Chapter 62 Poison Hidden in the Kitchen

Chapter 62: Poison in the Kitchen

Jiang Shuning returned to the ministerial residence in a daze.

As soon as she stepped through the main gate, she saw Xia Chan rushing toward her with a panicked expression. "Young Miss, it's terrible! The Third Young Master has fallen ill again!"

"How could this be?" Jiang Shuning's brows furrowed tightly, her heart sinking. "Wasn't he fine yesterday?"

"I don't know either! Young Miss, please go and see him quickly!" Xia Chan urged.

Without another word, Jiang Shuning immediately turned and hurried toward the west courtyard.

Ling Wu followed closely behind.

Jiang Tianze lay unconscious on the bed, his eyes tightly shut, his face flushed an unnatural red.

Jiang Shuning reached out to touch his forehead, finding it burning hot—clearly, he had a low-grade fever.

"What did the residence physician say?" she asked.

Xia Chan quickly replied, "The physician said the Third Young Master's constitution is weak and his illness tends to recur. He has already written a prescription, and the maids in the residence are brewing the medicine!"

"Once it's ready, bring it here. I'll feed him."

"Yes, Young Miss."

Soon, Xia Chan entered carrying a bowl of steaming medicine.

Seeing this, Ling Wu stepped forward and said, "Young Miss, let me feed the Third Young Master. You've just returned from the palace and haven't even had time to change your clothes!"

Just as Jiang Shuning was about to speak, a weak voice came from the bed. "Elder Sister..."

Jiang Tianze had woken up.

His face was pale, and he looked extremely frail, yet his gaze remained fixed intently on Jiang Shuning.

"Third Brother, are you feeling better?" Jiang Shuning asked with concern.

"I... feel very dizzy..." He struggled to sit up but was gently pressed back down by Jiang Shuning.

"Just lie still. I'll feed you the medicine." Jiang Shuning took the medicine bowl from Xia Chan, scooped up a spoonful, gently blew on it to cool it, and brought it to Jiang Tianze's lips.

As he drank the bitter liquid, Jiang Tianze kept his eyes fixed on Jiang Shuning. "Elder Sister, the dress you're wearing is really beautiful."

Today, Jiang Shuning had dressed up meticulously for her visit to the palace.

She wore a hairpin adorned with gemstones and a striking apricot-yellow dress that accentuated her snow-white skin, making her appear radiant and vibrant, even more dazzling than usual.

A pang of bitterness rose in Jiang Tianze's heart. Who was she meeting that warranted such elaborate attire?

"Thank you for the compliment, Third Brother." Jiang Shuning smiled faintly.

"I heard Elder Sister went to the palace today. Did you go to pay respects to Her Majesty the Empress Dowager?"

Jiang Shuning's hand, holding the spoon, paused briefly before she explained, "No. Due to the recent spate of funerals in the ministerial residence, it's not appropriate to visit Her Majesty the Empress Dowager."

"Then who did Elder Sister go to see?" Jiang Tianze pressed, as if determined to get to the bottom of it.

"Princess Ronghua wanted me to teach her archery, so I went to Fulu Palace." Jiang Shuning said lightly.

"Princess Ronghua..." Jiang Tianze repeated softly, his expression turning somewhat gloomy. "She is the Fifth Prince's younger sister. Elder Sister, you wouldn't... have feelings for the Fifth Prince, would you?"

Hearing this, Jiang Shuning's pretty face instantly flushed red.

"Third Brother, don't be ridiculous!" she chided in a low voice.

The corners of Jiang Tianze's lips curled into an innocent smile, but a trace of hidden malice flashed in his eyes.

So, the Fifth Prince was the person Elder Sister often went to the palace to see...

"Does Elder Sister have any free time lately? I'd like to ask you a few questions about my studies."

Jiang Shuning smiled and said, "Then you need to recover quickly. Once you're healthy again, we can discuss your studies together."

"Elder Sister won't be going to the palace again soon, will you? I'm afraid... I won't get to see you again." He looked at her with a somewhat pitiful expression, like a puppy worried about being abandoned by its owner.

Remembering her conversation with Xiao Lingchuan in the palace today and the menace in his manner, Jiang Shuning instinctively blurted out, "I won't be going to the palace!"

She then explained, "The New Year is approaching, and there are many matters to attend to in the residence. You also need to recover quickly so you can help Mother prepare for the New Year."

"Alright!" Jiang Tianze smiled, his eyes curving like crescents, like a ray of warm winter sunshine dispelling the gloom brought by his illness.

After feeding him the medicine, Jiang Shuning stayed to chat with him for a while longer before finally getting up to leave.

After Jiang Shuning left, Third Madam Jiang entered the room. Looking at her pale and frail son, she sighed helplessly. "Tianze, why must you do this? You deliberately make yourself ill like this and have to endure the bitterness of this medicine."

A sickly, faint smile curled at the corners of Jiang Tianze's lips. "As long as it brings Elder Sister to see me, I'm willing to drink as much bitter medicine as it takes."

"Tianze, Mother isn't trying to dampen your spirits, but Shuning is destined to marry into the royal family. She is beyond your reach. Now that your uncle has decided to formally adopt you, wouldn't it be good for you to stay in the ministerial residence and inherit the family estate?" Third Madam Jiang pleaded earnestly.

