Chapter 86: The Free and Easy Young Marquis (19)
“Poisoned?” The Empress turned pale with fright.
Huo Xian hastily made a shushing gesture. She immediately covered her mouth to prevent herself from making another sound. In her wide-open eyes, disbelief was fully evident. It took a long while before she murmured softly, “H-how could it be… how could he be poisoned?”
Du Hanxu also realized how terrifying his words were. It would be one thing if an ordinary person were poisoned, but the one poisoned now was the current Emperor. He knelt down and begged for mercy: “This commoner has shallow talent and learning. Perhaps I misdiagnosed.” Although he said this, in reality, he was ninety percent sure that the Emperor was indeed poisoned. Regrettably, he had forgotten where he was.
“No, you didn’t misdiagnose, you couldn’t have misdiagnosed.” The Empress forced herself to calm down, seeming to mutter to herself, and also seeming to speak to Huo Xian. “His Majesty has been frequently plagued by nightmares for the past few months, lacking energy, and often getting muddled when handling state affairs…” She paused here and looked at Huo Xian.
Huo Xian knew she was probably referring to him acting arbitrarily and insisting on sending his father to eradicate bandits.
Unexpectedly, what the Empress said was the aftermath: “On the first day of the first lunar month, His Majesty came to my palace. He asked me why Jin’an hadn’t entered the palace to pay her respects.”
Jin’an, meaning the Eldest Princess.
“I thought His Majesty had just forgotten that the Eldest Princess was spending the New Year in Wengzhou. I never expected that the next day, he would complain to me again that you didn’t enter the palace to accompany him in staying up for New Year’s Eve, and jokingly scolded you for being unfilialânot entering the palace, and not even sending a gift.” The Empress’s expression was somewhat dazed.
Huo Xian’s eyebrows twitched slightly. “Your Highness, did His Majesty really say that?”
The Empress nodded. “You have been favored by His Majesty since childhood. In past years, during every festival, he would summon you into the palace.” Speaking of this, her feelings were somewhat complex. Because her Crown Prince was clearly also so excellent, yet Heaven had cruelly taken away his health. Every time she saw the little Huo Xian running and jumping freely, her heart would ache for the Crown Prince, and she would also develop some not-so-good thoughtsâwhy couldn’t Huo Xian’s health be given to the Crown Prince?
The Empress saw exactly how much Emperor Haoyuan favored Huo Xian. Therefore, Emperor Haoyuan’s sudden change was what made her find it strange, especially sending Marquis Huo to eradicate bandits. If Marquis Huo died in Liangzhou, it would inevitably result in the uncle and nephew turning against each other and becoming enemies.
How could a person change so drastically?
The Empress couldn’t figure it out before, but if it was poisoning that caused Emperor Haoyuan’s temperament to change drastically and his memory to become confused, everything could be explained.
Cold sweat poured down Medical Immortal Du’s face. Since ancient times, royal secrets claimed lives. The more one knew, the faster one died. Although he was already sixty years old, with half a foot in the coffin, he still wanted to live a few more years. Thus, he cast a pleading look at Huo Xian.
Receiving his gaze, Huo Xian didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. The Empress also just remembered that this doctor was still kneeling on the ground and hurriedly asked him to rise.
The Empress had completely calmed down. She asked, “Doctor, what poison is His Majesty afflicted with? Can it be cured?”
Hearing this, Du Hanxu’s expression was somewhat strange. He glanced at Huo Xian, and seeing Huo Xian nod slightly, he then said, “His Majesty is afflicted with a poison from the Shu region called ‘Mind-Bewildering Grass’. The toxicity is very weak.”
“Weak?” The Empress looked towards the dragon bed, unable to connect weak toxicity with remaining unconscious for many days.
“Since the toxicity is weak, why is His Majesty unable to wake up for so long?” Huo Xian voiced the question.
Du Hanxu didn’t reply directly, but said, “In my early years of wandering, this commoner visited the Shu region. The Shu region has Gu-women. Gu-women raise Gu with fresh blood. Gu-insects can cure diseases and can harm people. It is rumored that powerful Gu-women can use Gu-insects to take a person’s life from thousands of miles away, and there are also Gu-insects that can manipulate another person’s mind.” He paused briefly, then continued, “Gu-women with average skills cannot completely manipulate others, hence they need the assistance of Mind-Bewildering Grass. Mind-Bewildering Grass does not have strong toxicity. After consumption, it makes a person mentally dazed. Long-term consumption is harmless to the body, but it causes many dreams at night and memory disorders.”
