"General!"

In Chengtai Hall, the interpreter was the first to realize the problem. With a loud cry, he threw himself under his chair and looked at General Yuancang's miserable face with fear. He was at a loss with his trembling hands.

On the side, Mrs. Yuancang turned pale and her ten fingers were tightly intertwined. She said something as if she had been sobbing.

Huanan Xin was also frightened. He hurriedly called for imperial doctors to rush over, confirming that the General had already died.

His death was caused by an extremely rare poison.

Standing straight, the interpreter opened his eyes wide with great horror and sorrow. He looked pale.

For a moment, he suddenly pointed to Huanan Xin and shouted wantonly in Central Plains Mandarin.

"The General is dead. He's dead! He was killed by your group of murderers!"

Liang Zhen, the Imperial Chief Eunuch, naturally did not allow others to be disrespectful to Huanan Xin. He immediately widened his triangular eyes and shouted in a sharp voice that only a eunuch had.

"How dare you shout at His Majesty? You even dare to point at His Majesty!"

"Ah!"

Mrs. Yuancang immediately screamed and cried. All the tea and snacks beside her fell to the ground, and she kept speaking incomprehensible words in Ying language. She became weak and fell off the chair to the ground.

As Honour Guards entered the hall, the grating sound of the armor woke Wang Can up from a state of shock. He just in time heard the accusation of the interpreter.

"Mrs. Yuancang says that you killed Mr. Sakata, and now you kill the General by poisoning the tea and snacks."

"She wants to immediately go back to the embassy to write a letter to inform our Emperor of what had happened in the Palace of Da Yi."

Huanan Xin didn't know what to do for a while.

At this moment, he couldn't believe his eyes. Sakata Aki's affairs were still to be concluded. Only one day passed, and another person of the envoys of Ying State died in front of his eyes, who was the core of the envoys.

Even if he was the Emperor of Da Yi, he couldn't be arbitrary in the face of such chaotic scenes.

Anyway, they died in the Palace of Da Yi. Therefore, he, as an Emperor, could not escape the blame.

Blinking dazedly, Huanan Xin waved his hand tiredly and ordered Honour Guards to take General Yuancang's body out. The Imperial Hospital took away all the tea and snacks in Chengtai Hall for a meticulous examination.

In addition, he instructed Court of Judicial Review to jointly handle the case with the Eastern Depot and Imperial Guards, which would strictly check the guards, eunuchs, and maids in the Palace and investigate the recent records of their time on duty and their time for going in and out of the Palace.

After arranging everything, Huanan Xin sent Honour Guards to escort Mrs. Yuancang out of the Palace.

At present, she couldn't return to Ying State as scheduled. She needed to stay in Da Yi for the time being and to wait for the results of the investigation.

Seeing Mrs. Yuancang leave Chengtai Hall with tears in her eyes, Wang Can silently stared.

Intuitively, he thought that something was wrong with Mrs. Yuancang this time.

Thinking of the mysterious vine leaf found earlier from Sakata Aki's body, Wang Can was about to tell Huanan Xin but was interrupted by a question from Huanan Xin.

"Wang Can, you haven't interpreted it yet. Yuancang said before he died that Concubine Yun had a secret. What the hell is that?"

The Emperor's voice was as cold as the jade soaked in a clear pool. It was transparent without a trace of noise but made people feel chill.

Wang Can seemed to be stung by the tearing cold voice. His look changed drastically, and he hurriedly bowed and raised his hands to salute.

"Your Majesty, the General only spoke half a sentence before he died of poison. His original words were 'That secret is about Concubine Yun and you...' However, he fell to the ground at this moment."

"About me and Concubine Yun?"

Huanan Xin was shocked. His eyebrows were as deep as iron, and he hit the handrail of the dragon chair with his big palm hard.

"This is sheer effrontery! What an important secret between Concubine Yun and me, which can make Concubine Yun feel so afraid of being found out that she had a motive to kill people. It's a downright dirty slander!"

"Wang Can, failing to report the facts is a great sin of deceiving the Emperor."

With this hoarse old voice, a short figure in a crimson official suit entered the hall.

"I pay respects to Your Majesty."

"Counselor-in-chief Shi, you're here."

Huanan Xin looked at him and calmed down slightly.

As Father-in-law of Emperor and the head of the cabinet, Shi Ling still held the obedience that a courtier should have when meeting the Emperor.

With the ritual of the rules, he just leisurely told his purpose of coming.

