Chapter 30: The Scapegoat Princess Is Sentenced to Death
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“It is just like those bones beneath the garden. If they had not vanished so mysteriously, who would dare make such a claim? And if the Prince of Lu recovers and learns that we searched his alchemy chamber and secret room, what are we to do if he holds us accountable afterward?
“The alchemy chamber is an absolute taboo for the Prince of Lu.
“Without his permission, no one is allowed inside.
“The last two people who trespassed were beaten to death on the spot.
“A normal person might understand that we were only trying to help. Even if he offered no reward, he would at least refrain from blaming us.
“But the Prince of Lu is clearly not normal!
“I have already said it: you may not even dare search the place!”
Imperial Physician Wang did not cower merely because Zhai Hongxia was the governor of the commandery. After all, they belonged to entirely different systems of authority.
Besides, his life had been spared by sheer chance. If the Prince of Lu’s tongue had not suddenly swollen and all four of his feet transformed into pig’s trotters, the prince would have ordered his men to drag Wang out and behead him long ago.
How could he possibly have survived until now?
Every extra second he remained alive was a gain.
“This…” Zhai Hongxia was not angry, merely hesitant. Judging from the rumors, the Prince of Lu might indeed be somewhat abnormal. Other princes might merely seem unfit to rule when one looked at them, but the Prince of Lu did not even seem human.
A prince of the imperial family who behaved like a lunatic.
Such figures had appeared with particular frequency during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period.
He had repeatedly ignored every warning in his pursuit of alchemy. It was therefore easy to imagine that the alchemy chamber was indeed extremely important to him.
“Why not ask the Prince of Lu for his opinion?”
Another genius had offered a suggestion.
Imperial Physician Wang rolled his eyes, while Dong Huaide gave a helpless, bitter smile.
“Although the prince’s hands have become pig’s trotters, making it difficult for him to hold a brush, he could still dip a trotter into ink and write. And as long as he exerted himself and restrained his tongue, he could just barely manage to say a few words.
“But His Highness still cannot accept what has happened to him.
“The slightest stimulation injures his tongue. Never mind communicating with him or asking him to write—even when he occasionally manages to roar out a few indistinct words, they are usually commands to kill someone.”
His words were indirect, but everyone present understood their meaning. The Prince of Lu was now extremely unstable. If they questioned him directly and provoked him in the process, there was no telling whether he would first say yes or no—or first order the death of whoever had suggested entering the alchemy chamber.
Were they supposed to listen to him or not?
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“Then let us search in secret. Tell everyone to be careful and remember where each item originally stood. Once the search is complete, everything must be put back exactly where it was. After what the Prince of Lu has gone through, even if he recovers, it should be difficult for him to remember the arrangement of the alchemy chamber in perfect detail. As long as the discrepancies are not too great, we should be safe.”
After some thought, Zhai Hongxia decided that they still had to search. At worst, they simply had to ensure that the Prince of Lu never found out.
The prince could not move at present and could do nothing but remain in his bedchamber. He also frequently needed calming draughts, which left him drowsy and prevented him from waking fully, losing control of himself, and going completely mad when confronted with his condition.
The moment he made his decision, everyone else breathed a sigh of relief.
After all, among those present, he held the highest rank and status. If he refused to decide, who would be willing to accept responsibility?
Moreover, he was the ideal person to make the decision, since he and the Prince of Lu belonged to different systems of authority. No matter how furious the prince became, if he wished to act against Zhai Hongxia, he would have to do so covertly—at most, through an assassination. He would never dare deal with him as he did with members of the Prince of Lu’s household, ordering him beaten to death on the spot.
A prince who wantonly murdered a local governor?
No one would believe it was not an act of rebellion.
Zhai Hongxia immediately sent his trusted subordinate, Zhou Hui, to instruct the men he had brought with him to search all the places they had previously overlooked. They were also to inspect the areas already searched in detail for hidden rooms and secret passages, while asking the old retainers of the Prince of Lu’s household whether they knew anything relevant.
Dong Huaide likewise sent people to demand their full cooperation.
