Chapter 197: Castor Beans

Chapter 197: Castor Beans

Empress Dowager spoke candidly, "Your Majesty, it was after consuming pastries given by Zhang Sheng before court that Xiao Zhen was poisoned. Who else but the Second Prince would want to harm him?"

Seeing the Emperor's displeasure, she hurriedly added, "I have evidence! Right after the incident, the Empress ordered the Palace of Eternal Celebration sealed. If Your Majesty orders a search, poison will surely be found, leading to the real culprit. And Zhang Sheng, now in the custody of the Judicial Bureau, has he not confessed anything?"

Her emotional tone, bordering on accusatory, suggested she believed the Emperor might be protecting the Second Prince. Her maid, Haitang, anxiously tugged at her sleeve.

The Emperor looked at the Empress Dowager calmly, ordered a search without addressing her insinuations or reprimanding her outburst.

He finished his medicinal tea, rinsed his mouth, and said, "This matter will be handled by me. You may return."

The Empress Dowager, realizing her earlier outburst, was relieved to not be rebuked and left the chamber with Haitang.

Preoccupied with her son's wellbeing, she didn’t notice the Emperor's unusual behavior, unlike Haitang, who seemed thoughtful.

After leaving the palace, the Empress Dowager went to see her son instead of returning to her own palace. Although the Palace of Eternal Celebration was sealed, she, being one of the four consorts and visiting her critically ill son, wasn't hindered by the Empress.

Sitting beside her son's bed, she cried upon seeing his frail condition but was eventually consoled.

She assured her son, "Xiao Zhen, I've spoken to your father. This time, the Second Prince won’t escape punishment or contest the crown prince position with you."

The Third Prince, nursing a headache, said helplessly, "Mother, there was no need for you to interfere. Father has already detained Zhang Sheng; the truth behind him will be uncovered."

The Empress Dowager sulked, "I was just worried your father might be lenient due to his love for his son."

The Third Prince consoled himself internally, finding his mother’s frankness reassuring, sure that the Emperor wouldn’t suspect him of ingesting arsenic himself.

He told her, "Mother, I’m much better now. The physician said I'd recover fully after resting. Don’t worry, you should rest too. I can't relax with you here."

The Empress Dowager stood up, agreeing to leave, "Alright, I'll return then."

After giving instructions to the attending servants, she headed back to her palace.

Haitang lingered, contemplating the day’s odd events at the palace, to discuss with the Third Prince later.

The Third Prince, after sending everyone away, sat up upon hearing Haitang's words, asking seriously, "Are you saying... the Emperor seems ill?"

Haitang, with her head lowered, hesitated before saying, "I only thought His Majesty’s complexion seemed off, and the bowl of soup smelled medicinal."

The Third Prince shook his head: "If the Emperor were truly gravely ill, he’d hide it well, not letting you catch any hints."

Trusting her young master's judgment, Haitang replied, "Then I must be mistaken."

The Third Prince nodded and instructed her, "Go back and take good care of the Empress Dowager, advising her not to act rashly or do anything unnecessary during this time."

"I understand," Haitang agreed respectfully and exited.

Alone, the Third Prince lay back down, his mind racing back to his speculations in Jinzhou. How had he refuted his own thoughts then?

— "The Crown Prince is frail, and Father is in his prime..."

He had already argued against the first part; the Crown Prince should be well by now. But the latter...

Was the Emperor truly in good health?

If he were seriously ill, slipping up and giving clues wouldn’t be unusual... Like his grandfather, Emperor Qian Ning, who became too sick to take care of himself.

Overlooking this could mean losing the advantage.

And this might be his only opportunity.

Allowing the Crown Prince to observe at the Ministry of Revenue, delaying responses to the ministers' recommendations for succession – if he couldn’t see the Emperor’s clear favor for the Crown Prince, he might as well not compete.

The Second Prince was already out of the picture. If the Crown Prince was gone and the Emperor gravely ill, who else but him could the Emperor pass the throne to?

Just like in the 28th year of Qian Ning, when Crown Prince Yuan Hui died unexpectedly, didn’t his grandfather know the true culprit?

But for the stability of the empire, he had to choose the most suitable successor from his remaining sons, not only refraining from punishment but also clearing obstacles for the new Crown Prince.

It’s the same now.

However, all this hinges on one condition – the Emperor must indeed be gravely ill.

This situation differed from the Qian Ning era; in the 28th year of Qian Ning, although the Emperor was still relatively healthy despite his age, he had only four adult sons. The youngest, Prince Jin, was far from succession, so his father dared to act directly.

Now, his father was in his prime, and without any illness, such actions would be digging his own grave.

The Third Prince toyed with a porcelain bottle received from Zhang Shuisheng, weighing his options silently, murmuring, "How can I be sure?"

Bribe the imperial physician to peek at medical records, buy off someone in the Emperor's presence, or use the consorts to test the waters?

Actually, there was a faster and more direct method he could think of, but dared not execute.

As the Third Prince grew older, he understood more clearly how unfathomable his father was, suspecting ordinary tactics would prove ineffective.

Twirling the porcelain bottle filled with castor beans in his hand, he softly said, "If one were gravely ill, could they still go on the autumn hunt? Even if they went, would they personally mount a horse and hunt?"

In the middle of July, the sixteenth year of Jianzhao, the Second Prince was proven to have harmed his brothers and was demoted by the emperor to the title of Prince of Youjun, sent to guard the imperial tombs at Ningshou Mountain.

By the end of the month, Princess Huaiqing's fief was reduced by three hundred households, and she was ordered to move with her husband to Boling, forbidden from entering the capital without summons.

In August, the courtiers petitioned for the autumn hunt, which the emperor approved, commanding the eldest prince, Xiao Lang, to lead the hunt in his stead, accompanied by the Third, Fourth, Fifth Princes, and the hundred officials of the royal family.

This decree shocked the entire court.

"Isn't His Highness the Eldest Prince frail? How can he participate in the autumn hunt?"

According to ancestral rules, only the Crown Prince can lead the hunt on behalf of the emperor. Is His Majesty actually favoring the Eldest Prince?

His Majesty is strong and vigorous, why then does he not personally proceed to Pingcheng this time?