Punishment (6)

(BaiLing's pov)

Sitting down at the table in my room, I listened to the reports from my guards. Besides the incident of the drugged wine, everything else was fine.

After receiving the reports, I sent three of my guards back to the base, keeping Bai Yang and the one involved with the drugged wine.

Me: "Bai Yang, go and get the wine bottle."

Bai Yang nodded his head and went to get the wine while I talked to the other boy.

"Did you bring the drugged wine with you?"

Guard: "Yes, captain."

The guard took out a small container that held the drugged wine and gave it to me, and soon Bai Yang came back and gave me the wine bottle.

I got rid of the undrugged wine and poured the drugged wine into the vale.

Me: "Alright. Bai Yang, you can head back now. I'll call when I need you."

Bai Yang: "Yes, captain."

Bai Yang bowed, then excused himself, leaving the young guard and me behind.

Me: "Later, you will follow me into the palace. If you are asked about the event, just tell the truth, but if they ask you why you took the money and why you came and told me the truth later. Just tell them that you were afraid of the consequences if you didn't listen to the fifth prince, but you couldn't betray the Ming family, so you came and told me the truth later. Got it?"

Guard: "Yes, captain."

Me: "Good. For now, go back and continue to work. I'll call for you later when we need to leave."

The guard bowed and left the room.

After sitting for a bit, I stood up and went over to my storage area, and took out a white handkerchief with little pink flowers embroidered. I returned to the table, took some drugged wine, and poured it onto the cloth. Once the wine dried out a bit, I folded the handkerchief and put it away into my magical dimension.

Before I cleaned up everything and got it ready to bring into the palace, I gave the wine a quick smell. Although I wasn't surprised, it still amazed me how much the fifth prince wanted to take the throne.

The drug was not your average aphrodisiac, but it was a powerful one known as love poison.

There was no antidote for it, and the only way to cure it was to either sleep with the person you truly love, but that person must also love you or use acupuncture. However, to use the acupuncture method, the doctor must be very skilled, and there were two or three people in this kingdom who knew how to use that method. One of them was me and the other person was grandpa, the divine doctor. Grandfather was the best doctor in the entire kingdom. There were very few sicknesses that he couldn't cure, and because of his skills, he is the imperial head physician in charge of taking care of the emperor. Though he had a steady job, he still opened a shop in the capital with the emperor's permission. In this little shop of his, he took care of the citizens. Unlike other doctors who would charge their patients no matter their class, grandpa would only charge the rich and not the poor. This earned him the respect of others, and his name was known in other kingdoms as well.

And the last person who can use this method is one of grandpa's friend. However, he had retired from society many years ago, which didn't help the case.

But anyway, I was more curious about how the fifth prince got his hands on this drug. It was hard to produce, which made it extremely expensive, and finding it in the capital was even rarer.

"It seems as though he has a backer." I thought.

But I soon dismissed the thought. It was no use to dwell over it since I would soon find out who he teamed up with.

(Narrator's pov)

Once the ninth prince bid farewell to the father and son, they sat back down in the father's study and began to talk amongst themselves.

Zhi Chen: "Dad, the ninth prince seems to be in a good mood. Do you think something happened?"

Dad: "I'm not sure. But knowing your sister, she must have said something or did something that caught the ninth prince's interest. Or he could have seen something funny while at her courtyard."

Zhi Chen: "You mean, what happened to the fifth prince? He ran out of here pretty fast. I wonder what Ling'er did to him."

Dad: "I don't know, but whatever it is, I'm sure it scared him quite a bit."

Zhi Chen: "You're right, but I'm sure she has a plan on how to take care of the aftermath."

(BaiLing's pov)

I was sitting in my room reading a book when there was a knock on my door. Judging from the footsteps, it was my brother. I set my book down and went to open the door for him.

Me: "Ge, what's up?"

Brother: "Ling'er eunuch Huang is here to see you."

Looking at my brother, I could see that he was concerned.

I smiled at him and said.

"Ge, don't worry. I'll be fine."

Brother: "I know you can handle things, but out of everything that our family excels at, we are the weakest at politics. If you aren't careful then..."

I patted my brother on his shoulder to reassure him that I would be fine.

Me: "Ge, don't forget who your sister is. Now come on, let's go. Can't keep eunuch Huang waiting."

I took my brother's arm, and we headed out to the main hall together, where my father and eunuch Huang were seated.

My brother and I greeted our father and the eunuch before we sat down.

Eunuch Huang: "My lady, the emperor has summoned you into the palace."

Me: "I understand. Then would you mind waiting for a bit? There are some things that I need to

prepare."

