Chapter 40
“Your Majesty, does Wang Gonggong mean that this concubine has a strange smell on her body that smells the fish?”
Chou shi’s face couldn’t help but darken. Was the fish mocking her for smelling bad? How could that be! This fish was deliberately making things difficult for her.
Third Prince Mu Tianming, who had been waiting for this opportunity for a long time, exchanged glances with Imperial Concubine Qian. Imperial Concubine Qian took the opportunity to say,
“Sister Chou, why are you so agitated? This fish is fine with His Highness King Jing. Why did it start to feel … uncomfortable when it saw sister?”
Imperial Concubine Qian wasn’t like Wang Xi, who could shamelessly say that fish sneezed.
Imperial Concubine Qian herself had never heard of such a thing, so she changed to a more euphemistic word.
*Perhaps, it really smelled something special. Sister was just injured. Why don’t we ask the imperial physician to come over and take a look again? What if the injury has changed? It’s always better to be cautious.*
Chou shi. “…”
Chou shi felt that Imperial Concubine Qian didn’t have good intentions and naturally refused. The Emperor felt that Imperial Concubine Qian’s words were full of concern. He thought for a moment and said, “What Imperial Concubine Qian said is reasonable. Why don’t we ask the imperial physician to check again?”
The previous imperial physician was called back. Mu Tianming deliberately reminded him,
“Especially carefully check if there is any change in Concubine Chou’s injury or if there is any special smell.”
The imperial physician agreed and checked more carefully than before. Chou shi’s heart was flustered, but she herself didn’t know what was wrong with her injury.
Previously, the imperial physician had said that Concubine Chou needed to rest. But this time, the imperial physician directly knelt down and asked for forgiveness. He told the Emperor that Concubine Chou’s injury was fine, but there was a cypress fragrance around the injury. The imperial physician had only cared about the injury and didn’t notice this in time.
Cypress fragrance?
The Emperor couldn’t understand it for a moment, but at least this showed that King Jing’s fish could smell special smells.
The Emperor’s good impression of King Jing’s fish rose a little.
The Sixth Prince, who had always been gentle and amiable, thought for a while and suddenly realized, “Imperial Father, this son seems to remember that Concubine Chou’s Zhong Cui Palace didn’t have cypress trees. Then the injury on Concubine Chou’s arm…”
The Emperor turned to Madam Chou and sternly said, “Madam Chou, did you lie to me? Tell me, where did you get injured?*
When the taiyi mentioned cypress wood, Concubine Chou’s legs started to tremble. The Emperor glared at her. Concubine Chou’s mind blanked for a moment. She trembled and knelt down.
How was she going to explain that her wound was contaminated with the cedar scent that was not present in the Zhong Cui Palace?
A chamberlain hurried into the palace and whispered a few words to Mu Tianming. The Third Prince’s eyes lit up, and he immediately stood up and said, “Father, regarding the fire in Zhong Cui Palace, I have made some new progress. I heard that Huan Hua from Zhong Cui Palace has gone missing. My guards accidentally found a female corpse in the imperial garden. After investigation, it was Huan Hua.”
What?
Little Carp was bored with the palace fights, so he was secretly playing a finger-rubbing game with King Jing. He was having a lot of fun. Hearing this, he was stunned. This little character named Huan Hua did not die in the original novel. How could she die now?
No wonder the Third Prince didn’t make any progress in the beginning. Now it was his turn …
The Third Prince’s few words didn’t make it clear whether Huan Hua committed suicide or was killed.
If it was the former, it could be because the small fire that was originally planned turned into a big fire that burned down half of Zhong Cui Palace. Huan Hua was afraid that she wouldn’t be able to explain and ended her life. If it was the latter, Li Yu couldn’t guess who killed Huan Hua based on the Third Prince’s words. But no matter what, Concubine Chou was the biggest suspect.
When Concubine Chou heard this news, her face showed surprise in an instant.
The Third Prince’s voice was filled with hidden joy as he said, “I heard that Huan Hua was once Concubine Chou’s personal palace maid. Fortunately, before she died, she left behind a suicide note that revealed her murderer.”
Concubine Chou felt that this was not good. The Emperor pulled a long face and said, “Bring it all up.’
