TGCFNM -Chapter 523 Another Target

After the Lu family’s carriage slowly arrived at the temporary resting place, Zhang Dong and Xiao Hua went to the kitchen to get busy.

Lu Chong glanced at the situation in the room and chose to go feed the horses. For the time being, he clearly couldn’t return.

Lu Shi sat upright in the seat of honor. Standing before him were three people who looked honest and well-behaved, appearing as if they were quietly listening to a lecture.

But if you paid attention to their expressions, you would know they were actually trying to muddle through the situation—their faces showed the kind of “serious but perfunctory” attentiveness.

“Tell me,” Lu Shi asked in a deep voice, his gaze slightly solemn, “who were you planning to use the poison on?”

“Does it have to be just one person?” Wan Sanjin asked. “Can’t it be used on several people?”

Lu Shi was so angry his beard practically bristled. “What, so everyone who goes hunting in the forest today—you’re planning not to spare a single one of them?”

“So it can be used on everyone?” Su He asked, faintly excited.

Lu Shi was about to stop him, but after thinking for a moment, the hand he had raised suddenly lowered.

“Sanjin, go shut the door tightly.”

Wan Sanjin acknowledged and closed the door, then walked back.

Lowering his voice, Lu Shi looked at them. “This hunting trip was probably proposed by Fu Qingyu and Grand Tutor Fu. As for hunting wild geese, that’s meant to be used for a marriage proposal… So on the surface, it looks like His Majesty is holding this gathering for his imperial grandson. But in reality, it’s probably not that simple.”

Chu Ling and the others’ expressions turned serious as they listened attentively.

Lu Shi sighed softly. “Back then, the Crown Prince—so extraordinarily talented—died, and that was that. His Majesty never mentioned it again, nor issued an edict to reopen the case. Only when the matter involving Prince Qi surfaced did he issue an order. So does he truly value the former Crown Prince’s orphan that much? I doubt it.”

Chu Ling frowned. “So… what does His Majesty intend to do?”

“Not necessarily him. It could be someone else,” Lu Shi said meaningfully.

The three of them immediately understood.

It might be Fu Qingyu who intended to do something.

“From what I observe, His Majesty currently has no intention of passing on the throne. And he hasn’t stopped taking his elixirs either…” Lu Shi continued. “So this hunting trip—I honestly don’t know what might happen.”

He looked at them. “None of you are cruel enough to that extent, so the poison shouldn’t be lethal.”

Su He nodded. “Individually, no. But if they’re mixed together, it might kill someone. I can blend them on the spot.”

Lu Shi felt his temples throbbing and gritted his teeth. “You don’t need to mix anything on the spot. Just ordinary poison will do.”

Ghost Scholar slapped Chu Ling lightly. “Sounds like he’s allowing you to use poison.”

Chu Ling also reacted. “Lord Lu means that once we enter the forest during the hunt, we should start using poison—just poison everyone directly?”

“Yes,” Lu Shi said seriously. “Since we don’t know the other side’s purpose or what they plan to do, we’ll knock everyone down first. That way nothing can happen.”

Chu Ling raised her brows and looked at Su He with excitement. “You brought plenty of incense, right?”

“Thirty sticks,” Su He replied. “That should be enough.”

Wan Sanjin looked at Lu Shi. “Don’t worry, Lord Lu. The boss and Su He think my mouth brings bad luck. They were afraid that black-clad assassins might suddenly jump out of the forest to attack, so they brought quite a lot of stuff. It’ll definitely be enough.”

Lu Shi looked at Wan Sanjin with an expression that said what nonsense are you talking about? But when he saw the extremely serious look on Wan Sanjin’s face, he understood—this monkey was serious!

“Master Wan’s nonsense tends to come true quite often,” Chu Ling said hesitantly. “So… we actually brought quite a lot of poison with us.”

