Cao De cleared his throat and feigned an official’s demeanor, "Under my wise leadership, after a night of tireless efforts by everyone at the Internal Guard Bureau, and through many twists and turns, at great expense of effort—"
Sitting above, the Emperor really couldn’t bear this man’s bureaucratic babble any longer and picked up a brush to fling downwards, "Get to the point."
Just as Cao De was about to recount the hardships he and the Internal Guard Bureau suffered, a brush suddenly came flying towards him, nearly hitting his handsome and dashing face.
His temper was about to flare up again.
Forget it, getting angry was pointless, he was used to it.
He had to pause and hold back for a moment before getting straight to the point, "Your Majesty, I handed you a slip of paper yesterday, which I believe you have received. Imperial Doctor Wang is dead, and I have now confirmed three things."
He raised one finger as he continued, "First, the fact that Beauty Lian is pregnant has been leaked, and the leaker is none other than Imperial Doctor Wang."
Raising a second finger, he said, "Second, the memorial by Imperial Censor Wu against Beauty Lian is greatly related to the leak of the pregnancy."
Then, raising a third finger, he stated, "Third, the Serpent incident at Canglan Court is also related to Imperial Doctor Wang."
The Emperor listened to him and, at the mention of the third matter, asked, "The Serpent incident at Canglan Court, how is that related to Imperial Doctor Wang?"
All signs indicate that the Serpent at Canglan Court targeted Nanny Qi more than anyone else.
Cao De smiled slightly, his fox-like eyes gleaming with mischief, "I had someone turn Wang Jinfang’s home inside out and found traces of rearing Serpents in a herb garden outside the city. It was Your Majesty’s Little Beauty who reminded me. Yesterday, Nanny Qi mentioned that Your Majesty’s Little Beauty recognized that some Serpents came from the south, not from the Capital, which reminded me."
The Emperor understood, "So you are saying that the memorial by the Imperial Censor, the death of Imperial Doctor Wang, and the Serpent incident at Canglan Court could all be part of the same case, orchestrated by the same person behind the scenes who incited the memorial and released the poisonous insects?"
Stroking his smooth chin, Cao De said with some uncertainty, "To say it’s one case could mean it’s one case, but if you say it’s two, it could also make two cases, or even three separate cases."
The Emperor asked, "What do you mean?"
Speaking in such a mysterious way, this trickster must also have doubts; this matter is not simple.
"Based on the interrogation results, all evidence points towards Minister of Revenue Xue Ping, which is far too obvious; there are flaws everywhere. Last night, I interrogated three groups: those related to Imperial Doctor Wang, those related to Imperial Censor Wu, and the thieves who released the Serpents in Canglan Court along with those who were repairing the Main Hall..."
Cao De narrated the findings found in his investigation.
Starting with Imperial Doctor Wang Jinfang, after diagnosing Lian Hua, and until his death, he had also consecutively read the pulses of Attendant Zhou Changzai, Noble Consort Xue, Concubine Fang, and other concubines.
Indeed, as he claimed, Wang Jinfang specialized in women’s and children’s illnesses, and was known in the palace as the gynecological master; for any minor ailment, the Palace Concubines would request him first.
Cao De had checked the medical records: Attendant Zhou needed to regulate before her monthly period, Noble Consort Xue’s migraine flared up, Concubine Fang’s routine Pulse of Peace, and others, each had their reasons, most with precedents to reference and compare, revealing no apparent issues.
As for Imperial Doctor Wang himself, his social connections were broad, and he also had a reputation among the court officials’ wives outside the palace, making him quite popular.
Therefore, his leaking the news of Lian Hua’s pregnancy implicates everyone he has dealt with, both inside and outside the palace; currently, it is impossible to determine whether the leak was to the palace first or to the outside world.
Regarding the interrogation of the thief who released the Serpent in Canglan Court, they were connected to an underworld job through a middle-aged man known as Seventh Master, who arranged for them to disguise themselves as craftsmen to enter the palace.
They did not know the background of this man, only that he was very bold, spending money like water, and instructed them to simply find an opportunity to spread some poisonous insects in the servants’ quarters.
Taking advantage of the lax security during yesterday’s noon break, a few of them, one acting as lookout, dug a hole under the cover of the vegetation, quickly reached the other side of the Main Hall, scattered the Serpent, and made a swift departure.
The nature of these Serpents is to hide by day and come out at night. They thought they were foolproof, believing that the Serpents would only become active at night, seeking warm places to go, while by that time, they would have long since made their escape. However, to their misfortune, the autumnal chill caused the Serpents to emerge early, exposing them before they could flee.
Nothing more could be gleaned from them; they truly had no knowledge of Seventh Master’s whereabouts.
When interrogating the personnel from the Interior Work Department, according to their testimonies, due to the sudden need to repair the Main Hall of Canglan Court, and with no major palace construction in many years, the previously stored timber had been used up, and new supplies had not been procured. In the rush, suitable timber was hard to come by.
The timber selected for palace construction was always of particular quality and couldn’t be used immediately after cutting.
Due to the urgent timeline and the fact that the timber was not for main beams, they considered sourcing some from the large households in the folks, which had precedents; the wealthy families were often willing to honor the palace’s request, parting with their reserved timber.
At this time, coincidentally, a businessman from the folks approached the Interior Work Department, claiming he had a batch of regulation-compliant timber collected from a wealthy household.
The people from the Interior Work Department checked the timber and found it to be excellent, top-quality fir, of significant age, with strong and durable wood, beautiful grain, and resistant to decay and moisture, making it perfectly suitable for the secondary construction materials, so they decided to take it immediately.
This was how these timbers came to be used.
The merchant, Cao De, was also brought in for interrogation overnight, and it was discovered that he had been directed by a middle-aged man, who informed him about the palace’s need for timber and told him which wealthy family had the materials. Seeing the profit to be made, the merchant inquired and indeed, facilitated the transaction quite smoothly.
At this point, Cao De teased, "My lord, can you guess whose family it was?"
The Emperor raised an eyebrow, not in the mood for such guessing games, "Speak!"
Cao De clicked his tongue, finding Yuchi Zhao to be dull, and said reluctantly, "It was Imperial Censor Wu’s family, and the wood was sold by his nephew."
A flash of cold light appeared in the Emperor’s eyes, "The mastermind behind this has made careful moves; their intentions are punishable!"
This incident seemed chaotic, but was long premeditated, meticulously planned, and carried out with a venomous intent.
No sooner had Lian Hua been denounced as a bewitching consort than the Managerial Nanny left by the Former Empress Dowager was found dead in her courtyard, seemingly confirming Lian Hua’s notorious title.
Nanny Qi was not only the Former Empress Dowager’s Managerial Nanny; she also held the Third-Ranked Imperial Edict, the only one in the present court awarded for merits, allowing her to not bow before the Harem Consorts and court-appointed ladies. Such an edict usually required the support of a husband to be granted to an official’s wife, indicating the high status of Nanny Qi.
If such a person perished in Lian Hua’s Courtyard, the former court would definitely be shaken, thus solidifying the accusations, and even if her murder was later discovered, it would be of no avail.
The Emperor emanated a chilling aura, unable to restrain his murderous intent at the thought of what might have happened had his Little Concubine not saved Nanny Qi in time. The person behind this, he thought, deserved extermination along with their entire clan.
With a decision forming in his mind, he concealed his murderous intent and looked at Cao De, "Have you determined who the mastermind is behind all this?"