What followed was the interrogation time. The Third Prince’s guards confirmed that Huan Hua was killed by him. Before she died, she left behind a suicide note. The suicide note didn’t refer to anyone else but her master, Concubine Chou. Huan Hua herself also mentioned in her suicide note that it was Concubine Chou who ordered her to start the fire. Concubine Chou must have been afraid that she would reveal the secret and wanted to kill her.
Normally, if someone could leave a suicide note after being killed, it wouldn’t be simple. Li Yu’s intuition didn’t feel right. But Huan Hua’s suicide note mentioned Concubine Chou’s actions, it was true.
The Emperor immediately ordered people to search Ya Xin Tai according to the suicide note. They found cypress branches, handkerchiefs, and other evidence that was unfavorable to Concubine Chou. They also found witnesses who had seen Concubine Chou appear at Ya Xin Tai.
No matter what the true cause of Huan Hua’s death was, it was true that Concubine Chou ordered people to set the palace on fire. It was also true that she burned herself and deceived the Emperor.
It was even possible that she had taken someone’s life. With these crimes, even if the Emperor felt a little pity for Concubine Chou, it disappeared.
Previously, he thought that Concubine Chou was arrogant and willful and didn’t teach the Second Prince well. It was mainly because he revealed that he wanted to establish a Crown Prince, which made Concubine Chou and the Second Prince ambitious. But he didn’t expect Concubine Chou to have a vicious heart …
Concubine Chou knelt on the ground. In the face of conclusive evidence, she didn’t even have time to explain herself. In front of all the concubines and concubines, the Emperor demoted Concubine Chou to a commoner and banished her to the Cold Palace. He also sent Luo Ruisheng to An Hou’s residence immediately to reprimand An Hou.
Concubine Chou and An Hou couldn’t make any waves.
Mu Tianming glanced at Mu Tianxiao proudly. He wanted this mother and son to never rise again.
Only then could his throne be stable.
The Third Prince showed off, and the Sixth Prince responded with a submissive smile.
King Jing couldn’t bear to listen to Concubine Chou’s cries and wails, so he bid farewell to the Emperor. The Emperor still had some interest in the little carp, but now was obviously not the time to study the auspicious signs. The Emperor ordered King Jing to enter the palace another day to discuss it.
When King Jing left, the Sixth Prince stared at King Jing thoughtfully. King Jing also noticed the Sixth Prince’s gaze. He also noticed that the Sixth Prince’s hand was hanging by his side. It had been hiding in his sleeve and had never been taken out.
King Jing calmly raised his eyebrows.
Mu Tianxiao smiled and both his hands came out of his sleeves. He raised them to salute King Jing and said warmly, “Fifth Imperial Brother, take care.’
King Jing saw that his hands were flawless and also nodded politely at him.
Li Yu stayed in the crystal bottle and walked with King Jing for a while. King Jing had taken him in and out of the palace several times, so he could still recognize the general direction. He could also see that after leaving the palace, they didn’t go in the direction of the Wang residence.
King Jing’s resolute side profile was as if it had been carved by a knife. Behind him were dozens of silent guards in black. Wang Xi, who was beside him, drooped the corners of his mouth and looked solemn.
What are they going to do? Little Carp was puzzled.
Thinking back to the original book, the plot where Madame Chou was slapped in the face was mainly a confrontation between the Third Prince and the Second Prince. King Jing wasn’t present.
In the original book, the fire only damaged one palace room. The fire wasn’t big, and Huanhua didn’t die. Madame Chou was demoted in the end, but she wasn’t sent to the Cold Palace. She could still live for a while. But now the reality was that not only was King Jing present, but he also passed the news to the Third Prince and used the Third Prince to get rid of Madame Chou.
Madame Chou’s end was much worse than in the book …
On the surface, it seemed that the Third Prince and the Sixth Prince had won the battle. In fact, King Jing had won.
Li Yu’s heart skipped a beat. He suddenly thought of Huanhua’s death. Huanhua didn’t commit suicide, so who killed her?
Little Carp stole a glance at King Jing. Why did King Jing have a murderous aura? Could it be that Huanhua was secretly killed by King Jing?
Soon, he found the answer on his own.
It was late at night. King Jing took the crystal bottle and made many turns. He stopped in front of a house and waved his hand.
Behind him, the guards in black all hid in the darkness. King Jing himself also found a place to hide and quietly looked at the house from afar.
The house was noisy. From time to time, there were sounds of scolding and reprimanding. It seemed that someone was quarreling. After a while, a man walked out angrily, surrounded by attendants.
