Chapter Thirty-One: As Serious as I Say It Is!

Poisoned? How could she have been poisoned?

As soon as Mu Xinqi heard the word "poisoned," she immediately stepped forward and hurled curses at Feng Xiaoli. "Feng Xiaoli, how vicious you are to poison my sister! Hand over the antidote at once, or I swear you won’t get away with this!"

With a single sentence, she laid the blame of poisoning squarely on Feng Xiaoli.

The Duke of Liao followed right behind Mu Xinqi, abandoning his usual dignified composure and roaring, “Feng Xiaoli, what on earth did Xinmi ever do to offend you, that you would poison her? Give us the antidote right now, or I’ll destroy you, even if it costs me my life!”

Oh? And how does he intend to destroy me?

Prince Chun, standing nearby, spoke up in Feng Xiaoli’s defense. “Duke of Liao, I’ll say this too: I absolutely trust Ah Li. If she says she didn’t do it, then she didn’t. By accusing her like this, aren’t you forcing a baseless crime upon her?”

“What do you mean baseless? Prince Chun, let’s be frank: only Feng Xiaoli and Xinmi were present. Are you still going to shield Feng Xiaoli at a time like this?” the Duke of Liao sneered coldly.

“Duke of Liao, whatever else, Ah Li is a lady of the inner chambers. You, a duke personally appointed by His Majesty, bandying accusations left and right—doesn’t that tarnish your reputation?” Prince Chun replied tactfully, though his words were a pointed rebuke of the duke’s lack of decorum.

“Enough! All of you, stop this bickering. You are both elders of the court; isn’t it disgraceful to quarrel here? Duke of Liao, His Highness is right: until we find the truth, we cannot simply lay blame on Ah Li. Prince Chun, you mustn’t favor her too much either. In any case, I assure you all, the truth will come to light. Eunuch Lian, anyone who continues to argue—throw them out!” the Qianqing Emperor declared.

With the Emperor’s pronouncement, neither Prince Chun nor the Duke of Liao dared say more and could only glare at each other in silence.

Throughout it all, Feng Xiaoli remained silent, standing calmly to the side, as if she were merely an uninvolved observer.

The Duke of Liao, now anxious, turned to the imperial physician. “Physician, what exactly has Xinmi been poisoned with? Is there a cure?”

“All things in this world have their counterbalances—water and fire are irreconcilable. If there’s poison, there must be an antidote. But I, humble as I am, have never encountered a poison like this and do not know what it is,” the physician replied.

The Duke of Liao struggled to restrain himself from berating the doctor as incompetent, but dared not be disrespectful in the Emperor’s presence.

The imperial physician immediately fell to his knees, begging for mercy, insisting he truly did not recognize the poison.

The Emperor seemed deaf to the physician’s pleas, merely gazing at him in silence.

At this moment, Feng Xiaoli stepped forward and performed a deep bow before the Emperor—deeper even than her earlier salute in the imperial garden. The Qianqing Emperor, puzzled, asked, “Ah Li, what is the meaning of this?”

“I have some modest knowledge of medicine. I can examine Miss Xinmi’s pulse, though I cannot promise the outcome. Would Your Majesty allow me to try?”

“You know medicine as well?” the Emperor asked in surprise.

Feng Xiaoli nodded. The Emperor studied her for a moment, then nodded. “Go ahead.”

The Duke of Liao snorted in disdain.

Feng Xiaoli ignored him. It was only natural he would assume she was the poisoner—once a person grows to hate you, nothing you do is right in their eyes. That was why, while the Duke had been maligning her, she simply let the words go in one ear and out the other; plugging her ears would be useless, the only solution was to have a strong mind. Fortunately, she was precisely such a person. After five years in Yue Wanqing’s household, she had long since developed an impenetrable resilience.

Feng Xiaoli placed her hand on Mu Xinmi’s wrist, though her mind was elsewhere. For a moment, Zilin’s face flashed in her memory, and she recalled his recent words, her heart filling with regret. Truly, she regretted it; she should have walked away, regardless of whether Mu Xinmi had drowned or not. She should have gone after the three black-clad assailants instead of meddling in thankless affairs. Especially after hearing Mu Xinmi’s last words, she could barely restrain the urge to strike the hypocrisy from her face. With those words, Mu Xinmi had all but told everyone what a “good deed” she’d done. How should I respond to you, Mu Xinmi? Should I take this opportunity to poison you again and fulfill your father’s wish?

She pressed down the dark urge to finish Mu Xinmi off, and with a grave expression, walked over to the Emperor.

“Well?” the Emperor asked.

“As the physician said, Miss Xinmi has indeed been poisoned by a rare toxin called ‘Ruinous Beauty.’ True to its name, it destroys one’s appearance—the face begins to fester, boils break out continually, and soon enough, the entire visage is covered. Once the poison seeps into the bloodstream, even an antidote would be useless, and she will have to live out her days disfigured.” Feng Xiaoli deliberately emphasized the severity, startling the Duke of Liao half out of his wits.

Seeing the duke’s expression, Feng Xiaoli was quite satisfied.

Watching Feng Xiaoli’s composed demeanor, Yue Wanqing could not help but smile. She had been terribly worried that Feng Xiaoli would be dragged down by Mu Xinmi, but seeing her so calm and witty under pressure proved that things were not as grave as they seemed.

“But—” the Duke of Liao pressed further.

“Alas, a peerless beauty ruined! Who could be so cruel as to destroy a young woman’s face? Whoever did this deserves ten thousand deaths. Don’t you agree, Duke of Liao? Poor Miss Mu Xinmi will have to live with this for the rest of her days. I do wonder how she’ll react when she awakens and sees herself,” Feng Xiaoli said.

“It was you—of course it was you! You’re the one who ruined Xinmi! Why? Just because you dislike her, you would destroy her face! Feng Xiaoli, you’re heartless! I’ll kill you!” raged the Duke of Liao, lunging at Feng Xiaoli in mad fury. She sidestepped him with ease.

“Duke of Liao, out of respect for your fatherly love, I won’t hold it against you for attempting violence before the Emperor. But let me repeat: I had nothing to do with this. If you don’t believe me, wait until Miss Xinmi wakes and the truth will come out. Of course, I can’t guarantee she’ll explain herself as soon as she wakes; she might well hang herself with a length of white silk instead. I think, Duke, rather than seeking retribution from me, you’d do better to consider how you’re going to comfort your daughter when she comes to. For someone like her, beauty is more precious than life itself—what difference now between ruining her face and ruining her whole future?”

—Author’s note—

The following chapters will be more tightly plotted!