The eighteenth day of the first lunar month marked Madam Wang's burial.
Madam Wang's memorial tablet was placed in the Southern Residence's ancestral hall, while her coffin was transported to the ancestral graves in Linxiang.
That very night, Nan Yujin, who was escorting the coffin out of the capital, secretly retrieved his mother's body and brought it back to Kyoto.
Jia Huan reported that Nan Yujin requested an audience.
Upon meeting Nan Yujin, he appeared visibly more weathered. The hurried night journey had left him with a look of hardship and fatigue.
"I beg the divine physician to perform an autopsy on my mother."
Nan Yujin knelt and kowtowed heavily. When he looked up, blood was already seeping from his forehead.
Madam Wang's cause of death had already been determined, rendering further dissection unnecessary. Unlike the hatred he bore for Madam Liu, even the original Nan Shiying harbored no significant animosity towards Madam Wang.
Her statements that day were merely for Nan Chaoyin's ears. She had not expected Nan Yujin to possess such resolve as to actually demand an exhumation and autopsy.
However, Nan Shiying had no penchant for desecrating corpses, nor did Madam Wang's transgressions warrant such treatment. She walked to Nan Yujin's side, slowly crouched down, and whispered into his ear, "In truth, I already determined your mother's cause of death that day. However, with many eyes and ears present, and not wishing to attract undue attention, I did not disclose it. Young Master Nan, I will ask one last time: do you truly wish to know the cause of your mother's death?"
Nan Yujin lifted his head, his gaze filled with resilience and stubbornness. He nodded gravely, "I do. Please, divine physician, tell me the truth."
"Very well!"
"All that I say will be the result of my examination. Whether you believe it or not, listen to your heart."
Nan Yujin nodded.
"Your mother died of poisoning."
"The poison is called Youlian. Youlian is not fatal to those in good health, but it is extremely toxic to the frail. It causes the victim's heart to fail, leading to death by cardiac arrest."
Nan Yujin clenched his fists tightly. Although he had harbored suspicions, hearing that his mother had indeed died from poison, not natural causes, made it difficult to control the grief and murderous intent surging within him.
Nan Shiying handed him a powder for detecting Youlian poisoning and said, "This is the powder that can detect Youlian. I heard that the Fifth Madam of Marquis Lin Yang's estate and your mother passed away consecutively. Marquis Lin Yang did not invite me to conduct an examination, and it would be inappropriate for me to visit unannounced. Young Master Nan, if you wish to find the killer who caused your mother's death, perhaps you should investigate the cause of Madam Wu's death."
"Furthermore, although your mother was poisoned with Youlian, it is not a fast-acting poison. Therefore, if your mother was not poisoned previously, then there must be some medicine within the Southern Residence that can rapidly trigger the effects of Youlian. This powder can also detect the trigger for Youlian."
"If the powder turns pink, it indicates poisoning and the presence of a trigger."
"That is all I have to say. Young Master Nan, you may leave."
Nan Shiying revealed the details of Youlian to Nan Yujin. As for her suspicion that Madam Wang's death was intended to delay Nan Yujin's marriage, she said nothing. The Wang family was, in essence, the victim. Revealing too much might lead them to be perceived as schemers, which would be an unfair accusation.
...
After the court convened on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, the envoys from Linyuan and Dali resumed their verbal sparring. On the negotiation table, they sought to reason with each other. When reason failed, they resorted to curses and insults. Wang Qiancheng had initially believed civil officials to be refined scholars, but witnessing their readiness to roll up their sleeves and brawl, he found them no different from street ruffians. He sat in a corner, constantly being dragged into the fray by superiors and colleagues.
Wang Qiancheng gradually let go of his inhibitions, showcasing the excellent qualities of a former dissolute youth: he cursed with exceptional venom.
He honed his art of passive-aggression to perfection, gradually evolving from a peripheral player to a主力 (main force) of verbal attacks. He learned little in the way of negotiation skills, but his vocabulary for insults grew considerably.
Liu Cheng, who had initially intended to merely observe the proceedings, was now also pulled into the fray. They cursed for an entire day, with the only respite being at lunchtime. Otherwise, they were engaged in incessant verbal abuse, their throats nearly worn to the bone.
Negotiation, a fine negotiation indeed.
When would this so-called negotiation finally end!
After Madam Wang's funeral procession, Nan Chaoyin returned to court. Less than three months had passed since his departure from the court, yet everything had changed. The familiar faces had diminished significantly, and his position, once at the head of the officials, had receded to the center.
"Your Majesty, with Madam Nan's passing and Young Master Nan in mourning, how shall the marital alliance between our two nations proceed?" the Minister of Rites stepped forward, posing the question that, besides the ongoing negotiations, most urgently required a solution.
With Madam Wang's demise, Nan Yujin was forbidden to marry for three years. Would Princess Huian of Dali be expected to remain in Linyuan for three years?
Ji Hong had heard the entire affair, as well as the speculations of his uncle and aunt. However, the matter indeed needed resolution.
Ji Hong slightly raised his gaze towards Nan Chaoyin, who stood among the officials. This old fox remained steadfast. The Southern Residence had held two funerals consecutively – first a son, then a wife. Previously, the Empress was labeled an inauspicious omen, destined to bring misfortune to her parents. But now, Ji Hong found Nan Chaoyin more deserving of that title.
Had he deliberately framed the Empress, slandering her, to conceal his own identity as a harbinger of misfortune?
"Lord Nan, although this is a state affair of Linyuan, it also concerns your family. What are your views on this matter?"
He wished to remain detached and observe? Not a chance!
Ji Hong directly called out Nan Chaoyin, summoning him to step forward.
"Your subject dares not. The marriage alliance between Linyuan and Dali is a matter of national importance. Everything rests upon Your Majesty's decision." Nan Chaoyin bowed respectfully and uttered a platitude.
Liu Wanjun glanced at him.
The Emperor's summoning of Lord Nan at this juncture likely intended for him to utter words such as 'family matters should not supersede national affairs, and the filial duty should be more than mere formality,' thereby shortening Nan Yujin's mourning period. Lord Nan, who was once most adept at discerning the Emperor's intentions, now appeared unable to grasp the underlying meaning of the Emperor's words. It was difficult to ascertain whether he was genuinely devastated by the consecutive deaths of his relatives and had not yet recovered, or if he was acting deliberately.
In matters such as these, unless the concerned party spoke of it themselves, even the Emperor could not rashly propose a reduction in the mourning period. To do so would invite criticism from all under heaven.
Ji Jinmo heard Nan Chaoyin's response and let out a cold laugh. "Lord Nan often speaks of family, country, and the world. You once said that without a country, there is no family, and that you are willing to sacrifice everything for the nation and its people. I had thought you, Lord Nan, to be a gentleman of integrity, whose words matched his deeds. It turns out you are merely a hypocrite seeking fame through deceit. Emperor, such a person should have been dismissed from court long ago. Yet, you keep him. Do you see? He is resentful of your demotion and is deliberately acting against you."
Although everyone knew the Prince was indirectly criticizing the Emperor by targeting Lord Nan, they had to admit that the Prince's words held a degree of truth.
While the Prince did not state it explicitly, how could they not understand?
Having served in the same court for so many years, who did not understand whom? As someone who was once most perceptive of the Emperor's intentions, how could Lord Nan not grasp the implied meaning of the Emperor's words just now?
It was merely a deliberate act!
Alas!
Why must Lord Nan do this?