November tenth, the date Lu Qing Wan happened to be on duty at Bai Xing Lin. She was aware of the situation that day without Ying Yi needing to elaborate.
However, "This concerns His Majesty's life. Without evidence, we cannot jump to conclusions. Did you ascertain who took the medicine?"
Ying Yi had investigated all night, and his findings were naturally not limited to whether the medicine was missing. Upon hearing her question, he nodded without hesitation. "This subordinate has ascertained it. The person who took the medicine is named Chen Jing Chuan, the paternal nephew of Chen Yan Zhang, the former head of the Imperial Hospital. However, a considerable amount of time has passed, and this subordinate is currently uncertain of Chen Jing Chuan's whereabouts after taking the medicine. He has also vanished without a trace. This subordinate is having people search for him, but it is uncertain whether he can be found." After all, it was a grave crime of attempting to harm the current emperor. If the mastermind were to silence witnesses, these nearly twenty days would be enough for him to die hundreds of times over.
"Meaning, the medicine was indeed stolen, but we currently have no way of determining through whose hands it entered His Majesty's body, is that correct?"
Ying Yi nodded. "Precisely."
Lu Qing Wan tilted her head in thought. "Even if Chen Jing Chuan is alive, he is certainly being hidden by someone. The mastermind knows how dangerous their actions are and would not allow such a minor matter to implicate them. Why don't you change your approach and investigate the origin of that Western Regions' Soul Disturbing Incense? Also, Scopolamine is a drug unique to Bai Xing Lin. Outsiders are not familiar with its medicinal properties, so how would they even conceive of this plan to kill two birds with one stone, poisoning His Majesty while also implicating Bai Xing Lin?"
Ying Yi's eyes suddenly lit up. "If this subordinate recalls correctly, this drug was used when Lady Zhang, wife of Marquis Wen Chang, tried to usurp power and suppress Ding Kun. However, His Majesty was already poisoned when Ding Kun was suppressed. Therefore, only those who had contact with Lady Zhang could have known its properties."
With a breakthrough in the case, Ying Yi was brimming with excitement and eager to act. Lu Qing Wan, finding him bothersome, shooed him away. "Since you've figured it out, why aren't you going to investigate? Are you waiting for me to wait on you for your meal?"
Ying Yi bolted away at full speed. As dusk fell, with numerous matters outside requiring attention, Lu Qing Wan found herself with very little she could personally handle. Having a rare moment of free time, Lu Qing Wan picked up the cultivation techniques she had neglected for days and began to practice. She sank her qi to her dantian, circulated it through twelve minor heavenly cycles. Whether her cultivation increased or not was secondary; her body felt truly comfortable. What began as a way to pass the time quickly turned into an entire night of practice. She opened her eyes, her mind clear, showing no signs of having stayed up all night. Lu Qing Wan refreshed herself, went through her ablutions, then styled herself as Lin Sa, and began her meal, waiting for Ying Yi to come and escort her.
Li Su, sitting beside her, chattered on about the news she had heard the previous day. "His Majesty is gravely ill, and the ministers have proposed that Prince Chen and Prince Jing marry immediately to ward off the illness. His Majesty has agreed. It is said that the wedding of Prince Chen and Prince Jing is only half a month apart. Prince Jing has even invited the Minister of Revenue to be the officiant. His own maternal uncle is going to officiate for someone else; Prince Chen has lost immense face this time!"
"Hmm?" Lu Qing Wan seemed to have heard something extraordinary. "You said who is Prince Chen's maternal uncle?"
"Minister of Revenue Chen Jian Zhang!" Li Su looked at Lu Qing Wan, puzzled. "Is there a problem?"
"Don't try to deceive me. I've reviewed the genealogies of prominent families. Feng Qing Heng is from the Empress's lineage. Empress Su Ling Jun has no paternal brothers, so she considers her paternal cousin Su Bo Jun as her elder brother. We have been dealing with intelligence concerning Su Bo Jun the most these past few days. How has Feng Qing Heng's maternal uncle suddenly become Chen Jian Zhang?" Having said that, Lu Qing Wan vaguely recalled that Feng Xi Wu had mentioned to her that Chen Jian Zhang was Feng Qing Heng's maternal uncle, which left Lu Qing Wan utterly bewildered. She couldn't help but exclaim, "Tsk, this circle is truly messy!"
