She poisoned the first wife to take her place-only for all the retribution to fall on her own son?

Yun Zhengze pushed open the door, the door frame slammed against the wall, and the charcoal fire inside the room flickered.

Lady Wang was stuffing a piece of soft cake into Tiedan's hand. Tiedan shrank behind Yun Shuyue. When he saw Yun Zhengze return, he first glanced at the wooden donkey in his arms.

" Uncle Yun, what good things did you bring me this time?"

Yun Zhengze stood at the door, looking at Tiedan.

The child was wearing a thick cotton-padded coat with sugar frosting on the cuffs and a pair of new cotton boots. Yun Shuyue shielded him behind her, while Murong Xue sat beside him peeling oranges. There were still pastries left on the table.

This room is very warm.

But my son, only eight years old, has suffered so much!

If in the future...

Yun Zhengze felt something stuck in his throat and was unwilling to take his eyes off Tiedan's face for a long time.

Gu Moran patted his shoulder, entered the room, and said calmly.

" Yue'er."

The Yun Shuyue is looking up.

"Take Tiedan to the backyard."

Lady Wang immediately put down the pastries, her tone filled with displeasure. "Your Highness, the child just agreed to eat what I brought, what are you doing?"

Gu Moran didn't look at her, but only said to Yun Shuyue, "Go to the backyard and keep an eye on your younger brother."

Yun Shuyue glanced at him, then at Yun Zhengze, and sensing something was wrong, reached out and took Tiedan's hand.

Tiedan refused to leave, clinging to the table leg and asking, "Is someone trying to steal me again?"

"Nobody's going to steal you." Yun Shuyue brushed the crumbs from his hand and lowered her voice, "Go check on your little rabbit in the backyard; the Prince sent some fresh vegetables."

Tiedan then loosened his grip on the table leg, and before leaving, he pushed the lacquer box that Lady Wang had brought towards the corner of the table.

"Take this, I don't need any more clothes."

Lady Wang's smile couldn't be maintained. She held her handkerchief tightly in her fingers. After Yun Shuyue and her entourage left and the door to the main hall closed, she slowly stood up.

"The rules in the Prince's mansion are truly strict. I have to ask others for permission before I can even visit my own son."

Before Gu Moran could reply, Yun Zhengze walked to the table, picked up the unserved piece of soft cake, broke it in half, and tossed it back into the dish.

"Stop gossiping! Our Wangchuan won't live much longer."

The lid of the lacquer box in Lady Wang's hand fell to the ground, and the gold lock inside rolled out and hit the edge of the charcoal brazier.

"Sir, what nonsense are you talking about?"

Yun Zhengze raised his head, his face completely expressionless.

"He was poisoned. The people who kidnapped Wangchuan back then locked him in a cellar in an iron cage, lacing his food and water with drugs, without stopping for three years."

"Now, the child is young and can withstand the first one or two times, but later he will have cold hands and feet, sleep restlessly at night, hear ringing in his ears, feel tightness in his chest, and vomit everything he eats."

Yun Zhengze took a step closer to her, his shoes making a soft scraping sound as they stepped on the gold lock.

"If this continues, the spleen and stomach will deteriorate first, followed by the liver and kidneys. The person will lose weight day by day, cough up blood, have difficulty breathing, and eventually die in bed."

Lady Wang held onto the back of the chair, her fingertips tracing the carvings on the back.

These symptoms... they seem so familiar.

Ten years ago, when Madam Shen fell ill, she first complained of cold legs and feet, then of insomnia at night, and later, while sitting by the window basking in the sun, she didn't even have the strength to serve tea.

Every time she thought of Madam Shen's pale face, she felt a sense of relief, knowing that she would finally get through it all.

How could my son have this condition?

Could it be?

Lady Wang's chest heaved violently.

No, that's impossible.

Yang Tie had promised her that he would not only help her become the principal wife, but also ensure her longevity and good health.

How could they have abducted Wangchuan?

Lady Wang frowned, her suppressed doubts resurfacing.

But Yang Tie had sworn that only he knew how to make that poison, and that he hadn't cried out when his son was lost.

The crime was committed by someone you know!

She did see Yang Tie at the lantern festival that day.

Could it really be?

Yun Zhengze stared at the trembling of her shoulders, his voice remaining calm.

