Zheng Yanzhang was fraught with anxiety at the Crown Prince’s manor. He had received sudden news that the Empress’s poisoning was linked to “Cloud Mist Spring Snow,” and both Yuan Xiu and Zheng Mingtang had been taken away by the Bureau of Punishment.
After a moment of internal struggle, he decided to seek information from Liang Yi’an. Upon arrival, however, he was told the Prince was still in the palace. Li Xiu asked him to wait. Yanzhang paced the room, his mind oscillating between worry for his relatives and the awkwardness of facing Liang Yi’an.
At that moment, Li Xiu led Lin Yu inside. The second Lin Yu entered, he blurted out, “Aunt Yuan and Mingtang have been arrested. This is a setup!”
Zheng Yanzhang rubbed his temples. “I know, but we must provide evidence to prove their innocence. Otherwise, with a charge of plotting against the Mother of the Nation, even ten Aunt Yuans wouldn’t be enough to save their heads.”
Liang Yi’an pushed the door open then, his face etched with exhaustion. Seeing the two of them, he knew exactly why they were there. Li Xiu closed the door behind him and stood guard outside. Li Quan brought a bowl of ginseng soup and served tea before departing.
Liang Yi’an let out a long, weary sigh. “Mother is currently unconscious. The imperial physicians say it’s likely poison, and the timing coincides exactly with when I presented the Cloud Mist Spring Snow to her. Father was furious, but I managed to talk him down—they are only being detained for now. I’ve sent word to ensure they aren’t mistreated. I know they are likely framed, but without physical evidence, words alone mean nothing.”
Lin Yu asked, “Did the physicians describe the symptoms after Her Majesty was poisoned?”
Liang Yi’an recalled, “Drowsiness, fatigue, aversion to cold, frequent coughing, abdominal pain, nightmares, and occasional hematemesis (vomiting blood).”
Zheng Yanzhang turned to Lin Yu. “Xiao Yu, do you have any leads?”
Lin Yu frowned, thinking deeply for a long time. Nothing in his current knowledge base matched those specific symptoms combined. “I might need to observe her in person to have a clue. But how can I enter the palace?”
Liang Yi’an slumped into his chair. Zheng Yanzhang reached out to massage the Prince’s temples, but halfway through, he remembered their recent tension; his hand froze in mid-air, creating an awkward pause.
Liang Yi’an suddenly looked up. “What about Physician Chen? We could have him enter the palace to treat the Empress. What if I disguised you as his medical apprentice?”
Zheng Yanzhang withdrew his hand, his face brightening. “That’s an idea. But where is Physician Chen now?”
Lin Yu’s expression stiffened. After Zheng Qingyun finished the prefectural exam, Physician Chen had left a letter and vanished. Lin Yu had joked at the time that he ran faster than a rabbit.
Liang Yi’an sighed. The room fell into a heavy silence.
After a while, Lin Yu spoke up: “I’ll go. I’ll give it a try.”
Zheng Yanzhang frowned in disapproval. “The Emperor is calling for folk physicians, but one must sign a life-and-death waiver. If you fail to cure her, your life will be forfeit. Xiao Yu, don’t take such a risk.”
Lin Yu countered, “How will we know if it works unless we try? If… if there’s an accident, we’ll deal with it then.”
Liang Yi’an interrupted them. “I’ll find another way. Xiao Yu, if you have a plan in mind, you can disguise yourself as an attendant and follow me into the palace. I’ll find an opportunity for you.”
Lin Yu agreed.
As soon as the three sessions of the prefectural exam ended, Zheng Qingyun rushed back. Before even heading home, he went straight to the Bureau of Punishment to visit Yuan Xiu and Zheng Mingtang.
Zheng Mingtang’s eyes lit up when she saw the travel-worn Zheng Qingyun. The damp brick walls of the prison seeped with a chill that bit into the bone in the early spring weather. Seeing their haggard faces, Zheng Qingyun’s throat tightened. “Mingtang, Aunt Yuan, don’t be afraid. Father and I will find a way to get you out as soon as possible.”
Yuan Xiu nodded and sighed, looking apologetic. “In the end, we’ve caused you trouble again.”
Zheng Mingtang clenched her fists in fury. “Once I find out who framed us, I won’t let them off!”
Zheng Qingyun’s heart ached. He knew this was another act in a play—destroying the Yuan family’s tea business, harming the Empress, and smearing the Zheng family all in one stroke. Whose scheme was this cruel?
He gave instructions to the guards and offered some silver; the guards promised not to mistreat the two women. The clanging of torture implements inside the bureau startled a flock of birds, which took flight with a sudden rustle. One sparrow soared over the high walls and landed on a low-profile but exquisite palace.
Attendants bustled in and out. Liang Yi’an entered the hall followed by Li Quan and a disguised Lin Yu. Qingyan, the Empress’s personal maid, was weeping silently but rose quickly to pay her respects.
“Has Mother still not awakened?” Liang Yi’an asked.
Qingyan shook her head. “Reporting to Your Highness, the Empress remains unconscious. The physicians say if… if she doesn’t wake within three days… she might…” She choked up, unable to continue.
A profound sorrow filled Liang Yi’an. He suddenly regretted not listening to his mother sooner; if the worst happened, she wouldn’t even live to see his wedding. He strode inside, his robes fluttering.
Lin Yu followed closely. As he lowered his head to observe the surroundings, his gaze landed on a celadon tea set missing one cup. The sunlight hit the porcelain, revealing a faint, iridescent shimmer—unlike ordinary celadon.
