Deposed 11

Chapter 11. Interrogation

Gao Jili stood anxiously at the gate of the Marquis of Dingbei’s residence, sweat pouring off him in layers. In just a short while, he had already used up two handkerchiefs.

A guard tried to reassure him, “Chief Steward Gao, we’re already at the Marquis of Dingbei’s residence, why are you even more anxious than when we were on the road?”

Gao Jili stamped his foot and sighed, “It’s precisely because we’ve arrived that I’m anxious.”

His weak, pitiful, and helpless Highness had been in the clutches of the Marquis of Dingbei for nearly three hours. Who knows what kind of torture he had been subjected to. Why else would they come in the middle of the night asking for clothes? He was fully dressed when he left. The only possibility was… his poor Highness had already suffered extremely brutal treatment! Thinking that he would soon have to face that tragic scene, Gao Jili felt like dying.

“Greetings, greetings. I apologize for keeping Chief Steward Gao and everyone waiting.”

The gate opened, and Zhou Shen, lifting the hem of his robe, walked out with a smile and greeted the people from the Crown Prince’s residence.

Then, he looked behind Gao Jili with a slightly surprised expression, “May I ask what that is…?”

“These are all His Highness’s daily clothes and necessities. Because we were in a hurry, we didn’t have time to pack properly, so we just brought this small portion over for now.”

Gao Jili said with some dissatisfaction.

Zhou Shen looked at the line of seven or eight carts, which were usually used by the imperial kitchen to transport goods, and his eye twitched. He nodded solemnly, “Oh.”

“By the way, where is our Highness? Take me to see him quickly. How did he suddenly get poisoned?” Gao Jili stood on tiptoe and looked anxiously inside the gate.

Zhou Shen hurriedly said, “Chief Steward Gao, rest assured. His Highness has just woken up. He is still a bit weak and should not be exposed to the wind, but overall, he is fine.”

The guards of the Crown Prince’s residence immediately exchanged an angry and resigned look. Judging by these symptoms, His Highness must have been locked in a dark room and severely tortured by the Marquis of Dingbei.

Gao Jili’s legs went weak, and he almost fainted.

Zhou Shen quickly supported him and said with concern, “This matter came suddenly, and it has been hard on Chief Steward Gao. How about I help you walk?”

Gao Jili nodded weakly.

Because the other party’s weight was not at all insubstantial, Zhou Shen found it quite strenuous to support him. He couldn’t understand how this chief steward of the Crown Prince’s residence could be so useless, all fat and no strength, unable to even walk this short distance.

As they entered the residence, Zhou Shen noticed that Gao Jili was veering off course, heading towards the darker areas, as if he had night blindness. He couldn’t help but remind him, “Chief Steward Gao, you’re going the wrong way. The bedroom is not over there…”

“Bedroom?”

Gao Jili asked weakly, “Aren’t we going to the dungeon?”

“Dun… dungeon?”

Zhou Shen looked as if he had seen a ghost. It took him a moment to understand the meaning of Gao Jili’s words. He said with a forced laugh, “Chief Steward Gao, you are really something! His Highness, the Crown Prince, is of noble status. Even if you gave me ten times the courage, I wouldn’t dare to mistreat him.”

He was doing his utmost to smile and be pleasant.

Heaven as his witness, as a serious steward who valued dignity, he had smiled more today than he had in the past six months. His cheek muscles were practically getting a workout.

“Really?”

Gao Jili’s eyes trembled with excitement. His waist suddenly didn’t hurt anymore, his legs weren’t weak, and his breathing became smooth. He grabbed Zhou Shen and started running, “Then what are we waiting for? Take me to the bedroom!”

Zhou Shen: “…..”

This ball of fat was quite agile.

However, when they arrived at the bedroom and saw Mu Yun standing barefoot on the floor, wrapped in a tattered old night robe, Gao Jili finally couldn’t hold back and let out a miserable wail.

His poor Highness.

How did he become a little beggar in just three hours?

Zhou Shen stood to the side, hands clasped, and silently rolled his eyes.

What kind of eyesight was this? Daring to slander his family’s Marquis’s beloved night robe. Who said that patched clothes had to be beggar’s clothes! That’s called being frugal, frugal.

Gao Jili was still pulling Mu Yun, looking him up and down, “Let this old servant see, are you hurt anywhere?”

Zhou Shen kindly reminded him, “Chief Steward Gao, His Highness was poisoned, not physically injured.”

