"Don't worry. Even the imperial physicians in the palace won't be able to detect anything after he takes this medicine." Wen Chengen deliberately lowered his voice. "Have you given the medicine I gave you to Xie Yunxiao?"
Hearing this, Wen Qianyue couldn't help frowning.
"Every time he comes to the courtyard, I secretly add it to the incense. I've put the rest in a sachet. He thinks it was embroidered by me and wears it every day. There's definitely no problem," Meng Ruxue said confidently.
"That's good..."
Listening to their secret conversation, Wen Qianyue's heart sank.
Judging from the situation, the medicine Xie Yunxiao was given must not be an ordinary poison. It should be the same as what was on Meng Ruxue, undetectable by ordinary doctors.
She had to find an opportunity to feel Xie Yunxiao's pulse.
Suddenly, she thought of that unlucky guy in the dungeon.
She had forgotten about him.
Since he could diagnose that Meng Ruxue's illness was fake, he should be able to find out what kind of poison her son had been poisoned with.
Wen Qianyue squinted her eyes slightly and left quietly.
In her memory, although the Prince of Ling was a bit pretentious, he was extremely timid.
Logically speaking, her son was sent by the emperor to this Lingzhou, but he had no real power in his hands. He couldn't shake the position and interests of the Prince of Ling at all, nor could he hinder the path of the Prince of Ling's heir. So why would they set up such a big trap?
Or did the heir of the Prince of Ling have an old feud with her son?
Wen Qianyue walked absent - mindedly and, coincidentally, bumped into Xie Yunxiao.
"Why are you here? Didn't I tell you to follow Ruxue?"
At this moment, Wen Qianyue's expression when looking at her son was rather complicated.
She wanted to tell him everything she knew, but judging from her son's current attitude towards Meng Ruxue, he would definitely not believe her.
Although her son didn't say anything, Wen Qianyue knew in her heart that Xie Yunxiao still felt quite strange towards her, the mother who had disappeared for more than a decade.
She didn't answer Xie Yunxiao's question. Instead, she asked, "What's your relationship with that brat Wen Chengen?"
"Wen Chengen?" Xie Yunxiao narrowed his eyes slightly. His long and narrow eyes seemed to be covered with a layer of thin ice. His gaze drifted lightly on the ground, straightforward and cold, as if he had thought of something disgusting and dirty.
The corner of his mouth twitched slightly, so slightly that it was almost imperceptible. Obviously, he was trying his best to cover up his disgust. "Not so good. Did you meet him?"
A faint smile curled Wen Qianyue's lips. "Yes, and I saw something very interesting."
Xie Yunxiao clearly didn't want to mention this person at all. He glanced around and changed the topic. "Where's Ruxue?"
Wen Qianyue paused for a moment. "I just met some old friends. She should be in the back mountain now."
After a while, she added, "Don't you go and check on her?"
Xie Yunxiao waved his hand. "Ruxue doesn't like me interfering in the affairs among the girls. I won't go." Then he walked to her side. "But you, your identity is special now. It's better for me to keep an eye on you."
Wen Qianyue: "..." Son, don't blame me for not warning you.
Most of the banquets in the capital were held in the courtyard. Accompanied by falling flowers and flowing water, the young masters and ladies of the noble families would recite poems and show their elegance. The weather in Lingzhou was extremely cold, and it was impossible to enjoy the scenery outdoors. To celebrate the birth of his youngest son, the Prince of Ling spent a lot of money to collect many precious flower seeds and plant them in the courtyard.
Actually, Wen Qianyue was a bit afraid of the cold. She had lived in the capital since childhood and rarely experienced such cold weather. She couldn't help pulling her cloak closer to her body and put on the veil she had taken when she went out today.
She would inevitably meet the Prince of Ling later. For now, she had no intention of showing her face.
"Hey? Isn't this the Young Prince of Huainan? Who's this beauty beside him? Why is she so unfamiliar?"
"Who knows? Our young prince has the most unpredictable temper. The noble ladies in Lingzhou can't catch his eye. He only loves the wild charm." Then he laughed heartily, his eyes full of mischief as he looked at Xie Yunxiao maliciously.
