Reborn into the palace, she seduces the emperor's heart, driving the chief minister to madness!

Chapter 202, the next dose of potent medicine

Realizing he was lost in thought, Lu Zhiheng frowned slightly and closed the open window.

The reason he was willing to help her investigate the death of the Imperial Concubine was not only because of her bold offer of herself, but also because the reason why the Chu family was raided was indeed related to him.

The death of Consort Chu was even more unexpected for him.

Based on his understanding of Consort Chu, she was definitely not the type to commit suicide.

Therefore, when Pei Yuanling announced to the public at the beginning of the year that the Imperial Concubine had passed away, he did not believe it at all.

However, Pei Yuanling kept this matter a complete secret, not even revealing a single detail to him.

Although he had a vague suspicion in his mind, he had no evidence and no way to take action.

Now that Miss Qiao in the palace wants to find out the whole story, he doesn't mind going along with it and giving her a hand.

***

Chu Qingyin recuperated in Feixue Palace for many days and gradually recovered.

However, there is still a light pink scar on his forehead, which is really glaring.

Pei Yuanling would come to accompany her every day after court and also bestowed upon her many precious tonics.

Of course, other concubines also came to visit and show their goodwill.

"Put all those things into the warehouse."

Chu Qingyin glanced at the table piled high with tonics, but showed little interest.

"Yes."

Xianglan hurriedly instructed Yuyan and the others to tidy up, making sure to count and put everything into the warehouse, and not to be lazy.

"Your Majesty, the sorceress who was driven away by the Empress last time has been invited back to the palace by His Majesty and is currently staying in a side hall of the Phoenix Palace."

Xianglan stepped forward and whispered, "I heard that the sorceress acted very high and mighty when she entered the palace. It was only after Her Majesty the Empress personally invited her that she agreed to come."

Chu Qingyin looked somewhat surprised. "Oh? Is that so?"

The sorceress has gone to the palace again, how come there's not a single word from her?

"We've been living here for a while now."

Xianglan pouted and said softly, "I only heard it from the maids in Consort Qin's palace when I went to the Imperial Wardrobe to get something. It seems that His Majesty intentionally kept it from you."

Chu Qingyin frowned slightly, pondering to herself why Pei Yuanling would keep the matter of the sorceress entering the palace again a secret from her.

Could it be that he discovered something?

"Xianglan, has everything been dealt with on Kang Luhai's side?"

"Your Majesty, everything has been handled properly."

Xianglan lowered her head and said, "All the clothes used to dress up as ghosts have been burned. There's no way anyone could get any leverage against us."

Since the incident involving spilled medicine, she has become much more composed and her actions have become more sophisticated.

"Since His Majesty intends to conceal this, then we should not get involved in this mess."

As Chu Qingyin spoke, she casually picked up a lychee that had been brought as tribute from Lingnan and put it in her mouth.

The sweet taste of lychee spread in her mouth, but she had no heart to savor it.

I've done all I can; now it's up to Lu Zhiheng to decide how to respond.

Your Excellency, please don't disappoint me.

**

Since Chu Qingyin was injured while attending to the sick in Fengyi Palace, Pei Yuanling has stopped having his concubines attend to her.

For this reason, Consort Qin even made a special trip to visit Chu Qingyin's palace.

It was because of her suggestion that the concubines attend to Chu Qingyin when she was ill that Chu Qingyin suffered such a serious injury, so she naturally couldn't escape responsibility.

Besides visiting, his words also contained some probing, but Chu Qingyin managed to evade them all.

Pei Yuanling had issued a gag order regarding what happened at Fengyi Palace that day, so they naturally had no way of knowing the specifics.

On this day, several concubines of lower rank went to Qin Fei's palace to pay their respects as usual.

When they sat together and had nothing to do, they inevitably brought up this matter again.

After several rounds of tea, Lu Mingzhu finally lost her patience and asked, "What exactly is the explanation for Her Majesty the Empress's illness? Why was that sorceress brought back?"

Consort Qin gently put down her teacup, raised her eyes and glanced at everyone: "How can we presume to know the thoughts of His Majesty and the Empress?"

Upon hearing this, Qiao Qingling echoed, "Your Majesty is right, but the things that have happened in the palace recently are truly unpredictable. First, Consort Liang was injured in Fengyi Palace, and then His Majesty invited that sorceress into the palace. We really don't know what's going on."

As she spoke, she frowned with worry and said, "His Majesty forbids us concubines from bothering Consort Liang. We don't know how her injuries are."

The crowd chattered amongst themselves, their eyes frequently glancing at Consort Qin, hoping she would reveal more information.

Now that Consort Qin is in charge of the six palaces, she naturally has a much better grasp of information than the others.

Consort Qin shook her head. "I don't know about this matter either. I advise you all not to inquire about it anymore."

She tried to gloss over the matter, and others could only suppress their curiosity.

Qiao Qingling, now intending to pledge allegiance to Consort Qin, didn't ask any further questions.

As for Consort Li, she naturally dared not say anything more, and hid in the corner like a quail, remaining silent.

As for Empress Wang, ever since that sorceress was invited into the palace, she has been unable to find peace every night.

That sorceress spent her days either sprinkling glutinous rice and cinnabar in front of the palace or burning all sorts of strange incense around the bedroom.

Pei Yuanling seemed to have made up his mind and let her make a scene.

This caused unrest throughout the entire Fengyi Palace.

Although Empress Wang harbored resentment, she could not say anything more due to the Emperor's decree.

If this commotion had cured her nightmares, that would have been fine, but instead, they seem to be getting worse.

She could only endure it.

When she was exhausted both physically and mentally and on the verge of a mental breakdown, Pei Yuanling finally found time to come to her palace.

After paying her respects, Empress Wang disregarded all other etiquette and the need to maintain her imperial demeanor. With tears in her eyes, she complained to Pei Yuanling, "Your Majesty, is this Zhou Daopo a fraud? She's been in the palace for so many days, and my illness hasn't improved."

The sorceress knelt on the ground, her expression neither humble nor arrogant, showing no panic at all because the empress called her a fraud.

She slowly spoke: "Your Majesty, the evil spirits in this palace harbor deep resentment. It will take me a lot of energy to perform the ritual, and it will take some time to completely eradicate them."

The shaman remained calm and composed, muttering incantations, "If you want to get rid of it quickly, there is a way, but you'll need a strong remedy."

"How do we do it?" Pei Yuanling asked calmly.

"Go to the place where evil spirits perished, and send them into the cycle of reincarnation through blood!"

The sorceress looked up, a strange expression appearing on her deeply lined face, her murky eyes staring intently at the Empress.

"I have heard that the late Consort 'passed away' in a side hall of the Cold Palace. Your Majesty, would you dare to accompany me so that the late Consort's soul may rest in peace?"

"What is there that I wouldn't dare to do?"

Empress Wang composed herself, forcing herself to remain calm, and looked up at Pei Yuanling: "What does Your Majesty think?"