Gao Jili gave him a look that said only a fool would believe you. He blocked Mu Yun with his stout body and coaxed, “Your Highness, don’t be afraid. If you have any grievances, just tell this old servant.” Even if this old servant can’t defeat the Marquis of Dingbei, he is willing to fight him to the death!

Zhou Shen: “…..”

Mu Yun chuckled from behind, “It’s alright, I’m fine. I just fainted from the poison. The Marquis of Dingbei didn’t do anything to me.”

Gao Jili was even more worried.

If he didn’t do anything and he still ended up looking like a little beggar, what would happen if he really did something!

This Marquis of Dingbei’s residence was indeed a tiger’s den, a wolf’s lair. They couldn’t stay, they couldn’t stay.

Zhou Shen: “…..” He really wanted to pry open that fat man’s head and see what was inside.

Mu Yun yawned in a timely manner, “Prepare the bath. I want to bathe and change.”

Zhou Shen quickly agreed and was about to give the order.

But Gao Jili said, “Wait a moment.”

Zhou Shen showed a hint of displeasure, “Chief Steward Gao, what is the meaning of this?”

“His Highness’s body is noble. I don’t feel comfortable with him using someone else’s bathtub, lest he be exposed to any more poison or medicine.” Gao Jili slowly instructed the outside, “Bring it in.”

Two guards responded loudly and indeed carried a gold-inlaid and jade-embedded bathtub large enough to hold three or four people, striding in.

Bold and vigorous.

Zhou Shen: “…..”

He had lost.

“His Majesty knew that His Highness has trouble sleeping, so he specially had the palace craftsmen make this bathtub for His Highness out of dragon blood wood. Just a small piece of this wood is worth a thousand gold coins. I doubt your residence has anything like it.”

Chief Steward Gao, following suit, clasped his hands in his sleeves and added salt to the wound.

***

When Wei Zhao returned to the residence, he saw that the gates were wide open, the courtyard was brightly lit, and the servants and the Crown Prince’s guards were busy moving things. A large, unfamiliar bathtub was placed outside the bedroom. He frowned and asked Zhou Shen, “What’s going on?”

Zhou Shen was genuinely shocked, “These are all His Highness, the Crown Prince’s clothes and daily necessities, and it’s said to be only a small portion. The people from the Crown Prince’s residence delivered them half an hour ago, and they’re still not finished moving them.”

Wei Zhao: “…..”

Then he chuckled. He was indeed pampered.

“How is the Crown Prince?”

Wei Zhao glanced at the room, which was still lit.

“After waking up, His Highness, the Crown Prince, first bathed and changed. Then he ate something and has just now gone to rest. The imperial physician took his pulse and said that the poisoning was not deep. Judging from his pulse, he is fine and will recover after a couple of days of rest.”

Naturally, the poisoning was “not deep.” Wei Zhao’s brow furrowed, and he strode towards the room.

Zhou Shen had followed him for many years and knew his temper well. Seeing that Wei Zhao’s expression was not good, he hurriedly stopped him, “The Crown Prince is, after all, the heir apparent. Even if Your Lordship really wants revenge, you can’t do it so blatantly…”

There’s an old saying, impulse is the devil.

Wei Zhao sneered, “Do you think this Marquis brought the Crown Prince to the residence for personal revenge? Rest assured, this Marquis is not that stupid.”

Gao Jili went to the kitchen to check on the midnight snack. When he returned, he saw a tall and handsome figure entering the bedroom in a not-so-friendly manner. He was so frightened that he almost dropped the tray in his hands. He urgently asked Zhou Shen, “Who was that just now—”

“It’s our Marquis.”

Gao Jili was shocked and angry, “How can the Marquis of Dingbei intrude on our Highness’s residence—”

Zhou Shen glanced at him calmly, “That is our Marquis’s bedroom.”

Gao Jili: “…..”

***

Mu Yun naturally hadn’t really fallen asleep. The moment he heard footsteps outside the door, he decisively climbed out of bed. Unfortunately, before his feet could touch the ground, a silver-white figure swiftly appeared before him and pinned him firmly against the bedpost.

Perhaps because he had just bathed, the youth’s black hair was still damp, soft and smooth like the finest silk. His waist was also soft and slender, very different from the lean and taut feeling during the body search.

Wei Zhao leaned down, one hand accurately gripping the youth’s wrist pulse, the other hand holding his waist, locking him firmly in place at the head of the bed. His gaze was deep, like ice in a cold pool.

“If Your Highness is wise, you will hand over the antidote for the Wenshu orchid.”

As if to interrogate, he pressed lightly on the soft curve of the youth’s waist with two fingers. As expected, the body in his arms softened.