Flowery Hair: A Maidservant

Chapter 540 Soul Gu

“The copy of the account book cannot be used as evidence, and the people in charge of the case at the Dali Temple have not yet verified it... Hou Zhenbei has just returned to the capital, presumably to defend the tribute matter.”

Meng Shu took out a gold medal with double camel patterns from a brocade box on her desk. It was a gift from the Emperor years ago, and she, Consort Chun, and the Empress each received one.

The gold medals were not particularly exquisite in craftsmanship, nor were they anything special. Perhaps that was why Marquis Zhenbei intercepted a few of them along the way.

Green Willow asked softly, "Your Majesty, this servant is foolish and doesn't quite understand. The Marquis of Zhenbei's mansion also has its own properties, and although the Marquis's wife is a second wife, her family is a well-known medicinal herb merchant in the southwest. The Marquis's mansion should not be short of money. If it is understandable that they instructed the Jiang family to amass wealth in Yuzhou, why would they risk the crime of deceiving the emperor to embezzle tribute?"

Meng Shu remained silent for a moment before saying, "I'm afraid they've been doing this kind of thing for a long time. The Zhenbei Marquis's mansion looks glamorous on the surface, but it's just an empty shell inside. Or perhaps for some reason, the Zhenbei Marquis's mansion urgently needs a lot of money to support itself."

Upon hearing this, Green Willow dared not think too deeply, and only sighed, "This is far too audacious." Then she remembered something and hurriedly reported, "By the way, Your Majesty, His Majesty previously sent Lord Tong, the Director of the Imperial Household Department, out of the palace on an errand, and I just heard that he has returned to the palace."

"There's no need to inquire further; let's just wait and see," Meng Shu instructed. "According to what Madam said, if Miss Baolian succeeds this time, the Zhenbei Marquis's mansion will certainly not escape punishment."

"This servant understands."

Inside the Renming Hall, candlelight flickered.

Taking advantage of the moment when the palace maids in the Shanggong Bureau were handing over their daily supplies, Zhixue quietly took a slip of paper and quickly slipped it into her sleeve.

In the flower hall, the Empress took the note, unfolded it, and quickly scanned it before her face turned deathly pale.

"The ghost girl...is dead."

She murmured, the last glimmer of light in her eyes completely extinguished, her voice withered and lifeless: "The Soul Gu... is gone too."

Seeing the Empress slump down as if her soul had been ripped away, Zhixue felt anxious.

She reached out and took the note from the Empress's hand, then lit it over the candlelight. After carefully considering her words, she advised, "Your Majesty, although I come from Lingnan, I still feel that... the theory of soul-cursing poison is too mysterious. Doctor Chu and his apprentice both died because of poison. Your Majesty, perhaps you should... give up now."

The Empress stared blankly at the flickering flame, then suddenly chuckled softly, her laughter filled with anguish: "Gone...everything is gone...even the last glimmer of hope has been denied me by Heaven."

Tears streamed down her face silently, but she was completely unaware of it. "I'll find a way to send a message to my father. If he really embezzled the disaster relief funds, I'll ask the Marquis's mansion to find a way to make amends. It's better than denying it to the death."

The night outside the window was deep and dark, the thick darkness seemed to be swallowing the entire palace, and even the last trace of starlight and moonlight was hidden behind the layers of clouds.

......

It was the winter month, and the north wind was biting.

Marquis Jiang Wei of Zhenbei is formally placed under investigation by the Court of Judicial Review for alleged embezzlement of disaster relief funds and interception of tribute in Yuzhou. The Emperor, mindful of his past service on the frontier, issues a decree: Marquis Jiang Wei is immediately confined to his residence and may not leave without imperial decree. His titles and ranks are temporarily suspended pending further investigation.

Three days later, Xu Shou, the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, received a secret report from Jinan and presented it to the Emperor that very night.

The following day, Xu Yizhao, the Left Vice Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, led dozens of constables to Jinnan, secretly protecting Qin Yandu (a son of a concubine in the Qin family and the magistrate of Jinnan County) and his sister Qin Baolian on their journey to the capital.

Almost simultaneously, Meng Shu also received a secret letter from Madam Yun.

The letter detailed how Zhou Niangzi and Zheng Shan, while lying in ambush in the valley outside Zhengding Prefecture, intercepted a strange poisonous creature from the Yi girl. What was chilling was that the soldiers bitten by the creature that day, though seemingly normal afterward, able to walk and eat, had vacant eyes and slowed reactions, like soulless puppets, as if their minds had been controlled by something unseen.

The Zhen family physician spent days and nights poring over medical classics and ancient texts on witchcraft, finally finding a clue in a tattered volume of "The Record of Strange Gu." According to the record, the poison was no ordinary substance, but a sinister poison called "Soul Gu."

This Gu poison must be fed with the blood and essence of an infant less than one year old. Once the infant has grown up, it is then refined into a pill using a [secret technique]. If a person takes it, their mind and spirit will gradually be controlled by the caster, eventually leading to complete loss of consciousness and manipulation of their words and actions, as if... they have become a completely different person.

"To become a completely different person?" Meng Shu felt a chill run down her spine.

Consort Chun's fingertips trembled slightly, her voice filled with suppressed anger: "The Empress and Marquis Zhenbei, father and daughter, actually dare to... dare to use such insidious methods!"

Meng Shu slowly raised her eyes, her heart feeling a sudden emptiness followed by a tightness. "Wan'er, if this pill made from poison... was prepared by the Empress for Yu Nu'er and Kang Ge'er..."

The study fell into a deathly silence.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

(It's not that I have to get stuck here, it's just that I have to rush back to my hometown after get off work tonight, and there's really no time left...)