Chapter 243: Ironclad Evidence Before Our Eyes
Yun Chu stepped over the threshold and entered.
Her gaze fell upon the teacup, and she directly picked it up, giving it a light sniff.
"Chu'er."
Fourth Aunt Yun's heart suddenly tightened.
She forced a smile and bent down to pick up the teapot: "This tea was for your Aunt Guilan. Let me pour you another cup."
"I'll just have this one." Yun Chu smiled. "Aunt Guilan probably won't mind."
Aunt Guilan tightened her grip on the account book in her hand and shook her head.
Fourth Aunt Yun grew increasingly anxious, even reaching out to snatch the cup: "The tea has gone cold, Chu'er. It's not good for you to drink it. Here, let me get you a fresh cup."
Yun Chu raised the cup: "What's wrong, Fourth Aunt? Am I not worthy of this tea, or is there something wrong with it?"
Fourth Aunt Yun's fingers stiffened: "If you want to drink it, then go ahead."
The medicine in this cup was quite potent. Drinking just one cup would leave someone bedridden for at least a month. Since Yun Chu was so eager, she felt no psychological burden.
Once Yun Chu fell ill too, the Yun family's businesses would naturally fall into her hands.
Thinking this, Fourth Aunt Yun suddenly relaxed. She sat down in a chair, picked up her own tea to drink, while her peripheral vision remained fixed on Yun Chu's movements.
But then she saw Yun Chu suddenly place the teacup on the side table and say softly, "Bring Bi Langzhong in."
Ting Xue went out and brought in a physician with a beard.
"Bi Langzhong, I apologize for the trouble, but please examine my Aunt Guilan and determine what illness she has." Yun Chu stood up and said politely, "Please, have a seat."
Fourth Aunt Yun looked up sharply. Noticing that Bi Langzhong appeared ordinary—neither a palace physician nor a famous doctor—she immediately felt relieved.
Bi Langzhong walked over, sat down, and began examining Aunt Guilan's pulse. After a short while, his expression turned grave: "These are symptoms of consuming Lianqianyuancao. Fortunately, the dosage wasn't large. I'll prescribe three different formulas to be taken alternately. She should recover in about half a month."
The teacup in Fourth Aunt Yun's hand was suddenly overturned.
Realizing her loss of composure, she quickly righted the cup: "What is Lianqianyuancao? Can you really identify it just by taking a pulse?"
"An ordinary physician naturally wouldn't detect it." Bi Langzhong stroked his beard. "But for me, it's not particularly difficult."
Fourth Aunt Yun's nails dug into her palm.
She had thought this was just some random physician Yun Chu had found, but no ordinary street doctor would possibly know about the existence of Lianqianyuancao...
Her heart began to pound, and she glanced uneasily at the teacup.
Coincidentally, Yun Chu also looked at that cup.
Her slender, pale fingers picked up the tea and handed it to Bi Langzhong.
Before she could speak, Fourth Aunt Yun abruptly stood up, deliberately pretending to lose her balance as she lunged toward Yun Chu.
Qiutong raised her sword hilt, pressing it against Fourth Aunt Yun's chest, and said coldly, "Fourth Madam, steady yourself."
The teacup fell into Bi Langzhong's hands. He merely sniffed it once, then frowned. He dipped his finger in, lightly touched it to his tongue, and immediately poured a cup of water to rinse his mouth, repeating the rinsing several times before stopping.
His voice was cold and heavy: "This tea contains Lianqianyuancao."
Aunt Guilan's eyes widened in shock.
Although she had already suspected there was something wrong with the tea, having it confirmed still left her unable to conceal her astonishment.
Her lips trembling, she said, "Fourth Madam, why did you poison the tea?""I did not poison anyone." Fourth Aunt Yun forced a calm expression as she spoke, "Chu'er, where did you find this quack doctor? All he does is spout nonsense about some Lianqianyuancao - I've never even heard of such a thing."
No sooner had she finished speaking.
A crowd appeared at the main hall entrance.
