Chapter 3: Trying to Steal a Chicken but Failing

After Lianqiao finished picking up the chess pieces, she discovered that Nei Chen was missing. Thinking to herself that something was wrong and that the girl must have slipped away to watch the commotion, she hurried off to look for her. Sure enough, she saw Nei Chen crouching in a corner behind a pillar by the side door, peeking inside to observe the situation. Sighing, she pulled Nei Chen along the side wall and slipped inside stealthily, standing behind Su Ying; the high back of the chair happened to shield Nei Chen from view.

It turned out that the group kneeling there consisted of the maids from the ancestral hall responsible for watching over Murong Nei Ping, who had already stepped aside. A short, chubby old woman and two coarse working maids were kneeling on the ground. The old woman was kowtowing incessantly: "Master, Madam, this old servant truly did not know! At that time, I was the only one busy in the kitchen preparing the Second Young Lady's refreshments. I have been in the Murong family my whole life; how could I do such an immoral thing? Master..."

The First Madam interrupted the old woman: "Were there any suspicious people who went to the kitchen?" The old woman answered immediately, "Yes, Nanny Luo from the Fifth Madam's courtyard came by." The First Madam asked again, "No one else?" The old woman immediately shook her head again.

The First Madam looked at Murong Zhi and said after some deliberation, "Fifth Sister has a small kitchen in her courtyard; why would she go to the main kitchen? Do not speak nonsense." It seemed as though she were making excuses for Su Ying, but those with ulterior motives felt their suspicions deepen. Sure enough, Murong Zhi frowned.

The old woman hurriedly kowtowed and said, "This old servant wouldn't dare! If Madam does not believe me, you can call Nanny Luo here. At this time, the kitchen is usually idle; it really was only Nanny Luo who came by."

Su Ying set down the teacup she had been holding and instructed the little maid at the door, "Go call Nanny Luo here."

At this moment, Nanny Song, who had come as a dowry maid alongside the First Madam, hesitated for a moment before appearing to make a decision. She stepped forward: "Master, First Madam, Fifth Madam, there are some things this old servant shouldn't say, but at this critical moment, I have no choice. A few nights ago, I saw Nanny Luo at the back gate appearing to buy something from a young apprentice of the Baicao Hall. At first, I didn't think much of it; Fifth Madam likes tinkering with medicinal herbs, so it was normal for her to have Nanny Luo buy some. But thinking about it now, if it truly was just buying herbs, why would she do it so sneakily behind people's backs at night..."

The First Madam rebuked her, "Shut up! It was pitch black at night; do not speak recklessly if you didn't see clearly." Nanny Song hurriedly knelt and swore to the heavens, "This old servant does not dare to speak falsely. Although there was no candlelight that night, the moonlight was good; I saw it very clearly."

As soon as Nanny Song finished speaking, the Third Concubine rushed toward Su Ying crying. She was just about to reach out and tug at the hem of Su Ying's clothes when she saw Su Ying give her a cold glance. She recoiled her hand in terror and wailed with her head tilted back, "Fifth Madam, even if the Fifth Young Lady was accidentally pushed into the water by our Second Young Lady, the Second Young Lady truly didn't do it on purpose! They are just children playing. If you want to vent your anger, take it out on me! It is my fault; the Second Young Lady is still young and不懂事 (lacks sense). Moreover, no matter what, the Second Young Lady is still Master's child!" This torrent of words essentially concluded that Su Ying was the one who administered the poison, establishing cause and effect.

Su Ying remained indifferent, but Lianqiao could no longer restrain herself. She stepped forward and knelt before Murong Zhi: "Master, please judge fairly! Fifth Madam did not send Nanny Luo to the kitchen, nor did she ask Nanny Luo to fetch any medicinal herbs. In the past, whenever herbs needed to be bought, Madam always sent me. Why would she send Nanny Luo this time? Isn't that very strange?" Nei Chen thought to herself, *Well done! As expected of Mother's personal maid; though she is young, her words are logical and well-founded.*

A flash of triumph appeared in the First Madam's eyes, but her face remained composed as she questioned Murong Zhi, "Master, look, why don't we go to Fifth Sister's herb hut to take a look? If there is no poison, we can restore Fifth Sister's innocence."

Just as Lianqiao was about to speak, Nanny Luo was being pressed into the room. Before she could even stand steady or ask a question, she collapsed to the ground, kowtowing incessantly while wailing, "Master, spare my life! First Madam, spare my life! This old servant wouldn't dare! Spare me! It was all Fifth Madam who made me do it! I... this old servant truly... Fifth Madam is my mistress; I dare not disobey my mistress's words, otherwise, she would send me to Baicao Hall to be a medicinal human! I beg Master and First Madam to give this old servant justice!"

Murong Zhi's brow furrowed deeply. He knew that Baicao Hall often used death row inmates and their enemies as "medicinal humans" to test drugs. Su Ying's relationship with Baicao Hall and Doctor Shen was not simple, and she was always unwilling to say much when questioned, which made it hard for him not to overthink. However, he found it difficult to believe that Su Ying would harm Nei Ping. Yet, currently, all circumstances pointed toward Su Ying being the poisoner. "Su Su, why don't we... go to your herb hut and take a look."

Hearing Murong Zhi say this, Lianqiao became extremely anxious: "Master, you must believe Madam! She would never do such a thing."

The Second Concubine, sitting to the side, began to add fuel to the fire: "Oh dear, little girl, the witness is right here and you still dare to deny it? Is Nanny Luo not someone from your Madam's quarters? I think we should take people to search. Setting up a herb hut at home and tinkering with herbs all day—is this what a married woman should be doing?"

