Chapter 53: How Dare She Offend Someone the Emperor Values

Chapter 53: How Dare She Offend Someone the Emperor Values

Just as a talented individual had made a breakthrough, they were poisoned. Every talent was a treasure to the Dynasty Yue, and the loss of one pained the emperor deeply.

How could he allow them to be harmed by a group of petty individuals?

The emperor swept up Bei Jing and left.

Bei Jing: ? What is this flying sensation?

......

He Rou watched Xu Xinshu's busy figure, a gentle smile hanging on her lips.

She poured a cup of tea, dissolved the powder hidden under her fingernails into it, and presented it to Xu Xinshu.

"Xinshu, you've been working for so long, take a break and have a cup of tea to quench your thirst."

Xu Xinshu, focused on recording the growth of the seedlings, didn't hear until He Rou called out again, then she snapped back to reality.

"No, no, Arou, you drink it yourself."

He Rou took two steps closer and pressed the teacup directly to Xu Xinshu's face. Unable to refuse, Xu Xinshu accepted it.

Though her brother had warned her that the palace was as treacherous as the political arena, not to naively trust others' smiles, and that their smiles might hide daggers, making her always vigilant, especially with what she consumed.

But, He Rou was so kind to her. Without a sister, He Rou gave her the feeling of a close sister, surely she wouldn't harm her.

Except for the time when she was married, the naive and innocent Xu Xinshu thought.

Just then, she had been busy for a long time, and her throat was dry.

He Rou, looking like an older sister who cared for her, gently and firmly watched as she drank the tea.

The warm tea flowed down her throat, bringing a wave of warmth.

He Rou's smile grew wider.

Until the water in the teacup became shallower, leaving just a sip.

"The Emperor approaches—"

Xu Xinshu put down the teacup and knelt with He Rou to welcome the imperial presence.

Before he arrived, his voice came first.

A panicked voice echoed: "Ah, ah, ah, how could you drink it! It's poisonous, ah, ah, ah!"

Xu Xinshu thought, it couldn't be that coincidental...

The emperor hurried over, and upon seeing the teacup beside Xu Xinshu with only a little tea left, he almost gasped.

Only through years of training did he manage to maintain his composure.

"Female physician, go check."

The female physician was ordered to examine the remaining tea in Xu Xinshu's teacup.

The emperor explained, "Now that you are important to Great Yue, after much consideration, I have decided to assign a female physician to prevent any poisoning of your food and drink."

In fact, he had long considered that figures like Xu Xinshu and Zhou Huanjiu needed protection.

He had planned to send someone once they began to shine and attract attention.

Otherwise, protecting them before they had achieved anything and before announcing it to the world would draw too much attention.

It would prematurely draw notice.

But the emperor hadn't expected that his promising talent wouldn't die at the hands of enemy spies or rebel assassins.

Instead, she nearly fell victim to the conflicts among the women in the harem.

Truly... speechless.

If not for Chuer's reminder, if Xu Xinshu were to die from such a ridiculous reason, the emperor felt he could climb onto the roof of Xuanshi Hall and curse the heavens.

He Rou's heart leaped to her throat.

She wanted to stop the female physician, to reach out and knock over the teacup.

But she dared not move; the person in front of her was the emperor.

The emperor... known for his cruelty.

The female physician tasted the remaining tea in the teacup and immediately spat it out.

"Your Majesty, there is poison in the tea, arsenic. The amount is significant but not fatal."

"How can it not be fatal? In **(System)**'s prediction, Xu Xinshu would die after drinking this cup."

The emperor frowned, "Examine Xu Shangyan's pulse."

Shangyan was the official position the emperor had set for Xu Xinshu, distinct from ordinary female officials, not managing palace affairs.

After examining Xu Xinshu's pulse, the female physician let out a sharp exclamation.

Then she quickly pulled out a silver needle and inserted it.

Xu Xinshu: "Yue~~~~~~"

Xu Shangyan had been poisoned for some time, but the dosage was small before, and the symptoms were merely discomfort.

"But with today's addition, it has become life-threatening."

"Human life is a matter of utmost importance. I hope Your Majesty will forgive me for taking the liberty to administer acupuncture, a crime that sullies the dragon's eyes."

Even the most beautiful woman's scene of violent vomiting is truly unbearable to watch.

The emperor averted his eyes and, still full of fatherly love, did not forget to cover Bei Jing's eyes.

"I will go prepare the medicine now, but the process of decocting the medicine takes a long time."

"Mung bean soup can detoxify all poisons. Your Majesty can have a large amount of mung bean soup prepared and force-fed to Xu Shangyan until she can't drink anymore."

When there was no sound, the emperor asked, "Lord Xu, do you have any suspects in mind regarding the person who poisoned her?"

Xu Xinshu: ...

"Lord Xu?"

Xu Xinshu: "yue~~~~~~~~~~~~"

The emperor: ... Alright, go ahead and vomit.

The matter of finding the culprit was set aside for now; the priority was saving Xu Xinshu.

Moreover, the emperor had already known who the culprit was; this was just a formality.

Xu Xinshu vomited until her stomach acid was all gone, collapsed on the floor exhausted, and was then lifted up by others to have mung bean soup forced down her nose.

She didn't even have the chance to say a word throughout the entire process.

The mung bean soup used for detoxification certainly couldn't have sugar added. Xu Xinshu drank until she turned green, her stomach swelling as if it was about to burst.

She probably never wanted to see mung beans again in her life.

Plans to cultivate mung beans would have to be postponed.

But all this only kept her alive; the symptoms of poisoning were still severe.

Her stomach hurt terribly, her head ached, and she felt dizzy, gasping for air, yet still feeling suffocated.

Nosebleeds kept gushing out from her nostrils.

If she hadn't been rescued in time, she would have died in this agony.

And because the detoxification wasn't done promptly, it would have been even more painful.

The culprit wouldn't have found a doctor for her.

Her promising future was cut short just as she had begun to see some success.

That's what Xu Xinshu thought as she passed out.

Meanwhile, He Rou returned to her quarters, intending to destroy the evidence. She opened a small hidden compartment inside the table, where the remaining arsenic was stored.

She had seen how strong and healthy Xu Xinshu was, having consumed arsenic for so long without showing any signs of being affected.

She thought increasing the dosage would just make her a bit more uncomfortable.

But instead, she poisoned herself.

What's worse, it caught the emperor's attention.

He Rou panicked. She hid the remaining half packet in her sleeve, intending to destroy the evidence, but as she reached the door, the guards blocked her path.

"The emperor has ordered that no one is to move around."

He Rou returned inside. She opened the window, only to find two guards standing outside, their eyes sharp as they looked back at her.

He Rou quickly retreated.

Sitting in anxiety, she heard a commotion growing louder and approaching.

It was the search party.

They reached the neighboring quarters, and soon they would be at hers.

She looked at the half packet of powder in her sleeve, opened it, and scattered it high.

She smoothed out the areas where it wasn't evenly spread.

The door was opened, and the search party arrived.

He Rou didn't expect the search to be conducted this way.

Even the table was overturned, revealing the hidden compartment she thought was well-concealed.

Even the floor, where the white powder was unevenly spread and differed in color, was noticed.

This is the capability of those before the emperor.

The powder mixed with dust on the floor was gathered again, and He Rou knew she was finished.

She was wrong; she shouldn't have messed with Xu Xinshu. How could she, a person valued by the emperor, be someone she could afford to offend?

Upon hearing that his sister was poisoned, Xu Lanqi hurried to the palace to visit her.

"Brother has warned you many times, don’t easily trust others, don’t easily trust others."