Plotting with You: The Forensic Scientist in Ancient Times!-Chapter 208 - 207: Rarity

The three of them, led by the servants of the Prince Shuo Mansion, returned to Li Garden.

Once inside Li Garden, the talismans stood like two gate gods, keeping the servants of the Prince Shuo Mansion outside.

"Is there any truth to the fortune-telling you just did?" Zhu Yu asked curiously after sitting down in the guest hall.

Yan Daoxin grinned, now that there were no outsiders around, he no longer maintained that immortal demeanor, and waved a hand at Zhu Yu: "I have always enjoyed learning medicine from my master since I was young, and have no interest in anything else.

Things like stargazing, fortune-telling, bone-reading, I don’t know any of that.

Those words I just mentioned were from the fortune books I read in the temple; what they really mean, I’m not too sure.

Over the years with my master, I’ve picked up these phrases, and they sound convincing. I doubt Princess Shuo knows more than I do."

Zhu Yu laughed.

Truth be told, Yan Daoxin truly managed to deceive people; talking about past life entanglements, and claiming that only if Pang Yuzhen treats the Miao Family well will she receive blessings herself, these words left her astounded as she stood behind.

From what she knew about Pang Yuzhen, she indeed took it to heart.

From now on, her mother’s days at the Prince Shuo Mansion should be much better.

For now, this was the most she could do for the Miao Family, thanks in large part to Yan Daoxin’s eloquence.

"What’s the story with that Three Flavors Longevity Ointment?" It was broad daylight, and Zhu Yu didn’t want to keep wearing a veil, so she didn’t bother with the fake skin on her face.

"The Three Flavors Longevity Ointment is indeed precious, but no matter how precious, it’s not an Immortal Elixir from a Heavenly Palace. However, once I tell you something, you’ll understand." Yan Daoxin lowered his voice mysteriously, "To make the Three Flavors Longevity Ointment, you need two very rare herbs, both of which come from Lan Country."

"Lan Country..." Zhu Yu paused, lost in thought, "What kind of herbs are these? Is it possible the herbs were sold to Shuo Country, then used to make the ointment?"

"Highly unlikely." Lu Qing shook his head, "The two herbs from Lan Country are rare because they’re hard to obtain.

One grows in swamps, the other comes from deep cliffs, requiring people to tie ropes around themselves to pick them, with the risk of losing their lives if not careful.

Once picked, they must be mashed and boiled into ointment shortly after, or they will quickly wither and become ineffective.

Few are willing to take such risks to collect herbs unless forced by circumstances.

So, the Three Flavors Longevity Ointment is rare even in Lan Country.

I find it hard to believe that just offering some Silver Coin in Shuo Country would be enough to buy it."

"Are you suggesting that the Pang Family is indeed colluding with forces outside of Shuo Country?" Zhu Yu furrowed her brows; although she and Lu Qing hadn’t spoken of it, they both sensed something was off with the Pang Family.

Fortunately, Pang Yuzhen’s shallowness led her to feel disrespected by Yan Daoxin for claiming she couldn’t handle precious tonics, prompting her to flaunt the Three Flavors Longevity Ointment, confirming their suspicion.

"We can only speculate at this point," Lu Qing cautioned her, "Aside from the Pang Family’s involvement in weapon forging and iron mining, which aligns with the unrecorded weapons Situ Jing and Lu Zhang mentioned, there’s only the Three Flavors Longevity Ointment exclusive to Lan Country.

These things are suspicious but prove nothing concrete. We need to be cautious and strategize; rushing could alert the enemy and ruin everything."

Zhu Yu nodded: "I understand, it seems my return to my maternal home wasn’t in vain; we might catch a big fish.

The most important thing right now is the canal and the food supply. Once progress is made there, everything else will fall into place."

That evening, Zhu Cheng sent a steward to inform Zhu Yu and the others that he had arranged for some food supplies, which could reach the pass by early tomorrow, potentially allowing the canal construction to commence.

It seems Zhu Cheng is not entirely confident about the canal project.

Yan Daoxin’s diagnosis and prescriptions for Princess Shuo and his interactions with the Miao Family were not of much interest to Zhu Cheng, who merely had the steward inquire politely and, upon learning that it would take a few days to see the effects of the medication, didn’t probe further.

After all, canal construction is a significant task occupying most of his attention, leaving little time for anything else.

Even though Zhu Cheng doesn’t have time to come over himself, the steward almost seemed to take root outside Li Garden, waiting daily to promptly carry out Zhu Yu’s requests without hesitation.

However, Zhu Yu was aware that what seemed like concern was actually Zhu Cheng worried about outsiders discovering Zhu Yu’s identity and causing trouble for himself, which is why he had the steward keep watch.

This didn’t bother her much, as she was already exhausted from the journey, and with nothing urgent to attend to, it was a good chance to recuperate.

Initially, Zhu Yu considered probing the Miao Family for information, as they came with Pang Yuzhen upon her marriage. Before Pang Yuzhen became Princess Shuo, the Miao Family’s contracts were likely held by the Pang Family, giving them more insight into the family than others in the mansion.

But Lu Qing advised her against this.

Despite being mother and daughter, even if they couldn’t live together before due to Pang Yuzhen’s interference, the Miao Family was still the most observant of Zhu Yu in the entire Prince Shuo Mansion.

Last time, despite wearing a Taoist robe and a stranger’s face, she could still relate Zhu Yu’s figure to her daughter. It evidently wasn’t the right time to interact with her, to avoid exposing her identity.

Agreeing with him, Zhu Yu dismissed the notion for now.

Meeting Zhu Cheng again two mornings later, he seemed to have spent the night at the Weapon Supervision, arriving at the mansion directly thereafter, looking worn and with bloodshot eyes.

When the steward brought him in, Lu Qing was practicing with the talismans, while Zhu Yu sat under the corridor watching with Yan Daoxin.

Upon seeing Zhu Cheng enter, Zhu Yu stood up and greeted him respectfully, "Father, you’re here."

Just as she was about to call Lu Qing, Zhu Cheng raised a hand to stop her, his eyes fixated on Lu Qing, unable to look away.