Li Su couldn't help but chuckle at Lu Qing Wan's increasingly confused expression as she pondered. "Princess Consort, there's no need to be surprised. Minister of Revenue Chen Jian Zhang and the late Empress Su Ling Jun were indeed half-siblings through their mother."
Since this concerned Feng Qing Heng, it was no longer ordinary gossip. Lu Qing Wan immediately became serious. "What exactly is going on?"
Li Su then patiently began to explain. "During the reign of the Sacred Ancestor, the Great Gan's vassal states repeatedly rebelled. Xi Liang and Bei Wei harassed the borders multiple times, and even Lian Yun Qiang attempted to encroach upon Great Gan. At that time, the Chen clan of Ying Chuan was the foremost merchant family of the era, possessing wealth comparable to the nation. To replenish the national treasury, the Sacred Ancestor married the then Princess Jing He to the eldest son of the Chen family, who bore Chen Jian Zhang. However, for some reason, the eldest son of the Chen family passed away at a young age. Great Gan was still in turmoil, so Princess Jing He was forced to marry the second son of the Su family, who had been stationed in the northwest for generations. They had a daughter, who became Su Ling Jun, the late Empress."
Lu Qing Wan listened with an expression of someone who had never seen such a thing. "One woman marrying two husbands? Is the customs of Great Gan so open?" It wasn't that she thought women couldn't remarry, but she had never heard of such a thing in this era and was genuinely shocked.
"It's not that the customs are open, but that the times were too difficult." Li Su couldn't help but sigh. "The Chen family were Confucian merchants, with 'Confucian' preceding 'merchants.' Princess Jing He was merely granted a noble title upon her marriage, with no real power. When Princess Jing He remarried, the entire Chen family disagreed. To appease the Chen family, the Sacred Ancestor also allowed members of the Chen family to enter official service, and only then was Princess Jing He permitted to remarry. However, after receiving benefits, the Chen family did not forgive Princess Jing He; they still treated her as someone who had lost her chastity and did not even allow Princess Jing He to see Chen Jian Zhang. Princess Jing He was heartbroken and exhausted. After struggling to give birth to the late Empress and enduring for a few more years, only when the times began to stabilize did she end her own life with a three-foot white silk." Li Su, being a woman herself, spoke of Princess Jing He's experiences with great sympathy.
However, Lu Qing Wan heard something amiss. "So, on the surface, Feng Qing Heng only acknowledges Su Bo Jun as his maternal uncle, and not Chen Jian Zhang, his biological uncle. But in reality, it is Chen Jian Zhang, or rather, the Chen family, who does not acknowledge him as their nephew. Therefore, Prince Jing requested Chen Jian Zhang to be his officiant to humiliate Prince Chen?"
Li Su nodded. "That's precisely it!"
Lu Qing Wan clicked her tongue. "Su Ling Jun was the Empress, after all, and had an inseparable connection with the Chen family. Is the Chen family truly so principled that even with Su Ling Jun holding the highest position, they still did not accept Princess Jing He and Su Ling Jun?" Normally, if one's sister became Empress, they would rush to curry favor with her, lest their very blood be wasted. Yet, the Chen family had such animosity towards Feng Qing Heng, and had not even recorded a word about it in the genealogies, which truly baffled Lu Qing Wan.
Li Su chuckled. "This isn't because the Chen family has principles, but because our Emperor is formidable." Speaking of Emperor Jing You, Li Su's eyes held the same respect she had for Feng Xi Wu. "Our Emperor excels in both civil and military affairs, selecting capable individuals, and never relies on in-laws. Therefore, in His Majesty's harem, apart from Noble Consort Ye, the exception, other consorts truly have no significant influence on the court."