Eunuch Huang: "Of course, please do what you must."

I excused myself and went to go get my evidence.

"For someone being called into the palace to be questioned, I sure wasn't treated any different from usual." I thought.

Looks like the emperor is ready for a show today.

I headed back to my room and called for my secret guard. In a matter of minutes, he showed up,

ready to follow me into the palace. Once I handed him the box containing the wine bottle, we headed back out to the main hall.

(Narrator's pov)

Once everyone was ready, BaiLing got into her carriage and followed the eunuch into the palace.

Upon arriving, BaiLing asked the eunuch.

"Eunuch Huang, do you mind if I take this servant in with me? There is something I would like to show to his majesty."

Eunuch Huang looked over at her guard and the box he was holding and understood what she was trying to tell him. So he told her.

"Of course, my lady. Please follow me."

Leaving the carriages at the gate, they walked to the throne room. When they got there, the eunuch standing outside announced their presence before the emperor summoned them inside.

Before heading in, she told her guard to wait outside until it was time for him to come in. He nodded his head and stood to the side near the imperials guards who were guarding the door.

Once BaiLing was inside, she could see the fifth prince was down on his knees. He looked much better than he was before, though. There was also a physician beside the prince, and from her guess, it was his personal physician. As for eunuch Huang, he took his side by the emperor sitting on his throne, looking down at his son. Although it looked like he was mad or concerned, BaiLing could tell that there was some amusement hidden within his expression.

Getting to the center of the throne room, BaiLing on down on her knees and greeted the emperor.

"Greeting to your majesty. May your reign be everlasting."

Emperor: "Ming BaiLing, do you know why I summoned you in today?"

BaiLing, still keeping her head down, shook her head and said.

"I do not know the reason, your majesty."

Emperor: "I see. The fifth prince came to me today and said that you put something into his wine. He has been in excruciating pain for many hours now without any cure."

BaiLing continued to listen and did not say a single word. Seeing how quiet she was, the emperor continued and asked.

"Is what he said true?"

"So because he can't have me, he's now blaming me?" was what BaiLing thought.

Though she was not hurt by the accusations, she still found it funny.

Taking a deep breath in, she responded to the emperor.

"Your majesty, I do not know what happened to the fifth prince. However, I can say with certainty that I did not drug his drink."

Fifth prince: "How dare you lie to the emperor!! If you didn't do something to my drink, then how come I'm in so much pain."

BaiLing looked up at the fifth prince with tears in her eyes and said.

"Your highness... why would I do that to you. I have no reason to harm you."

Fifth prince: "Didn't you find out about my engagement with the prime minister's daughter before I came there?! You could have been driven mad with jealousy and drugged my drink!

You're trying to kill me!"

In BaiLing's mind, she was laughing at how dumb the prince was, but on the outside, tears were flowing down uncontrollably.

BaiLing: "You're right, I did find out about your engagement, but it only filled me with sadness. How... how could I possibly kill you, though. Even if I can't marry you, I still wish you happiness."

Fifth prince: "You lair!"

The fifth prince looked up at the emperor and said.

"Father, please get me justice! This pain is unbearable. Please, father. Help me."

The emperor looked at his son with concern and nodded his head before asking the physician.

"How is the fifth prince's condition?"

Although the physician worked for the fifth prince, he didn't dare to lie to the emperor.

Physician: "Your majesty... there's nothing wrong with the fifth prince's health."

This statement threw everyone in the throne room off.

Emperor: "How is that possible? Look at him. His pain isn't fake."

Physician: "Please forgive me, your majesty. I really don't know what is causing the fifth prince's pain. I have checked his pulse over and over, but I can't find out what is happening to him."

The physician bowed all the way to the ground and dared not look up at the emperor.

Emperor: "(sighs)... Wang Lei, are you sure that you didn't eat anything bad earlier in the day?"

Fifth prince: "No, I'm sure, father. The pain only came after I drank the wine."

The emperor shifted his gaze to BaiLing, kneeling there with tears quietly streaming down her face.

Emperor: "BaiLing, do you have anything to say for yourself?"

BaiLing: "Your majesty, I am willing to accept things that I have done. However, for things that I have not done, I cannot accept them. I have not drugged the fifth prince. Although, there is something that I would like to tell you."

Emperor: "Ohh? What is it?"

BaiLing looked up at the emperor with so much pain in her eyes and said.

"Your majesty... the wine that the fifth prince brought to the mansion today was... was drugged."

Emperor: "Drugged? What do you mean?"

BaiLing: "Your majesty, the fifth prince brought a drugged wine to my house today. He paid one of the servants to bring the wine and ensure that the content inside was safe. He wanted to drug me today."