Lu Shi pressed his fingers against his temples, looking like he had completely given up on lecturing them. “Anyway, if you see anything suspicious, just use it. If someone investigates afterward, just insist you know nothing… And besides, if there is an investigation, His Majesty will definitely assign the case to me. When that happens, I’ll just do a casual check and shelve it.”

Ghost Scholar chuckled. “So you’ll be taking the blame for them. Go ahead and do whatever you like.”

Chu Ling immediately nodded. “Lord Lu, don’t worry. As long as we see anyone suspicious, we’ll act. We’ve even prepared masks, face coverings, and black clothes.”

Lu Shi: “……”

They were certainly well prepared.

“Alright, alright. Go eat. After the meal, rest for a while and wait for the imperial summons,” Lu Shi said, waving his hand. He picked up the teacup on the table and thought to himself: Poisoning actually isn’t a bad idea—prevent problems before they happen. As long as everything stays quiet.

Chu Ling and the others also felt that poisoning was very convenient. As long as it was done secretly, they could handle it completely.

Only Lu Chong, who returned later, noticed the meaningful expressions on both sides. His instincts told him something was strange, so he kept the matter in mind and even thought he should keep a close eye on them in the afternoon…

—

After lunch, just as everyone was preparing to rest, an imperial decree arrived, inviting Chu Ling to accompany the emperor for a meal. Chu Ling directly refused, saying she had already eaten.

Eunuch Zhang didn’t say anything and simply took his leave. However, before long, he returned again, bringing a box of pastries.

Chu Ling accepted the food box and signaled Wan Sanjin.

Wan Sanjin carefully handed over a small pouch and asked softly, “These were sent by Young Master Fu, right? Please convey our thanks to him.”

Eunuch Zhang chuckled. “Young Master Fu mentioned that Lord Chu likes pastries. When he went to Prince Rui’s residence and couldn’t find Prince Rui, he didn’t leave immediately. Instead, he packed several boxes of pastries from Princess Rui. His Majesty said that since Lord Chu likes pastries so much, he might as well reward some. They were all made by the imperial chefs in the palace—His Majesty said you should like them.”

“If they’re made by imperial chefs, then I’ll definitely like them. They must be the most delicate and delicious,” Chu Ling said, her expression brightening as she opened the food box and looked at the pastries. “They’re made so beautifully that I almost can’t bear to eat them.”

“Lord Chu truly does love pastries. This old servant now knows what to report back. Please enjoy them slowly,” Eunuch Zhang said. With a flick of his horsetail whisk, he smiled and left.

After he was gone, Chu Ling’s smile faded, and Wan Sanjin immediately shut the door tightly.

“I knew someone was secretly observing when you went to Prince Rui’s residence, my lord, but I didn’t expect Fu Qingyu to be among them,” Wan Sanjin said with a frown. “Why would he deliberately mention this in front of His Majesty? Is he trying to link you with Prince Rui’s residence?”

“It’s fine. There’s no need to worry about this matter,” Chu Ling said as she set down the food box and took the pastries out one by one. “They’re indeed delicate. And there’s no poison.”

After carefully examining them, Su He confirmed, “No poison. They’re safe to eat.”

Seeing Wan Sanjin still frowning, Chu Ling spoke seriously again, “There really is nothing to worry about. Because the pastries bestowed by His Majesty have no problem, he simply didn’t take the matter to heart.”

Wan Sanjin finally relaxed a little and picked up a piece of pastry, though he still looked doubtful. “His Majesty wouldn’t treat an official who bought his position any differently… so is it still because of something Fu Qingyu said?”

“What he said isn’t important. What’s important is that after our conversation with Lord Lu today, I confirmed something,” Chu Ling said, looking at Wan Sanjin and Su He with a hint of mockery in her eyes. “His Majesty has no intention of establishing a crown prince at all. Fu Qingyu is just another target after Young Master Xiao.”

Their emperor probably intends to live forever and rule for eternity.