newbobooks Chapter 960 Snow Silkworm Shedding
Chapter 960 Snow Silkworm Shedding
"Your humble servant pays respect to Her Majesty the Imperial Concubine Chen. May Your Majesty be blessed with good health and happiness!"
Shen Zhinian said: "Get up."
"Thank you, empress."
Tang Luochuan looked worried, "I wonder why the Queen summoned me here at this time?"
"Xiao Mingzi."
Xiao Mingzi immediately handed the porcelain bottle in his hand to Tang Luochuan.
Shen Zhinian narrowed his eyes and said, "Someone took advantage of the Sixth Prince's full moon ceremony yesterday. The Zhongcui Palace had many people and hid in the palace walls secretly."
"Doctor Tang, take a look. What's in the porcelain bottle?"
A hint of darkness flashed across Tang Luochuan's eyes: "Yes."
Royal Concubine Chen has to take care of the young Fourth Prince and deal with palace affairs. Her life is hard enough every day. Why are there still some blind people who want to harm her?
In his opinion, it would be easier to poison all those people to death...
Tang Luochuan didn't let anyone see the coldness in his eyes. He took the porcelain bottle from Xiao Mingzi and examined it carefully.
To confirm further, he said to Xiao Mingzi: "Get a basin of water."
Xiao Mingzi did as he was told and quickly brought the water over.
Tang Luochuan sprinkled some of the powder in the porcelain bottle into the water.
Snowflake-like ice crystals instantly floated on the water surface.
He took some more powder and burned it over the candle flame.
Soon, the powder turned into a bloody mist.
At this point, Tang Luochuan was certain, and raised his head with a serious expression, "My Lady, this porcelain bottle contains a poison called 'Snow Cicada Shell'."
When they heard it was poison, everyone's expression changed instantly!
Shen Zhinian's eyes turned colder, and he raised his eyes and asked, "What is 'Snow Silkworm Molt'?"
Tang Luochuan explained: "Snow silkworm molt is a poison made by boiling cinnabar, snow silkworm venom glands, and Western Region ice silkworm moth wing powder for seven days. Because the finished product is as red as a crane's crown, people often confuse the two."
"The poison of the snow silkworm molt is even more poisonous than that of the crane's crown! Its characteristics are what I have just verified. When sprinkled in water, snowflake-shaped ice crystals will float up, and when exposed to heat, it will turn into blood-colored mist."
"After being poisoned, you will first feel a sweet and fishy sensation in your throat, which is the poison invading the lung meridian. Then you will feel a cramping pain in your heart and abdomen, as if bitten by insects, which means the poison has entered your spleen and stomach. Finally, you will bleed from all seven orifices and die, as the poison has attacked your heart meridian! The whole process will take no more than a cup of tea."
"Because the nails of the poisoned bodies are blue-black, the feeling when the poison takes effect is like being pecked at by a crane's beak, so people call this way of death 'the crane holding the soul'."
Hearing this, Handan's face was filled with anger and worry: "Could it be that someone wants to use the snow silkworm exuvia to poison the queen?!"
"No... If they wanted to poison the queen, why would they hide the poison in Zhongcui Palace? Could it be that... the person who did this wanted to frame her?!"
"If someone in the palace dies after being poisoned by the Snow Silkworm, and the poison is eventually found in the Zhongcui Palace, Your Majesty will not be able to explain herself..."
Shen Zhinian looked at Handan with appreciation.
After experiencing so much in the palace, even Handan has become a lot smarter.
In any case, the toxicity of the snow silkworm molt is so strong that it is hard to guard against, and knowing how to detoxify is the most important thing.
Although the person who hid it in Zhongcui Palace has no intention of poisoning her now, who knows when the other party will change his mind.
Shen Zhinian looked at Tang Luochuan and asked, "Can you make an antidote for the snow silkworm exuvia?"
Tang Luochuan bowed and said, "My Lady, although the poison of the snow silkworm molt is strong, the detoxification is simple. You only need to take 'Niuhuang Bingbo Powder'. It is made by grinding the Bingbo collected on the winter solstice into powder and mixing it with the powder made from the stones in the cow's gallbladder."
Shen Zhinian's eyes flashed with contemplation. After thinking for a while, he said, "Since the person who did this wanted to frame me, it stands to reason that he should have chosen a poison that has no antidote. This way, if someone dies from the poisoning, I will be more guilty."
"Why did you choose the snow silkworm molt, which is such a simple method to detoxify?"
"If the poisoned person was easily rescued, this palace would not be severely punished."
Tang Luochuan instantly understood what Shen Zhinian meant: "My Lady, you mean that the person who hid the snow silkworm molt in Zhongcui Palace might not want to harm others, but wanted to poison himself, and then frame you?"
Shen Zhinian nodded: "I do have such a guess."
"But it's just speculation at this point."
"Perhaps that person expected me to think this way and deliberately misled me."
Handan said angrily, "Since Her Majesty took charge of the harem, she has been fair and just, and has treated all the concubines in the six palaces well. Even the palace servants say that with Her Majesty assisting in the management of the six palaces, their lives are much easier than when they were living under Concubine Liu."
"How has the Queen wronged them that they are so deliberate in harming the Queen?!"
Handan actually understood in her heart and didn't need a reason.
In the eyes of those people, the queen's favor is the biggest sin.
After all, who in the palace doesn't want to step on others to climb up?
She was just mad.
Shen Zhinian also wanted to know who did this.
Now the snow silkworm molt is the only clue, she asked: "Doctor Tang, tell me the source of this poison."
"Yes."
Tang Luochuan patiently explained: "This poison comes from Yazhou Island, the most dangerous island in the South China Sea. The island is shrouded in miasma all year round and is full of various dangerous creatures."
"Hundred-year-old snow silkworms grow on Yazhou Island. They are made from larvae venom glands, cinnabar and powdered ice silkworm moth wings from the Western Regions. When the ice silkworms turn into cicada pupae, they are molted with boiling mermaid oil. The resulting cicada molts are snow-white after being exposed to the scorching sun, hence the name 'snow cicada'."
Shen Zhinian said thoughtfully: "Cinnabar can be found everywhere, snow silkworms grow in Yazhou, and ice silkworm moths come from the Western Regions..."
Fuqiu said, "Your Majesty, speaking of the Western Regions... Concubine Chun is the most beautiful woman in the Western Regions. Could this matter be related to her?"
Shen Zhinian said: "This possibility cannot be ruled out."
"But it is also possible that the person behind the scenes did this on purpose, hoping to draw suspicion onto Concubine Chun."
Then, she looked at Xiao Mingzi and ordered, "Go and investigate secretly immediately to see if there is anyone else in the palace who has any connection with the Western Regions or Yazhou besides Concubine Chun."
The matter was of great importance, so Xiao Mingzi immediately said, "I understand!"
Handan asked, "My queen, we can't just sit there and wait for death. What should we do next?"
Shen Zhinian said slowly: "That person doesn't know that I have found the snow silkworm molt. You keep it a secret and don't spread the news."
"Since the person behind the scenes has done such a thing, he will surely take action soon."
Just by looking at who is the poisoned person and everyone's reactions, we can get more clues.
"Yes!"
Fuqiu looked at the porcelain bottle in Tang Luochuan's hand: "Then... how do we deal with this poison?"
The enemy is in the dark, they are in the light. Leaving the snow silkworm molt in Zhongcui Palace is a hidden danger after all.
Shen Zhinian suddenly remembered that everyone said that it was Concubine Wang who wanted to instigate the Grand Princess to deal with her on the day of the Grand Princess' birthday banquet out of jealousy.