Fifth prince: "Your lying! Father, please don't listen to her."

BaiLing: "Your highness, you, yourself admitted to drugging the wine. You told me that I had no talent and wasn't pretty, but you said that you could get the throne if you had my family's support. That's why you wanted to drug me, knowing that my father won't let me be married off as a concubine."

Emperor: "Wang Lei, is that true?!"

Fifth prince: "No, father. Please believe me. She's lying. She's trying to get back at me."

The emperor shook his head and rubbed his temples. Although he knew who was lying and who wasn't, it was still a headache to sit and hear all of that.

Emperor: "BaiLing, do you have any evidence? If you can't prove it, then you will have to face the consequences."

BaiLing: "Your majesty, I do have evidence and a witness. So if you would allow me to bring him in."

The fifth prince looked at BaiLing in shock. He had forgotten about the wine bottle that he had left behind. But then he remembered that it had been a few hours since he left, so it would be easy for him to say that she had changed and added stuff to the wine after he left.

Emperor: "Alright, let the witness come in."

Eunuch Huang then turned towards the door and announced out in a very loud voice saying.

"Let the witness come in!"

Soon after, the shadow guard came in carrying the box with the wine. When he got to the center of the throne, he stopped right after BaiLing and kneeled down to greet the emperor.

Emperor: "Rise. So you are the servant that was bribed?"

Guard: "Yes, your majesty."

Emperor: "Do you have the evidence?"

Guard: "Yes, I do."

The guard took out a stack of money, placed it on the box, and held it out. The emperor nodded his head, and eunuch Huang went to retrieve the box and money. Once the items were brought back to the emperor examined them and asked.

"Tell me what happened."

Guard: "Your majesty, I was working in the kitchen today, and the fifth price came by. He called me over and handed me this box, and told me to mix the powder into the wine before bringing it up. He gave me the money and told me to keep quiet if I wanted to live."

Fifth prince: "Father, he's lying. I never told him to do that. I indeed did bring the wine, but I never drugged it. They could have put the drug in after I left to frame me!"

Emperor: "Wang Lei, calm down. I will get down to the bottom of this."

The emperor then directed his attention back to the guard and asked him.

"If what you said is true, why did you inform your master later? Are you not afraid of death?"

Guard: "Your majesty, I am afraid of death. However, I owe the Ming family my life. They saved my life many years ago and have never mistreated me. I couldn't repay their kindness in this way."

Fifth prince: "Father, please listen to me on this reason."

Emperor: "Alright, go on."

Fifth prince: "If I really did drug the wine, how could she still be here right now? She and I both drank the wine."

Emperor: "That does make sense. BaiLing, what do you have to say about this."

BaiLing: "Your majesty, I did not drink the wine."

Emperor: "Ohh? Why is that?"

BaiLing: "When the servants came to bring the snack and wine, this servant looked at me with a very nervous look. He was also shaking his head when he set the wine down. I felt that something was off, so I poured the wine onto my handkerchief. Also, although the fifth prince did drink the wine, there are two vales in the bottle, and one where is opened through a switch is the drugged wine."

BaiLing then pulled out a handkerchief and said.

"You can still smell the wine on the cloth."

Once again, eunuch Huang went to retrieve the item.

The emperor looked at all of the items and sighed.

Emperor: "Eunuch Huang, go and get physician Ling here. I want him to test the wine before I come to any conclusion."

Eunuch Huang: "Yes, your majesty."

Just as the Eunuch was about to leave, the fifth prince said.

"Father, physician Ling, is her grandpa. Even if there was something wrong with the wine, he wouldn't tell you the truth to protect her."

Emperor: "(sigh)... Alright, eunuch Huang, go and bring some of the other senior physicians as well."

The eunuch nodded his head and headed out. However, before he could get out the door, the ninth prince showed up, and following behind him was physician Ling.

Ninth prince: "Greetings, father. I've brought physician Ling here for you, but it seems as though you need a few more."

Eunuch Huang looked back at the emperor, and when the emperor nodded his head, eunuch Huang continued to go and get a few more doctors.

As the ninth prince stood on the side, physician Ling greeted the emperor. And soon, three other physicians came in and greeted the emperor.

Emperor: "Alright, now that everyone is here, I want you to test the wine in the two vales and the residue on the cloth and tell me if there is any drug in it."

Physicians: "Yes, your majesty."

One by one, all the physicians tested the wine and the cloth, and every time one was done, there was a shocked look on their faces. BaiLing's grandpa was the last to go, and went he tested the sample of the wine, he slipped in a little bit of powder before smelling it. Even though no one noticed, BaiLing knew what her grandfather was doing.

