Peaceful Farm Life

Chapter 2629: Chapter 2630: Return to Tianyun (196)

After lunch, Tao Chengyin wasn’t in a hurry to leave. He still sat in Taoming Ye’s courtyard, chatting idly with Su Xing and Taoming Ye.

When it was the Shen hour, Tao Chengyin had sat enough and was just about to leave, when he saw Mrs. Cao’s two Maidservants, Manjuan and Manhe, arrive, each carrying a small food box in her hand.

Seeing that Tao Chengyin was still there, Manjuan and Manhe immediately tensed up and wanted to turn around and leave, but the three of them—Tao Chengyin, Su Xing, and Taoming Ye—had already seen them. If they just turned around like that, it would surely look guilty. They could only brace themselves and bring the things inside.

”What are you doing here?” As soon as Tao Chengyin saw them come over, he asked in the manner of a family elder.

Before Manhe and Manjuan could speak, Su Xing said with a smile, ”Father, the medicine Míngyè drinks is all handled by Mother. Every day around this time Manhe brings the decoction over for Míngyè to drink; I just don’t know why Manjuan has come as well today.”

Manjuan hurriedly forced herself to answer, ”The kitchen just made some mung bean cakes for Madam. Madam told me to bring a plate over for the eldest young master and young mistress.”

Su Xing smiled and said, ”Mung bean cakes, ah. Father, at this time your stomach should be a bit empty too. Why not have two pieces and a cup of tea before you go?”

”Very well.” Tao Chengyin agreed with a broad smile and sat down again.

”Master...” Manjuan and Manhe were both so anxious they wanted to say something, not wanting Tao Chengyin to stay, but he had already sat down, clearly intending to have another cup of tea and some mung bean cake before leaving. They could only shut their mouths, not daring to say another word, for fear of revealing a flaw.

From the moment Manjuan and Manhe appeared together, Su Xing and Taoming Ye had felt something was off, which was why Su Xing had kept Tao Chengyin back.

As soon as she saw Tao Chengyin sit down, Su Xing turned to Manjuan and said, ”Manjuan, didn’t Mother send mung bean cakes? Where are the mung bean cakes?”

Manjuan could only grit her teeth, hurriedly open the food box in her hand, take out the plate of mung bean cakes with ”something extra” added, and respectfully place it on the table.

Su Xing then turned to Manhe. ”The medicine.”

Manhe also hurriedly opened the small food box in her hand, took out the bowl of medicine inside that likewise had ”something extra” added—and in a heavy dose at that—and placed it on the table as well.

The Maidservant brought another cup of tea for Tao Chengyin.

Seeing Tao Chengyin about to pick up a piece of mung bean cake to eat, Taoming Ye quickly stopped him. ”Father, don’t eat yet. Xin’er is used to first testing things with a Silver needle, and the King and Queen also reminded Xin’er that now that Xin’er holds the noble status of Princess, she must be careful about everything she eats. It’s not that we fear our own family will harm us, but that we fear outsiders may use this to frame our family, and that would be bad.”

Although Tao Chengyin had never seen Su Xing use a Silver needle to test all kinds of food, he had long heard of it. Besides, the Royal Family and imperial family always used silver chopsticks when they ate, precisely to guard against poison in the food, so he could understand. He put the piece of mung bean cake back onto the plate.

”Father, just wait a moment; it’ll be done once it’s tested. It’s just a formality.” As she spoke, Su Xing looked toward Hong Ye.

Hong Ye took out the Silver needle that she had secretly rubbed with ginger.

Manhe and Manjuan, however, were not afraid in the least; the additive they had put in couldn’t be detected by a Silver needle at all. What they feared was that Master Tao Chengyin would end up eating these things.

Both the mung bean cakes and the decoction contained a lethal dose. Their Madam had only intended to poison Su Xing and Taoming Ye; she had never planned to poison their Master.

But Manhe and Manjuan had no way of imagining that this time the Silver needle would actually detect something.

They watched as Hong Ye took out two Silver needles, stuck one into a piece of mung bean cake and plunged the other into the decoction. Both Silver needles instantly turned black—truly, deeply black.