Li Yu recognized this man. It was Luo Ruisheng, the Head of Chamberlains.
Eunuch Luo couldn’t hide the anger on his face. The attendant beside him hurriedly tried to persuade him, “He even dared to talk back to such an important person like Eunuch Luo. An Hou is really brainless. It seems that he can’t stand up anymore.”
Luo Ruisheng was quite angry, but he felt that it was inappropriate for his attendant to say it so bluntly, “You don’t have to be so harsh on An Hou. After all, he is a prince.”
The attendant didn’t care, “Hey, Eunuch Luo, you have seen the world. So what if he is a fallen phoenix? He is worse than a chicken without the Emperor’s heart.”
Indeed, Luo Ruisheng sneered contemptuously and didn’t say anything else.
Li Yu realized from their conversation that this was the house where An Hou lived. Just now, the Emperor ordered Head Steward Luo to come over and reprimand him. That was why Head Steward Luo appeared here.
Eunuch Luo and his entourage quickly left. After King Jing waited for them to leave, he ordered the Scribes in black to surround the residence. Then, he wrapped the chain around the crystal bottle’s handle a few times and held it firmly in his hand. He took a deep breath and leaped onto the roof.
Li Yu, who was carried up without any warning, was shocked!!!
Li Yu looked around. It was pitch black all around. The tyrant master had actually brought his pet fish and squatted on the roof of An Hou’s house.
Li Yu didn’t know what King Jing wanted to do. Since he couldn’t escape from the crystal bottle, he simply followed King Jing curiously. He saw that King Jing was still holding the crystal bottle tightly with one hand and gently lifting a tile with the other. The dim candlelight in the house below instantly leaked out.
Li Yu, “…”
The little carp hurriedly moved his head over. Was King Jing trying to peek at An Hou’s unlucky appearance? He wanted to see too!
Whether it was intentional or not, King Jing moved to the side to make way for the little carp, who was jumping around in the crystal bottle, to stop. He could see the situation in the house clearly.
An Hou had been trapped in the house for many days. The floor of the house was covered with all kinds of broken porcelain and tiles. There was basically not a single piece of furniture that was still intact.
Mu Tianzhao sat on the rosewood chair and held his head in dejection. Ever since he was grounded, he hadn’t been able to see the Emperor. Now, there was news that Madam Chou had been banished to the Cold Palace. The Emperor had even specially sent Luo Ruisheng to reprimand him. Mu Tianzhao was born as a prince and had never suffered such grievances. He couldn’t hold back his anger anymore and started arguing with Eunuch Luo. Now, it was too late for regrets.
He had been extremely uncomfortable these days. He often beat and scolded the people around him. His wife and children didn’t dare to approach him. Only one or two servants dared to come over and take care of him.
An old servant brought over a bowl of soup and whispered a few words of advice to Mu Tianzhao.
Mu Tianzhao impatiently waved his hand and scolded the servant. The servant didn’t dare to stay any longer and quietly left.
Li Yu was watching the commotion below. When he saw that the usually clean-shaven Second Prince was now unshaven, the fish felt relieved. However, King Jing didn’t intend to just stand there and watch. He suddenly moved, reached into his clothes, and pulled out an object in a flash.
Li Yu glanced at it and was immediately stunned. This object … was actually the fish bolster he had lost for a long time!
This fish bolster was a reward from a mission. It was made of special materials and looked exactly the same as the fish he used to have. Most people wouldn’t be able to tell if they didn’t touch it carefully. Moreover, he had forgotten when he lost it. How did it end up in King Jing’s hands?
When he thought about how King Jing had kept his fish bolster without returning it, Li Yu was speechless.
King Jing took out a hair-thin string and tied it to the tail of the fish bolster. Then, he winked at the little carp who was watching.
Li Yu was speechless.
Li Yu sensed that King Jing was about to succeed in his evil smile. Just as he was wondering what the other party was going to do, King Jing nimbly threw the fish bolster into the room along the string.
Li Yu was speechless.
Li Yu hurriedly chased after the fish bolster to look inside the room. He saw that the fish bolster was quietly submerged into the soup bowl. Because of the string and the timing of King Jing’s landing, it didn’t make the slightest sound. Mu Tianzhao, who was cursing and complaining, didn’t even notice it.
After Mu Tianzhao finished scolding the servant and Eunuch Luo, he felt a little thirsty. He picked up the bowl on the table and drank a mouthful of soup without even looking at it.