Liang Yi’an noticed his gaze and looked at the tea set as well. Qingyan wiped her tears and stepped forward. “The tea leaves Your Highness sent were excellent; the Empress would brew a pot every two days. This celadon set was moved from the storehouse late last year. A maid accidentally broke one cup while tidying up. I thought since it was incomplete, we should put it away, but the Empress found it delicate and charming, so she kept it out to use for her tea.”
Liang Yi’an looked pained. He picked up a cup. “Mother didn’t have many favorites. It’s rare for her to find a treasure she can’t put down.” He put it back with a bitter laugh. “Never mind. Qingyan, everyone leave us. Li Quan, Xiao Linzi—you stay. I wish to speak with Mother alone.”
“Yes,” Qingyan bowed and withdrew.
Only four people remained in the hall: the three standing and the unconscious Empress. Liang Yi’an gave a nod, and Lin Yu knelt by the bed. “Your Majesty, forgive my intrusion.”
He reached out to take her pulse, pressing deep. The superficial pulse was rapid and slippery—like a loach in hot water—but pressing further down, it became weak and hollow, like a withered leaf about to fall. He checked her temperature; her forehead was as hot as charcoal, yet her hands were as cold as midwinter.
Lin Yu frowned. After a moment, he whispered to Liang Yi’an, “The pulse is chaotic. Her Majesty has a raging ‘liver fire,’ yet her ‘kidney qi’ is depleted. Most troubling is the heart pulse; it’s like a thatched hut leaking from all sides. It’s heart failure.”
Liang Yi’an could barely hide his grief. “The imperial physicians said the same. They said… there is no turning back.” He couldn’t go on and simply leaned by the bedside, weeping silently.
Lin Yu placed the Empress’s hand back under the covers and walked to the table to examine the tea cup. He felt the surface inch by inch; the walls were incredibly smooth, clearly from a top-tier kiln. Just as he was about to put it back, footsteps sounded outside.
“Greetings to the Emperor,” came Qingyan’s voice.
Startled, Lin Yu’s hand slipped, and the cup shattered on the floor. Crash! The crisp sound echoed loudly in the empty hall.
Lin Yu dropped to his knees immediately. “This servant deserves death! This servant deserves death!”
Liang Jin strode in. He barely glanced at the mess or the kneeling eunuch. “Careless. How did someone like this end up serving the Prince?”
Li Quan knelt beside him, trembling. “May Your Majesty appease your anger. This lad is usually quite clever; he likely became overwhelmed seeing Your Majesty for the first time. I will surely discipline him when we return.”
Lin Yu didn’t dare raise his head, repeatedly crying for mercy while crawling to pick up the shards, staying prostrate. He hadn’t seen Liang Jin many times in either life. Liang Jin only knew that years ago, Zheng Heng had taken in the orphan of a friend; he didn’t know what the boy looked like.
Liang Yi’an stepped toward the Emperor. “Father.”
Liang Jin patted his shoulder and dismissed the attendants, wanting to be alone with his son and wife. Lin Yu followed Li Quan out, carrying the broken porcelain in his cupped hands.
Standing outside, the sun shifted, hitting the fragments in Lin Yu’s hands. He stared at them for a long time. He picked up the largest piece; under the sunlight, the cross-section of the break shimmered with a brilliant, multicolored luster.
Lin Yu’s expression turned grim. He held every fragment up to the light to inspect the broken edges. Every single one had it.
Li Quan noticed his behavior and whispered, “What are you doing?”
Lin Yu whispered back, “Eunuch, look at this…”
A voice suddenly rang out beside them: “Look at what?”
The two jumped. They had been so focused they hadn’t noticed someone approaching. Lin Yu nearly dropped the shards again. Li Quan turned and, seeing who it was, bowed quickly. “Greetings, Palace Physician Sun.”
Lin Yu followed suit. “Greetings, Palace Physician Sun.”
The newcomer was Sun Feng, the head of the Imperial Medical Bureau. He was there to check the Empress’s pulse, but had paused seeing the two huddling together.
Sun Feng hummed and asked again, “What did you say to look at?”
Lin Yu held out the shards. “This servant was careless and broke a cup. Fortunately, the Emperor did not punish me. But I noticed the cross-section of this porcelain is quite peculiar, and I was just telling Eunuch Li.”
In his first life, Lin Yu had dealt with Sun Feng. He knew him as a stubborn, eccentric old physician with peerless skills who usually only treated the Emperor. The fact that he was here meant the Empress’s condition was dire indeed.
Sun Feng took a fragment and held it to the light. His casual expression turned instantly solemn. “Was this a cup the Empress used often?”
Lin Yu looked at Qingyan, who had come over. She said with a trembling voice, “Yes. Her Majesty loved it and used it almost every day.”
Hearing this, Sun Feng grabbed Lin Yu and ran back into the hall, nearly dragging him to the floor. Kneeling inside, Lin Yu thought to himself: This old doctor is surprisingly strong.
Sun Feng addressed the Emperor: “Your Majesty, I could not find the source of the Empress’s poisoning before. I suspected the Cloud Mist Spring Snow, but since others who drank it were fine, I was baffled. Now, I understand.”
“What is it?” Liang Jin asked, his voice low and commanding.
“It doesn’t matter what tea is used,” Sun Feng stated. “As long as it is in this cup, it will poison the Empress. Provided… the tea leaves were picked before sunrise.”