Chapter 163 Dog Tooth and Cinnabar
As Qinghu let Lin Mengya rest her head on his shoulder, the fierce expression on his face started to ease.
“I’m alright, don’t you worry about me.”
With Baishao and Baizhi’s help, Lin Mengya managed to wiggle out of the outer layer of her clothing which was stained with blood.
“Madam w.a.n.g—”
Although the wound on Madam w.a.n.g’s belly had been st.i.tched up, Baiji continued looking anxiously at her.
Madam w.a.n.g at this moment, however, was not showing any signs of breathing. The death-feigning pill which she ingested was still in effect.
It was not possible to tell if she had died or was feigning death.
“It will depend on her luck if she wakes up or not.”
If she made it through this time, Madam w.a.n.g was truly blessed.
In fact, Lin Mengya should be worrying over herself at this moment.
“Do not say anything when you get out of here. Instead, leave everything to me.”
Madam w.a.n.g had fainted, went under someone’s control and ended up in this pathetic state.
Lin Mengya was well aware she was the real target for the series of events that happened.
Lin Mengya finally understood the reason the Queen and the Crown Prince had arrived at precisely this moment.
This was a calculated move on their part. Regardless of whether Madam w.a.n.g died or lived, Lin Mengya, as the host, would not be able to shirk the responsibility of what happened to her.
Qinghu’s attempt at creating a mystic atmosphere had reaped its effects.
The people outside, though curious, was deterred to come any closer.
Lin Mengya straightened her clothes and wore a frail look as she walked out of the door, supported by two maidservants.
As she casually scanned the entire courtyard, she realized that all eyes were on her.
Lin Mengya lowered her gaze, stumbled towards Concubine De, still supported by her maidservants and took a bow.
“Your Highness the Queen and Mother, Madam w.a.n.g had pa.s.sed on.”
Lin Mengya spoke with a trembling such gentle voice as if she had exhausted all her strength.
It was as if she had been scared out of her wits, and it broke the hearts of the people seeing her in this state.
Concubine De’s brows were knitted. She did not expect the chrysanthemum flower festival to turn into a disaster.
How was she going to be accountable to w.a.n.g Hanlin?
“It is near impossible for Madam w.a.n.g to survive in that state. However, I’m puzzled as to why Madam w.a.n.g was looking like a phantom just now? Don’t tell me that Prince Yu’s Mansion is really haunted?”
The Queen said coldly as she fixed her severe, piercing gaze on Lin Mengya.
“We are still investigating this matter. However, one thing we are sure of is that Madam w.a.n.g was not killed by spirits of demons. I have a feeling that she had been murdered.”
Lin Mengya spoke with a gentle voice yet her voice sounded firm and certain.
Qinghu had told her that the reason Madam w.a.n.g was able to still walk like a zombie was that her limps had been tied to very thin silk threads.
These silk threads were like the threads tied to the limps of a puppet. When someone dashed past her, these threads were naturally broken.
Qinghu, with his sharp eyes, would not have seen wrongly.
Moreover, it was discovered through Lin Mengya’s diagnosis of Madam w.a.n.g that there was a high content of a poison called the “zombie herb” in Madam w.a.n.g’s blood.
The result of anyone who ingested this so-called “zombie herb” in such amounts was that his limbs would be stiff as a zombie.
If not for Madam w.a.n.g’s survival instinct that spurred her to cry out for help, her body would have been treated as a dead body by now.
Nevertheless, Lin Mengya was not able to prove this with sufficient evidence.
If she were to explain in this way, she might be accused of trying to shirk responsibility. In which case, the matter would be made worse.
She would rather stay silent and react playing by ear!
“Ah, look, what’s that?”
All of a sudden, a voice cried out from among the crowd.
Everyone’s gaze was turned towards the source of that voice.
An old maid closeby dashed into the flowering shrub and seemingly plucked something out from it.
“What’s that? Bring it over for me to see.”
No one dared make trouble in the presence of the Queen.
The old maid looked hesitant. Nevertheless, she wrapped the object into her handkerchief and brought it to the Queen.
The object seemed to be wrapped in some paper. When it had been placed on the table before the Queen, it was clearly visible to all the people standing around.
The Queen’s maidservants who were by the Queen’s side immediately opened the paper wrapping in front of everyone.
There was a white, sharp tooth in the red paper wrapping.
“This is—”
The color drained from Concubine De’s face immediately as she looked to Lin Mengya with panic in her eyes for the first time.
There appeared to be some writing scribbled onto the red paper wrapping the white, sharp tooth.
Just when Lin Mengya was about to take a closer look, the Queen shouted out a threatening command.
“Men! Seize Long Tianhao and Lin Mengya! They are guilty of plotting against the royal family, and are deserving of death!”
Everyone, including Lin Mengya and Concubine De, was shocked by the Queen’s allegation.
How did a sharp tooth amount to plotting against the royal family?
“Wait, Your Highness the Queen, this is all speculation. Yu’er and Mengya have always respected the Crown Prince and would never do such a thing to rebel against the Crown Prince!”
Concubine De had instantly knelt down before the Queen and began pleading earnestly with her.
“Won’t they? Look carefully, this is the Crown Prince’s birth data! If this is not an evil scheme, why would a sharp tooth be wrapped up in red paper and buried in the ground? Have you forgotten the incident with Concubine Rong, Concubine De?”