Seeing this, the Third Concubine cried even more vigorously: "Oh, my poor Second Young Lady! Fifth Madam, if you want to vent your anger, take it out on this concubine! The Second Young Lady is delicate and precious; how could she endure such suffering?"

Seeing that Murong Zhi was already wavering, the First Madam feigned a reprimand: "Shut up! Do not forget the rules. Do not forget your status." The Second Concubine murmured and lowered her head, though she was extremely unwilling, twisting the handkerchief in her hands. The Third Concubine also changed her wailing to sobbing, using a handkerchief to wipe her tears.

Murong Zhi looked at these wives and concubines, feeling a sense of profound irritation. He turned to a servant and commanded, "You two, go to the herb hut in Fifth Madam's courtyard." After a thought, he said to Doctor Zhou, who had just finished a prescription and returned with medicine, "Doctor Zhou, you are familiar with this Fish-Ant Grass. I must trouble you to accompany them. Once the truth comes to light, there will be a heavy reward."

Doctor Zhou agreed and was about to head out with the two servants when Su Ying, who had been calm and seemingly detached from the matter, finally spoke: "There is no need." As she spoke, she took a carved ebony box with floating flower patterns from her sleeve and opened it to reveal what looked like green tea, signaling Lianqiao, who was kneeling on the ground, to hand it to Doctor Zhou.

Doctor Zhou bowed as he took the ebony box. He pinched a bit between his thumb and index finger and held it to his nose to smell it. "The appearance is very similar to green tea, with slight black spots on the surface, and the scent is clear with a hint of orchid. It is indeed Fish-Ant Grass."

Upon hearing this, everyone in the room was greatly shocked. Murong Zhi looked at Su Ying in disbelief. The First Madam and the Third Concubine also felt waves of turmoil in their hearts. This Fish-Ant Grass was clearly meant to be placed in a hidden compartment in the herb hut by Nanny Luo; had Su Ying discovered it? They immediately comforted themselves: *So what if she discovered it? Regardless, the herb is on Su Ying. Now that there is both witness and physical evidence, even if Su Ying had a thousand mouths, she won't be able to explain herself.*

Watching all this through the back of the chair, Nei Chen felt something was very strange. *This Su Ying—no, this Mother—what is she doing? Isn't she just forcing herself into a dead end? If she hadn't brought it out, they would have searched and found nothing at all.*

"Oh, so she's confessing without being questioned," the Second Concubine said, covering her smile with her handkerchief. "Master, you must handle this with impartiality."

Seeing this, Nanny Luo seemed even more panicked, kowtowing incessantly: "Master, spare my life! Madam, spare my life! It was all Fifth Madam who made me do it; I didn't dare refuse!"

Su Ying walked up to Nanny Song: "Nanny Song, since you saw Nanny Luo fetching the poisonous herb, did you see with your own eyes that she handed the poisonous herb to me?"

The Third Concubine, worried that Su Ying would shift all the blame onto Nanny Luo, interjected: "If she didn't give it to you, how could it be in your hands? Do you intend to hide the truth..."

"Third Concubine, even in a court of law, suspects are given a chance to defend themselves, are they not?" Su Ying interrupted her and continued to ask Nanny Song, "Nanny Song, did you see it with your own eyes?"

Nanny Song's eyes darted around as she forced herself to remain calm: "Yes. This old servant felt something was amiss and followed Nanny Luo. I saw with my own eyes that Nanny Luo handed the medicinal herb to you, Fifth Madam. Nanny Luo knows this best."

Nanny Luo hurriedly agreed: "Yes, yes, this old servant personally handed the poisonous herb to you, Madam! You cannot deny it!"

"So, Nanny Luo and Nanny Song, neither of you has ever entered my herb hut, correct?" Su Ying paced toward Nanny Luo.

Nanny Luo shook her head repeatedly in denial: "No! Only Fifth Madam and Lianqiao are ever allowed in the herb hut. How could this old servant possibly enter? Wasn't that your order, Fifth Madam?"

Although Nanny Song was filled with doubt, since Nanny Luo had already said so, she had no choice but to deny having been to the herb hut. Hearing this, the corners of Su Ying's mouth curled up slightly, and the sense of unease in the First Madam's heart grew even stronger.

"Nanny Luo, when you sleep at night, do you feel a heaviness in your chest and an unbearable heat? And during the day, do you frequently sweat?"

Nanny Luo's mind was truly a bit muddled, but ever since she had secretly hidden the Fish-Ant Grass in the herb hut, she had indeed experienced such symptoms: "Fifth Madam, how do you know?"

Su Ying slowly bent down and took Nanny Luo's hand, turning her palm upward. With a gentle touch, the life line on Nanny Luo's palm instantly turned black and began to move and grow continuously. The onlookers were terrified, and Nanny Luo collapsed onto the ground in an instant. Su Ying released her hand and turned to Nanny Song: "Of course I know. I also know, Nanny Song, that you have been experiencing these symptoms for perhaps three days now?"

Nanny Song clenched her palms and, as if feeling unsafe, pulled her hands back into her sleeves, as if fearing that if Su Ying touched her, a black line would also grow. She replied with a trembling voice, "This old servant... this old servant does not know what Fifth Madam is talking about. This old servant is very well." After saying this, as if afraid others wouldn't believe her, she quietly straightened her back and stood even taller, as if to prove that she was indeed perfectly fine.

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