The Female Regent’s Daily Guide to Spoiling Her Wife - Chapter 35

Emperor Shunan was in a towering rage. He immediately threw the deer tamer into the Great Prison for rigorous interrogation, determined to drag the mastermind behind the curtains into the light. Unable to withstand the brutal torture, the tamer confessed that Prince Qing was the one responsible before committing suicide by poison in the dungeon.

After receiving the news, Emperor Shunan remained silent for a long time. No one knew what he was thinking that night. However, the next day, he issued an order to place Prince Qing under house arrest, decreeing that all further decisions would wait until Lu Zhao regained consciousness.

The Eldest Princess’s Manor.

Lu Zhao had been unconscious ever since she was injured at the palace banquet. Gao Han had brought her back to the manor to recover. A crowd gathered in the room around the comatose Lu Zhao, waiting for the verdict from the divine physician, Liu Xiangru.

Liu Xiangru’s face was as grave as still water. He said in a heavy voice, “Forgive my bluntness, but I fear the antlers of that white deer were coated with a potent poison from the Western Regions known as Beautiful Face. It is colorless and odorless, making it extremely difficult to detect. The victim appears to be merely sleeping like a beauty, but if the toxin is not neutralized in time, I fear they will bleed from their seven orifices and perish within seven days.”

Gao Wenyuan cried out in disbelief, “What? The antlers were poisoned?”

The white deer going mad was something they had anticipated, but how could there be poison? Who was behind this? Was the target the Emperor or Lu Zhao? The deer tamer was someone he and Ah Zhao had found together; how could this happen?

Hearing this, Gao Han’s body swayed. She nearly fainted, her eyes filled with uncontrollable despair. Lu Zhao was her only child; if anything happened to her, it would be the end of her own life as well.

“Quick! Send word to the Consort and Ah Zhao’s Master by fast horse! Tell them to get here immediately!” Gao Han ordered Xi Gui with a trembling voice.

Xi Gui looked at the unconscious Lu Zhao on the bed, bit his lip, and ran out to fulfill the command.

Gao Han grabbed Liu Xiangru’s arm and made to kneel. “Master Liu, no matter what, you must save Ah Zhao! She is so young; I cannot lose her. I will pay any price, no matter how great!”

Liu Xiangru hurried to support her. “Eldest Princess, you mustn’t, you simply mustn’t!” He then frowned. “This poison is not difficult to cure, but it requires a fresh lingzhi mushroom as a medicinal catalyst. Such a thing is incredibly hard to find.”

Gao Han said repeatedly, “Fine! I will send people to search for it. Even if they must travel to the ends of the earth, they shall bring it back. Until then, I must trouble you, Master, to protect Ah Zhao’s heart meridians.”

Liu Xiangru stroked his beard. “That goes without saying. Please rest assured, Eldest Princess; this old man will do his utmost.”

Gao Wenyuan spoke from the side, “I will lead the search! I’ll scour every cliff and precipice in the outskirts of Yindou. I refuse to believe I cannot find a single lingzhi!”

“I will go with you,” the masked youth’s raspy, coarse voice rang out.

Wenyuan didn’t look back at him. He simply nodded and walked out.

At that moment, the Old Matriarch of the Song family and Song Jin arrived gracefully with their attendants. Song Jin supported Gao Han, saying through tears, “Aunt Han, I want to stay and care for Sister Zhao. I, this is what I ought to do.”

Everyone present understood the subtext. Had the white deer not gone mad at the banquet, it was very likely the Emperor would have already decreed a marriage between her and Lu Zhao. Now that Lu Zhao had risked her life to save the Emperor, His Majesty had already visited several times personally. If Lu Zhao woke up, her imperial favor would likely be even greater. The Song family’s arrival now was like offering charcoal in a snowstorm; it fulfilled Song Jin’s devotion to Lu Zhao and won the favor of both the Emperor and the Eldest Princess.

Gao Han was moved. She patted Song Jin’s hand and said softly, “Good child.”

The Old Matriarch looked at the unconscious Lu Zhao on the bed and sighed. “What a tragedy! Such a jade-like person suffering such a great ordeal. Eldest Princess, if there is anything our Song family can do, just say the word. This old woman will do her absolute best.”