As soon as Wen Qianyue stepped into the banquet hall courtyard, she bumped into two young men in gorgeous clothes. They stopped their way with smiles.
One of them, a bit taller, was Li Nankang, the son of General Li in Lingzhou. He was extremely idle and good - for - nothing.
"I think this one has a better figure than that Miss Meng. It's a pity..." He stroked his chin. Although he was talking to Xie Yunxiao, his eyes were glued to Wen Qianyue, sizing her up boldly from head to toe.
"Li Nankang, are you looking for death?" Xie Yunxiao was furious.
At the age of sixteen or seventeen, this young man was like a young lion at the moment. Although his body had not fully grown, he already had a straight and tall silhouette. His shoulders trembled slightly with anger, burning with a raging fire, about to explode at any moment.
"Don't be angry, Young Prince. We're just joking," another young man said with a smile. He looked unfamiliar.
Li Nankang spat hard. "Bah, what a joke? This unlucky star has brought bad luck to his parents. I'm afraid standing with him will affect my fortune."
The harsh words came out of the young man's mouth. Even his malice was so innocent, stabbing deeply into people's hearts.
There was no emotion in Wen Qianyue's eyes. She just looked at the two of them quietly, as if they were just two dead objects.
" ... So what if he's a prince? He's just a nuisance sent here by the emperor because he's an eyesore..." Li Nankang didn't care at all.
"Born but uncared for by mother!"
Xie Yunxiao clenched his fists tightly. His knuckles turned white from the force.
Wen Qianyue saw that Xie Yunxiao's emotions were out of control. His eyes were red and scary, like a wild beast about to go crazy at any moment, ready to tear people to pieces.
The guests around heard the commotion and all looked over. They were already used to this kind of scene.
Xie Yunxiao was just a nominal prince. His parents had no real power. How dared he provoke the son of General Li?
Just when everyone thought the Young Prince of Huainan was going to go crazy again, a seemingly delicate girl beside him suddenly stepped in front of him.
Everyone was looking forward to watching the show of the prince going crazy, but unexpectedly, it was interrupted.
However, it seemed that this girl was going to be in trouble.
Sure enough, Xie Yunxiao's face became even more gloomy, but the red in his eyes gradually faded, replaced by a bit of confusion.
Wen Qianyue carefully observed the change in his expression and let out a sigh of relief.
The young man's eyebrows carried a sharpness unique to his age. He stubbornly looked at the person blocking him, trying hard to hold back his emotions, but they were like boiling magma that couldn't be suppressed.
Suddenly, the copper - sparrow lamp in the corner of the banquet hall popped a lamp wick. Wen Qianyue gently pushed her son to the side, then suddenly stepped forward, grabbed the taller one, and swept his legs, pinning him to the ground.
The dust on the ground was stirred up. Such a sudden change made the onlookers gasp in surprise.
Wen Qianyue pressed the heel of her boot into the man's forehead, listening to the faint sound of bones rubbing against the bluestone slab.
"Does it hurt?" She tilted her head and smiled, then suddenly pulled out her hairpin and stabbed it into the palm of the man on the ground. The gushing blood splashed on her skirt.
Xie Yunxiao swallowed hard, looking at the bloodstains on his mother's skirt.
"Ah!!!" Li Nankang suddenly let out a shrill scream. His struggling body made a dull sound on the ground, and his voice was intermittent. "How dare you... Do you know who I am?..."
"Oh?" Wen Qianyue raised her eyes, pulled out the hairpin, and stabbed it in again. Her movements were so fierce that everyone felt a chill down their spines.
The fresh blood was still warm, slowly flowing out, giving off heat. In the cold weather, the man on the ground was sweating profusely, his eyes full of fear, but he couldn't struggle free at all.
The glazed lamp hanging under the carved golden - silk nanmu beam in the banquet hall swayed, shining on the gilded silk - wrapped bracelet on her wrist, giving off a cold and glinting light.
"Born but uncared for by mother?" Wen Qianyue chewed on these words carefully.