Chapter 147 Who is Poisoning Whom
Zhang Qian and Wu Jian hurriedly escorted Long Chen out of Qianjiang Commandery and swiftly rode their horses to the military camp.
“Sir, how did you know the wine was poisoned?” Zhang Qian asked curiously.
Earlier, Long Chen had signaled her to test the wine; she thought he was deliberately causing trouble, but it turned out the wine was truly poisoned.
Long Chen explained, “At the breakfast stall, someone handed me a note saying there was an issue with the cook in the rear offices of the Inspector’s Mansion.”
Wu Jian was surprised. “Someone tipped you off? Who could it be?”
Long Chen shook his head. “I don’t know. The only ones who would intervene to help us at this time would be the Emperor’s Shadow Guards or the Western Depot, but it shouldn’t be them.”
The Empress was deliberately testing Long Chen and would never send someone to assist him.
As for the Western Depot, if Feng He knew anything, he would have told Long Chen directly—there’s no need for them to act mysteriously.
Zhang Qian asked, “Then who poisoned the wine?”
Long Chen thought for a moment. “The poisoner is either from the Secret Guards or the Imperial City Department. Between the two, the Imperial City Department is more skilled in poisoning, so it’s likely the cook belongs to them.”
“If the Imperial City Department is trying to kill me with poison, but the breakfast stall people want to foil their plan, then…” Wu Jian quickly finished the thought, “he must be someone from Crown Prince Li Chengtong of Southern Liang.”
Long Chen nodded slightly. “That’s the only explanation.”
Li Yuanying coveted the crown prince’s position; everyone knew they were rivals.
Zhang Qian asked, “Could this ruin our plan?”
Long Chen smiled. “He actually helped us.”
Zhang Qian was puzzled. “Helped us?”
Long Chen said, “Rest well tonight. Tomorrow, we’ll make a big move!”
...
Inside the city, at the Inspector’s Mansion.
Several physicians entered the rear offices simultaneously to administer an antidote to Xu Zhi and Wang Zhong. Yuan Tengfei was relieved he hesitated earlier and didn’t drink the wine.
Xu Zhi coughed up several mouthfuls of black blood. After gargling the antidote, his condition slowly improved.
Wang Zhong’s condition was much worse; he had consumed the wine and was now unconscious.
Chen Zu paced anxiously; with Xu Zhi and Wang Zhong poisoned, his own life was in jeopardy.
Yuan Tengfei calmed himself and began pondering the situation.
The wine was poisoned—who did it? Was it Long Chen? That seemed unlikely; this was their territory, how could Long Chen have the chance to poison them?
If not Long Chen, then... Chen Zu?
Suddenly, Yuan Tengfei grabbed Chen Zu fiercely and shouted, “You wanted to poison us!”
Chen Zu was terrified, pleading, “Second Lord, you’re mistaken! I wouldn’t dare! I almost drank the poison myself!”
Yuan Tengfei demanded, “Who cooked the food? Bring everyone out!”
Chen Zu immediately gathered all the kitchen staff in a line. Yuan Tengfei interrogated them one by one, but they were all elderly and his allies—no issues were found.
“Damn it! Who poisoned us? If you don’t speak, I’ll send your entire families to Ghost Island!” Yuan Tengfei slammed the table and cursed loudly.
A trembling kitchen assistant said, “Second Lord, there’s an old cook who had just left. I suspect he’s the poisoner.”
Another cook’s wife added, “We’ve been fine until he arrived; problems started only after he came. It must be him.”
Chen Zu recalled and grabbed the officer responsible for the kitchen, saying, “Did you bring in a cook last night? Was it him?”
The officer had suspected the old man all along and remained silent.
“Sir, I don’t know,” the officer stammered.
Chen Zu insisted, “Second Lord, it was definitely that old cook!”
Yuan Tengfei growled, “Go catch him and bring him back for questioning!”
Chen Zu immediately led men out to search.
...
At the marketplace inn, in a private room.
Captain Zhang Peng hurried in. Officer Hou Ping was awaiting news.
“How is it?” Hou Ping asked calmly despite his inner anxiety.
Zhang Peng shook his head slightly. “That Long Cheng’en is too cautious. He tested the wine with a silver needle before drinking and didn’t drink it.”
“On the other hand, Xu Zhi and Wang Zhong drank it and are now undergoing detoxification.”
Hou Ping nodded. “That’s normal. It’s never so easy to succeed.”
“Xu Zhi and Wang Zhong being poisoned is actually good—it prevents them from stirring up trouble.”
“Keep looking for opportunities and follow the plan.”
Zhang Peng acknowledged and left the room.
...
At the Origin Inn.
The lean deputy general entered the room where Wu Ming was peering through the window crack, observing the street.
“General, the Imperial City Department failed, and they poisoned Xu Zhi and Wang Zhong.”
Wu Ming withdrew his gaze and smiled. “The Imperial City Department is best at poisoning. How could they fail?”
The deputy was puzzled. “I also find it strange. If they made a move, they must have been confident. How did they fail?”
Wu Ming said, “There was another failed assassination yesterday. The Water Department tried to kill in the river but were counter-killed three to none.”
Wu Ming was already aware of this.
The deputy general added, “We used to think the Imperial City Department was formidable. How did they become so incompetent against Long Cheng’en?”
Wu Ming snorted coldly. “Our Grand General’s mansion was once glorious too. What about now?”
The deputy general was silent.
It seemed those who opposed Long Chen all met tragic ends, no matter how mighty they once were.
Shangguan Wei, Jing Tianlie, and now the Imperial City Department.
“So we must kill Long Cheng’en to remove the threat to the Grand General,” the deputy general declared resolutely.
Wu Ming nodded slightly—this was exactly the plan.
...
Inside the Inspector’s Mansion.
The city’s best physicians worked late into the night. Wang Zhong finally woke but was extremely weak, occasionally vomiting blood.
Xu Zhi’s condition was better, though his voice was nearly hoarse.
Chen Zu returned with his men, dejected. “Third Lord, that old cook has vanished as if into thin air. We can’t find him anywhere.”
Yuan Tengfei stood and slapped Chen Zu hard, sending him flying into a pillar.
“No matter who they are, anyone who dares attack us must die!” Yuan Tengfei cursed fiercely.
Despite being poisoned, Xu Zhi remained calm and hoarsely said, “This poisoning doesn’t seem targeted at us. Their real target was Long Cheng’en.”
Yuan Tengfei said, “No matter who their original target was, we were poisoned in the end. This grudge must be avenged!”
Nearby, the bald master of the Dharma Seal had been listening and now spoke up, “The problem is we don’t know who poisoned us.”
“To find out who they are, we must ask Long Cheng’en. He must know who wants him dead.”
Xu Zhi nodded slightly. “The master of the Dharma Seal is right. I received word this morning that Long Cheng’en was attacked yesterday.”
“The assassins failed to kill Long Chen, so they poisoned the food instead.”
“So to uncover the assassins’ identities, we need to question Long Cheng’en.”
Long Chen was stationed outside the city with troops; surely they had people watching him. They would also be aware of the assassination attempt.
Sima Dou Yufei was somewhat angry, saying, “We’ve all been harmed by Long Cheng’en!”
Xu Zhi shook his head. “Let’s not dwell on that now. Our priority is vengeance. We’ll question Long Cheng’en first thing tomorrow morning to find out who’s lurking in the shadows.”
“Once we know, we will wipe them all out!”