CHAPTER 96: CHAPTER 95: STRANGE AZALEAS!

Before long, Mrs. Zhao’s agonized cries could be heard.

Mr Chen emerged from the room, his brows tightly furrowed, muttering to himself, "Strange, I’ve never seen such bizarre symptoms. There are clearly no external or internal injuries, yet why is this child comatose? I’ve already tried acupuncture, regardless of the method, it’s of no use. The crucial point is, I’ve checked his pulse at different times, just a short interval apart, and the child’s pulse varies in strength. Moments ago, the pulse was strong, and now it has become weak and frail."

Mr. Zhao’s eyes were red-ringed, he grasped Mr Chen’s arm, as if clutching a lifeline, "Mr Chen, my son is only five years old, how could he suffer such a calamity? He has no injuries, is he really going to perish just like this? It shouldn’t be like this, even if a great misfortune were to occur, it should be directed at me, why should it affect my son?"

Mr Chen’s eyes held a trace of reluctance, he let out a long sigh, "It’s not that I don’t want to save him, but I’m truly powerless. Unable to identify the cause of the illness, we can’t administer any targeted treatment. This is indeed a vexing issue for a physician."

Mr. Zhao slumped to the ground, the eagle-like man now shedding tears of sorrow.

This scene of agony was unbearable even for Xie Jiuxiao, who called out softly, "Zhaozhao!"

Yu Nianzhao snapped back to reality, pointing to the flowers in the courtyard, "Who planted these flowers?"

Mr. Zhao’s cries stopped, he wiped his tears, somewhat unable to regain his composure, instinctively responded, "These are the azaleas planted by Hua Niang."

"Hua Niang? Didn’t I warn you? Be wary of those with ’flower’ in their name. Where is she?"

"I’ve always remembered the Princess Consort’s words, and I did suspect Hua Niang. But after fetching back the child, we’ve been unable to find any trace of Hua Niang."

"It must be Hua Niang who harmed Hang’er, she’s fled the scene out of guilt." Mrs. Zhao said with swollen red eyes, filled with resentment, "I had mentioned earlier that Hua Niang has aspirations higher than the sky, and having entered the household, not having borne any offspring, she’s long desired to harm Hang’er. If only you’d listened to my words earlier, would Hang’er be in this state today? If anything untoward happens to our son, it’s all your fault!"

Mr. Zhao clenched his fist tightly, his expression torn apart with pain, "I had no intention towards romance, it was her expertise in botany that fascinated me, hence I brought her into the household for gardening. Who knew I’d end up entangled in such a wrongful affair, taking her as a concubine, yet I had no feelings for her; she was solely obsessed with gardening. I thought we could simply go on this way without complications. Who could have anticipated she’d...?"

Mr. Zhao felt equally aggrieved, he already had his hands full overseeing the tribunal, if not for the inebriation of that night, he wouldn’t have given Hua Niang the chance she took.

"Hmph, you speak so well, but when you stayed overnight in the study, Hua Niang brought you food and drink. If you truly had no thoughts about her, why would she bother to tempt you? Haven’t you heard that a single hand cannot create a sound?"

Mrs. Zhao refused to believe his words. At this moment, any marital affection had disappeared, replaced only by overwhelming resentment.

"The immediate concern isn’t about who’s right or wrong." Yu Nianzhao walked into the room, observing the little boy lying on the bed, noting his breathing growing weaker, "His spirit has left his body, if it isn’t found quickly, his physical form will perish."

Yu Nianzhao drew a symbol in the air, a golden talisman imprinting itself on the boy’s forehead, "I’ll first use a Soul Calming Talisman to stabilize his vital signs. We must find his spirit within twenty-four hours, otherwise, there truly will be no cure."

"Really? Princess Consort, is there hope for our son?" Mr. Zhao wiped his tears, knelt before Yu Nianzhao, kowtowed, "Please save my son’s life, I’d be willing to face life-threatening risks for you thereafter."

Dongfang Chenyuan reassured, "Since the Princess Consort has spoken, there surely is a way to save him."

Mrs. Zhao also knelt down, crying, "Please, Princess Consort, bring Hang’er back."

"Please enlighten us, Princess Consort, where has our son’s spirit gone?"

"The flowers outside have issues. Azaleas bloom in the dead of winter, you’re all unaware of what lies beneath them."

Yu Nianzhao waved her hand, "Go dig up these azaleas."

With a glance from Xie Jiuxiao, Mu Hongxuan immediately instructed the nearby guards to fetch shovels for digging.

Soon, the courtyard was excavated.

A stench filled the air, they saw many internal organs buried in the soil, all of them rotting and crawling with maggots.

"Ugh..." Dongfang Chenyuan couldn’t help but retch at the sight.

"What are these things?" Mr. Zhao’s face changed dramatically, "No wonder Hua Niang could cultivate premature blooms, so what’s buried underneath is..."

"These are human internal organs, Mr. Zhao, your concubine is indeed not simple." Xie Jiuxiao took one glance and identified that the rotten organs weren’t of animals but humans, "It’s unknown whether she extracted them from living people or dug them out from the deceased."

"Xie Jiuxiao, in your previous investigations, how many corpses missing internal organs were there?" Yu Nianzhao suddenly inquired.

Xie Jiuxiao had a moment of clarity, squinting his eyes and coldly stated, "Zhaozhao, are you implying that this woman named Hua Niang is related to the recent series of murders?"

"It’s quite possible." Yu Nianzhao seemed unbothered by the stench, calmly squatting by the soil, looking at the reddened earth and saying, "However, the heart of the city gatekeeper isn’t here, its whereabouts are unknown."

"Ugh... Hua Niang? Hearing this name sounds like she’d be a gentle woman, yet she’s capable of committing such heinous murders?" Dongfang Chenyuan was astounded.

"Indeed, Princess Consort, I wouldn’t hastily take someone with no background as a concubine. I had investigated beforehand, Hua Niang relocated from Jizhou, both her parents had passed away early, she’d learned gardening from a floriculturist. Upon arriving in Shangjing, she secured a gardener position at the Silver Flower Building. Her botanical skills were exceptional, even out-of-season flowers could bloom within a month under her care. The Princess once invited her in to tend to the palace’s flowers and plants, and because of this, several noble families in Shangjing sought her out to take care of their gardens."

Mr. Zhao found it all bewildering, "While in the Zhao Mansion, she consistently devoted herself to gardening in the courtyard, showing little attention to the children and rarely going out. Therefore, I never suspected the recent murders to be related to her, and judging by the criminal timing, she shouldn’t have had the time or capability to commit such deeds."