He had never seen such an interrogation method anywhere. Without the suspect even realizing it, the truth was revealed.
Previously, Shi Muwǎn had rarely interacted with the outside world. He wondered where she had learned this interrogation technique.
The man's curiosity caught Shi Muwǎn's eye, making her a bit flustered.
Those methods were not originally designed for interrogation, and she had learned them from modern times.
She couldn't possibly tell the man that she had traveled from modern times. He would surely execute her on the spot.
Taking a deep breath, Shi Muwǎn remained silent for a long time. She was desperately thinking in her mind how to break the current deadlock.
It was during this moment of silence that the man sensed something was wrong.
He narrowed his eyes slightly and stared intently at the woman's face, as if trying to find the slightest hint of something amiss.
"Does the Empress Dowager not want to tell this subject? This subject just hopes that in the future, there will be more interrogation methods in the Great Liang Empire so that we won't be at a loss when dealing with spies."
He sounded so just and noble, all for the sake of the Great Liang Empire.
Shi Muwǎn was left speechless. She couldn't very well say that the person they were looking for was already dead.
The young emperor saw his mother in such a difficult situation. Thinking that she didn't want to talk about it, he tried to smooth things over.
"National Master, stop pressing for an answer. If the Empress Dowager is in a difficult position, just wait until she wants to talk about it."
Since the emperor had spoken, if he continued to press, it would be disrespectful to the emperor.
The man frowned, seemingly not willing to let this topic go. Shi Muwǎn naturally noticed this too. She knew that if she didn't explain things clearly today, this man wouldn't easily give up.
"Actually, it's not a big secret. But when I was learning this skill, I promised that old master that I would never tell anyone. It's already a betrayal of my promise to even mention it now."
Hearing what the Empress Dowager said, the man raised his eyebrows, and his tone softened a bit.
"This subject doesn't mean that. I'm just afraid that the Empress Dowager might be misled by someone with ill intentions, so I just want to hear the truth."
Shi Muwǎn looked very understanding. She sighed, lowered her eyes, looking as if she had been bullied by the man.
"This subject knows that the National Master has always suspected that this subject wants to harm the Great Liang Empire and the emperor. But this subject is willing to swear on her own life that she will never harm the emperor in the slightest, nor will she covet the throne."
Seeing her solemn expression and the lack of a single smile when she spoke, the man knew that she was serious.
Cui Qizhou gently tapped on the teacup. Finally, the young emperor said, "What the Empress Dowager said is right. Since you promised someone at the beginning, you can't go back on your word. So, National Master, don't force it. Let's just let this matter go."
With the young emperor's intervention, Cui Qizhou nodded slightly and apologized to Shi Muwǎn. "Please forgive this subject, Empress Dowager. This subject was just too anxious and said something inappropriate."
"The National Master is dedicated to the Great Liang Empire. This subject can understand and won't take it to heart. You can rest assured."
The atmosphere quickly eased. Just as the three of them were discussing the plague, a good news suddenly came from outside.
"The antidote is back."
Hearing this, Shi Muwǎn was the most excited. She planned to go and take a look immediately.
The young emperor had never seen such a thing before and wanted to go and have a look. But the National Master said, "I heard that when removing the poison of the gu worm, the person will have a strong reaction and may even act violently. This subject thinks it's better for me to go and have a look in person so that I can stop anything inappropriate in time."
There was no flaw in his words, so the young emperor let him go.
When they arrived at Lan Xi's residence, he was just about to take the antidote.
Seeing the three of them come in, he stood up and bowed.
"Greetings to the Empress Dowager and the emperor."
As if he didn't see the man with a black face beside him, he had a faint smile on his face and his eyes were fixed on the beautiful woman.
Cui Qizhou felt inexplicably annoyed and stepped forward to block his view.
"It seems that Lord Lan's eyesight is not very good at such a young age. This subject has been standing here for so long, but you didn't even say hello."
Lan Xi retracted his gaze and calmly patted the non - existent dust on his robe.
"The National Master surely doesn't need me to greet him specifically, right? We'll be colleagues in the future, so there's no need for such formalities."
His words completely blocked what the man wanted to say next. The man could only stare at him reluctantly.
"Didn't you say you were going to take the antidote? Start now. The sooner you get rid of the poison, the sooner we can move on to the next step."
Lan Xi didn't hesitate any longer. He tilted his head back and swallowed the antidote pill.
Shi Muwǎn watched him nervously. She had only read about removing the gu worm in novels. She heard that when removing the gu worm, a doctor had to assist and dig out the worm.
This was the first time she had heard of directly removing the gu worm, and she didn't know how the worm would finally come out.
Soon, Lan Xi had a reaction. His face gradually turned pale. There seemed to be something surging under his skin, about to break out. Seeing his veins bulging and his eyes rolling back, Shi Muwǎn was a bit worried.
"Maybe we should call the imperial doctor. Lord Lan doesn't look right."
The young emperor thought the same way, but just as he was about to call someone, the man beside him stopped him.
"Lord Lan has endured the gu poison for so many years. He's already used to these feelings. Now that he's about to be free from the pain, let him bear it on his own."
This seemed to make sense, so the young emperor finally put down his raised hand.
So, the three of them just watched. Half an hour later, Lan Xi spat out a mouthful of black blood.
When Shi Muwǎn was about to step forward to ask, she was suddenly pulled back by the man beside her. Then, out of the corner of her eye, she saw something in the pool of black blood on the ground slowly approaching her.
Almost without hesitation, the man took out a hidden weapon. The thing that was moving quickly on the ground instantly stopped.
The woman, realizing what almost happened, blushed slightly and thanked the man beside her awkwardly, then slowly pulled back her sleeve.
"Thank you."
She had just started to have a little bit of a good impression of the man, but it vanished completely after his next words.
"If the Empress Dowager's eyesight is not good, go and see the imperial doctor as soon as possible. Otherwise, you won't be so lucky next time."