“What? You’re saying Liu Cuier was harmed by someone? This…” Wan Qing was equally shocked upon hearing the news. She clearly remembered that she had only used acupuncture to temporarily seal Liu Cuier’s meridians and hadn’t done anything further. Considering the intentions of Princess Qingyang and those others, she panicked and immediately ran toward the courtyard where they had been.
As she left, Qian Yuying and the other women, including Prince Ning Song Ziqian and Wang Wenting, followed suit. Even Song Meiling, supported by the two maids Honglian, weakly trailed behind.
“This…” Wan Qing arrived first. As soon as she reached the door, she saw Liu Cuier with blood—black blood—trickling from her mouth, clearly poisoned. Nearby, the maids were still unconscious.
Recalling the scene when she left, she remembered that Mu Wanxia hadn’t departed with her. Though shocked, she was more puzzled: why would her elder sister want to kill Liu Cuier? If she wanted to frame Wan Qing, she could have simply targeted a maid. Yet she chose Liu Cuier.
Despite her confusion, Wan Qing reached out to check Liu Cuier’s pulse. Detecting a faint heartbeat, she wasted no time and immediately inserted a silver needle into a major acupoint near Liu Cuier’s heart to slow the spread of the poison.
She also fed Liu Cuier a “Hundred Toxins Pill,” a precious antidote for herself. Given the gravity of the situation and her involvement, she administered it without hesitation. Just as she set Liu Cuier down and prepared to fully detoxify her, a figure rushed forward.
“Get away! Don’t touch my daughter! Cuier, my poor Cuier…” Minister Liu staggered over, ignoring Wan Qing. He shoved her aside and cradled his beloved daughter in his arms, weeping uncontrollably.
“This…”
Pushed away and confronted by the wailing, Wan Qing was initially furious at the interruption to her rescue efforts. But as she stood up, she saw Princess Wu Qingyang and her entourage approaching.
“Grandmother, it was her! She poisoned Cuier! I saw her use poison with my own eyes! She even threatened me earlier, saying she’d poison me too if I ever crossed her again…”
Princess Wu Qingyang, spotting Wan Qing, was puzzled by her presence but recalled her earlier warnings and threats.
“This…” Qian Yuying and the others, including Prince Ning, were startled by the scene.
Recalling the cold fury on Wan Qing’s face when she left—and the fact that they hadn’t questioned her about it—they now turned uncertainly to Qingfeng and Honglian.
“It wasn’t Miss Mu…”
“Not my lady! My lady did warn her, but I swear it wasn’t her. With my lady’s skills, if she wanted to kill someone, would she be this obvious?”
Honglian, aware of Wan Qing’s exceptional medical and poison skills, shook her head confidently.
“Regardless, let’s assess the situation first. If the Princess truly acts against Qing’er, we’ll intervene.” Though reassured by their words, Prince Ning couldn’t shake the memory of his sister’s anger when she left. While he trusted she wasn’t reckless, the current situation demanded caution. He sighed heavily, watching intently but calmly addressing those around him.
“Is this true? Mu Wanqing, do you confess?”
After hearing her granddaughter and the Zhong sisters’ accounts, the Princess Dowager didn’t understand why her granddaughter treated this woman differently—even inviting her to drink. Yet the woman stood there, cold and composed, as if detached from it all.
Though the girl struck her as oddly familiar, the sight of Minister Liu’s heartbroken sobs and his wife fainting overshadowed that thought. The girl neither defended nor denied, merely watching everyone with icy detachment.
Her demeanor—so unrepentant, even defiant—deepened the Princess Dowager’s frown. She shot a reproachful glance at Mu Zhenfeng, who had arrived with the news, then addressed Wan Qing with stern authority.
“She locked me in a room with her people, intending harm. I merely defended myself and knocked her unconscious. If that’s a crime, I admit it. But poisoning Miss Liu was not my doing…”
Facing the Princess Dowager’s narrowed, furious gaze, Wan Qing sighed inwardly but turned and bowed respectfully.
“Nonsense! If not you, then who? You admitted to knocking her out, and now you lie! Forgive my lateness, Your Majesty…”
A sharp, cold voice cut through the crowd as Mu Wanxia pushed forward. She curtsied gracefully to the Princess Dowager and Princess Wu Qingyang, then pointed accusingly at Wan Qing.
“Oh? May I ask, Eldest Sister Mu, did you witness me poisoning her with your own eyes?”
Noting Mu Wanxia’s delayed arrival and her confident, firsthand account of the poisoning, Wan Qing smiled faintly and nodded knowingly.
“Indeed, I saw you poison Miss Liu myself. The details are likely unclear to everyone. Princess Qingyang kindly invited her to drink, but she grew dizzy after just a few cups. The Princess then had Miss Liu and two maids escort her here to rest. Coincidentally, Miss Liu and your sister had a prior misunderstanding, and they argued. The only people present were her, Miss Liu, and these two maids. Ask them if you doubt me!”
Mu Wanxia had been anxious about being implicated in Liu Cuier’s poisoning. But stumbling upon this scene, she seized the opportunity to pin everything on Wan Qing.
“These maids belong to Miss Liu, so their testimony is questionable. But, Eldest Sister, I have a doubt: after I knocked Liu Cuier unconscious and left, I encountered you. We fought fiercely, and I narrowly bested you before leaving. At that time, Miss Liu was still unconscious by the room’s screen. Now she’s poisoned at the door. What did you do after I left?”
Though furious at the accusation, Wan Qing remained composed, laying out the facts clearly.
Her words prompted Qian Yuying and the others to step forward, with Song Meiling weakly corroborating their account. They confirmed the sisters’ altercation but were clueless about who harmed Liu Cuier.
“This…” The situation and the women’s testimony drew a reproachful look from the Princess Dowager toward her granddaughter. Though unsure of the details, she sensed her granddaughter’s involvement. But with so many present, she couldn’t interrogate her openly. Instead, she surveyed the scene, noticing signs of a struggle—withered plants that couldn’t have died naturally.
Princess Qingyang’s words further alerted everyone.
“These flowers—this is the effect of poison. Miss Mu once threatened me with the same method…”
“Summon the imperial physician and Magistrate Xu of the Capital Office. Have them investigate this thoroughly,” the Princess Dowager commanded, her gaze shifting suspiciously between the two sisters.
With the other women’s testimonies, the blame for Liu Cuier’s poisoning fell on one of the sisters. The Princess Dowager immediately ordered officials to examine the scene.
Tai Sui Yellow Amulet Paper FuLu Taoist Love Talisman Traditional Chinese Spiritual Charm Attracting Love Protecting Marriage