When he had finished drinking, he suddenly caught a glimpse of a gray fish floating in the bowl.
It was a fish that had always brought him bad luck.
Mu Tianzhao was so frightened that he accidentally dropped the bowl on the floor.
“It’s not me, it’s not me, don’t look for me!”
Mu Tianzhao shook his head desperately and stared at the fish that had fallen on the floor. The fish didn’t move, as if it was already dead. Mu Tianzhao was so frightened that he retreated step by step.
He thought of something and used all his strength to claw at his throat. Then, he screamed, “Someone, someone, come quickly! Save me! Save me! “
Mu Tianzhao didn’t dare to look at the fish on the floor again. He also didn’t dare to stay in the room alone. He stumbled and ran out.
Why was Mu Tianzhao so agitated?
Li Yu was a little puzzled. He knew that Mu Tianzhao hated him, but there was no need for him to be so frightened by the sight of the fish bolster. It was too exaggerated. Could a fish bite?
Could it be …..
Li Yu had a flash of inspiration. Combined with Mu Tianzhao’s strange behavior, could it be that it was Mu Tianzhao’s idea to poison the fish food and almost let Xiong Feng swallow the poisonous fish food?
So once An Hou found the fish bolster, he, who had a guilty conscience, thought that it was a poisoned fish coming to take his life. He even thought that … the soup he drank just now was poisoned?
An Hou, who was ill-informed, still didn’t know that his fish was living happily.
Li Yu suddenly figured out An Hou’s thoughts. He also figured out why King Jing insisted on bringing his fish pet up to the roof of An Hou’s house and putting the fish bolster down.
Li Yu took a deep breath. If An Hou wanted to harm the fish, then King Jing … was probably avenging the fish.
The little carp looked at An Hou, who was screaming like a madman, and then looked at King Jing, who was quiet beside it. It couldn’t help but want to rub against its master.
How could this person be so nice to fish?
He didn’t think that Huan Hua was killed by King Jing. If he wanted to take care of the Second Prince, King Jing could do it directly. There was no need to beat around the bush and get rid of a palace servant who didn’t have to die.
King Jing took advantage of the time when An Hou was searching for the missing person to quickly put away the fish bolster. Then, holding the crystal bottle, he floated down from the roof.
“Your Highness!” Wang Xi rushed over. He was responsible for receiving King Jing from below.
An Hou had completely lost his power. It was time to pay back the debt he owed to King Jing’s government.
King Jing wanted to scare An Hou first. He still remembered that Xiaoyu was extremely frightened when he killed the female assassin. King Jing learned his lesson. He didn’t want Xiaoyu to see him being too direct. He only wanted Xiaoyu to see An Hou frightened so that he could vent his anger.
Then, King Jing made an indifferent gesture to Wang Xi. After he left, he had to do a clean job.
Wang Xi received the order. King Jing took the fish back to his residence first. Wang Xi estimated that his master had gone far away, so he ordered the guards in black to ambush him to take action.
The next day, An Hou’s residence was in chaos. It was said that An Hou was in a bad mood after being reprimanded by the Emperor. He drank alone to vent his anger. After getting drunk, he walked around carelessly and accidentally fell into his own pond. When he was found by the servants, he was already out of breath.
The Emperor was furious. An Hou’s actions were clearly expressing his dissatisfaction with him.
The Emperor still allowed the imperial physician to treat An Hou because he was a prince. The imperial physician was skilled and saved An Hou’s life. However, after An Hou woke up, he became crazy. One moment, he said, “It wasn’t me”, and the next moment, he said, “It was me”.
No one understood what he meant.
The Emperor was extremely disappointed with this son of his. He ordered that An Hou be completely locked up to prevent him from being released and frightening others. However, after Madam Chou was banished to the Cold Palace, no one dared to mention An Hou in front of the Emperor.
Every residence had some loyal servants, and An Hou was no exception. A servant from An Hou’s residence went to Head Steward Luo to bribe him and ask the Emperor for sympathy. Luo Ruisheng smiled and agreed. However, he accepted the bribe but didn’t do anything. Who asked An Hou to offend him?
A sinner should act like a sinner.
King Jing’s residence.
King Jing had just returned with the fish when his subordinates reported a piece of good news.
The new fish tank in the residence took many days. The craftsmen worked non-stop and finally fixed it.
