Chapter 134: Treatment: Don’t Stop Consuming the Pills
As she recalled the young ladies in the capital who’d been involved with Su Junqing, Lady Hongxiu was terrified. “I see,” she said. “Eldest Miss, please be careful.” She did not want Ye Jiuge to become one of them.
“Don’t worry. When I see Su Junqing again, I’ll consume some medicine in advance.”
Ye Jiuge shook the jade bottle in her hand. As a Spiritual Alchemist, she had an abundance of pills.
“That’s good.” Lady Hongxiu was very confident in Ye Jiuge’s alchemy.
“Let’s go. We shouldn’t make the Imperial Consort wait too long.”
When Ye Jiuge arrived at Jinxiu Palace with Lady Hongxiu, for a moment, she thought that they’d had come to the wrong place. The last time she’d come here, the Jinxiu Palace had still been obsolete and old-fashioned. Now, it was decorated with gold and jade and shone in glorious splendor. Beautiful flowers adorned the path, and there was even a newly planted peach grove. Since Imperial Consort Xi had been receiving unprecedented adoration, it was no wonder!
Elderly Lady Zhou was waiting outside the entrance. When she saw Ye Jiuge from a distance, she walked towards her and welcomed her with a smile.
“Eldest Miss, you are finally here. The Imperial Consort was just reminiscing about you.”
“Elderly Lady Zhou, long time no see.”
Ye Jiuge smiled at Elderly Lady Zhou and followed her into the majestic Jinxiu Palace. Inside, Imperial Consort Xi was dressed in a rusty red gown embroidered with golden chrysanthemums. Her hair was pinned up with a dangling ornament decorated with jade and gold and engraved with a phoenix spreading its wings. The sides of her updo were adorned with golden-phoenix pearls and golden-winged hairpins. She looked indescribably beautiful and strikingly imposing; the dignity of a pampered Imperial Consort was on full display.
“Jiuge, you are here,” Imperial Consort Xi smiled and said, standing up. Her harsh aura softened as she came closer and held Ye Jiuge’s hands. She was as friendly now as she’d been at the Dongling Prince Mansion.
“Imperial Consort, Eldest Miss brought you a present!” Lady Hongxiu placed the red wooden brocade box on the table.
“It’s good enough that you are here. Are you distancing yourself from me by bringing a present?” Imperial Consort Xi pouted playfully.
“It’s nothing expensive. I just made some nail polish and cosmetics,” Ye Jiuge said. Then, she opened the red wooden brocade box and took out the white porcelain bowl.
“Jiuge understands me well. I haven’t dared use the things provided by the palace, and I’ve been worrying about where I should buy them,” Imperial Consort Xi replied with some surprise.
“Imperial Consort, please see if they suit your taste.”
Ye Jiuge opened all the containers. Imperial Consort Xi’s skin was snow-white, and colors that were too vibrant would make her look vulgar. As such, Ye Jiuge had created a set of fresh, natural tones, arranged from pale to saturated, for Imperial Consort Xi to choose from.
“Eldest Miss is really considerate. I have never seen such beautiful nail polish before,” Elderly Lady Zhou praised sincerely.
“They’re gorgeous. I love them.”
After looking at them for a while, she chose the palest pink and asked Elderly Lady Zhou eagerly to apply it for her. In contrast with the nail polish’s color, her fingers looked even more fair and delicate, like green onions.
“Oh, Imperial Consort, I heard from Brother Bai that the Empress tried to poison you immediately after your return to the palace. What happened?” Ye Jiuge asked.
“Speaking about the incident helps me vent my anger. Not only did I humiliate that vicious woman, but I also cut off one of her right-hand men,” Imperial Consort Xi said.
Gleefully, she explained what happened. The day after Imperial Consort Xi’s return, the Empress had arranged a banquet to welcome her home. At the feast, Imperial Consort Xi had been happily eating when she’d suddenly felt nauseous. Upon careful examination, she’d realized that there was something wrong with the wine. At this point in her narration, Imperial Consort Xi flashed a mysterious smile and asked Ye Jiuge, “Do you know how I handled that cup of poisoned wine?”
