Poison on the Cat's Head

Tabbyback wound around the little one's ankles, then flopped down and meowed twice, asking him to rub its belly.

With the cat between them, one stood while the other lay prostrate.

Bolao pressed his forehead to the floor, his body trembling with excitement. "This servant admits his guilt!"

"You're not guilty. My temple is simply too small to accommodate a great Buddha like you."

"No! Your Highness!"

Bolao crawled forward two steps on his knees. Not daring to grab the little Crown Prince's ankles, he maneuvered in front of him to block his path, restraining his urge to touch him as he bowed in submission.

"This servant knows he was wrong. This servant should never have acted so recklessly!"

Qi Yuanzuo stepped over him.

Bolao slithered around him again like a snake.

His lower legs had gone numb from kneeling. The slightest movement felt like thousands upon thousands of ants crawling through his flesh, painful, itchy, and stiff all at once. He could only move by relying on the strength of his upper body.

"Your Highness! Please give this servant one more chance!"

"You may beat or scold this servant as you please. This servant will obey!"

Qi Yuanzuo pressed a hand against his forehead and pushed Bolao's face upward.

All he saw was a venomous snake coiling around him, hissing with excitement. Its shadowy desire and eagerness were like sticky venom, seeking to stain him.

"Did you kill someone?"

"This servant would never dare! This servant merely sent a few servants who had grudges against Lady Zhou to guard the Cold Palace."

"Lady Zhou had a slight misunderstanding about Your Highness and clashed with this servant."

"This servant did not lay a hand on her."

Bolao's face was exceptionally deceptive. It could make one part grievance look like ten.

Qi Yuanzuo said, "You're quite capable, aren't you? You can send anyone you please to guard the Cold Palace."

Bolao fawned on him. "This servant is merely a fox borrowing the tiger's might. Whatever power this servant has was bestowed by Your Highness."

"This servant is willing to be a turtle in the Golden Pool! Never leaving or forsaking Your Highness!"

"This servant was only too eager to protect his master. There will never be a next time! If there is, may this servant die ten thousand deaths! Please grant this servant one more chance!"

Earlier, he would rather have died than yielded. Now he admitted his fault so readily. What was he after?

Qi Yuanzuo's hand slid down from Bolao's forehead, accidentally brushing his cheek before settling on his shoulder.

The body beneath his hand trembled with excitement.

The eagerness and desire in Bolao's eyes grew more intense.

Counting on the little Crown Prince's innocence, he brazenly vented his suppressed desires.

Bolao boldly took the little Crown Prince's wrist and placed his hand over his heart.

"Your Highness, this servant's loyalty will always belong to you."

A shudder of revulsion swept through Qi Yuanzuo, and he instinctively slapped him.

The man who had been slapped grew even more excited.

The little Crown Prince's first time striking someone and his first time getting angry were both because of him!

Qi Yuanzuo withdrew his hand and said in disgust:

"I don't like people who act on their own initiative. Bolao, if there is a next time, I will not let you off."

Bolao thanked him for his mercy. "Thank you for your grace, Your Highness!"

Qi Yuanzuo opened the hall doors.

Pointing at Bolao, who lay limp on the floor, he said:

"Summon an imperial physician for him."

Tabbyback was deeply displeased at being ignored. It padded over and repeatedly rubbed against the little Crown Prince's feet. Qi Yuanzuo soothed it with a stroke over its head.

That single stroke made Qi Yuanzuo rub his fingers together. He had felt something powdery on them.

He sniffed them. There was a very faint fragrance similar to the one on Lady Zhou, along with a trace of sweetness.

Dusk was falling.

"Bring a light."

Simiao immediately brought a bronze lamp closer.

Under the lamplight, Qi Yuanzuo parted the fur on Tabbyback's head and discovered a layer of white powder.

Alarm bells rang in Simiao's mind. Fat Eunuch immediately dabbed up a little with a handkerchief.

Jiang Liang was both excited and frightened. A palace intrigue?

When the imperial physician arrived, Qi Yuanzuo had him examine Bolao first. Once he was finished, he had Bolao taken away to rest. Only then did he ask the physician to examine the white powder in the cat's fur.

Tabbyback licked its paws, oblivious.

After examining and sniffing it, the imperial physician's expression turned grave.

"Your Highness, this is oleander pollen!"

"I examined Lady Zhou's Fragrance Recipe yesterday. There is nothing wrong with the Fragrance Recipe itself, but if oleander pollen is added to it, accidental ingestion will cause swelling in the throat."

"It is not fatal to a healthy person, but someone with impaired heart and lung function would be highly likely to suffocate from the swelling!"

Simiao's heart skipped a beat.

"Please examine His Highness at once!"

Qi Yuanzuo shook his head. "I'm fine. I haven't eaten anything since touching Tabbyback."

Still worried, Fat Eunuch insisted on having the imperial physician examine him before letting the matter rest.

Qi Yuanzuo washed his hands thoroughly, then told Simiao to give Tabbyback a bath.

"Report everything truthfully to my imperial father."

The imperial physician checked the little Crown Prince's pulse once more to ensure he was well before leaving.

Qi Yuanzuo had spent more than a month recuperating. He seemed fully recovered, but that was not the case.

Whenever he ran, his lungs hurt, his chest tightened, and he felt as though he were suffocating. If his heart beat even slightly faster, he risked being unable to catch his breath.

The oleander pollen mixed with the Fragrance Recipe had been sprinkled only on Tabbyback's head. It was not fatal to healthy people. The intended target could not have been more obvious.

Lady Zhou was the only person in the entire Imperial Palace who had a grudge against Qi Yuanzuo.

Lady Zhou did not have the brains for this.

Consort Xian, Zhaoyi Xiao, Zhaoyi Wei.

The first was Tabbyback's owner.

The latter two knew about the Fragrance Recipe.

There were no oleanders in the Imperial Palace. Someone had managed to obtain oleander pollen, knew he liked Tabbyback, and had thought of sprinkling it on the cat to poison him. Apart from those three, there was one other person capable of doing it.

The Empress Dowager.

He did not want to be so suspicious either, but he treasured his life.

The Empress Dowager was no gentle soul, nor did she have a loving heart. Perhaps he had angered her so badly last time that she was taking revenge.