“No… no…” Cui Ningya was completely distraught. Provoked like this, she didn't even notice whether Zhong Li was telling the truth or how many loopholes there were in her words.
Zhong Li pressed on, “Cui Ningya, you were simply abandoned. No one loves you. You are so filthy. How could your father ever consider you to inherit the throne of Yan?”
“No… that’s not true, that’s not true!” Cui Ningya was completely driven mad and screamed at Zhong Li.
Seeing her state, Zhong Li roughly tore at Cui Ningya’s clothes and said, “Cui Ningya, let me tell you another secret. Your father said that you were also poisoned with that Gu. He administered it to you precisely because he worried you would disrupt his plans later. Once he had an heir, you would be the one he discarded. Therefore, you have been nothing more than a dispensable, useless tool from the very beginning.”
“You’re lying, you’re lying!” Cui Ningya shrieked at Zhong Li as if she had gone mad. With a gaze full of venom, she glared as if she wanted to tear the woman before her apart, “My father is not that kind of person, not that kind of person! It’s impossible, impossible!”
“Why?” Zhong Li followed her lead and asked.
“Because… because I was the one who refined that Gu poison. All the elixirs are in the secret chamber. How could my father… ugh…” Cui Ningya quickly shut her mouth, realizing what she had just said.
Zhong Li put on a look of sudden realization and said, “So that’s how it is. It seems I couldn't trick you.” With that, she turned and prepared to walk out of the cave.
“Zhong Li!” Cui Ningya called out, looking at Zhong Li’s retreating back, “You’re a liar! You actually tricked me into talking!”
Zhong Li turned sideways to look at Cui Ningya and said, “Liar? Cui Ningya, I am merely using your own methods against you.”
“May you die a horrible death! May you die a horrible death!” Cui Ningya twisted her body violently, as if trying to break free and pounce on Zhong Li.
Zhong Li smiled and shook her head, “Cui Ningya, there is one thing I did not lie to you about.”
Cui Ningya frowned.
“Your father, Cui Nan, is still alive.”
Cui Ningya’s pupils contracted slightly.
“He spoke of his last wish in the water prison. He said he hoped his daughter would live. He said his daughter’s name is Cui Ningya, and his disciple is Tang Yuanhua, also known as Xuan Yangzi!”
“What are you saying? What are you saying?” Cui Ningya shook her head, her face filled with disbelief.
Zhong Li, not wanting to waste any more breath on her, quickly exited the cave.
Lu Yuanfeng was waiting for her outside. As soon as he saw her emerge, he went to meet her and asked, “How did it go?”
Zhong Li nodded and said, “May I ask how many people the Sixth Prince brought with you this time?”
“A little over ten?” Lu Yuanfeng replied with a raised eyebrow, sounding confused.
“That’s enough!” Zhong Li said, “Cui Ningya said that the Gu poison she refined is located in a secret chamber within this hill. I would trouble the Sixth Prince to help me find it.”
Lu Yuanfeng nodded and waved to the crowd opposite him. Simultaneously, everyone received their orders and surged into the cave like a swarm of bees.
Seeing that it would take some time to find the secret chamber, Lu Yuanfeng walked over to Zhong Li, who was resting by the cave entrance, and asked, “What do you plan to do with Cui Ningya?”
Zhong Li glanced in the direction of the cave and said, “She won’t live much longer. Let her fend for herself.”
“Why do you say that? What happened inside?” Lu Yuanfeng asked.
“Not much, really. I simply told her the truth about the deal between Cui Nan and Lan Heng!” Zhong Li replied.
Upon hearing this, Lu Yuanfeng gave Zhong Li a thumbs-up and said, “It seems the art of killing with a single sentence is something Madam Zhong plays better than I do.”
Zhong Li, too lazy to engage with him further, crossed her arms and feigned sleep. Lu Yuanfeng knew Zhong Li was still angry with him for risking Lu Wuxie’s life, so he shook his head and moved aside with understanding.
About half an hour later, a guard from the Sixth Prince’s entourage rushed out of the cave, exclaiming, “Found it, found it!”
Zhong Li heard this, opened her eyes, and quickly rushed into the cave.
Lu Yuanfeng stood where he was, watching the woman’s figure slowly disappear from his sight, and murmured, “Mo Cang, she cares for you so much. If she knew that you… what would happen then?”
When Zhong Li emerged from the cave and boarded the carriage, she was holding a small jar in her hands. Lu Yuanfeng, seeing the small jar, curious, wanted to examine it, but Zhong Li stopped him, saying, “If you don’t want to be poisoned, don’t touch it!”
Lu Yuanfeng withdrew his hand. “Are there ice cubes in the carriage?” she asked.
“No ice, but there is saltpeter,” Lu Yuanfeng replied, taking out a small box from a carved cabinet. He then placed a small basin aside, threw the saltpeter from the box into the basin, and in a short while, a basin of ice water was ready.
Zhong Li nodded, indicating for him to place the ice under the table. She then placed the small jar on the table, put on a pair of gloves from her waist, extinguished the oil lamp inside the carriage, and slowly opened the jar.
Lu Yuanfeng, also curious, leaned closer to look and was immediately hit by a foul odor that nearly made him gag. Zhong Li glanced at him and casually pulled a clean mask from her waist, handing it to him.
Lu Yuanfeng looked at the strange little gadget in his hand, recalling Lu Wuxie’s words that Zhong Li always carried many unfamiliar items. He smiled, imitated her, and put it on his mouth before leaning closer to examine it again. Inside the jar, which was about the size of a wine jar, were densely packed crawling insects. Beneath the insects was a piece of blood-red matter that seemed alive, and upon closer inspection, one could even feel it pulsing.
“What is this?” Lu Yuanfeng asked.
“A heart!” Zhong Li replied concisely.
“Alive?” Lu Yuanfeng’s eyes widened.
Zhong Li shook her head, “How is that possible? The lower the animal’s level, the longer its heart can survive outside the body. Looking at this, the heart in the jar is human. Without a blood supply, it will only throb a few times before stopping. If you see it beating, there is only one possibility.”
As she spoke, she drew out a dissection knife from her waist and casually said, “Move away.” With a swift motion, the dissection knife sliced open the heart.
“Ugh… *vomits*!” Lu Yuanfeng, unprepared, watched as the flesh was ripped apart, emitting a foul stench. All the food he had eaten at noon surged up his throat. Fortunately, his willpower was somewhat firm; he covered his mouth and managed not to let the nausea ruin his composure. He took a deep breath, calmed his emotions, and then looked at the small jar again.
Suddenly, his eyes lit up, “Such big insects, what… what is this?”
Zhong Li looked up and said, “Do you remember Concubine Rong’s case?”
“Corpse moths? But… don’t corpse moths cause people to spontaneously combust? How could…”
“This is a queen!” Zhong Li stated, “In Concubine Rong’s case, it was the male moths that ignited the fire. I initially thought the queen was only for reproduction, but it seems I was too naive.”
“What do you mean?” Lu Yuanfeng asked.
Zhong Li took out a pair of tweezers from a oil-waxed leather pouch and pinched up a thumb-sized insect attached to the heart. “Look, its belly is full of blood. Such a plump queen must be the king of the insects.”