What he said matched the symptoms of Emperor Haoyuan in the Empress’s impression, but there was still one point the Empress couldn’t understand: “Since it is harmless to the body, why doesn’t His Majesty wake up?”
“This… this commoner also does not know.” Medical Immortal Du himself was also puzzled. Although His Majesty was unconscious and had eaten little in recent days, making him somewhat weak, his body was still healthy. It was very strange that he wouldn’t wake up.
The Empress’s eyes darkened. Not knowing what she had thought of, she suddenly asked, “Has His Majesty been afflicted with Gu, the kind of Gu-insect Doctor Du mentioned that can manipulate the mind?”
Although Medical Immortal Du wanted to study the Gu arts of the Shu region Gu-women, alas, they ignored him completely. So he only knew that there were such bizarre Gu-insects, but he didn’t know the specific methods of utilizing them. It was said that manipulating Gu-insects also required incantations, which were the unpassed secrets of Gu-women.
“Doctor Du, can the poison of the Mind-Bewildering Grass be cured?” Huo Xian asked.
Before Du Hanxu could answer, the Empress’s eyes lit up: “If the Gu-woman needs the aid of Mind-Bewildering Grass to manipulate a person’s mind, it must be because her power is insufficient. Once the poison of the Mind-Bewildering Grass is cured, she will naturally be unable to manipulate him anymore.”
Du Hanxu opened his mouth, helplessly explaining, “Your Highness, this commoner has never seen a Gu-woman use Gu arts, and I still do not know if His Majesty has been afflicted with Gu.”
“Regardless of whether he is afflicted with Gu or not, the poison can be cured first,” the Empress said. After a pause, she asked hesitantly, “Mister Du, can the poison of the Mind-Bewildering Grass be cured?” She couldn’t help but switch to an honorific title, showing that she valued Du Hanxu.
This time, Du Hanxu gave an affirmative answer. It was not difficult to cure the poison of the Mind-Bewildering Grass. Even without medication, the human body’s natural metabolism could quickly metabolize it away, although Medical Immortal Du didn’t yet know the term “metabolism.”
[Strange. Huo Xian, I also only detected that the Emperor is poisoned. Apart from some minor issues, his body itself has no other illnesses.] Huo Yuan was also very puzzled.
Huo Xian asked him: [There are no weird Gu-insects in his body?]
[No, I’ve checked.] Huo Yuan said with certainty.
[Hmm…] Huo Xian was thoughtful.
[Huo Xian, have you thought of anything?] Huo Yuan asked.
A touch of deep thought colored the space between Huo Xian’s brows. He said: [Emperor Haoyuan’s symptoms sound like he’s being manipulated by a Gu-woman using Gu-insects. But since there are no Gu-insects in his body, perhaps we can rule out this option. I did think of another possibility…]
[Which one?]
[Hypnosis.] Huo Xian said. [Do you remember the perverted psychologist He Yunjia from our first mission world? It’s a method he frequently used when ‘treating’ his ‘patients’.]
If he hadn’t mentioned it, Huo Yuan wouldn’t have remembered. But as soon as he brought it up, Huo Yuan immediately reacted. His database contained knowledge about psychology. Psychology was a discipline that appeared quite profound and unfathomable to outsiders. Excellent psychologists were like divine beings possessing mind-reading abilities. From a single gesture or a single look, they could decipher a person’s inner thoughts. Therefore, modern criminal investigations also involved the participation of psychological consultants.
These were not the main points. The main point was that when psychology was used to do bad things, it was also a rather terrifying existence.
For example: hypnosis.
Huo Yuan could examine the health level of a human body, but he could not accurately scan the mental aspect. If Emperor Haoyuan was truly in a coma due to hypnosis, he indeed would not be able to detect it.
But had hypnosis already been invented in this era? Who possessed such great ability?
Not only was Huo Yuan puzzled, but Huo Xian was also pondering the answer to this question.
An hour later, the imperial physicians came to take Emperor Haoyuan’s pulse. Huo Xian heard the imperial physicians saluting the Noble Consort outside… He couldn’t help but freeze. Had the Noble Consort gone back and then returned to the bedchamber, or had she been waiting outside the whole time?
“Water…” As the imperial physicians were let in, Emperor Haoyuan, who had been motionless for a long time, suddenly murmured.
