Zhao Weisheng glanced anxiously up at the sky. Dawn was only a few hours away, and it would be very difficult to keep the events of the night a secret once the sun was up. Either way, he would have to return to his own chambers before his usual rising time, or there would be an outcry in the palace.
He looked across to where Xiao Yu was sitting on the edge of his patient's bed. The physician had taken the revelation about Ming Yue's abilities rather well, but then the man had never been prone to outbursts of emotion. He and Luo Jian were very similar in that respect.
His attention was diverted elsewhere when Eunuch Wang came into view. His walk was purposeful, and from the look on his face, it was not good news. Knowing the prince well, when he came to a halt the chief eunuch did not mince his words.
"The harem maidservant is dead, Your Highness. It looks like suicide."
Weisheng looked up sharply.
"Looks like, you say?"
"A knife to the stomach. Her hand was gripping the hilt when the guards found her body."
Weisheng knew there was more that the man was not saying.
"But?"
"Where did she get the knife?" Eunuch Wang began. "Also, I have seen suicides in prison before. They are rarely committed by women and, when they are, the preference is poison."
Weisheng nodded slowly. It made sense. And from what Ming Yue had told him before, this Bu Hong was a proud, arrogant woman. He did not think she would willingly take her own life in that manner, leaving a brutal mark of violence on her body.
"I agree. Also, there was no way whoever was behind this would have left her alive, captured or not. Question the prison guards. Someone must know something." Then a thought suddenly occurred to him.
"Wait! She had only been there for a few hours. Whoever she was working for must be very well-connected. If we start questioning people now, it's bound to get back to them and it could spook them into crawling back under their rock. We need to bring them out into the open instead."
Weisheng looked at his chief eunuch for a long moment, but the man gave nothing away, waiting for the prince to come to his own conclusion.
"Eunuch Wang, as soon as propriety allows have someone you trust fetch Minster Shen. I need to see him before morning court. It's time we went on the offensive."
Eunuch Wang gave a shallow bow and turned to leave, almost bumping into Luo Jian and Lin Yang in the process. Suddenly, everyone's attention was fixed on the returning pair.
"We have it," said the young herbalist. Weisheng was grateful that she had foregone the formalities. Walking across to her brother, she reached into her bag and brought out a handful of leaves.
"Crush these in with the rest of the mixture. I will measure out some water to dilute the paste. Then we need to heat it up slowly. I originally said two hours. That still holds, but we need to watch it carefully."
The brother and sister immediately went about their respective tasks, their years of working together evident from the way they seamlessly moved around each other.
Looking across at Xiao Yu, Weisheng noticed his jaw twitch. He moved over to stand beside him, motioning for Luo Jian to do the same.
"What is it?" he asked in a low voice, fearing the worst.
"I'm not sure we have that long. Moving her here slowed the spread of the poison. Otherwise she would have been dead hours ago. But now we're approaching the point when the damage it's causing to her internal organs will be irreversible. We have to do something else."
Weisheng forced himself to ignore the panic rising inside of him, and instead focussed on the problem at hand. They couldn't speed up preparation of the antidote. That left them with one option. They had to do more to slow the effect of the toxin. He looked down at Ming Yue, then out at the trees, just visible in the fading moonlight.
"We need to be closer," he said. He looked at Luo Jian, who gave him a reassuring nod. Then he shot a glance towards Xiao Yu.
"Trust me."
The physician raised an eyebrow.
"At this point, do I have any other choice?"
Weisheng did not bother with a response, and Xiao Yu did not expect one. Instead, the prince reached down and gathered Ming Yue into his arms. As he walked out from under the canopy, Lin Yang went to stop him, but her brother put a restraining hand on her arm when he caught Xiao Yu's eye.
"Don't worry, Sister," he said. "Let them do what they must."
Lin Yang's trust in her brother was absolute. Immediately, her objections died, and she turned around and went back to watching the antidote as it simmered gently over the flames.
Weisheng walked until he found the thickest part of the forest. Weaving between the trees and dense foliage, he found a small space just large enough for a few people to gather. Laying Ming Yue down on the grass, he looked back at Xiao Yu, who was watching him steadily. The prince took a deep breath and took hold of the unconscious woman's arm. Raising it, he pressed her palm against the nearest tree, and covered her hand with his own. Then, he closed his eyes, and willed with all his might.
