She couldn't bring herself to be angry anymore. Her small frame slumped, and she unconsciously cooed, "No! I didn't ask you to pay attention to other women. But I'm about to open a shop and do business, and the finished products just came out, so I tested them on her. Just now, the few of them looked quite surprised. I was worried they were just pretending to make me happy, so they put on a show for me? I was thinking, Your Highness has such high standards. If Zhi Qiu's makeup and attire can make your eyes light up, then attracting men and women outside will be even easier!"
Lu Qing Wan's heart was filled with joy by Feng Xi Wu's words, "This King's Consort is right here, why would this King pay attention to other women?" She didn't even notice how soft her tone was when speaking to Feng Xi Wu, so much like a pampered child. Feng Xi Wu, however, lost all his temper by her soft words. He brought her to his side and coaxed her, "Then you can rest assured. The new shop will definitely be a great success and won't lose you any money."
Lu Qing Wan's apricot eyes widened slightly, "Didn't you say you didn't pay attention to Zhi Qiu's makeup?"
"This King did not pay attention to her makeup, but this Consort's makeup is enough to amaze this King every day!" Feng Xi Wu's coaxing words flowed out of his mouth effortlessly, "This Consort possesses the skill to make even disguise technology impress people. Isn't simple makeup a piece of cake for her?"
"Alright, you've convinced me." Lu Qing Wan tilted her head and smiled, "We can set off after tomorrow. Have you finished your matters?"
"The court matters were long ago communicated to my Imperial Brother. After tomorrow, we can leave."
Tomorrow would be the thirtieth of August. After Lu Qing Wan cured Princess Fei Feng's poison at Bai Xing Lin, they could set off to find the Six Kun Yu Jin. Lu Qing Wan hopped onto the chaise lounge, wrapped herself in a thick blanket, and then blinked her eyes as she said, "Have you found out who the person from the Duke of Xu's manor wants me to treat?"
"If the clues are correct, it should be Prince Ning."
"Prince Ning, Feng Yu Heng, what illness does he have?" Lu Qing Wan felt her logic was a bit confused, "And if he's sick, why would the Duke of Xu's manor find a doctor? Logically speaking, as a dignified prince, it should be much more convenient for him to find a doctor than for the Duke of Xu's manor, right?" After all, a higher rank can suppress a lower one. A prince, let alone anything else, would definitely have a richer network of contacts than the Duke of Xu's manor!
"That's hard to say, but no one in the Duke of Xu's manor is ill, and Prince Ning is the one the Duke of Xu's manor interacts with most frequently recently." Feng Xi Wu was also a bit confused, "The shadow guards found that Prince Ning sought medical help when he was enfeoffed in Jiangnan, and all the doctors who treated him later left the area for various reasons."
"That's to silence them!" Lu Qing Wan clucked her tongue in amazement, "Prince Ning wouldn't happen to have some unspeakable hidden ailment, would he?"
Feng Xi Wu realized that his Consort, who appeared dignified and generous in front of others, was actually a greedy and gossipy little vixen. He reached out and dotingly rubbed her head, "Whether it's a hidden ailment or not, you'll know when he comes to see you tomorrow, won't you?"
Lu Qing Wan's eyes curved into smiles, "How can you be so sure he'll come to seek medical treatment tomorrow?" Feng Xi Wu smiled enigmatically, deliberately playing coy with her. Lu Qing Wan wanted to ask more, but Li Qing arrived, instantly diverting her attention, "Have the identity of Steward Zhou been found out?"
Lu Qing nodded, her face showing a hint of difficulty, "Your Highness, your subordinate has investigated the identities of Steward Zhou and Xu Zhi Huan. However, this matter involves Consort Ye..." Deeply aware that Consort Ye and her own Prince were like mother and son, Li Qing hesitated and dared not speak.
Feng Xi Wu's thin lips parted, and he uttered a single word, "Speak."
Li Qing quickly said, "Steward Zhou and Xu Zhi Huan are indeed from the same hometown as Consort Ye, but they do not know each other. Steward Zhou became a refugee in Shang Jing due to the flood in the seventh year of Jing You. Before that, he had no contact with Xu Zhi Huan or Consort Ye. As for Xu Zhi Huan, he replaced a fellow villager to participate in the imperial examinations. His original name was Deng Wen Yuan, and he was Consort Ye's... fiancé."
Lu Qing Wan's mouth fell open. Was this something she should be hearing? She instinctively looked at Feng Xi Wu and saw his hand clenched on the armrest of his wheelchair. Lu Qing Wan's heart tightened. The woman he considered a mother seemed to have cuckolded the brother who was like a father and brother to him. Who could tolerate this?
Fearing that Feng Xi Wu would become enraged and harm himself, Lu Qing Wan quickly said, "Deng Wen Yuan replaced Xu Zhi Huan and entered the Ministry of Rites. Does Consort Ye know about this? Or, have Xu Zhi Huan and Consort Ye been in contact since Xu Zhi Huan entered the capital?"
Li Qing quickly shook her head, "So far, there is no evidence to suggest that Consort Ye has any connection with Xu Zhi Huan."
"That's right. Consort Ye lives deep in the palace. Xu Zhi Huan is just a minor official of the seventh rank. Even if he wanted to see Consort Ye, it wouldn't be possible!" Lu Qing Wan didn't know why she was worrying so much, she just kept trying to calm Feng Xi Wu's anger.
Unexpectedly, Feng Xi Wu was much calmer than she imagined, "This King trusts Consort Ye's character. Whether it's her nature or for her own safety, this King believes she wouldn't dare betray His Imperial Brother and act improperly with that Xu Zhi Huan. This King is just curious, how could Xu Zhi Huan, a scholar, have the ability to injure Yuan'er with a small piece of gold leaf? Also, where did Steward Zhou's poisonous spider and the love-sick蛊 come from?"
"That..." Lu Qing Wan weakly raised her hand, "There was something I forgot to mention before. Steward Zhou is indeed Lu Si Wan's biological father. Therefore, for Lu Si Wan and Madam Lan, her poisoning of Madam Zhang, and her using the love-sick蛊 to plot for Lu Si Wan to become the Crown Princess, are all explainable." Steward Zhou's will clearly stated that the subsidiary蛊 of the love-sick蛊 was originally intended for Lu Si Wan, but by mistake, it was given to Lu Qing Wan.
Feng Xi Wu's brow was still tightly furrowed in confusion. Lu Qing Wan asked, confused, "What do you think is the problem?"
"Steward Zhou loved his daughter dearly. He intended to use the love-sick蛊 on the Crown Prince and Lu Si Wan, with the subsidiary蛊 given to you. This King can attribute it to a mistake. But have you ever considered that in the parent-child蛊 of the love-sick蛊, the mother蛊 is clearly in the dominant position? If he truly wanted the best for Lu Si Wan, shouldn't he have given the mother蛊 to Lu Si Wan and the subsidiary蛊 to the Crown Prince?"
Lu Qing Wan banged her forehead against her knees, "I knew something felt off before! Performing the蛊 is not a simple matter. Since Steward Zhou could perform the蛊, he couldn't possibly not understand the difference between parent and child蛊, yet he made Lu Si Wan the one who was controlled..." She suddenly looked up, her eyes firmly fixed on Feng Xi Wu, "The person who performed the蛊 could never have been Steward Zhou. There must be someone else."
This meant that she had not yet avenged the death of her original self, and another enemy was lurking in the dark, constantly watching her. "Don't worry, this King will definitely investigate all matters thoroughly. This King will not let anyone who has harmed you go unpunished."