CHAPTER 607: CHAPTER 396: CONVULSION

The carriage went directly to the outside of the Eastern Palace. As soon as Ran Yan and Liu Qingsong alighted, temple officials took the box with the autopsy tools and led them inside the palace.

The corridors were winding, and flowers bloomed like a brocade. Yet, the vast Eastern Palace was eerily silent, the atmosphere oppressively somber, as though even the chirping of cicadas and birds were cautious and restrained here.

The temple officials’ footsteps were light, and Ran Yan and Liu Qingsong had to tread softly as well.

By the entrance of the side hall, Ran Yan glanced and saw Li Shimin sitting inside the pavilion. The temple officials stopped, and Ran Yan and Liu Qingsong approached to salute.

"This concubine pays respects to the Emperor."

"This official pays respects to the Emperor."

"You may dispense with the formalities." Li Shimin appeared very calm, a tranquility born of profound disappointment, devoid of anger since there was no point after despair had set in. He now only hoped that this matter had nothing to do with any other princes.

"He Sizheng highly recommended you both to examine the body. I know that acting as a forensic doctor is unbecoming, but the stakes are high at this moment. I ask you both, for the sake of Great Tang and the peace of the realm, to perform this examination!" Li Shimin’s words could be very motivating to true-born citizens of the Great Tang, perhaps stirring their passion, but unfortunately, neither of them were genuine subjects of the Great Tang.

But the imperial command was not to be refused.

Together, they responded, "We shall do our utmost."

Li Shimin had never heard of Ran Yan conducting autopsies before, but He Sizheng had described her medical treatment of Sang Chen so skillfully and colorfully recounted how she performed an autopsy wearing a mask to exonerate herself that, after confirming He Sizheng’s account with the Imperial Censorate officials who had witnessed Ran Yan’s autopsy, Li Shimin had immediately summoned her.

Li Chengqian was Li Shimin’s first-born legitimate son. During the years of chaos and warfare, a four or five-year-old Li Chengqian was left alone in the prince’s residence, listening to the sounds of fighting. He was a child who had survived amidst the flashing blades; his childhood was filled with strife, bloodshed, and solitude. This shadow had accompanied his growth, a lingering fear, inescapable.

Even though he was intelligent and capable of governance, he faltered when faced with imperial power. Sitting in that position, he wielded the power of life and death, but that meant he had to be calculating and ruthless, qualities Li Chengqian desired but feared to embrace, leaving him conflicted.

Li Shimin too had tossed and turned with worry about his son’s eccentricities, unable to sleep at night. After careful thought and reminiscing on Li Chengqian’s childhood and what Empress Zhangsun had once said, at this moment Li Shimin felt not only disappointment for Li Chengqian but also guilt and pity.

It was because of this slight guilt and pity, as well as the political aptitude Li Chengqian had once shown, that had kept Li Shimin from decisively deposing him. But now, such feelings were almost entirely worn away by Li Chengqian’s repeated moral failings.

If indeed the Crown Prince was behind this, it was a scenario far beyond the scope of merely "lacking virtue." Li Shimin wanted to see just how low Li Chengqian could sink, which is why he came personally.

Li Shimin entered the side hall alongside Ran Yan and Liu Qingsong. Upon entering, they were hit with a stifling heat mixed with traces of cool air and the stench of blood. The smell was overpoweringly nauseating, but the scent alone almost allowed Ran Yan to guess how long the person had been dead.

Given that it concerned the Crown Prince, there were few people in the side hall, only including the four Ministry of Justice officials led by He Sizheng.

The hall appeared to have just had ice blocks placed inside, not yet completely cooled, and the feeling of hot and cold clinging together made it all the more irritating.

Liu Qingsong, knowing that He Sizheng must have greatly embellished Ran Yan’s abilities, and that Li Shimin had summoned her because he believed in her, wanted her to lead the examination, so he conscientiously took out the coveralls and other such items from the box to help Ran Yan put them on.

Ran Yan tightened the sleeves of the coveralls and Liu Qingsong helped her tie up the wide sleeves of her robe before slipping it inside the coveralls. Ran Yan placed a slice of ginger in her mouth and donned a mask while surveying the surroundings.

The deceased lay face down on the table, the head unnaturally twisted, the entire back of the skull pressed against the surface. The complexion was a ghastly pale, with blood seeping from the corners of the eyes and mouth, the mouth slightly ajar, expression resembling one of shock.

Papers were scattered across the table and floor, a carved bronze candlestick had fallen, pressing down on the deceased’s arm. The back of the corpse had faint bloodstains.

"May we move the body now?" Ran Yan asked He Sizheng.