At first, nothing happened. Then, he heard the rustling of leaves. In the beginning it had been faint, just a slight murmur in the background as numerous branches moved gently with the breeze. Now, the sound was growing louder and louder, until it reached the level of a dull roar. The two men resisted the urge to cover their ears, and instead kept their attention focussed on the young woman lying on the ground.
The air suddenly felt thick, and Weisheng felt the bark of the tree underneath his and Ming Yue's palms vibrate. Instinctively, he pressed his other hand to the ground and felt the same deep hum coming from the earth below. At any other time, he would have been fearful. But now, he only felt an overwhelming sense of relief that something so powerful and all-encompassing was responding to their need. He wondered if this was how Ming Yue felt every time she used her powers.
He looked behind him. To the man's credit, Xiao Yu was still there. He motioned him forward.
"Xiao Yu. Please check on her again."
The physician advanced without hesitation, but as he reached out to place his fingers on Ming Yue's wrist, a vine snaked up from the ground and curled around his arm. He glanced up at Weisheng in alarm.
"Don't worry. It's just being protective. Try to relax. It will sense your intention and let go in a second."
Doctor Xiao gulped, and let his arm go limp. As Weisheng had predicted, the plant withdrew in short order, and the physician reached again for Ming Yue's wrist, this time a little more hesitantly.
After a few moments, he breathed a sigh of relief.
"Whatever is happening, it's working. She isn't showing any improvement, but her condition isn't worsening either. If things carry on like this, she may just be able to hang on."
Weisheng tightened his grip on Ming Yue's cold hand. There was no 'may' about it. She had to survive.
By now, the darkness had given way to the pale dawn light, and the surfaces of the forest were growing damp with dew. Weisheng took off his cloak and arranged it underneath the unconscious woman. He had just finished his ministrations when he heard Eunuch Wang's voice behind him.
"Your Highness. Minister Shen is here. He is waiting in your study. I did not think it was wise to bring him here."
Weisheng looked down at Ming Yue, torn between his need to close in on the threat to their safety and his desire to stay close by the woman he loved. Xiao Yu helped him make the decision.
"You should go. It will be at least another hour before the antidote is ready in any event. I will stay here. If anything changes, I will send Luo Jian to you immediately, but for the moment, her condition is stable."
Weisheng nodded and quickly rose to his feet. The sooner he could take care of matters with Minister Shen, the sooner he could return to his place at Ming Yue's side. He took one last look at her, then turned and walked out of the small clearing, with Eunuch Wang following behind.
When he entered his study a few minutes later, he saw Minister Shen standing patiently in the middle of the room. In the short time it had taken Weisheng to make his way from the forest back to his mansion, he had decided that he had no choice other than to trust the man completely.
He had always firmly believed that the minister had nothing to do with the attempts on his life and the whispers against Jin Kingdom, but he had still chosen to exercise caution. Now, however, he had no such luxury, and to his great frustration it was a situation of his own making.
Over the last few months, he had been so caught up in his own romantic problems that he had not been as proactive as he should in investigating the threat in the palace. He could not blame Ming Yue. It was she who had reminded him on several occasions that they needed to track down their enemies, but now she was on the verge of paying for his apathy with her life.
He rubbed his hand over his face. If he was truthful with himself, it was Ming Yue who had paid the price every time. With his brother, at the summit, and now here, within the walls of his mansion. He swore to himself that he would keep her safe, but he had failed, and failed miserably no less.
Throughout the prince's musings, Minister Shen said nothing. He did not even move until Weisheng acknowledged his presence, and then it was to walk across to the low table near the back of the room and take the offered seat.
Finally gathering himself together, the prince did not beat around the bush.
"Someone tried to assassinate me tonight. My secretary was poisoned instead and is currently fighting for her life. Even the palace is not safe anymore. This has to stop. Let me tell you what the current situation is, then you and I will make a plan."
Weisheng kept his explanation brief, but concise, and Minister Shen watched him carefully as he spoke. Despite his calm manner and almost business-like tone, there were moments when the prince's façade seemed close to crumbling. Whoever was behind this had clearly pushed him to his limits, and if the minister was a betting man, he would wager that this person was about to pay a heavy price.