Concubine Rong? A question mark appeared in Lin Mengya’s mind.
Nevertheless, she could more or less guess what happened from Concubine De’s pale face.
From ancient times, the birth data of a person was of utmost importance to him.
The birth data of members of the royal family would usually be specially put in records and sealed up properly in a brocade box.
However, the birth of a son from the concubines would be considered something major.
If someone had his mind set on prying, it would not be impossible for him to do so.
“That’s not possible. Yu’er and Mengya are upright. They do not have any ill intentions against the Crown Prince. Please investigate this matter, Your Highness.”
It was rare that Concubine De would yield to the Queen. Even if they were to get into an argument or fight, she would not have compromised her pride.
However, she was forced to bow down to the Queen for the sake of her son and daughter-in-law.
“While your heart is broken because of your son, don’t you understand that I am too?”
The Queen’s face turned severe from her fury.
Since the days of old, the sorcery of cursing people had brought about much drama in the palace.
Since the beginning of this current dynasty when the Emperor ascended the throne, Concubine Rong had resorted to using the sorcery of vixen.
Unfortunately, when she failed in her attempt to do so, the mother of the emperor gave a command for her to be beaten to death by the rod and banished her entire family.
This incident had become a taboo in the palace and generally, people tried to avoid talking about it.
“Your Highness, the Queen, it would not be difficult to take my life. Even it is so, please allow me a chance to explain.”
At this moment, Lin Mengya was being surrounded by the Queen’s guards who accompanied her here.
However, Baisu and Qinghu were standing between Lin Mengya and these guards.
If a fight broke out, Lin Mengya would not be without any strength to attack or defend.
If she were to fight back, it would make her look more guilty.
On the contrary, she had maintained her composure as if she was not involved in this whole saga and came forward.
No one knew at that moment that her palm was already covered with cold sweat.
“Oh? The evidence is clear. What do you have to say, Princess Yu?”
The Queen snorted as her face remained severe.
“Your Highness the Queen, this piece of evidence may be found in my garden, but who is to say that it does not belong to someone else?”
Having cornered, Lin Mengya had no other choice but to try to argue her way out.
“Not yours? Do you think you can still get away with it under so many pairs of watchful eyes?”
Lin Mengya got onto her feet. She was almost a different person from that frail-looking girl a moment ago.
She was apparently not deterred by the cold look the Queen shot at her, neither was she bothered by the glare of the guards surrounding her.
She was keenly aware that not only she but Long Tianhao and the entire Lin Family would be destroyed if she allowed the Queen to blame this on them.
“If everything found in my garden is considered mine, then all the people here would have to remove the accessories on your body before you leave.”
Lin Mengya sounded as if she was twisting words and forcing logic. She was, in fact, trying to find fault with the Queen’s deduction.
She had distorted the Queen’s train of thoughts to her advantage.
At Lin Mengya’s words, it was observed that many among the people began to smile.
The Queen gave these people a look but remained silent.
Lin Mengya knew it was not easy to lead the Queen by her nose.
She reached out her fair, slim hand and picked up the small, sharp tooth from the table in front of the Queen.
Her mind immediately went into a swirl as she tried to match the tooth to a known species. This tooth seemed to belong to a dog.
Next, she picked up the paper to study it.
There was apparently some mercury in the cinnabar because the radar in her mind could sense it the moment she tried to a.n.a.lyze the contents.
The paper wrapping the cinnabar turned out to be a piece of regular yellow paper people used when they offered sacrifice to their G.o.ds.
She thought of a solution immediately.
“Your Highness the Queen, I’ve been framed. The evidence is precisely this piece of paper.”
All the people were slightly taken aback by Lin Mengya’s claim.
Not only did the Queen’s face remain cold and severe, but there was also a chilling look in her eyes.
“This paper is the most common paper used in the sacrifice to the G.o.ds. Everyone, please take a look.”
Lin Mengya reached out her hand to take hold of a cup of cold tea from the table.
Dipping her finger in the tea, she jabbed through the soft paper with her finger moistened by the tea.
The Queen and most of the other people present did not understand what she was trying to do.
Only the one person standing by the door and watching instantly understood her intention.
What a smart girl! Long Tianhao’s heart which was hanging in midair was finally at ease.
He was no longer rushing to get to her, but remained standing at the door, looking intently at Lin Mengya, which was also caught all the attention of the rest of the people.
“What evidence is this? Do you think you can rid yourself of guilt by poking a hole in the yellow paper?”
Ming Yue suddenly appeared from beside the Queen.
She was the one who snorted at Lin Mengya when she saw what Lin Mengya did.
“So I see that Princess Ming Yue appears wherever there is excitement.”
Lin Mengya said of Princess Ming Yue with sarcasm. She would be a dimwit if she did not realize the reason Princess Ming Yue appeared.
What she needed most now, however, was to extricate herself from the allegations.
“Please take a look at this paper, everyone. If even a drop of water from my fingertips leaves a watermark on it, what more if we had watered it? In order to make sure that the chrysanthemum flowers in my garden would look their best today, I have instructed the servants to water them abundantly last night. The ground may appear dry by now, but the soil below would definitely be moist still.”