The rest of them remained gathered together, continuing their discussion, considering every possibility and analyzing possible motives.
When no conclusive evidence could be found, examining motives was not a bad place to begin. Who hated the Prince of Lu most deeply, yet also possessed the ability and opportunity to act against him?
And who might benefit from his downfall?
“If we are speaking of people who hated the Prince of Lu, the list is far too long. To put it bluntly, there are simply too many people who died because of him. That includes his trusted aides, his chief adviser, and a whole succession of officials serving in his household—not to mention those who died because of his alchemical experiments, as well as the consort who was just condemned to death.
“All those dead people naturally hated him.
“And I doubt that the relatives and surviving family members of those people harbor any goodwill toward the Prince of Lu either.”
“Some of them have been dead for several years. Surely their families could not have spent all that time preparing to avenge them. Besides, those people probably lack the ability.”
“That is difficult to say. It is precisely because they lack ability that they would need more time to prepare.”
“Let us set aside the distant possibilities and discuss the more recent ones first.”
“The recent possibilities should be limited to the consort and Imperial Physician Wang. Since the consort was condemned to death, it is impossible that the entire household of the Duke of Shu feels no resentment at all. At most, they simply do not dare voice it. And their family certainly has the ability to do this.
“They should have the ability, at least. They are nobles, after all.
“Is the Duke of Shu not a collateral branch of the Meng clan? If one traces their ancestry far enough, it leads back to Mencius himself. Their lineage has endured for more than a thousand years.
“With such foundations, it would be perfectly reasonable for them to possess some influence!”
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“That is impossible. If the Duke of Shu’s household truly objected, they would not have needed to harm the Prince of Lu. They could simply have replaced the Prince of Lu’s consort in secret. As long as she thereafter lived under an assumed name, never appearing in public again, I imagine His Majesty would not investigate too deeply.”
“Exactly. The woman is already dead. What use would revenge be? They might even drag the entire family into ruin.”
“Wait. What about Imperial Physician Wang?”
“Oh, that is true. Strictly speaking, Imperial Physician Wang is closely connected to the changes in the Prince of Lu’s condition. When blue, purple, and black blotches appeared all over the prince’s body, Imperial Physician Wang was the one administering acupuncture.
“After the Prince of Lu regained consciousness and discovered that he had been treated with acupuncture, he flew into a rage. He immediately ordered the guards to enter and beat Imperial Physician Wang to death. The guards had already come inside.
“Then the prince’s tongue suddenly swelled, preventing him from speaking clearly or continuing to issue commands. Immediately afterward, all four of his limbs turned into pig’s trotters, leaving him unable to move.
“Everyone’s attention was drawn to the prince’s transformation. I thought that now the Prince of Lu had become like this, having an imperial physician in the household would certainly be more convenient than sending outside to summon a doctor.
“So I did not continue carrying out the prince’s order.
“Besides, the order itself was improper. Imperial physicians are not servants of the prince’s household. How could he simply order one beaten to death?
“Thus, in effect, I saved Imperial Physician Wang’s life.
“Now that I think about it, was it not all a little too coincidental?”
After discussing the matter for some time, Dong Huaide could not help turning his suspicious gaze toward Imperial Physician Wang.
Could it be that the Prince of Lu had been right after all? Could Imperial Physician Wang truly have been secretly harming him?
Was that why the prince had been so furious and ordered his death?
Imperial Physician Wang could no longer remain calm. His voice trembling, he hurriedly protested:
“You are accusing me unjustly! You yourself said that I only administered acupuncture after the various blotches had already appeared on the Prince of Lu’s body. As for what happened afterward, how could I possibly know the cause?
“If my acupuncture truly possessed such power, would I still be nothing more than an ordinary imperial physician?”
Imperial Physician Wang was genuinely frightened. He strongly suspected that Dong Huaide, having failed to find any clues, intended to use him as a scapegoat.
If they truly made him take the blame, the question would no longer be whether he could preserve his own life, but whether his entire family could survive.
How could Imperial Physician Wang not panic?