The Elegant Dancing Years By Huo Li (火狸) | BL

Chapter 32 | Gu Poison

"General An has something to say?" Qi Xutian asked calmly and raised his eyebrows in question.

"Dare to ask Your Majesty, this minister doesn't know where my little girl is? Did she annoy Your Majesty and Your Majesty demoted her?" General An straightened his back. He was not accustomed to talking like those literary ministers around him and asked straightforwardly while looking at the seated monarch. In the morning, he heard from Zhi Lan that Ruolan had gone to Xuantian Palace last night and all the people in Ningxi Pavilion were imprisoned early this morning. If there wasn't an accident with his daughter, how could His Majesty give such an order?

Qi Xutian chuckled, "You came to know quite quickly, yes, she really angered me. An Ruolan, as a concubine, ignored the palace's rules and broke into the Xuantian Palace at night..."

Upon hearing his words, the group officials suddenly came to a realisation. No wonder General An looked so anxious, it turned out that Consort An had offended His Majesty! The Second Prince was not seen this morning, it must be because of this matter; he was implicated because of his consort mother. Unfortunately, he wouldn't receive much favour in the future. His Majesty was strict when it came to punishment. As a concubine, even if she trespassed, it wasn't a terrible thing. Presumably, she just wanted some of His Majesty's favour.

Some generals who had a good relationship with General An planned to step forward and plead for An Ruolan, unexpectedly, they heard Qi Xutian unhurriedly continue speaking, "She trespassed into the Xuantian Palace and intended to poison and murder me. I ordered her to be imprisoned in the Underground Palace. Considering General An's face, I was already lenient."

As soon as these words came out, the people who wanted to intercede were startled, they immediately stepped back. It was the crime of attempting to murder His Majesty! This matter spelt a disaster for the entire family! General An still disturbed His Majesty so much, he did not want to live. They quickly pulled their sleeves and shook their heads secretly.

General An was also stunned, then furrowed his eyebrows and clenched his fists, it was hard for him to believe that his daughter had done such a stupid thing. It was not easy but there seemed to be no reason for His Majesty to lie to him unless Ruolan was used by others and unjustly blamed. Thus, he said out loud, "Your Majesty, my little girl is good-natured and she cares for Your Majesty. This minister thinks that she would not be so unwise. She must have been harmed by other people. This minister begs for justice, Your Majesty!"

When he thought of An Ruolan, Qi Xutian's face sank in displeasure and coldness radiated from him. The others suddenly felt chilled and dared not express anything, only General An still kept kneeling.

"General An seems to insist that she is innocent, but I want to tell you that I have seen it with my own eyes and heard it with my own ears. She plotted to misbehave and wanted to harm me. Does General An suspect that I am lying?"

The Emperor was furious and his thunderous words struck them. How could they resist the Emperor's prestige? They all knelt down on the ground hurriedly and hoped that General An would stop talking and inviting death. He might just drag all of them down with him.

General An bowed his head, he felt ashamed. Since His Majesty said so, then if Roulan really was guilty, he would be implicated. Their entire family would become her burial ground.

He felt helpless and suddenly, all of his previous conviction evaporated. When he looked up, His Majesty had already started leaving and ordered everyone to retreat. He couldn't help looking at him and sighed again, he felt uncertain.

This time, Consort An made such an enormous blunder, even the second prince fell out of favour. Most probably, General An's family would not be able to escape this disaster.

Qi Xutian left the group ministers behind in the main hall, heard that Ying Ran had rushed back overnight, and hurried over to the Xuantian Palace.

Within the palace, Qi Mingyue leaned against the headboard of the bed and looked as usual. Lazily, he flipped through the book in his hand and saw Qi Xutian hurriedly rushing in. Finding it strange, he asked, "Court dispersed?"

Qi Xutian didn't answer. Instead, he caressed his hair and said, "Ying Ran is back, she is good at the art of poisons. She should know a little about gu poison. After a while, I will make her come over and examine you, and... I really don't see you care about your own body. You should be resting, what are you doing reading a book? Even reading a book is laborious. Without me watching, you really aren't obedient."

He seized his book with one hand. Although Qi Xutian appeared calm, when examined closely, the worry in his eyes was apparent. Qi Mingyue did not say anything and left the ancient book alone.

When Ying Ran came in, she saw both His Majesty and His Highness' figures on the dragon bed.

Seeing her coming in, Qi Xutian asked her, "MingEr got poisoned. Do you have a way to remove it?"

Before, Ying Ran had only accepted the injunction that ordered her to return quickly and didn't know what was happening. Only now did she learn that His Royal Highness was poisoned with gu and couldn't help but panic. She immediately rushed over to the side of the bed and examined his eyes, inquired about the situation in detail, and then there was silence.

Seeing her contemplate, both Qi Xutian and Qi Mingyue didn't bother her and waited for her to arrive at a conclusion in silence.

Ying Ran's expression changed and she solemnly began speaking, "His Royal Highness has indeed been poisoned with gu."

Although the answer had been known for a long time, Qi Xutian and Qi Mingyue still felt disheartened. They heard her continue, "Although I am good at the art of poisons, gu poison is an unusual toxin. There is no antidote. And the kind of gu His Highness has in his body is even more troublesome."

"What do you mean? What trouble?" Qi Mingyue wanted to know what kind of gu was fed by An Ruolan.

"This gu is a mother-child gu, the connection between the mother and her child is from heart-to-heart. If the mother gu is disturbed, the child gu would riot and the host of child gu would feel heart-wrenching pain, the organs would be damaged, and the host would suffer endlessly until the mother gu becomes calm, only then would it be relieved. This gu is also called 'Lianxin'."