usatvline Chapter 21: Visiting the Qin Mansion Again (1)
Chapter 21: Visiting the Qin Mansion Again (1)
After eating and drinking, Gu Qingyun regained the Gu Xiaoyun that he had accidentally transformed into when he ate the delicious food. Yan Mo started writing the memorial, as the nature of the case had changed by now.
From the misfortune encountered by a country gentry family, it gradually developed into a philanthropist who donated rice and grain, and then became a blatant poisoning case that might have shocked the entire Kyoto Prefecture.
Although there are only a few young ladies as victims at present, if the poison is not found, it is likely to cause panic in the entire circle of nobles. There were many local wealthy businessmen and staff members who went there that day. If they knew that everyone was poisoned, they would destroy the Dali Temple or at least lose a lot of skin.
Fortunately, the memorials from the Dali Temple were not sent to the court, but directly to the emperor. Otherwise, I don't know how big a mess it would cause. After all, rich and powerful families care about their own lives.
The next morning, the memorial was already lying quietly on the emperor's desk. The emperor was shocked when he took a look at it.
These spices and food are made by people every day. They are omnipresent and no one notices them. After a long time, they will lead to death.
Furthermore, if the master burns this incense, servants who are close to him will be contaminated and will not be able to detect it. Those who are far away cannot be trusted.
If this poison becomes popular among the aristocratic circles, I don't know how many lives will be lost. It may even destabilize the court and destroy the entire country.
If one is willing to use it, destroying a country is not difficult.
The emperor had no choice but to quickly order the Dali Temple not to make the case public and to investigate the matter promptly so as not to let the poisoner and the person who used the poison go unpunished.
When the emperor's oral order reached the Dali Temple, Gu Qingyun had already gone out with Zhao Huaiqing. Today's main task was to find out the source of the incense at the Qin Mansion, and then follow the clues to investigate. Otherwise, everyone would be crossing the river by feeling the stones.
At this time, the Qin residence had become much more desolate. Compared with the grand banquet a month ago, it was much quieter. The door was closed, and even the colorful flower beds at the door had decayed. Two white lanterns were hung in front of the door, and the breath that came to your face made your heart skip a beat.
Gu Qingyun walked forward and knocked on the door. After a long time, a little boy's head appeared. After looking at the visitor's uniform, he said that he would go and tell them to wait a moment.
His posture was cautious, and it seemed as if he was afraid to speak loudly.
It seems that the death of the two young ladies in succession has taken a heavy toll on the Qin family, and coupled with the fact that most of the people in the Qin family have been poisoned, during this period of time, only doctors from the clinic and sorcerers from the Jianghu have been coming in and out. The entire Qin family is in a state of panic and cannot find peace.
Not long after, Master Qin came out. Although he was not so thin that he looked unrecognizable, he had lost a lot of weight. Gu Qingyun was not the kind of person who could comfort others, and Zhao Huaiqing only opened his mouth a few times but nothing came out.
Several people walked into the inner courtyard in silence.
Gu Qingyun spoke first, "Master Qin, your mansion has indeed been poisoned. As for what kind of poison it is, it has not been found out yet. You just have to be careful with the food in your mansion." Gu Qingyun mentioned the poison, but did not mention the spice. He just mentioned the food vaguely again.
Master Qin nodded, "We have been very careful about this matter since we came back that day, but... all the doctors coming in and out of the mansion today are from the clinic. It is true that everyone in the mansion seems to have been poisoned, but as for what the poison is, the clinic only said to check from what they eat and drink.
But this kitchen was really turned upside down, but we couldn't find many clues. At most, some of the ingredients were not fresh. "
After saying that, he sighed deeply.
Gu Qingyun listened carefully, thought for a moment and said, "How many servants are there in this mansion now? Summon them all to the hall later." Then he stepped back half a step and whispered in Zhao Huaiqing's ear, "I'm afraid the person who poisoned him hasn't left yet. You should quickly return to the Dali Temple and find two teams of yamen runners to surround this mansion."
Zhao Huaiqing frowned slightly. If he left, what would happen to the Shaoqing?
Gu Qingyun shook his head, motioned him to hurry up, and then motioned to Master Qin, "I will go to the Qin Mansion alone today, Master Qin just needs to gather everyone in the mansion to the hall."
Master Qin had been in the business world for many years, so it was clear to him that he understood the reason. He nodded again and called his personal servant to give him instructions.
"Master Qin, I heard that there is a huge Buddhist temple in your house. Could you take me there to see it?" Gu Qingyun asked as he stuffed a breath-holding pill into his mouth.
"Of course, of course. It's just that all the disasters in our family started from that day. Many people said that my family was showing off, and couldn't suppress the blessings and luck, so we brought disaster upon ourselves. After that day, I closed the Buddhist temple, but I was afraid that this would be disrespectful to the temple, so I asked people to clean it and burn incense every day." Master Qin led the way upstairs.
Gu Qingyun looked at Master Qin seriously. He needed to confirm whether the incense burning in the Buddhist temple was still the poisonous one. If not, then this person was probably still in the mansion. After the incident, he was afraid of being discovered, so he replaced the incense. If still, then this person might have been dismissed or left.
As they were absorbed in their thoughts, they went up to the third floor. Gu Qingyun had taken a breath-holding pill and could not smell anything, but Master Qin took a deep breath as soon as he reached the third floor. "This Buddhist temple really has a kind of intimate fragrance."
After saying that, without waiting for Gu Qingyun to join him, he walked straight into the hall. He quickly walked to the incense cabinet, took out two incense sticks, and began to worship on his own.
In less than half a quarter of an hour, Gu Qingyun was very sure that the incense had not been replaced.
Could it be that this person has already left the house?
Gu Qingyun waited for Master Qin to finish his greetings, then pulled him downstairs. It was not until they stumbled into the hall that Master Qin seemed to be in another world. “What’s wrong with me? Hey, I’ve always been like this lately, forgetting things. Please forgive me, Master Shaoqing.”
Gu Qingyun sighed. He thought that Master Qin might have been staying at home for too long recently and had been more or less infected by the scent.
The most urgent task is to gather everyone together to eliminate suspicion, and then wait for the people from the Dali Temple to come and check what has this spice. The Qin Mansion must not have this spice anymore, otherwise no matter how many doctors are invited, it will be of no use.
Soon, a large group of mothers and aunts gathered in the hall. Several young masters were accompanied by a servant each. The second young lady and the young fourth and fifth young ladies entered the room one after another. Only the mistress of the house was carried up in a sedan chair, and she looked sick. Several concubines also seemed to be gasping for breath, and Gu Qingyun thought they were going to fall several times.
The woman in the family looked a little sickly, and although the man's face looked a little gray, neither of them was that serious.
Gu Qingyun shook his head. Perhaps this scent was more appealing to women, or perhaps women simply loved burning incense. He wanted to light a stove and smell the aroma, perhaps finding the source, but Gu Qingyun had not forgotten that he was alone, so he had to give up.