Chapter 1114 - 1116: Drowning, The Clues Are Cut Off_1
Fuyun Court? Everyone was somewhat astonished. Fuyun Court wasn’t just any place; it was where Consort Yue Ding Wen originally resided. Previously, there had been issues with her fetus, and it was only after that the Empress Dowager had allowed her to stay in Cining Palace for her pregnancy.
Everyone had assumed that the suspicion would fall on other consorts, yet unexpectedly, it was directed towards Fuyun Court.
"Go, bring Dongqing here and conduct a thorough search of her residence to see if anything is amiss," the Empress Dowager said with a stern face.
Dongqing was not one of Consort Yue’s close palace maids. Hence, when Consort Yue moved to Cining Palace, Dongqing had not accompanied her and stayed behind in Fuyun Court—likely now swayed by another mistress.
At this moment, three Imperial Doctors from the Imperial Medical Bureau arrived, two of whom had white hair and beards, and walked with a trembling gait. The last one was none other than Jiu Sheng, who always called Bai Ruozhu "Teacher."
After paying respects to the Empress Dowager and others, Jiu Sheng, upon seeing Bai Ruozhu, was about to bow but was stopped by her gaze. At this time, the Lady of Dingguo held biases against her, and if Jiu Sheng appeared too familiar with her, he might also become a target of the Lady of Dingguo’s hostility.
The Lady of Dingguo preempted the conversation, instructing the three men to check if the little palace maid’s handkerchief was problematic.
After inspecting and discussing amongst themselves for a long while, the eldest Imperial Doctor stated, "To report to the Empress Dowager, the Empress, and the Lady of Dingguo, there is indeed drug powder on this handkerchief, with several medicinal materials that could cause abdominal pain in pregnant women, and even the risk of miscarriage."
Upon hearing this, the Lady of Dingguo deflated at once, but she quickly became as agitated as if she’d been injected with chicken blood, and cried out loudly, "Who would dare to be so bold as to harm the imperial heir? I implore the Empress Dowager and the Empress to seek justice for Wenwen!"
Consort Yue was indeed the granddaughter of the Lady of Dingguo.
Soon after, the people sent to search for Dongqing returned, reporting that she had left Fuyun Court two hours ago, claiming she was going to Cining Palace to visit Consort Yue, and then disappeared without a trace.
The Empress Dowager’s brows knitted together; she already had a premonition that this lead might come to nothing.
"Immediately order the Royal Guards to search within the palace, and find this person at all costs!" the Empress Dowager commanded with a stern face.
"We must see a person if alive, and a body if dead," Bai Ruozhu added.
This time the Lady of Dingguo shot a glance at Bai Ruozhu but didn’t argue; her gaze, however, still harbored suspicion and hostility, as though she still pondered whether the poison could have come from Bai Ruozhu.
No one uttered a word in the hall; the three Imperial Doctors dared not leave and wisely did not bring up examining Consort Yue’s pulse. They could not cure poison, so why rush forward, only to find death?
The silence in the hall turned eerily strange, prompting the Empress to clear her throat and say, "I wonder if the incident involving Consort Yue from before has been investigated?"
Normally, if a consort in the palace experiencing pregnancy complications encountered trouble, the Empress would bear some responsibility and should have thoroughly investigated the matter. But the Emperor had declared he would handle it himself, and so the Empress had to step back.
The Empress Dowager shook her head, "Not yet, the Emperor has been busy recently."
Upon hearing this, Bai Ruozhu felt somewhat incredulous. She couldn’t believe the Emperor had no leads at all—it was highly possible that he had already uncovered something but couldn’t act rashly due to it involving court affairs.
Deep as the sea is the entrance to the Palace Gate; surviving was no easy feat.
Just then, hurried footsteps were heard from outside the hall. A Royal Guard came in to report, "To inform the Empress Dowager, Dongqing has committed suicide by drowning herself in the lake."
The Empress Dowager’s eyes went round in shock, and sitting at her side, the Lady of Dingguo, consumed by anger, slammed down her teacup. Could it be that the lead was severed just like that?
