Mianmian was drinking fruit juice.
She wasn't sure what kind of juice it was.
It had a sweet and sour taste, and was quite delicious.
She would need to rinse her mouth afterward.
No one had touched the dishes, and the meat remained untouched.
At most, people only ate some snacks.
Because meat would get stuck between teeth.
The dental care standards weren't very advanced at the time, and having meat stuck between teeth could be uncomfortable for a long time.
Even for wealthy nobles, once teeth fell out, there weren't many good solutions.
The sophisticated ones would get artificial teeth implanted, made from materials like bamboo, wood, ivory, or animal bones, fixed with gold wire tied to adjacent real teeth. Well-made ones could fit quite well, but they were purely decorative and couldn't be used for chewing.
However, after the advancement of alchemy, there was now a more advanced type of artificial teeth made from silver foil, mercury, tin, and other materials alchemized into a paste and molded into tooth shapes. These fitted better and were more expensive, but still mainly served a decorative purpose.
Mianmian hoped she would never need to use them. The thought of having mercury in her mouth was terrifying, so she made sure to maintain good daily dental hygiene.
The dishes were fine, less likely to get stuck between teeth.
Snacks could be popped straight into the mouth.
Rinsing was necessary afterward.
Mianmian often pressed her tongue against her teeth to feel for debris, wondering how her grandmother, the princess, cleaned her teeth.
Many people didn't dare drink beverages, worried about needing to use the bathroom.
They would pretend to sip, barely drinking anything over a long time.
Mianmian was in the middle of drinking when suddenly there was a loud crash from the other side.
It had begun!
The Emperor's cup had fallen to the ground.
The Emperor had been speaking about important matters.
Extremely important matters.
He was talking about what would happen after his passing.
This usually meant he was addressing crucial matters, and in front of everyone.
Then the Emperor looked at his hand, which suddenly went limp.
"Father!"
The Ninth Prince tried to step forward but found his path blocked.
Eunuch Yan was the first to support the Emperor.
Second son of Jiang family stepped forward to help.
The Seventh Prince, however, took a step back.
The Emperor hadn't finished speaking when his hand suddenly lost strength, causing his cup to fall and crash to the ground.
Everyone was startled.
Jiang Wan's heart was racing at this moment.
It should be around this time that the Seventh Prince would ascend to the throne.
She didn't know the exact scene, but she knew the Seventh Prince would be the final victor.
Almost all other princes would end up dead.
He sensed his father's suspicion.
But he was different from his father.
His father suspected him but didn't want him dead, wanting proof of wrongdoing and an admission of guilt.
But he just wanted his father dead.
The food and drink weren't poisoned, but the bowls were. Just holding them, even pretending to touch them to one's lips without eating or drinking, would cause poisoning.
Sure enough, despite the major events unfolding, the women's section remained quiet because they were all poisoned.
Including the Seventh Prince's wife.
Jiang Wan was fine as she hadn't touched anything there.
Princess Huiyun was startled by the situation.
Seeing the other ladies becoming dizzy and drowsy,
She pretended to be dizzy too, taking the opportunity to pull Mianmian closer.
Miss Dong was unconscious but managed to lean toward Mianmian, trying to embrace her with her body.
Mianmian remained clear-headed, despite having drunk quite a lot.
But she cheated daily with spirit spring water.
This amount of poison couldn't affect her.
Qin Luoxia wasn't dizzy either, but being one of the craftier women from the village, she immediately started swaying back and forth, back and forth, back and forth...
She kept swaying.
Seeing that her husband's side seemed dangerous.
No wonder her husband had sent her kumquats - he must have been hinting that this would be a very tense situation.
Her husband was so clever.
The Seventh Prince was ruthless, having his guard run a sword through his brother, and his son was the same, slitting throats.
Their methods were efficient.
Qin Luoxia analyzed the scene, noting the numerous guards.
There was only one option.
She took her hairpin, swaying back and forth as she threw it with force. The sharp, slender hairpin, made of meteorite iron and plated with gold, was actually a real throwing knife.
She threw it with all her might.
Just like the year she had killed that landlord with a spear.
Aliali: 674c2f66c4f3f33ac4acc7d2
The knife flew incredibly fast, seemingly encountering an obstruction that slightly altered its course, but it didn't matter.
Qin Luoxia had anticipated this.
The knife veered off course just as Jiang Wan stepped to the left.
Then she felt a tightness in her throat and looked down in disbelief. There was a knife tip at her neck. She tried to look back but the knife tip held her head in place, preventing her from turning. She could only turn her whole body back around.
Then she saw the strong woman crouching down, holding her head.
The earth shook and mountains trembled, the entire imperial palace swaying.
Jiang Wan fell straight down, her eyes wide with rage. Impossible, impossible - she was just one step away from becoming the Empress.
She lay there, collapsed beside the convulsing imperial grandson Chu Ze. The young Chu Ze, while coughing blood, managed to smile.
As if saying, "Fairy Liu, it's been a while."
...