It was Yun Ze bringing many members of the Yun family to visit the patient. Numerous clan members had come.
"Fourth Aunt says Bi Langzhong is a quack?" Yun Ze laughed, "Bi Langzhong and the Divine Doctor Si you all know studied under the same master. Divine Doctor Si is the senior disciple who inherited their master's true teachings, specializing in difficult and complicated illnesses, thus becoming famous throughout Great Jin. As for Bi Langzhong, most of his patients are under ten years old - he specializes in treating stubborn childhood illnesses. Basically all the children of royal nobles have consulted Bi Langzhong for health conditioning. With such credentials, is he still a quack?"
Fourth Aunt Yun stood frozen.
Her own children were all healthy, so she hadn't known about Bi Langzhong's existence.
How did Yun Chu manage to invite such an accomplished physician? And why specifically invite him to treat Guilan...
Unless...
A chill ran down her spine, making her shudder.
"It... it was my poor judgment." Fourth Aunt Yun spoke with difficulty, "I've offended Bi Langzhong, please forgive my rudeness."
Yun Chu said coldly: "Fourth Aunt, you still haven't answered why you poisoned the tea?"
"I didn't!" Fourth Aunt Yun raised her voice, "I've never even heard of this Lianqianyuancao you speak of! Why would I poison anyone? Have I gone mad? Although Guilan and I haven't interacted much, we're both daughters-in-law of the Yun family. What reason would I have to poison her? Chu'er, though your status is different now as His Majesty's personally appointed Fifth Rank Consort, you can't just falsely accuse people without evidence!"
Yun Run stepped forward: "Fourth Aunt truly has no reason to do such a thing. Yun Chu, you're being too impulsive."
"Is that so?" Yun Chu stepped forward and grabbed Fourth Aunt Yun's wrist.
Fourth Aunt Yun's pupils dilated: "What are you doing?"
She struggled violently.
But Qiutong pressed down on her shoulders.
Yun Chu pulled a paper packet containing residual powder from Fourth Aunt Yun's waist pouch.
Bi Langzhong took the packet and sniffed it, saying gravely: "This is indeed the scent of Lianqianyuancao. If one packet of this were consumed, even a strong man would be bedridden for at least half a year. If ingested by a pregnant woman, the consequences would be unthinkable - very likely resulting in two deaths."
Hearing this, Yun Ze's expression immediately darkened.
So the culprit who caused his wife's miscarriage in Chu'er's dream was none other than Fourth Aunt Yun before them.
The Yun family members present were all shocked.
"Fourth Sister-in-law, what were you trying to do? Why poison Aunt Guilan?"
"It couldn't be because Guilan took over the account books of the cloth shop and tea house, and you sought revenge out of dissatisfaction?"
"We're all family, Fourth Sister-in-law. What you've done is going too far."
With ironclad evidence before them, Fourth Aunt Yun could no longer deny it.
She stammered: "The medicine seller said this was just ordinary knockout powder, that drinking one packet would cause three days of illness that would pass quickly without harming the body. I didn't know this was Lianqianyuancao..."
Fourth Aunt Yun's husband, Yun Siyuan, stepped forward: "She would never harm a clan member. This must be a misunderstanding."
Yun Siyuan was of the same generation as Yun Silin. This generation had only these two male descendants. With Yun Silin missing and Old General Yun ill, Yun Siyuan was the only man left in the entire Yun family.
His words always carried some weight.
Usually when he spoke like this, matters would end here.
Yun Ze said calmly: "Should a matter that nearly cost lives be settled with just 'it was a misunderstanding'?"After a moment's contemplation, Yun Siyuan said, "Later I'll have someone deliver two ginseng roots along with two hundred taels of silver as compensation for your distress."
Yun Fourth Aunt gritted her teeth.
Not only had she failed to achieve her goal and lost face, but she would also suffer the loss of ginseng and silver. This was truly a great loss.
Yet she knew she had to pay this price, otherwise this matter wouldn't be settled.
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