"Hearing that something happened in Chengtai Hall and that General Yuancang was poisoned to death, I'm worried about Your Majesty, so I put down the official duties and rush to come here."

"I have some doubts about what Wang Can just said, so I have to say more. Your Majesty, please forgive my impoliteness."

Saying this, the old man lifted his robe and knelt down.

The Emperor stared at Wang Can and said seriously.

"Wang Can, I treat you well. If you know something, just tell the truth. Even if you violate a taboo, I'll forgive you."

"However, if you withhold the information, don't blame me for not saving your face!"

Wang Can was horrified and then knelt down with a full amount of sweat on his head. He bowed to Huanan Xin and kowtowed.

"Your Majesty, please understand it. Even if I have all the courage, I dare not do anything to deceive you. Yuancang died without finishing his words. I never dare to conceal you, let alone misinterpret his words, Your Majesty!"

Shi Ling was Shi Shu'an's father. Wang Can understood that he took over the errands from Shi Ling's son, and it was impossible for Shi Ling not to be angry with him as a father. Moreover, because of the issue of birthday presents before, Wang Can had already offended them.

General Yuancang originally wanted to tell the Emperor about the secret of Concubine Yun, but he suddenly died when saying the key point. Hence, Shi Ling easily caught the opportunity to make a fuss.

Wang Can was nervous with worry and didn't want Shi Ling to successfully retaliate against him. He just wanted to prove his innocence as soon as possible and didn't want to be killed because he lost the trust of the Emperor.

In the end, he failed.

The Emperor was speechless for a while. He glanced at Wang Can with cold and sharp eyes and said in an unusually indifferent tone.

"Well, don't get on your knees. Get up."

"Your Majesty, thank you."

When Shi Ling got up, he rolled his eyes astutely.

"Your Majesty, please forgive me. I have a different opinion on what Yuancang said."

Huanan Xin said absent-mindedly.

"Go on."

Shi Ling gave a slight sneer.

"Wang Can says, 'The secret is about Concubine Yun and you.' I think that this word originally has multiple meanings, which can refer to both Her Grace and Your Majesty, or to the people or things around Her Grace and Your Majesty. It depends on how the listener understands."

Huanan Xin's heart did a flip.

"Yunxi and me..." He thought.

With Shi Ling's hint, something suddenly flashed in the Emperor's mind.

Seeing the Emperor's expression, Shi Ling couldn't help but squint. His slack eyelids drooped. He seemed to be smiling, knowing that his words had achieved the desired effect.

"Wang Can, you can leave now."

With a moment of contemplation, the Emperor suddenly spoke. Then he stopped talking to Wang Can and only turned to order Shi Ling.

"Please write an urgent letter and send it to Ying State. Inform Ying Emperor about Sakata Aki and Yuancang's cases. I promise to find out the real culprits as soon as possible."

"As Your Majesty command."

After Shi Ling and Wang Can left one after another, eerie silence reigned in Chengtai Hall.

Liang Zhen saw the young Emperor become more and more sullen and took two steps towards him. He said in a flattering way and pleaded in a hoarse voice.

"Your Majesty, don't be anxious about it. The case is handed over to Court of Judicial Review and the Eastern Depot, and there will be news soon."

"You haven't eaten meals all day. Let's immediately go back to Qinming Hall. I will order Imperial Kitchen to prepare for the meal."

Huanan Xin seemed to have not heard it at all and just clenched his fists inch by inch in the sleeves of the yellow brocade robe until the finger bones made sounds, which made people shudder.

"Yuancang died at a good time..."

Huanan Xin refused Liang Zhen's support and walked to the window step by step. The young and strong body seemed to dry out in an instant like a dry walking bone.

He looked at the half-exposed crescent moon in the night sky and self-deprecated with a cold smile.

"If he had died later, he wouldn't have taken the remaining words to hell."

He thought, "Yes, Yunxi is not the murderer, but she does hide the secret from me. Otherwise, she wouldn't have met Sakata Aki there... Yunxi―"

An endless roar was accompanied by an angry blow thrown towards the door leaf.

Along with the violent sound, the golden and vermilion door of the hall was torn apart in the billowing smoke.

The Emperor looked sullen with scarlet and angry eyes. He shouted at Liang Zhen.

"At my oral decree, immediately open the Nine Gates and ask Honour Guards to take off their armor. Keep a close watch on that man. I want to see if he has the courage to enter the Palace!"