The cleansing pill that she put into the wine couldn't be detected by usual methods. To detect the drug, a special powder was required. It was made from the plant's leaves that made the cleansing pill, though few knew of its properties. Everything that BaiLing knew was taught to her by her grandfather, so he knew what tricks she was playing.

When mixing in the powder, if a light, sweet, and fresh smell like on a rainy day is produced, it is confirmed that the cleansing pill was added. Once her grandpa tested and smelled the alcohol, he knew that his granddaughter had used the pill. However, he decided to keep that part to himself.

Once he put all tools away, he discussed with the other physicians before coming up with a final conclusion.

After everyone came to an agreement, BaiLing's grandpa stepped out and said.

"Your majesty, we have finished testing the wine and have come to a conclusion."

Emperor: "Good, good. Tell me what you have come to."

Physician Ling: "Your majesty, from our test, we have found that the main vale does not contain

anything. There is only wine. As for the vale opened by the switch, we found that there is a powerful aphrodisiac in it."

Emperor: "A powerful aphrodisiac?"

Physician Ling: "Yes, your majesty."

Emperor: "How powerful is this aphrodisiac?"

Physician Ling: "Well... it... it is the most powerful one there is out there in the world. It is also scarce due to how hard it is to make, which makes it very expensive."

Emperor: "Where can you find this drug then?"

Physician Ling: "This drug is usually found in the black market."

Emperor: "What?! The black market! Who dares to get into contact with the black market!"As the emperor continued to be enraged, the fifth prince knew that he might get into trouble soon, so he pretended that his pain increased. He doubled over onto the floor and cried out.

"Father, please help me. The... the pain is unbearable."

Emperor: "Wang Lei, all the evidence is pointed towards you right now. There was no drug in your wine, so how could you be in pain?"

Fifth prince: "Father, please believe me. I'm being framed."

Just as the emperor was about to say something, the ninth prince stepped out of the corner where he was standing and said.

"Father, I can also be a witness to prove that what lady Ming said is true."

Everyone looked at the ninth prince in surprise. No one expected the ninth prince, who was known to not be interested in anything except martial arts, to speak up.

Emperor: "Yeu Hwa, what do you mean?"

(Yeu Hwa is the name of the ninth prince.)

Ninth prince: "Father, I was there and witnessed everything that brother had said to lady Ming."

Fifth prince: "Ninth brother, how can you say that? You weren't even there. Even if you wanted to protect your fiance, you shouldn't lie to father like that."

Ninth prince: "I was there brother, you just didn't notice me. If you don't believe me, you can ask general Ming and the people outside of the mansion. They will all tell you that I was there today."

Emperor: "Yeu Hwa, why were you there today?"

Ninth prince: "Father, I went there today to bring the dowery gifts. Maybe because brother was in a rush to leave today, that he didn't notice the boxes of gifts in the front yard."

Stunned, the fifth prince couldn't say anything else. And to confirm everything for the emperor, eunuch Huang said.

"Your majesty, what the ninth prince said was true. When this servant went there to invite lady Ming into the palace, I did see dowry boxes in the main hall."

Upon hearing that, the emperor flew into a rage and looked at the fifth prince.

"WANG LEI!! How could you do that?! You are a royal prince! How dare you use such methods?!"

The fifth prince trembled as he pleaded for forgiveness.

"Father, please ease your anger. Please forgive me. I... I was blinded for a second. I didn't mean to harm her. Please, father, forgive me."

Emperor: "(sigh)... Fifth prince, this is your punishment. You are to be under house arrest for three months, and your salary will be deducted by half a year."

The fifth prince looked relieved by his punishment. The emperor then had him taken away. He then looked back at BaiLing and said.

"I'm sorry for everything you had to go through because of this son of mine. I know this punishment is unfair towards you, but the empress dowager's birthday is coming soon, and she would like to see all of her grandchildren together. Therefore I am unable to give out a harsher punishment."

BaiLing who's tears were still running, though much lighter than before, said.

"Your majesty, I am thankful that you got me justice. I dare not ask for more."

Emperor: "Hmm. As for this servant of yours..."

BaiLing: "Your majesty, please forgive him. Although he did do something wrong, he has redeemed himself in the end."

Emperor: "Alright."

BaiLing: "Thank you, your majesty."

Emperor: "Everyone, you are dismissed. Yeu Hwa you too. BaiLing, I want you to stay."

Everyone looked at BaiLing, not know what the emperor wanted to talk about. But no one dared to ask, and all left the throne room, leaving BaiLing and the emperor behind.