Crossing the Mountains

Chapter 93 Change of Mind
"Xiang Wan..." Shen Tu Zhuo asked, "Did you notice it? Do you also think she did it?"

"I'm not sure, I just have some doubts." Tan Huaike said, "I don't know what happened in the warm room that day, but the incense pills used have been checked before, so there shouldn't be any problems."

"Before being placed under house arrest, Xu Guanbai came to see me and Chi Junshou and roughly explained the situation at the time."

During the year-end sacrifice, Tan Huaike was arranging the costumes for the dancers, and Shentu Zhuo was beating the drums to pray for blessings, so neither of them was in the warm room. Initially, the Chi County Magistrate was in the warm room, and nothing unusual happened until he went to the altar to place his sword and pray, and then announced the canal diversion plan.

It was when only Xu Guanbai, Aisha, and Zhou Wencong were left in the warm room that the incense changed, triggering the subsequent assassination. Furthermore, the assassination was clearly targeting the Mohe envoy and the Third Prince of Daxuan, making Xu Guanbai, the female historian who happened to be present, even more suspicious.

Based on this alone, it's possible she was innocently implicated. However, she had examined the incense pills with Tan Huaike and was quite familiar with the scent. If someone else had replaced the incense, how could she not have noticed? Even if she hadn't done it herself, she was still implicated.

It was for this reason that the Magistrate of Chi ordered him to be placed under house arrest, and would make a final decision after finding Aisha and the Third Prince.

After listening to Shentu Zhuo's retelling, Tan Huaike nodded. "Guan Bai Niangzi is also an expert on fragrance. The incense used in the warm room that day was the popular Suchan Curcuma in Daxuan. I didn't recognize all of the rare and precious spices, but she was very familiar with them and explained them to me one by one. The incense that was replaced later must have been produced in the Western Territory, because it has a distinct scent of Yinxi, mixed with some commonly used spices in the Western Territory. The two scents are clearly different. With Guan Bai Niangzi's keen sense, it is impossible for her not to notice it."

Shen Tu Zhuo said, "This is exactly what doesn't make sense. She claims she didn't do it, but she can't explain why she didn't smell a change in the scent of the incense. Isn't this just specious?"

Tan Huaike looked at Zhou Wencong, who seemed to be lost in thought. "Third Prince, do you remember anything unusual happening in the warm room before and after the county governor left that day?"

Zhou Wencong said, "To be honest, I was discussing politics with Aisha... and was also paying attention to the 'Thousand Gold Channel' that the Chi County Magistrate was talking about. I didn't pay much attention. It seems that servants and maids came in and out a few times, pouring tea, adding water, and serving snacks. It's all normal. A maid also came to add incense, but as for how or what they added, I don't know."

"Has White Snake ever added incense herself?" asked Tan Huaike.

"Hmm, I don't think so. No, I think I fiddled with the incense burner a few times. I can't remember clearly."

"It's so obvious, I don't think it's Guan Bai Niangzi's intention." Tan Huaike said, "Knowing that she is inextricably linked to the Xiangwan, she still insists on making a fuss about it. Isn't this just throwing mud on herself?"

"But how do you explain her not noticing it?" Shen Tuzhuo questioned. "It's impossible that her nose suddenly stopped working and she can't smell anything anymore, right?"

Tan Huaike looked at him and asked, "Is this really not possible?"

Shentu Zhuo frowned: "This is too..." unreasonable.

Tan Huaike knew what he was thinking and explained, "I don't have any hard evidence at the moment, so I'm just speculating. But please, Your Highness the Third Prince and my uncle, listen and see if this is possible."

Zhou Wencong said with great interest, "Tell me." Tan Huaike asked, "When did White Snake fall asleep that day, and when did she wake up?"

Zhou Wencong replied, "I think the young lady was weak and closer to the incense burner. She fell asleep before Aisha and I felt dizzy."

Shentu Zhuo said, "She woke up late, too. The guards and servants in the warm room probably recovered that evening, and she didn't wake up until the next day. However, most of the guards and servants were waiting in the outer room. Only a large window covered with gauze was left in the inner room for viewing the sacrifice, and the gap for ventilation was very small, so the three of them must have been the most seriously affected by the incense. Putting aside Aisha and the Third Prince's desperate escape, if Xu Guanbai had planned it himself and included himself in the scheme, it would have been a good way to escape punishment."

"Putting aside whether she was exonerated or not, since she fell asleep first and woke up last, can we say that Guan Bai Niangzi was the first to be targeted?" Tan Huaike said, "Perhaps she wasn't just drugged with the aphrodisiac incense, but also with other drugs. This drug made her so weak that she couldn't even smell anything for a while."

"That does make sense." Zhou Wencong agreed.

"When White Snake fiddled with the incense ball, perhaps she realized she couldn't smell the incense anymore and wanted to see if it was unlit. Unfortunately, it was too late by then; the person who had replaced the incense ball had already taken it."

After hearing Tan Huaike's speculation, Shentu Zhuo pondered: "The prefect has ordered the warm room to be sealed off, but he's been busy searching for Aisha and the Third Prince these days, so he's short on manpower and can't take care of many things. I'll send someone back with a message and investigate further along this line. But after saying so much, what does it have to do with the marriage? What do you want to do?"

Tan Huaike sighed and said, "Uncle, it was this assassination during the year-end sacrifice that made me change my mind." She looked at Zhou Wencong and said calmly, "Third Prince, if necessary, I am willing to pretend to be a princess and go to marry."
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Zhou Wencong was only slightly surprised, but Shen Tu Zhuo was furious on the spot.

"Pretending to be a princess and going on a marriage? Are you crazy?" Shentu Zhuo said angrily, "Because of this marriage, there have already been two assassination attempts! Once in the river valley outside the Great Wall, and once in the warm room in the city. Haven't you figured it out? Someone is determined to ruin this marriage at all costs. They even dared to kill envoys from other countries and the third prince!"

"It's precisely because I saw this that I made up my mind," Tan Huaike said. "As you said, those who want to ruin the marriage have never stopped. They are secretive and ruthless. The best way to fight back is to prevent them from succeeding. After paying so much, they will still get nothing!"

"How do you know it will succeed? A princess has already died, do you want to add more lives to it?"

"I know this is dangerous, but uncle, I've been deeply involved in this for a long time and can't stay out of it. Aisha and the Third Prince both tried to persuade me to do this because they knew very well that I was the victim of the marriage incident and the one who wanted revenge the most and wanted to find out who was behind it."

"Do you want to use yourself as bait to force the person behind the scenes to reveal himself?" Zhou Wencong asked her.

"Yes, rather than just sit there and wait for death during their repeated attacks, it's better to take advantage of their tactics," Tan Huaike said. "This is the most convenient method, and it's also beneficial to everyone."

"Oh, really? Why don't I think it's good for me?" Shen Tu Zhuo said sarcastically.
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　Next chapter: That depends on whether the Third Prince is willing to cooperate.

　　(End of this chapter)