Although Imperial Physician Gao had served as an imperial physician in the palace for several years and understood some of the palace’s rules of conduct, no matter what, he was ultimately someone with limited worldly experience.

Though he knew the palace ways in his heart, he didn’t truly understand them deeply.

Imperial Physician Zhang stroked his graying beard and lifted the book he had just taken from the bookshelf.

He said, “These past days, I’ve searched through most of the medical texts but haven’t seen any illness like Consort Xiao’s symptoms. It’s truly baffling. If it really is a serious disease, I’m afraid the entire Imperial Medical Bureau will suffer along with it. Now, we can only hope that the illness afflicting Consort Xiao is not any serious disease—only then can we avoid disaster.”

He sighed!

Imperial Physician Gao understood. “But the current symptoms have not yet been identified. What if…”

What if it really was a serious disease—what would they do?

“Suwen.” Imperial Physician Chang suddenly called out to him, interrupting his words. He slowly walked over. “Since you didn’t speak out in front of His Majesty and Her Ladyship at the time, now you can only observe and firmly conclude it’s a cold wind illness. Outside, you must not speak carelessly—remember this, remember this…”

A reminder!

Imperial Physician Gao fell silent for a moment, nodded, and finally quietly left the book repository.

Although he had received Imperial Physician Chang’s reminder, his heart remained restless and worried throughout.

He didn’t know what to do!

Prince Rong’s Manor.

Ever since Ji Wanxin had sent news saying that Zhang Daqi had been captured by Prince Yi’s people, Jingrong had sent Lang Bo to secretly investigate.

To see if it was true!

A day later.

Early in the morning, Lang Bo rushed back to the manor at great speed. His clothes were soaked through more than halfway, his black boots striking the bluestone slabs with resounding echoes that shook one’s heart. His hair seemed to have frozen over with thin layers of frost, crystalline and visible, while his usually stern and unsmiling face had turned white with a purple tinge.

It seemed he had been frozen all night.

Jingrong had already prepared hot tea inside. As soon as he entered, he gestured with his eyes toward the steaming cup of tea.

“Drink some tea before speaking.”

He obeyed and drank it down.

His whole body warmed, and he shivered.

He reported, “Your Highness, this subordinate secretly infiltrated Prince Yi’s manor. Indeed, Zhang Daqi is inside, but he’s been severely tortured, covered in blood. It seems Prince Yi intends to force a confession through torture.”

What a twisted person!

“The reason?”

“What Miss Ji Er said was correct. It turns out Prince Yi’s people traced that four-inch dagger to a pawnshop. Not long after, it was redeemed by a young maid from the Huang family. But on her way back to the manor, that maid collided with a vegetable seller, and the dagger was lost as a result. Based on the maid’s description, they determined that person was Zhang Daqi, which is why Prince Yi captured him and is forcing a confession through torture.”

Hearing this, Jingrong’s brows furrowed high with genuine anger.

“What else did you discover?”

“This subordinate heard someone interrogating him about where the dagger was and how the Great Buddha statue was moved, but he kept saying he didn’t know. He was beaten unconscious several times. This subordinate couldn’t stay long in Prince Yi’s manor, so as dawn approached, I hurried back to report to Your Highness.”

“Bang!” Jingrong slapped the table, his expression extremely dark. “If he had found evidence before interrogating, that would be one thing, but now, based solely on a young maid’s one-sided testimony, he’s decided Zhang Daqi is the murderer and is torturing him for a confession, disregarding human life.”

“Your Highness, should we report this to His Majesty? We could also use this opportunity to impeach Prince Yi.”

“No!” He immediately rejected it. “Right now, the most important thing is the case itself, not maneuvering and fighting between princes. Although Father Emperor intends to support me, all the civil and military officials are watching. This prince cannot make one wrong step. Reporting that Jing Yi has set up private torture would undoubtedly make this prince look dirty as well.”

Not worth it!

Lang Bo was ultimately a straightforward warrior—best at fighting and killing, somewhat rigid when it came to using his brain. But once his master explained, he understood.

He inquired, “But Your Highness, what should we do now?”

“Has the Ministry of Justice interrogated anything useful?”

“Not yet.”

“Didn’t Miss Tang go to Zhang Family Village to investigate secrets? Has she sent any news?”

“No.” Lang Bo paused slightly and said, “Miss Tang has always been reckless. Why did Master Ji allow her to go? If something goes wrong, it could…” Be disastrous.

He didn’t say those three words aloud.

Jingrong’s eyes deepened, and he only spoke one sentence: “This prince trusts her.”

Even if rivers and mountains collapsed, he would trust her.

Right now, Ji Yunshu was sitting in the small pavilion in the back courtyard.

These past few days it had been either raining or windy—the weather was cold and gloomy, making everyone’s hearts feel tight.

A maid brought over a brazier and placed it nearby.

“Master, you should still go inside. The weather is so cold—be careful not to catch a chill.”

No response.

Since the maid was standing behind her, she only saw that Ji Yunshu seemed to be staring at something in her hands. She took small steps closer and looked—only then did she see Ji Yunshu was holding a brownish-yellow stone, turning it over and over.

The maid blinked her eyes.

Curiously she asked, “Master, what is this?”

“This is a stone. Can’t you tell?”

Uh!

How embarrassing!

The maid smiled awkwardly and said, “I can tell, it’s just that my mouth is clumsy and I misspoke. Actually… I wanted to ask Master why you’re looking at this stone. Could it be that there’s something strange about this stone?”

“Strange?” Ji Yunshu pondered, her fingers lightly rubbing over it again. The stone’s surface was very smooth—as her fingertips passed over it, it felt both cool and hard. She said, “This stone is indeed somewhat strange.”

“Hmm? Where?”

She shook her head. “I don’t know.”

She really didn’t know!

It was just that her heart felt it was strange.

The maid also stared at it for a while. “Isn’t it just a yellow stone?”

“This is brownish-yellow, not yellow.” Ji Yunshu corrected her.

For someone who painted, color accuracy was extremely important—important to the point of… being somewhat obsessive-compulsive.

The young maid felt awkward again and shrugged. Never mind.

At this moment—

Another maid named Zhuxin walked over from the courtyard. While adding charcoal to the brazier, she said, “Master, the stone in your hand must be very expensive, right?”

“Why do you say that?”

“My father used to specialize in the stone gambling business, so I know some things. The stone in Master’s hand seems to be called a Huxian stone. People who often travel far usually carry one for protection and peace. I’ve heard they’re very effective, and the price is quite high. But currently there aren’t any in the southern region—they come from the north, probably close to Nanlin Anlang. If I remember correctly, that should be it.”

“Nanlin Anlang?”

The maid nodded.

Ji Yunshu recalled what Gao Meng had said before: “This humble one’s surname is Gao, given name Meng, a single character. I’m from Anlang, and this is my first time coming to the capital to do business in tiger pelts…”

A person from Anlang.

This stone was called a Huxian stone, and the capital didn’t have them.

Could it be… that Gao Meng brought it from Anlang?

If it belonged to Gao Meng, why was it in Foolish Four’s hands?