"Where is the body?" the Dowager Empress thought of Bai Ruozhu’s words, "In death, one must see the body."
"The body has already been retrieved from the water, but fearing it might bring bad luck, it is currently placed outside Cining Palace," the Royal Guard replied.
Bai Ruozhu stood up, "Your Highness, please allow your servant to examine it."
The Duchess of Ding looked towards the three Imperial Doctors and said, "You three should also follow and examine the body. Do not miss any clues!"
Jiu Sheng and the other two dared not refuse, but they all felt rather gloomy in their hearts. They were not coroners; wouldn’t it be more appropriate for coroners, who were more skilled at investigating dead bodies, to examine the clues?
Bai Ruozhu walked briskly outside. As time passed since the body’s death, its condition could change, diminishing the clues.
Everyone was startled upon seeing Dongqing’s body; even the Empress covered her mouth and nose, and retched once. Fortunately, Bai Ruozhu had studied medicine in her previous life and had seen bodies preserved in Formalin, so she only felt a bit queasy, but not overly horrified.
She approached for an inspection and used a silver needle to pierce a few areas of Dongqing’s body. Then she stood up, wiped her hands clean with a handkerchief, and said, "The deceased did not die from drowning. She was poisoned before falling into the water. It’s true that she ingested some water in her stomach, but the actual cause of death was poison."
Jiu Sheng admired Bai Ruozhu even more now. He also went up for an examination, and following what Bai Ruozhu had taught him, he indeed found that there was something off with the body, just as Bai Ruozhu had described.
With the affirmation from an Imperial Doctor, no one doubted Bai Ruozhu’s judgment anymore. The only question remaining was who killed Dongqing?
"Empress, I leave this matter for you to investigate. I will be watching over Consort Yue these days," the Dowager Empress declared.
The Empress quickly accepted the order and once again begged forgiveness for her failure to govern the Harem properly, her attitude was extremely humble.
When everyone had dispersed, the Duchess of Ding let out a sigh and said to the Dowager Empress, "That Empress of yours is no easy matter. If you had listened to me back then and made Wenwen the Empress, none of this would have happened."
The Dowager Empress rubbed her temples with a pained expression and said impatiently, "Mother, how many times have I told you? The Empress was personally chosen by the Emperor, and it was necessary. The Ding Family has already produced one Dowager Empress, how could it also provide an Empress? Moreover, the Ding Family has no military power or significant posts; they would hardly be able to maintain their position before being squeezed out by others."
She left unsaid that if Ding Wen had been the Empress instead of Consort Yue, she probably would not have survived until now.
The Duchess of Ding’s eyes went wide with incredulity, "How dare they! You are the Dowager Empress, the most revered woman in Danliang Country. If only you weren’t so tender-hearted, how would the Ding Family have fallen to this state?"
The Dowager Empress was so angered that her lips trembled, "The Ding Family sent no one to the army, the younger generations have no accomplishments in the Imperial Examination, and no one in the family holds an important office in the court. How could they not decline? Mother, do not count on me anymore; once I married into the Royal Family, I ceased being a member of the Ding Family."
"You..." The Duchess of Ding, still wanting to say more out of anger, was cut off as the Dowager Empress called a palace maid to show her guest out.
Bai Ruozhu sent word to her family, informing them that she would stay in the palace for the next three days. That night, she dozed off for a while on the soft lounge in Consort Yue’s room since Consort Yue’s condition could not afford the slightest oversight.
The next day, Bai Ruozhu continued to administer medicine to Consort Yue, and her pulse had stabilized significantly. Then, the Emperor sent a eunuch to summon Bai Ruozhu to the Imperial Study Room.
Bai Ruozhu quickly instructed those present to take good care of Consort Yue and followed the eunuch’s summons to the Imperial Study Room.
Even before entering the Imperial Study Room, Bai Ruozhu could see a dark figure from the open Main Gate, standing tall beside the desk, craning his neck to look outside. A smile unconsciously crossed her lips...