"The reason I stay in the ministerial residence is to be with Elder Sister day and night. If she doesn't marry, I will stay by her side as siblings for a lifetime; if she insists on marrying..." A flash of sinister malice flickered in Jiang Tianze's eyes. "Whether that person is a prince or the Son of Heaven, I will never yield!"

Seeing her son's obsessive state, Third Madam Jiang knew she could not persuade him no matter what.

Forget it. She only had this one son in her life, and he had endured many hardships alongside her since childhood. Now, whatever he wanted, she would do her best to fulfill it.

Even a prince of Daye had no right to take away the woman her son loved!

—

Taking advantage of accompanying Jiang Shuning to the west courtyard, Ling Wu slipped silently into the kitchen.

She walked straight to the blue-and-white porcelain jar placed on the carved wooden cabinet and retrieved the silver needle hidden inside.

The silver needle, which had been spotless and shiny yesterday, was now completely blackened.

It was indeed poisoned!

Ling Wu's heart sank. She took out a few more silver needles and tested the other jars and containers in the kitchen one by one.

The results shocked her—poisons were hidden everywhere in this kitchen!

Was Third Madam Jiang not afraid that someone from the third branch might accidentally ingest them?

Or perhaps everyone in the third branch actually knew she concocted poisons?

While lost in thought, a faint sound of footsteps came from outside the door.

With quick reflexes, Ling Wu leaped onto the roof beam, held her breath, and concealed herself within the shadows.

She saw Madam Jiang the Third enter, take a small porcelain bottle from her sleeve, pour the powder inside into a brown porcelain jar, then left the kitchen.

Once Madam Jiang the Third was safely out of sight, Ling Wu quietly jumped down from the beam.

She carefully opened the brown porcelain jar, scooped up a bit of the powder with a handkerchief, then silently left the kitchen.

—

In recent days, Jiang Shuning had kept to herself, not stepping out of the Chancellor's manor once.

However, the more she avoided social engagements, the more they actively sought her out.

Coinciding with the plum blossoms in full bloom, an imperial edict from the Empress Dowager arrived, announcing a Plum Blossom Banquet to be held in the palace, inviting noble young ladies from all the great houses of the capital to attend and admire the blossoms.

Jiang Shuning had originally thought that since Jiang Tianci's mourning period had not yet reached forty-nine days, the Chancellor's manor would likely be exempt from receiving an invitation.

Unexpectedly, not long after the news arrived, the invitation was delivered to the Chancellor's manor.

The Jiang family naturally dared not slight the Empress Dowager, so Chancellor Jiang instructed his two daughters to prepare meticulously and attend the palace banquet when the time came.

Upon learning this, Jiang Yaozhen felt both joy and worry.

She was joyful because she could finally step inside those towering palace walls again, as the designated Third Prince's Consort, becoming the object of envy among all the noble ladies, fully enjoying that glory and splendor.

She was worried because she feared Jiang Shuning would steal her spotlight at the banquet, just as she had at previous palace events.

After all, this was a banquet personally hosted by the Empress Dowager, who had always favored Jiang Shuning and would surely give her many opportunities to showcase her talents.

How could she prevent Jiang Shuning from attending this Plum Blossom Banquet?

Suddenly, Jiang Yaozhen remembered what her mother had told her: her third aunt, Madam Jiang the Third, was the incognito Nanyue Poison Master.

Since she was the Nanyue Poison Master, she must possess many strange poisons that could make someone be poisoned without a trace, with subtle symptoms difficult to detect and impossible to cure.

Thinking of this, a trace of sinister light flashed in Jiang Yaozhen's eyes.

It was time to meet her third aunt.

Jiang Yaozhen gracefully arrived at the west courtyard. When Madam Jiang the Third saw her, a humble smile spread across her face. "Ah, Second Young Miss."

Jiang Yaozhen looked Madam Jiang the Third up and down. Seeing her with lowered eyes and submissive demeanor, appearing meek and timid, it was hard to connect her with the mysterious and elusive Nanyue Poison Master.

She walked up to Madam Jiang the Third and lowered her voice. "Third Aunt, my mother has already informed me of your identity. Today, I've come to ask you to concoct a strange poison for me."

Hearing this, Madam Jiang the Third's previously submissive expression instantly turned cold, and her tone became distant and indifferent. "I wonder what kind of poison Second Young Miss desires?"

"I want a poison that can make someone ugly—the uglier, the better!" A cold, sinister smile appeared on Jiang Yaozhen's face. "Preferably one that even the most skilled physicians in Daye would be helpless to cure! My mother said the poisons you concoct cannot be diagnosed as poisoning by ordinary physicians. That's exactly the effect I want!"

"Second Young Miss's request, I shall naturally do my best to fulfill," Madam Jiang the Third said, a meaningful smile curling at the corner of her mouth. "But as for the payment... one thousand taels of silver."

"What? One thousand taels of silver?!" Jiang Yaozhen exclaimed in shock, her eyes wide. "You might as well rob me!"

"What? Second Young Miss, didn't your mother tell you that the poisons I develop have always been quite expensive?" Madam Jiang the Third shed her usual timid and submissive demeanor, her face full of mockery. "Surely Second Young Miss didn't think I would work for you for free?"