Li Yu was originally a bit sleepy, but when he heard the news, he immediately became excited. He continuously acted cute and blew bubbles at King Jing. What kind of fish tank did King Jing make for him? He had heard about it several times and was about to die from craving it!
King Jing knew what the carp wanted to do when he swung his tail. He followed the fish’s wishes and didn’t rush to release the fish from the crystal bottle. Instead, he brought the fish to see the new fish tank.
The fences that were originally around King Jing’s residence were all removed, revealing its true appearance. Li Yu let out a cry of surprise and his entire fish was stunned.
If he didn’t look, he wouldn’t have known that the original ponds and lotus ponds had all been dug up. The empty space where there were no ponds had also been dug up. Every place was connected to form a huge fish tank. The new fish tank was almost as big as the residence.
No, it couldn’t be called a fish tank anymore. It was more appropriate to call it a fish pond or a fish pond. The fish pond was already filled with clear water and the water was gurgling. There was even a small water wheel beside it. There were guards every ten steps around it to prevent others from getting close.
Li Yu looked at the endless new fish tank and was slightly stunned. His eyes were hot.
It was so big. Was it all for his fish? He did grow a size, but King Jing actually gave him such a big new fish tank …
Wah wah wah, the fish was so touched!
King Jing bent down and tilted the crystal bottle. He wanted the little carp to try to swim in the new fish tank.
However, the little carp refused to swim out of the crystal bottle. King Jing had no choice but to personally take the fish out of the bottle.
The little carp looked at him with its black eyes and obediently rubbed its head against his hand.
King Jing curled his lips and put the fish into the water. This was his gift to Xiao Yu. He hoped that Xiao Yu would like it.
King Jing dealt with An Hou, who was calm in his heart. His strong murderous intent turned into a little embarrassment.
The little carp reluctantly turned around under King Jing’s feet a few times. Then, it slowly swam and became faster and faster. Behind the fish, the water in the pond bloomed a string of sparkling waves.
This was the first time Li Yu swam in the pond after he traveled through the book. Moreover, it was such a long swim. At first, he was a little reserved. However, when he saw the spectacular underwater scene, he immediately attracted the fish’s attention.
This was not an ordinary fish pond. The meticulous and nitpicky King Jing ordered people to dig a world under the water that was only for the fish.
Circles of luminous pearls were embedded on the underwater stone walls. The originally dark pond was as bright as day. At the bottom of the undulating pond, there were rows of polished stones of various colors. In the middle of the pond stood a pavilion, mountain rocks, and trees. They were all shrunk according to the actual landscape and were carved on jade.
The little carp was stunned. He swam over slowly to admire the scenery. Gradually, he recognized that this was the scenery outside the King’s Mansion. The craftsmen were skillful and carved very vividly. They even carved the roads, stalls, passersby, carriages, and even cats and dogs.
Because he was always carried around in the crystal bottle by King Jing, he had more or less noticed the lively scene outside the King’s Mansion. When he took a quick glance, he was full of envy. Now, all of it was in his new fish tank and belonged to him.
Li Yu strolled around proudly. He used his fins to touch and poke at this and that. He loved it so much that he could not put it down. Although he could not leave the King’s Mansion, his love for fun was greatly satisfied.
Finally, he swam to the front of a separate house at the bottom of the pond.
Li Yu felt that this house was very familiar. After thinking for a while, he recognized that this was King Jing’s house. He did not expect that the tyrant master had carved his own house into it.
Li Yu swam around the house and found that the door could be opened. The little carp clumsily opened the door with his mouth.
In the courtyard, there was a person carved from jade. He wore a crown and tied up his hair. He was dressed in a brocade robe and there was a sword hanging from his waist.
Although there were no specific facial features, Li Yu immediately recognized that this was King Jing’s jade statue. Among the people he knew, King Jing was the only one who would dress like this.
Why is it so pitiful? You’re the only one.
Li Yu laughed and pushed the jade statue down. He did not hesitate to play with it.
After playing with it for a while, he had enough. He picked up the jade statue with his mouth and carefully arranged it.
Li Yu remembered that he had seen a small decorative fish-shaped stone on the underwater stone wall.
There were many such stones. Li Yu found one without much effort. He bit a corner and broke it off from the stone wall.
Everything went smoothly. The fish dragged the fish-shaped stone and swam back to the jade statue. He placed the stone fish next to the jade statue and closed the door of the house.
Done! This way, the Tyrant Master would not be alone!