Gao Han wiped away a tear, feeling deeply grateful. “Matriarch, thank you for your concern.”

Leaning on her staff, the Matriarch said solemnly, “Think nothing of it. We will be family in the future. Jin’er, you stay here these next few days to look after her. There is no need to return home.”

Song Jin nodded and sat down by the bed.

Watching this from the side, Liu Xiangru cast a sympathetic glance at Lu Zhao. The Regent would have a difficult time settling this! Song Jin had seized the opportunity to win the Eldest Princess’s heart, while that Third Young Lady of the Xu family was likely still in the dark.

The Xu Residence.

Yunxia rested her chin on her hand, gazing absently at the osmanthus tree outside the window. The scent of the flowers enveloped her, smelling wonderful. This tree had been brought and planted in the backyard by Lu Zhao’s people a few days ago, simply because Yunxia had mentioned in passing that she wanted to make incense pills from osmanthus.

A gust of wind blew, making the branches sway, and the blossoms drifted down like falling snow. At this moment, Yunxia missed her terribly. Lu Zhao hadn’t visited for several days, and there was no news from Xi Gui either. This had never happened before. For no reason, Yunxia’s heart had been racing with anxiety these past few days; she didn’t know what was wrong. But Lu Zhao had told her she didn’t need to do anything, she only had to wait.

Yunxia shook her head and sighed, trying to keep herself from overthinking. She took a small sieve and walked out, leaning down to carefully gather the blossoms. Once these incense pills were finished, she would make sure Lu Zhao was the first to try them.

Ying Xue returned from outside with red-rimmed eyes. Seeing Yunxia’s slender silhouette, her heart ached with reluctance.

Yunxia stood up and saw Ying Xue hovering at the courtyard gate with teary eyes. Confusion flickered in her heart. “Ying Xue, what’s wrong? Why do you look like this? Did Xu Ruoxiang bully you?”

Since Lady Yang and Xu Ruoxiang were taken away by the Court of State Ceremonies, Lady Yang had confessed to everything. After her return, she had been divorced by Xu Xin and sent away to a rural estate. Xu Ruoxiang’s marriage to Prince Qing had also been annulled, and she hadn’t shown her face in a long time.

Ying Xue shook her head, her voice trembling and hesitant. “Miss, it’s, it’s Master. Master Liu just sent word saying, Master is unconscious and might, might not make it.”

Yunxia couldn’t believe her ears. She stumbled back a step, the osmanthus flowers in her hand spilling entirely onto the ground. Her heart felt as if it were being squeezed tight, a sharp pain radiating from its core.

Yunxia’s voice shook. “How can this be? Where is she? I want to see her!”

Ying Xue supported Yunxia’s swaying body and said urgently, “Miss, Master is at the Eldest Princess’s Manor. However, Master Liu also sent another message.”

Ying Xue paused, stealing a glance at Yunxia before steeling herself to continue. “Miss Song is currently at the manor taking care of her. I heard, I heard that at the palace banquet, the Emperor decreed a marriage between Master and Miss Song.”

Yunxia suddenly gripped Ying Xue’s arm, her eyes filled with disbelief. Images of Lu Zhao and the words she had spoken flashed through her mind. She murmured, “Impossible, she said to believe her.”

Yunxia steadied her spirit, though her mouth tasted of bitterness. She closed her eyes painfully, her fingertips turning white from gripping Ying Xue. She spoke with difficulty, “If, if it is true, as long as she is safe, I, I can be at peace. She, she never owed me anything.”

Ying Xue said urgently, “Miss, don’t say that. We have all seen how Master feels about you. You are the one she holds in her heart; no one can surpass you.”

Yunxia gave a bitter smile. What she wanted was never to surpass others; she wanted to be the only one.

Yunxia lowered her gaze, her long lashes hiding the dazed and wounded look in her eyes. Pretending to be indifferent, she said, “Ying Xue, let’s not think about that. We must see Sister first. Come inside with me to change; we’ll go find my Cousin. If we try to enter the Eldest Princess’s Manor directly now, we might not be allowed in. We’ll find Cousin and have him take us!”