Although the voice was soft, the bedchamber happened to be completely silent. Hearing it, the Empress was immediately overjoyed, hastily ordering the palace maids to pour water. The head of the Imperial Academy of Medicine volunteered to take his pulse. Although the Empress wouldn’t go so far as to blame the imperial physicians for being useless, at this moment she clearly trusted Du Hanxu more, so she looked towards Du Hanxu.
Du Hanxu kept his eyes on his nose, and his nose on his heart, quietly acting as background scenery. In his early years, he had some conflicts with this head of the academy. Because of the conflict, he didn’t join the Imperial Academy of Medicine. Instead, after wandering for many years, he opened a medical clinic. Their last meeting was over ten years ago when he was examining the Fourth Prince’s eye disease.
When the head of the academy saw him, his brow twitched fiercely, and his breathing couldn’t help but become a bit heavier.
For a moment, the entire bedchamber was so quiet one could hear a pin drop. Finally, Emperor Haoyuan opened his eyes groggily. In his daze, he saw the person standing not far away and called out weakly, “Yi… ‘er?”
Huo Xian snapped back to reality, took two steps to the side of the dragon bed, and called out softly, “Your Majesty?”
Emperor Haoyuan frowned slightly, seemingly dissatisfied. “Why are you acting like a stranger with Uncle…”
This look, this tone, all perfectly resembled Emperor Haoyuan from the original host’s memory.
Could it be that with the poison cured, the hypnosis was also no longer effective?
Huo Yuan guessed: [Could it be that the person who hypnotized Emperor Haoyuan also lacked the necessary skill, so they borrowed the Mind-Bewildering Grass? A mental daze makes it easier for hypnosis to succeed.]
[Not impossible.] Huo Xian agreed with his guess.
After the Empress personally fed water to Emperor Haoyuan, the imperial physicians stepped forward one after another to take his pulse. The conclusion they reached was the same as before: the Emperor’s body had no major issues; he was just somewhat weak from eating very little in recent days. Hearing this rhetoric, the Empress felt even more dissatisfied in her heart. She coldly ordered the crowd of imperial physicians to withdraw. The head of the academy walked at the very back, and he clearly heard the Empress ask Du Hanxu to take the Emperor’s pulse once more.
“What has happened to Us?” Emperor Haoyuan looked at the unfamiliar folk doctor, somewhat puzzled.
The Empress then briefly told him about his poisoning and coma. Upon hearing that he had actually been poisoned, Emperor Haoyuan’s face instantly turned as black as the bottom of a pot. “What audacity!”
[Huo Xian, I feel like this Empress seems a bit unreliable.] Huo Yuan communicated with Huo Xian.
Huo Xian: [Hmm? What do you mean?]
[Knowing that Emperor Haoyuan was poisoned, shouldn’t the first thing be to have the Imperial Guards lock down the palace and control anyone who could have come into contact with Emperor Haoyuan’s food and drink?] Huo Yuan said calmly.
[Yeah…] Huo Xian’s tone was quite meaningful.
As a result, it was still Emperor Haoyuan who asked first if the palace had been locked down. Only then did the Empress turn pale, remembering this important matter. However, she didn’t immediately go to summon the Commander of the Imperial Guards. Instead, she said, “It is the Noble Consort!”
Emperor Haoyuan’s expression changed slightly. “Empress, do not speak nonsense.”
The Empress took a deep breath. “Am I speaking nonsense? Mister Du said the poison you are afflicted with has been in your system for some time. Out of a month, you sleep in the Palace of Celestial Music for half of it. When the Noble Consort was an unmarried young woman in her boudoir, she already had a reputation for being good at cooking. You…”
“Silence!” Emperor Haoyuan shouted.
“Clangâ” A dull crashing sound almost drowned out Emperor Haoyuan’s angry shout, and this crashing sound came from outside the bedchamber.
“Your Highness, Your Highness, Your Highness the Noble Consort… Someone come, help…” Outside the bedchamber, it suddenly fell into chaos, with the sounds of footsteps and shouting intermingling.
An ominous feeling flashed across Huo Xian’s heart, and this ominous feeling was fulfilled when he stepped out of the bedchamber and saw the Noble Consort, Wang Yunjie, her forehead smashed flat and covered in fresh blood.
Translator’s Note: Gu (č): A venomous insect or a form of black magic involving venomous creatures, famously associated with the Shu region (modern-day Sichuan).
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