Chapter 39: Palace Banquet Storm (9)

"How do you want to proceed further?" Yan Hongtian, who had been sitting on the high seat and was unfathomable, finally spoke.

"Dissection."

Zhuo Qing said it calmly. Many people didn't quite understand what she meant, but Dan Yulan's brows were already tied in a knot! He sighed in a low voice: "You want to cut open the abdominal cavity to check?"

Cut—open—the—abdominal—cavity—?

This time everyone understood, and the sound of gasping rose one after another...

Xu Xunsi couldn't bear it anymore and roared angrily: "Impossible! I absolutely cannot tolerate you treating my sister's body like this! Don't push your luck!"

Dan Yulan thought for a while and suggested: "Can you verify it with other methods? Try using a silver needle to insert and test."

"No." Zhuo Qing shook her head and insisted: "The toxicity has already spread. With blood circulation, the muscles and blood of the deceased's body before death already carried toxicity, otherwise the skin of the whole body wouldn't have appeared light blue. Silver needles have high sensitivity to poison reactions. As long as poison exists, it will turn black, which cannot prove whether the poison that killed the deceased was the wine she drank or the needle hole at the back of the head." Relying on a few silver needles to draw a conclusion lacked rigor! In her career, this was absolutely not allowed to happen.

Just as Zhuo Qing finished speaking, Xu Xunsi questioned again: "Since the whole body is poisonous now, even if you do the so-called dissection, you can't prove anything!"

"Of course I can prove it." Zhuo Qing explained carefully and patiently: "A deceased person who died of snake venom generally dies of rapid heart and kidney failure. If it is a deceased person who died of oral poisoning, because the poison enters from the mouth, the throat, esophagus, and especially the stomach, as the positions where the poison stays the longest, will be eroded by the venom, and there will be obvious organ damage, and even corrosive burn marks will appear where the venom passed. If the needle hole at the back of the head was the fatal wound, the venom would have taken a different nerve route, and there would be no particularly obvious marks on the stomach and esophagus. Dissection can verify at a glance how the deceased was poisoned."

Dan Yulan was once again surprised by her understanding of the various organs of the corpse. But even if what she said was true, looking at the whole of Qiongyue, there wouldn't be a few cases of dissection and autopsy in a year. After all, how many family members could bear it? Sure enough, as he expected, Xu Xunsi made trouble first: "No matter what you say, I absolutely cannot let you touch a single hair of my sister!"

As he spoke, Xu Xunsi was about to lift the curtain and walk into the curtain. A slender hand blocked in front of him. Xu Xunsi looked over in confusion. Zhuo Qing's face was still as usual, but her voice was cold and heartless: "Third Prince, if your sister didn't die of poisoned wine, but was killed by a needle stuck into the back of her head, then you, who were the first to reach her side and pick her up, have a major suspicion. As a suspect, you cannot approach the corpse."

"You... you are simply abominable!" Hearing Zhuo Qing's words, Xu Xunsi finally couldn't help but explode in rage. Accompanied by the excited roar, Xu Xunsi's tall and thin figure approached Zhuo Qing: "Absurd! How could I harm my own sister?!"

Zhuo Qing only felt a warmth on her shoulder. Lou Xiyan pushed her gently to his side, and his unique clear and moist voice rang out in her ear: "Third Prince, please calm down."

Xu Xunsi took a deep breath, suppressing the unhappiness in his heart. Unwilling to have a direct conflict with Lou Xiyan, he turned around and stood with his hands behind his back. His tone was extremely firm: "In any case, she is already dead. You want to do such cruel things to her, let her suffer such humiliation, and not be at peace even after death. I absolutely do not agree!"

The atmosphere was deadlocked for a time. On Dan Yulan's upright face, rare anxiety finally appeared. Whether the Seventh Princess died because of the needle hole at the back of her head was still just her own speculation. Without further examination of the corpse, it couldn't be verified. But the Third Prince's attitude was firm, and the dissection absolutely couldn't be forced. After all, the deceased was a princess of a country. What should be done?!

Zhuo Qing looked back at the light gauze curtain behind her, thought of that unforgettable beautiful dance, and then looked at the blurry beautiful figure lying on the cold ground, which had gradually become stiff. Zhuo Qing pushed away Lou Xiyan's hand protecting her and walked toward Xu Xunsi in his puzzled eyes.

Standing in front of Xu Xunsi, ignoring his disgusted expression, Zhuo Qing pointed to the curtain and said coldly: "Your sister died an unnatural death, which means she was killed by someone. She died unjustly, but the murderer is still at large. Such a death is her humiliation, and it will make her die with grievances and not be at peace. Autopsy or dissecting the corpse is not disrespect and insult to the deceased, but helping her, saying what she wants to say. She is using her body to tell you! How she died! And as her brother, you are not protecting her now, but preventing her from telling the truth!"

The cold voice was not impassioned, but it was enough for everyone in the hall to hear clearly. And just at this moment, I don't know if it was a coincidence or if there was really the so-called ghost and god theory, but just after Zhuo Qing finished speaking, a sudden cold wind swept from the entrance of the hall, blowing out all the candles in the row closest to the golden silk carpet on both sides of the hall. Only the candles on the second-level platform where the corpse was placed did not go out, and the light gauze curtain was also blown to sway violently by the wind!

The sudden situation made many palace maids hold their heads and close their eyes tightly. The Empress's face was also pale with fright, her fingers trembling uncontrollably, and even those so-called ministers had many trembling with fear.

In the hall, everyone was shocked. Zhuo Qing stood there with a cold face. Actually, she was stunned. What was the situation?! She had performed autopsies for so many years, and she had heard of strange things, but she hadn't experienced it herself. She was an atheist and only believed in science and evidence. Even if there were really any ghosts or grievances, she didn't dare to claim that she was fearless, but she wasn't afraid of them appearing to make trouble. The corpses that would be sent to her knife were all of unknown causes of death, so how could they attack her, the one who could seek justice for them?

