20demayo Chapter 147 Tang Ling's Idea
Chapter 147 Tang Ling's Idea
The next day, His Majesty issued an edict to posthumously confer the title of Consort Lin on Consort Lin. The funeral rites were in accordance with the rites for Consort Lin, and her coffin was set up in the West Palace. On the seventh day, the Director of the Imperial Astronomical Observatory, Ning Wanxiao, was invited to personally preside over the ceremony.
Qi Xiao thanked His Majesty for the gift, but he didn't take it to heart. He knew exactly what life had been like for Concubine Lin in the palace for twenty years. If His Majesty had any feelings for her, he wouldn't have made her life so difficult, nor would he have forced Qi Xiao to leave the capital at the age of ten and be separated from his mother for several years. The glory of Concubine Lin after her death was merely for His Majesty's own sake, which only made Qi Xiao feel even more heartbroken.
Zhang Suian helped Qi Xiao up. Seeing that his eyes were swollen from crying and his face was sad and haggard, the words of comfort he wanted to say suddenly got stuck in his throat. It is said that the royal family is ruthless, but in this respect, Qi Xiao is completely different from His Majesty.
"Ninth Prince, please take care of yourself."
"Thank you, Eunuch Zhang."
"Your Highness is too polite. His Majesty sent me here to deliver his imperial decree and to oversee the Internal Affairs Department's handling of Concubine Lin's funeral. The West Palace is different from the Imperial Palace, and we're worried there might be omissions."
"Thank you, Eunuch Zhang."
The concubine's funeral ceremony was personally handled by the chief eunuch of the inner court beside His Majesty. Not everyone can have such treatment. I don't know who this was done for, the Queen or Concubine Zhao?
Qi Xiao sent Zhang Suian off and continued to kneel in front of the coffin, doing nothing but being extremely sad.
Less than half an hour before Zhang Suian arrived, Chi Yue brought Qinglan into the Westward Palace.
Concubine Lin looked like she had died of an illness, so there were no scars on her body. The most likely possibility was poisoning. Qi Xiao had been kneeling in the side room since Concubine Lin's death. No one had touched any of Concubine Lin's belongings, let alone taken anything away. If someone had assassinated Concubine Lin, there would definitely be traces left. Qi Xiao had to do his best to preserve any clues and not let anyone take advantage of the chaos to destroy the evidence.
The first person Qi Xiao suspected was Doctor Fang. Doctor Fang personally took care of Concubine Lin's medicine and acupuncture, and even Qinglan was not allowed to touch him. If anyone wanted to tamper with anything, it would be easiest for Doctor Fang to do it.
The night before, Qi Xiao asked Chi Yue to check on Doctor Fang while he was still in the West Palace, so as to avoid any more trouble.
Chi Yue covered his face and tested Doctor Fang with a bag of gold and a dagger.
"Thank you, Doctor Fang. This is your reward."
"Wha...what?! Who are you?! Come..."
Doctor Fang's mouth was covered by Chi Yue, with the blade of a dagger against his neck: "Shh, we haven't finished talking yet, Doctor Fang, why are you in such a hurry? Speak properly."
Doctor Fang was covered in cold sweat and nodded repeatedly, and only then did Chi Yue let go of his mouth.
"Who are you?! What's the reward?!"
"It doesn't matter who I am. The reward is naturally due to Doctor Fang's hard work. I also ask Doctor Fang to keep his mouth shut."
"What...! What are you talking about? What do you mean by keeping my mouth shut?! I didn't do anything! You... you... you're trying to frame me!"
This unexpected disaster suddenly hit him on the head. Doctor Fang was so scared that he wet his pants. He was completely unaware of Concubine Lin's death.
After confirming that there was nothing wrong with Doctor Fang, Chi Yue told Doctor Fang the purpose of his visit and Qi Xiao's instructions. The gold was still Doctor Fang's reward, and what he needed to do was to check what Concubine Lin had eaten, touched, and drunk in the three days before her death, and who had handled them.