" Shen Ling'er took Wangchuan's pulse, and the medical record clearly stated that the original prescription was needed to detoxify him."

Lady Wang looked up, and a strand of hair fell down from her forehead.

Can it be solved?

"The person who kidnapped the son has the original prescription."

"Then go and arrest him! Arrest him immediately!" Lady Wang stepped forward, her skirt brushing against the gold lock on the ground. "Master, Wangchuan is our son! Quickly have the Provincial Surveillance Commission arrest him—"

Her words abruptly stopped.

Yun Zhengze looked at her, his eyes filled with a deathly pallor.

"You're in a hurry."

"Besides, do you know who kidnapped the child?"

Lady Wang's expression changed.

"How should I know? I'm just worried about the children."

You know.

Yun Zhengze slammed another medical record onto the table; the pages were slightly curled from the heat of the charcoal fire.

"Before Shen-shi died, she also had these symptoms: cold hands and feet, tinnitus, palpitations, chest tightness, and shortness of breath. She even had to hold onto the wall to walk a few steps."

Lady Wang stepped back, her lower back hitting the chair.

Yun Zhengze gave her no chance to catch her breath.

Who sent her the calming tea she drinks every day?

Lady Wang pursed her lips and didn't answer, her hand resting on the table, her fingertips dampened by the tea.

Yun Zhengze took out half a page of old accounts from his sleeve and spread it in front of her.

There was only the word "" on it, and the ink was spread by the water, and the last stroke was very long.

" Lady Wang, you really did a very clean job back then."

He paused, then glanced towards the door.

"But your accomplice's methods are dirtier than yours."

Lady Wang's eyelids twitched.

"What do you mean?"

" Shen-shi discovered that he used the Yun Clan's caravan to transport people. Fearing exposure, he used you, giving you medicine and promising you a place to cover for him."

Yun Zhengze braced his hands on the edge of the table, the veins on the back of his hands bulging.

"You killed Madam Shen and took the position of the legal wife, but he turned around and stole Wangchuan away, keeping her in the cellar as a drug slave."

The last trace of color drained from Lady Wang's face.

"Won't..."

"Why not?"

Yang Tie isn't that kind of person!

Yang Tie's name came out without hesitation, and Gu Moran and Yun Zhengze exchanged a glance.

It's done!

Lady Wang covered her mouth, and large tears streamed down her face.

He realized he had blurted out the truth in his haste, but it was too late.

She knelt on the ground.

"Master, please spare me! He only wanted me to cover up his convoy. I didn't know he would run into the Yun Clan."

Yun Zhengze suddenly chuckled, sending a chill down one's spine.

"You believe him?"

Lady Wang's knees buckled, and she collapsed to the ground, using her hands to support herself as she moved backward on the blue bricks.

Yun Zhengze crouched down, getting very close to her.

"The medicine you personally fed to Madam Shen, Yang Tie gave to Wangchuan without missing a single drop."

Lady Wang raised her head, tears streaming down her face.

"I don't know... I really didn't know he would target Wangchuan."

How do I cure the poison?

"I only took the medicine; I don't know what the original prescription was."

Yun Zhengze reached out and grabbed her collar, lifting her halfway up from the ground.

"How do I cure the poison?!"

Lady Wang was so frightened that she burst into tears and frantically tried to grab his wrist.

"All I know is that Yang Tie has a pharmacy, and there's an abandoned well under the west wall of his backyard! He often goes to that area."

Yun Zhengze did not let go.

"What else?"

"I told you, I told you everything, sir, please spare me. I also know that there are hidden compartments in his timber cart, and sometimes girls, or even children, are stored there."

Lady Wang cried so hard she couldn't breathe, her hair disheveled on the sides of her face.

"He didn't just take in those people to sell to other places. He had a large pot in his pharmacy where he was always brewing things. The medicinal paste contained the scent of blood, and every month merchants with accents from other places would come to collect pills."

[Thanks to: Tianzi for the certification, Rainy Love Letters x6, Tianshui's Flowers x10, yes's Flowers x2, Xiaorao's Milk Tea, Da Qiao, Qianxun, Mengchun's Flowers, Xiao Ma's Likes, and everyone else for their love and support!]

[I'm not very good at structuring the plot of the past two days, so the writing is a bit rough and difficult. I'll add more chapters after this is finished, thank you! I owe you 2 chapters now. (๑•́₃•̀๑)]