The cold wind swept past in a very short time, and the hall soon returned to calm, but everyone's face was not calm. Especially Xu Xunsi, whose handsome face was slightly pale, and his brows were deeply entangled. His eyes were fixed on the beautiful figure in the thin gauze, his eyes complex.

Dan Yulan gave Zhuo Qing a look. This was the best time to persuade the Third Prince. Zhuo Qing turned her head directly and didn't look at him. After that chaos, everyone looked at her with extremely strange eyes. Zhuo Qing wisely didn't speak anymore. She was a forensic doctor, not a shaman. She had said everything she should say.

Zhuo Qing completely ignored him. Dan Yulan had no choice but to step forward himself, stand behind Xu Xunsi, and say in a low voice: "The death of the Seventh Princess is a tragedy for both Qiongyue and Beiqi. Finding out the cause of death and giving the Princess justice is the most important thing now. Third Prince, please think deeply."

After a long silence, Xu Xunsi's attitude, which had been firmly opposed just now, finally changed. He waved his hand weakly and sighed: "Examine it."

Zhuo Qing rolled her eyes. It seemed that in ancient times, the theory of ghosts and gods was more convincing! She really had to thank that inexplicable cold wind...

Turning around and lifting the thin gauze, Zhuo Qing ordered Dan Yulan to prepare dissection tools very naturally: "Dan Yulan, I need three sharp blades of different sizes, a pair of small scissors, several clean handkerchiefs, several porcelain bowls, needle and thread, and a basin of clear water. Also, get another pair of new gloves." The conditions here could only be like this, so make do with it.

"You examine it?" Dan Yulan behind her was truly shocked this time. There were no more than ten coroners in the whole of Qiongyue who could perform such abdominal autopsy. And she, a woman, actually knew how to do it?!

Zhuo Qing turned around. She didn't think dissection was a strange thing. She had done it several times every day before, so naturally, she had no way to understand Dan Yulan's surprise. She shrugged lightly and replied indifferently: "You can examine it yourself if you want, I'll watch from the side." She hadn't seen how the ancients performed dissection and how big the gap was with modern anatomy. She could compare it properly.

She still wanted to—watch from the side?!

Zhuo Qing said it casually, but she didn't know that a group of big men were covered in black lines. Now they were talking about dissecting a corpse, which was a bloody and terrifying thing even for men. And she was full of excitement. At this moment, their common inner voice was only one—

Was she... really a woman?

Zhuo Qing ignored them automatically again, walked into the curtain, and turned back to remind: "I personally suggest that when dissecting, it is best to have the closest family members and at least one official with a higher rank than you to supervise, to show fairness."

She was quite thoughtful, but in the whole hall, how many people had a higher rank than him, and who was willing to supervise?! Dan Yulan sighed in his heart, but he didn't expect Yan Hongtian on the high seat to suddenly say loudly: "Good! To show fairness, I will supervise personally."

Just as Yan Hongtian finished speaking, the ministers were shocked, prostrating themselves on the ground one after another, saying in unison: "Your Majesty, think twice!"

The Empress also finally came back to her senses and said anxiously: "Your Majesty, such a bloody matter is extremely filthy. For the sake of the dragon body, you must think twice!"

Extremely filthy?! Zhuo Qing frowned and felt even more disgusted with this Empress. She had better pray secretly that she would die of old age and not have to experience this "extremely filthy" dissection!

Yan Hongtian did not hesitate at all because of the Empress's persuasion and the ministers' kneeling pleas. He stood up abruptly, his tall and straight figure carrying a domineering and violent aura as he walked straight toward Zhuo Qing. He wanted to see how long she could pretend!

That dignified person on the high seat carried a domineering and violent aura as he walked straight toward Zhuo Qing. Zhuo Qing met his dark eyes and didn't hide anymore. Was he aiming for Feng? If he liked it, he could just keep the three Qing sisters for himself, why send them away? Now he looked like someone owed him a fortune; what did it mean?

She actually dared to glare at him?! Very good, three years later, she had grown some guts!

Walking in front of Zhuo Qing, Yan Hongtian suddenly said: "You proposed the dissection, so you will perform the dissection, and Official Dan will assist from the side." He also wanted to see what progress she had made over the years!

Dan Yulan looked at Zhuo Qing with worry, but only saw her indifferent appearance. Dan Yulan replied: "Yes."

Yan Hongtian and Zhuo Qing were competing with their eyes. Lou Xiyan's gentle voice rang out at the right time: "Your Majesty, this subject is worried that she will be nervous. I wonder if you can allow this subject to enter with her?"

A flash of displeasure crossed Yan Hongtian's eyes, but before he could speak, a low chant rang out: "This subject has also never seen what dissection and autopsy are, and would like to see it. I wonder if I may?" Once this was said, everyone smiled again. What was going on today? Why was even General Su, who had always been cold and silent, joining in the fun?

Being coldly stared at by Su Ling's eagle eyes, Xu Xunsi felt great pressure. The victorious general on the battlefield indeed had an extraordinary aura. Just as he was thinking about how to refuse, Hu Xi'ang behind him spoke first, relieving his embarrassment: "General Su, you are too serious. It's just that although the Princess has passed away, she is still a woman after all. I'm afraid it's not very convenient."

Zhuo Qing rolled her eyes. An autopsy was not an exhibition, what was there to see! Pointing at the two men who were interested and eager to try, she threw out a cold sentence: "Neither of you is allowed to go in. If you want to watch, watch from outside the curtain."

(End of Chapter) ===== CHAPTER 40 =====