Doctor Fang had been in the harem for decades, so Chi Yue didn't need to use any threats or inducements. Doctor Fang agreed immediately, but of course he didn't dare to accept the gold.
Doctor Fang didn't sleep the whole night. He checked everything he could, including decoctions, silver needles, food, tea, fruits, and calming incense. He even checked the utensils used, but found nothing.
Qi Xiao now only hopes that Qinglan can find some clues.
Bai Xiqiao pulled Qi Xiao up without any effort. Qi Xiao had been kneeling for almost eight hours, and his legs had lost all feeling, so he couldn't stand up at all.
"Go lie down for a while, I'll kneel for you."
"No need, Senior Brother."
"If you still consider me your senior brother, then just be obedient. If you keep going like this, you're going to lose your legs, right?"
"I am fine."
"...Stubborn!" Bai Xiqiao couldn't resist and handed Qi Xiao a bowl of tea. "It's okay if you don't want to eat, but you should at least drink a few sips of water. Don't you think I have to force you to drink even this?"
Qi Xiao took the tea bowl, raised his head and drank it all in one gulp, then pushed the tea bowl back to Bai Xiqiao.
"Tsk...it's really troublesome."
Qi Xiao frowned, his vision suddenly blurry. He only heard Bai Xiqiao say, "It was Tang Ling's idea, Qing Lan's drug. Don't blame me. At least get two hours of sleep."
Qi Xiao fell headfirst and fell asleep.
Bai Xiqiao carried Qi Xiao to the couch and let him fall asleep, while asking Doctor Fang to come and check Qi Xiao's legs.
Just as Zhang Suian was about to leave the West Palace, he heard someone hurriedly asking for Doctor Fang. He was shocked and rushed over to check.
Doctor Fang caught a whiff of the sweet aroma of tea but paid no attention. After taking Qi Xiao's pulse, he simply said that he had fainted from excessive grief and kneeling all night, and that he would be fine after a few hours of sleep. Qi Xiao's knees, on the other hand, were badly injured. Yesterday's rain had been wet and cold, and kneeling all night had left them severely swollen. If he hadn't fainted, he would have fallen ill if he had continued kneeling.
Zhang Suian was horrified when he heard this. If Qi Xiao was putting on a show for His Majesty, then he was doing it very well.
Qinglan's medicine was very effective. Qi Xiao slept for two hours, no more, no less. When he woke up, it was just after noon, and hot dishes, hot rice and hot soup were all prepared.
"How do I...White Creek Bridge?!"
Bai Xiqiao knew that Qi Xiao would be angry when he woke up, so he didn't even call him "senior brother" but just called him by his full name.
"I've already told you, Tang Ling's idea and Qing Lan's medicine have nothing to do with me."
"Why did you listen to Tang Ling? Didn't you get angry with me just because of him?"
"It's for your own good that I'm letting you rest!" Bai Xiqiao raised his voice and pushed a cup of tea directly in front of Qi Xiao. "Drink!"
"What is this?"
"Bai Shui! Are you afraid I'll poison you? Drink it quickly!"
Qi Xiao knew that Bai Xiqiao was worried about him, and he couldn't blame him. Moreover, after a good sleep, the sudden quarrel made Qi Xiao feel much better.
"Get up and eat when you've had enough sleep."
Qi Xiao stood up and straightened his robes: "I'm not hungry, brother, you eat. I'll go back to the mourning hall first."
"Sit down." There was no way Bai Xiqiao would let Qi Xiao go back to kneel like that. He pushed him over and sat him down at the table. "Eat well. Qinglan has something to tell you after dinner."
"What did he find? Where is he? I want to see him now!"
"Eat!" Bai Xiqiao threw the bowl and chopsticks in front of Qi Xiao. "Tang Ling said that you should eat and rest well before Qinglan can reply to you."
"...Brother, is it fun to lie to me?"
"Qinglan." Bai Xiqiao called Qinglan in loudly, "Ask yourself."
"Qinglan, what clues did you find?"