When his turn came to speak, Minister Shen leaned forward to emphasize the importance of what he was about to say.
"The death of the maidservant in prison is significant."
Weisheng also leaned forward, mirroring the other man's actions in his eagerness to hear his opinion.
"Eunuch Wang says that he took every precaution to ensure that no one else knew of the woman's imprisonment or why she was there. I have known your chief eunuch for many years. He would not act complacently over such an important matter. This means that whoever is behind this has a direct line into the palace jail and is senior enough that the guards would not dream of keeping anything from him out of fear for their own lives."
Weisheng nodded. The minister's words made sense. He thought for a moment.
"Other than the royal family, I can think of only two people who would wield that kind of authority over the operations of the jail. Minister Su and General Tan. They have responsibility for the Ministries of Justice and Defence respectively. They are the only two logical candidates."
Minister Shen did not contradict the prince. He had come to the same conclusion himself, and was keen to offer his assistance.
"I will tell my men to watch them both more closely. I know that a number of ministers meet up outside of the palace, but this is not unusual. Gathering together for a meal or to discuss politics informally is no crime, particularly when several of them are connected in some way by marriage. We need more. At first, I did not want to risk alerting them to our suspicions, but now we have no choice."
Weisheng stood.
"Agreed. Do the same with Minister Guo. The sheer audacity of their plans tells me that he is somehow involved. Of all of them, he holds the most power. I cannot believe that another minister would dare to take such a bold step without his backing."
The prince was about to let the man get back to his morning duties when a thought suddenly occurred to him.
"There is at least one more traitor. None of the three ministers we have just mentioned was at the summit with Jin. I refuse to believe that one of their group was not present for the failed assassination attempt then. I recall Luo Jian and I discussing it at the time."
"That means we need to add Ministers Deng and Xie to the list," he resolved.
"And keep this between us for now. I need some time to think." The prince smiled grimly at Minister Shen.
The net was tightening, but still, all they had were suspicions, no matter how much those suspicions were grounded in logic and common sense. They could do nothing without proof, and for Weisheng to accuse one of the men too soon would damage any credibility he had in his father's court.
He opened his mouth again to thank the older man, but before he could speak the words, Luo Jian came rushing in.
"Your Highness, come quickly! It's Ming Yue!"
Immediately, Weisheng ran from the room, leaving a stunned Minister Shen in his wake.
***
A few hours later, Weisheng stood in the palace throne room. His figure was tense, his skin was deathly pale, and there were dark circles under his eyes. He looked terrible, and from the whispered conversations of the various ministers and counsellors behind him, it was clear that it had not gone unnoticed. Still, the crown prince did not acknowledge any of them. He stared straight ahead, lost in his own thoughts.
King Xuanming listened to the business of the day with one concerned eye on his son. Something significant had happened, he was sure of it. He resisted the urge to rush through the mundane memorials and reports, and instead tried to focus his attention on the words of his advisers.
Finally, mercifully, the last official stepped back into line after giving his opinion on the latest bridge building project in one of the outlying provinces, and the scheduled business of the morning was done. The king looked directly at his son and raised an eyebrow, inviting him to speak. Weisheng stepped forward.
"Royal Father, I have something to report."
King Xuanming motioned for him to continue.
"Last night, in the palace, an attempt was made to take my life by poisoning. The only reason I am still alive is because the tainted wine was consumed by my secretary first."
The king shot to his feet.
"Who dares to try to assassinate the crown prince inside the grounds of my palace? Who would be so bold?" He looked around at his advisers, all of whom displayed various expressions of shock and disbelief. Weisheng continued speaking.
"Father, we apprehended the person who delivered the poisoned wine, a maidservant, but she died in prison before we could interrogate her. I beg you, Father. Please investigate this matter thoroughly."
King Xuanming wasted no time.
"Minister Su, as the Minister for Justice I order you to hunt down the culprit immediately. The crown prince is the future of our nation. His safety is the highest priority. Spare no expense."
Minister Su bowed deeply in acceptance of the edict, but the king's attention had already turned back to his son.
"Son, you said that your secretary was poisoned instead of you. Has a murder taken place?"
"Yes, Father." Weisheng's voice broke as he responded. "She died earlier this morning."