Ye Jiuge thought for a moment and guessed, “You poured it away?”
Imperial Consort Xi shook her head. “No, guess again.”
Ye Jiuge could not guess correctly after a few more tries, so she finally conceded, “Imperial Consort, please don’t leave me in suspense.”
The Imperial Consort replied unhurriedly, “I gave the poisoned wine to someone else.”
“Someone else?” Ye Jiuge glanced at Elderly Lady Zhou in surprise. The Imperial Consort didn’t let her drink the wine on her behalf, did she?
“Speaking of it, I was frightened out of my wits that day.” Looking at Imperial Consort Xi, Elderly Lady Zhou sighed and said, “Imperial Consort, you are courageous for giving the Emperor poisoned wine.”
What? She gave the poisoned wine to the Emperor? Ye Jiuge stared at Imperial Consort Xi in shock. For a moment, she suspected that Imperial Consort Xi had gone mad.
“I am not crazy,” Imperial Consort Xi smiled and said. “I didn’t poison the wine. If anything had happened to the Emperor, the one who’d poisoned the wine would be in trouble.”
The palace maid who had poisoned the wine was so scared that she’d immediately smashed the wine jug when she saw Imperial Consort Xi pass her cup to the Emperor. After a few instigating words from Imperial Consort Xi, the Emperor had angrily interrogated everyone responsible for the banquet that night. Although they did not confess the Empress’ involvement, the highest-ranked court eunuch, who had been in charge of the Imperial Kitchen for many years, was beheaded. Imperial Consort Xi had taken this opportunity to fill the role with someone loyal to her. The Empress had almost fainted from anger.
“Imperial Consort, you are most impressive,” Ye Jiuge said in admiration. It really is true that a determined woman will go to any length.
“Speaking of impressive, I’m grateful for the Poison Detection Pill you gave me. If not for that, I wouldn’t have survived, let alone countered the Empress’s move.” Imperial Consort Xi looked at Ye Jiuge with gratitude.
“It’s all thanks to you that Elderly Lady Zhou and I escaped the Empress’s evil schemes.”
This was why Lady Hongxiu had been behaving so respectfully toward Ye Jiuge.
“You’re welcome. If you’ve been consuming the pills frequently, I will ask Brother Bai to send a few more bottles to the palace. You can let someone else consume one, but you must watch them swallow it. Do not let these medicinal pills fall into the Empress’s hands or there will be trouble,” Ye Jiuge warned prudently.
Poison Detection Pills contained living Poison Earthworm; anyone could see that once they opened one up.
“Don’t worry. I will not give the pills to anyone other than Elderly Lady Zhou and Lady Hongxiu,” replied Imperial Consort Xi, smiling faintly.
She needed this Poison Detection Pill to survive, and only Elderly Lady Zhou and Lady Hongxiu, who’d attended to her for most of her life, were worthy.
“Imperial Consort, I ran into Su Junqing at the palace entrance. What’s he doing here?” Ye Jiuge asked.
“It’s because of the Empress, that vicious woman. I suspect she has sought him out to harm us.” With the Poison Detection Pills in her possession, Imperial Consort Xi had not been paying much attention to the Empress lately.
“Imperial Consort, there is no harm in being cautious. Su Junqing’s Black Magic is pretty powerful, and even I have almost fallen into his trap,” Ye Jiuge said solemnly. “When you see him again, remember to consume some Mind-clearing Pills in advance.”
“Don’t worry. Su Junqing won’t be free to bounce around for long. The Emperor has set his heart on eradicating Sorcerers. Apart from the Justice Department, he also has secret guards investigating. Su Junqing’s true nature will be unmasked soon. As for the Empress and the Crown Prince, the Emperor has been suspicious of them since I mentioned it once in front of him,” the Imperial Consort explained with a smile.
She wanted nothing more than for the Empress to remain close with Su Junqing. Once Su Junqing’s identity as a Sorcerer was revealed, the Empress and the Crown Prince would meet a tragic end.