"Today, I'll teach you how to paint," said Zhongli Mingye.
"Painting? I'd rather just watch you paint," replied Song Jinyu. She didn't want to learn, thinking it unnecessary.
Zhongli Mingye was already proficient in all the arts. What was the point of her learning them?
Just as they were bickering about painting in the Liuyun Pavilion, a messenger from the palace suddenly arrived. "Your Highness! The Emperor... something terrible has happened!"
The Prince and Princess of Yu rushed to the palace in a hurry. Before leaving, Zhongli Mingye warned Song Jinyu, "Don't examine the Emperor's pulse."
She understood his meaning. After taking so many ineffective "elixirs," the side effects of the real elixir should have started to show.
No one saw Song Jinyu silently smiling in the closed carriage.
In the Jinshui Palace, Ouyang Jinse's days were numbered. Song Jinyu was already thinking about how to make her suffer a painful death.
The sword wounds on Yan Fei's body and the dried blood were still fresh in her memory. She slowly closed her eyes and opened them again.
In the Emperor's bedroom, countless imperial physicians were kneeling on the ground.
"Your Highness, I've discovered that several other herbs were added to the new elixir," said Physician Li, trembling. The elixir was jointly supervised and produced by the Jinshui Palace and the Imperial Hospital.
Now that something had gone wrong, the Imperial Hospital might not be able to protect itself! Song Jinyu heard this clearly. Sure enough, there was a problem with the elixir.
This was a bit unexpected. After all, the new elixir formula was at most ineffective.
It seemed that someone was eager for the Emperor to die, so they added something extra.
Zhongli Mingye frowned and stared at Song Jinyu thoughtfully. Concubine Jia ordered the arrest of all the imperial physicians who had participated in the production of the elixir.
Under torture, they would surely confess.
In the afternoon, the Emperor woke up, but he looked much older. His skin was like that of a dying old man.
When Prince Cheng heard the news that the Emperor had woken up, he was very disappointed. Why hadn't the spiked "medicine" worked?
But he pretended to be the most filial. He not only served the Emperor personally but also brought his heir to the palace to amuse him.
After guarding the Emperor for a night, Zhongli Mingye left the palace.
Back at the mansion, he sat in the study with a cold face, saying nothing. Was it her doing? Had she really taken action? Now that he thought about it, Song Jinyu wasn't just thinking about revenge; she had planned everything long ago.
To this day, she still didn't trust him and wouldn't reveal a single thought. The more he loved her, the more he wanted from her, and the more disappointed he became.
Especially when he discovered that the truth was far beyond his control.
When Song Jinyu heard that he didn't want to eat, she thought he was worried about the Emperor's condition. She brought in some congee and saw his gloomy face at a glance.
She kindly comforted him, "If you don't eat or drink, how can your body bear it?"
But as soon as she set down the congee and dishes, Zhongli Mingye suddenly knocked them to the ground!
"Crash!"
Instantly, the atmosphere in the study became tense. Zhongli Mingye grabbed her tightly. "Tell me! Was this your doing?"
His phoenix eyes were as cold as a snake, as if he wanted to melt her. "If I say it wasn't me, would you believe me?"
Would he believe her? Ha...
"You've never trusted me, and you've never really given your heart to me," he said. Otherwise, why would she bear such a big and dangerous thing alone without saying a word?
Zhongli Mingye closed his eyes in disappointment. "Leave. I don't want to see you!" Pain slowly tore at his heart.
Seeing that he was in a bad mood, Song Jinyu silently left. What had she done wrong? Taking revenge for her master and Yan Fei was something they both knew.
Now, revenge was within reach.
Why? Why was he questioning her like this?
Was it because the new elixir had harmed his father's body? But the medicine was ineffective and wouldn't harm the body.
The Emperor's condition seemed like he had been poisoned.
The imperial physician also said that several soothing herbs had been added to the medicine. Did he suspect that she had tried to harm the Emperor? Song Jinyu was extremely disappointed. She had thought he understood her, but in the end, it was just her wishful thinking!
For several days, Song Jinyu didn't see Zhongli Mingye.
She played with the bottles and jars in her hand. There were a few round, white pills on the table. She put them in a glass jar and went to the study to wait for him.
But by the time it got dark, Zhongli Mingye still hadn't returned. No one even sent her a message. She felt a strange sense of unease. This feeling was unprecedented.
She fell asleep on the table. When she woke up, there was a black cloak on her body.
Had he come back?
During dinner, he finally returned. Song Jinyu held the medicine bottle in her hand and pushed open the door of the study. The room was very dark. She found a flint and lit a lamp.
He looked at her coldly, his eyes fierce and bloodthirsty. She felt a faint sense of fear. He was always so imposing.
Song Jinyu walked up to him. "I know why you're angry."
She sighed. "At first, the formula was indeed from me." As expected, it was her. Zhongli Mingye was extremely disappointed.
"Later, the formula accidentally fell into Ouyang Jinse's hands."
"After that, you saw everything that happened. The formula entered the palace, and the spiritual root fields in Yuzhou also fell into the hands of the Jinshui Palace."
Song Jinyu stood in front of him and spread her hands. "This is the elixir refined from that formula."
"The formula was always genuine. The problem lies with the spiritual roots."
"If the spiritual roots aren't specially taken care of, they won't have any effect."
She opened the bottle and poured out a pill. Hiding her sadness, she said, "Taking this elixir will only have no effect. It will never poison anyone!"
After saying that, she swallowed a pill. "See..." Before she could finish, Zhongli Mingye grabbed her. "You're crazy!"
Then he laid her flat on his lap and patted her back, forcing her to spit out the pill.
"Cough... cough..." He patted too hard, and Song Jinyu couldn't speak from the pain.
The elixir was finally spat out.
Zhongli Mingye was so angry that he couldn't bear it anymore. "Slap! Slap! Slap!" He slapped her several times. "Do you think I'm suspicious of this pill?"
"Do you think I'm angry because of my father's illness?"
"You're just... heartless!" Today, she even swallowed the elixir in front of him. Was she trying to drive him crazy? She knew how much he cared, but she still gambled with her life.
The angrier he got, the harder he hit. Song Jinyu opened her eyes wide in disbelief, her eyes filled with tears. He actually hit her...
It was so embarrassing!
She was so old, yet she was being spanked on someone's lap! The angrier she got, the louder she cried. "You're so mean! Big jerk!"
The commotion in the study was so loud that Niaoniao was eager to rush in, but Micui grabbed her. "They're husband and wife... don't get involved."
Seeing her cry, Zhongli Mingye calmed down. "I..." What should he say? Through the thin clothes, he somehow felt that her skin was very smooth, and he didn't want to let go.
When she was out of breath from crying and her voice was hoarse, Zhongli Mingye helped her up. "I'm angry because you didn't tell me about such a big thing."
"Doing all these arrangements alone is so dangerous!" It wasn't that he didn't trust her; he just felt sorry for her.
Song Jinyu sobbed. "If it weren't for you, I wouldn't have changed the formula."
"He's your father. I didn't want to make things difficult for you."
"The elixir was originally ineffective. The Emperor's repeated illnesses were because someone changed the dosage of the herbs or added something else." She wanted to sit up, but it hurt a bit. "My plan was actually just to hand over the elixir. Then, when the Emperor took it and it had no effect, he would be angry with the Jinshui Palace and let them bring about their own downfall."
Hearing her say this, Zhongli Mingye felt touched. He hadn't seen her for several days, and now that he saw her, he couldn't control his emotions.
He gently laid her on the couch and leaned over.
"What... what are you doing?" She felt a strange sense of panic.