him, so he canceled it. After the incident with Pei Xi, the King felt it was unsafe and reinstated the rule."
So the food was absolutely fine!
Shen Qingqing nodded slightly, "Okay, you can go back now. You don't need to work for the next two days. Just stay in your room, and I'll send someone to find you if needed."
"Are you going to imprison me?" Hong Sao's voice trembled.
"Of course not, it's to ensure your safety."
After all, Hong Sao was the only one who could prove the food was not problematic. The mastermind might be watching their every move.
Hong Sao was relieved and asked again, "Miss Shen, can you find the mastermind?"
"We definitely will."
After Hong Sao left, Shen Qingqing fell into deep thought.
Fu Jing Shu's gaze slowly fell upon her fair and delicate profile. "What are you thinking about?"
"I find it very strange. If the poison wasn't in the food, then how did he get poisoned?" Shen Qingqing turned to look at him.
Fu Jing Shu wasn't very knowledgeable about poisons and tried to guess, "Perhaps it wasn't through food, could it be through smell?"
"And touch!"
His reminder made Shen Qingqing consider this possibility.
Fu Jing Shu looked at her with a faint smile.
"Let's go, we'll investigate right away!"
Shen Qingqing immediately pulled him to the study.
Unfortunately, after searching for over half an hour, they found nothing. There were no unusual changes in the study's furnishings or documents.
Shen Qingqing remembered that when she first entered, there was no particular smell, and the window wasn't open. Only the door was opened for a while. After everyone left, the room was sealed and had not been opened since.
The guards at the door could testify to this.
She was the only one who had entered the room from the time of the incident until now.
Since they couldn't find anything, Shen Qingqing had to leave for now. But unwilling to give up, she went to find the old man who was researching poisons.
The old man was busy and looked at her impatiently. "What is it now?"
"I have something I need to ask you."
The old man knew what she was going to ask without her having to explain. "You want to ask me about the poison, don't you? I'm telling you, what's gotten into you, girl?"
Before Shen Qingqing could speak, he began to lecture.
"What does this have to do with you? If you insist on meddling, then let the King die. It's obvious someone is targeting him, why bother with this nosiness?"
Shen Qingqing sat there without a word.
As the old man spoke, he felt tired, took a sip of water, and continued his sermon. "If you're so eager to go back and save your child, you should hurry home instead of wasting time here!"
Seeing her silence, he couldn't continue.
"Why aren't you speaking?"
Shen Qingqing sighed, "Do you think I like to meddle?"
"You don't?" the old man asked with great surprise. "I thought you loved it! Otherwise, why would you always get involved in these troublesome matters!"
"But you got involved before too," Shen Qingqing glared at him.
"I had no choice!" the old man argued convincingly. "My unfilial disciple was here, so of course, I had to manage things. I had to clean house."
Now that the person was dead, he didn't want to deal with this mess anymore.
"But the poison came from him, and the one who administered it might be his accomplice." Shen Qingqing felt that such a person would be a menace if left unchecked.
The old man shook his head, "Girl, that's none of my business."
Shen Qingqing was surprised. "Why do you say that?"
"My unfilial disciple has been away for many years," the old man said indifferently. "Who knows how many people he knows, or how much poison he's given away. Perhaps people who used to do business with him have poison, and that's normal. Do I have to find them all out?"
Shen Qingqing was left speechless.
The old man said earnestly, "Girl, you need to learn not to meddle in other people's affairs."
It's easy to get yourself into trouble.
Since the other party targeted the King and not them, they clearly didn't intend to provoke them. Why would she go out of her way to provoke them?
Shen Qingqing wasn't exactly a saint, but...
"Old man, tell me how the poison is taken."
The old man was disappointed. "Everything I just said was a waste!"
Shen Qingqing smiled charmingly. "I'm a mother. When another mother asks for my help, I can't stand by and do nothing."
This was why she agreed to help.
The old man was instantly rendered speechless.
He suddenly remembered when he was teaching his disciple, he was also a father and a teacher, filled with pride and responsibility.
"Fine, I won't bother with you anymore."
He spoke coldly, but Shen Qingqing could tell with a glance that he was just being petulant. She coaxed him, "Master, please tell me."
The old man was taken aback. "What did you call me?"
"Master."
The old man was overjoyed. At that moment, his happiness finally overshadowed all his petulance and resentment towards the girl. Although she learned poison skills from him, she had never been willing to call him Master.
He used to be able to discipline her, but as she grew more capable, he couldn't.
This was the first time she had called him Master.
It was just meddling, so let her meddle if she wanted to!
He wanted to laugh but also to maintain a stern demeanor, so his lips curved slightly, looking more like a twitch.
Shen Qingqing couldn't help but chuckle. "Then will you tell me now?"
The old man, having received the title of Master, was immensely satisfied. "Yes. This medicine is a liquid I developed to be more easily applied around wounds."
Pills were inconvenient, even if they dissolved instantly, their effects weren't as fast as topical application.
Shen Qingqing's eyes lit up. "So, it doesn't have to be ingested to take effect."
"Of course not." The old man felt this question was dismissive of his abilities. "Every poison I develop is dual-purpose, for ingestion and dermal application!"
Just then, there was a knock at the door.
It was the witness who had seen Duke Chaplin. He ran in, breathless, "Miss Shen, I just remembered something. At the time, I heard the sound of something breaking from inside the room. It sounded like something was smashed."