Quick Transmigration: Kitten's Healing Handbook - Chapter 55

Chapter 55: Raccoon Dog! To Combat! 10

To be on the safe side, Liuli still stayed near the wood shed, but besides Qi Yu hiding some food, Liuli didn’t discover any other anomalies.

There were certainly guesses, after all, having seen so many small worlds in the forbidden zone, but it still needed verification.

Today was the day Zhou Qingyan married Mu Wanyin, and to avoid any mistakes, Liuli rushed back to the Prince’s Mansion.

At the third quarter of the Mao hour, the Imperial Guards opened the way, eighteen attendants carrying a vermilion gold carved palanquin, eight maids in front and behind carrying baskets scattering flower petals and gold leaf along the way, followed closely by hundreds of loads of aloeswood dowry, demonstrating the Minister’s Mansion’s importance to this marriage, and also informing everyone that Mu Wanyin had her family to support her, even if she married into the royal family, she could not be easily bullied.

Zhou Qingyan, wearing a dark blue brocade robe, with a jade belt and a pair of dragon-tiger-double-fish pendants, dismounted gracefully, drawing cheers from the onlookers.

This shows that Zhou Qingyan’s popularity has subtly surpassed the Crown Prince’s. This is the reason for Zhou Qingyan’s recent setbacks, but it is also the result of his years of effort, the voice of the commoners giving him a chance to share the power.

Perhaps because of the joy of the wedding, or perhaps in response to the people’s affection, Zhou Qingyan threw the prepared gold leaf into the crowd.

His attendant, Mo Shu, also took the gift baskets containing gold leaf and candy tied with red silk ropes, and together with other attendants distributed them to the crowd.

In front of the ancestral temple, Mu Wanyin wore a seven-pheasant two-phoenix pearl crown, with gold and gemstone hair ornaments and tassels of pearls, her bright red robe with gold embroidery swept across the eighty-one steps with carved lotus patterns, and together with Zhou Qingyan, she ascended the altar step by step, listening to the Minister of Rites’ recitation, following the ritual to complete the ceremony of worshipping their ancestors.

As they descended the altar, Zhou Qingyan reached out to support Mu Wanyin: “The wedding dress is complex, be careful. ”

Mu Wanyin was somewhat hesitant, but remembering that tomorrow was the day Qi Yu would enter the mansion, her resolve to poison Zhou Qingyan strengthened.

Being an Empress in the Imperial Palace is not necessarily better than being an all-powerful Princess Consort in a fiefdom.

Back at the Prince’s Mansion, Mu Wanyin was sent to the wedding chamber, while Zhou Qingyan was in the front hall, drinking with the guests.

Even though the officials present each had their own thoughts, they all showed respect or flattery and offered blessings and gifts to the new couple.

After all, not everyone has the Minister’s intelligence and confidence to remain unmoved.

Even if most of them sided with the Crown Prince, Zhou Qingyan was a legitimate prince. No matter how the higher-ups fought, they could only be pawns in their hands. The rules, the difference between the sovereign and his ministers, those who could reach the rank of fourth-rank or above official in Kyoto and ascend to the court were not fools.

With the guests satisfied, Zhou Qingyan returned to the wedding chamber, took the comb from the maid, and lifted Mu Wanyin’s veil. Zhou Qingyan had thought he would feel something when facing such a beautiful woman, but he felt nothing.

Zhou Qingyan’s expression was his usual coldness, and Mu Wanyin felt some apprehension, unwilling to admire the handsome appearance of the groom.

She took advantage of the absence of others in the room to put poison in one of the cups of wedding wine. The slow-acting poison was administered bit by bit, its toxicity accumulating in the body until, upon noticing something was wrong, the body was already failing.

Mu Wanyin first picked up the unpoisoned cup of wine, lightly raised her arm, her fingertips trembling slightly, linked her arm with Zhou Qingyan’s, leaned her head against his, and drank the wine.

Liuli had been lying on a tree branch outside since Mu Wanyin entered the bridal chamber. To be safe, when Mu Wanyin was poisoning the wine, she had confirmed with Tuanzi that it was the Mafeisan she had replaced, before continuing to observe in secret.

As Liuli expected, Zhou Qingyan was very familiar with Mafeisan. Even though the amount in the wine was very small, the feeling of his perception and consciousness deteriorating in an instant, yet his awareness remaining unusually clear, almost made him drop his wine cup.

Why did Mu Wanyin give him Mafeisan, and such a small amount at that? To refuse to share a bed with him? That’s clearly impossible. Which woman would actively push away her husband? Even a princess consort, if she didn’t win his affection, servants would adapt accordingly. Mu Wanyin, a woman from a prominent family, wouldn’t do something so detrimental to herself.

Perhaps it wasn’t Mafeisan but poison. Zhou Qingyan looked at Mu Wanyin. Her seemingly shy appearance looked more like an attempt to avoid his gaze, masking her nervousness, further confirming his suspicion.

So Minister Mu had Mu Wanyin poison him on their wedding night. Such a small amount of poison; he intended to slowly weaken his body with slow-acting poison to prevent him from affecting the Crown Prince’s status.

He thought he would be angry, resentful. Zhou Qingyan put down his wine cup and said calmly, “Tonight, this Prince has drunk too much. I feel unwell. I will rest on the couch outside. After the Princess has freshened up, she should rest as well. ”

Mu Wanyin controlled her urge to probe Zhou Qingyan’s current condition. Her voice trembled slightly from nervousness, and a bit of pitiful charm entered her tone: “My Lord… won’t you stay…?”

“Princess, don’t overthink it. The people in the mansion will not disrespect you. Today’s ceremony was elaborate; the Princess must be tired. Just rest. ”

“Yes. ”

Zhou Qingyan went to the outer room. Mu Wanyin asked her maids to help her change out of her wedding dress, called for water, and soaked in the tub. Only now, feeling certain she was unobserved, could she allow herself to feel her panicked emotions.

This was her first time doing this. Did she add too much medicine and Zhou Qingyan noticed something? Or did she not control her expression well enough, making Zhou Qingyan suspicious…?

Seeing the couple sleeping separately on their wedding night, Liuli felt a bit complicated. She glanced at the Book of Fate, saw no warning, and went back to her comfortable cat bed to sleep.

Zhou Qingyan was very wary of his surroundings. Hearing a movement in the tree outside, he looked up and saw the mansion’s large raccoon dog, its figure agile as it leaped away.

While pondering whether the kitten’s presence here was a coincidence, he couldn’t help but be amused by the irony. What bad intentions could a little kitten have?

He had already instructed Mo Shu to investigate Mu Wanyin’s poisoning. He should have results before leaving Kyoto.

In the late afternoon of the next day, Qi Yu, wearing a peach-colored large-sleeved ruqun dress embroidered with peonies and a peach blossom hairpin, looked elegant and dignified, but this attire did not suit her thin frame. It was clear that the Qi Mansion was merely going through the motions. A small palanquin carried Qi Yu through the side gate of the Prince’s Mansion into the backyard.

Given Mu Wanyin’s precedent, Zhou Qingyan was wary of Qi Yu. Minister Mu, as a high-ranking official in the court, had Mu Wanyin poison him to help the Crown Prince consolidate his position. Minister Qi didn’t even bother with appearances; could Qi Yu also be instigated to deal with him?

Zhou Qingyan looked at Qi Yu with a complex expression. Was his decision to form alliances with high-ranking officials to win over court officials a mistake…?