Why am I, a cook, always involved in cases?

Chapter 104 Abortion

Amid the bustle and bustle of the harem, Lin Zhiruo could always distinguish different scents among the many.

She was once the daughter of a prostitute chef, and now holds an important position in the harem. She has an almost obsessive love for food.

That day, she smelled several special smells in the laundry yard.

These smells do not come from spices, but from some ingredients.

She noticed that the palace maids' clothes were filled with the scent of papaya, Job's tears, turtle and jasmine.

Although these ingredients are common, pregnant women need to be extra careful.

Pregnant women should be cautious when consuming papaya and coix seed due to their properties that may increase uterine contractions.

Although soft-shelled turtle is nutritious, it is also believed to be potentially harmful to pregnant women.

Jasmine tea, while having a pleasant aroma, also has the effect of strengthening uterine contractions.

Lin Zhiruo thought to herself that if these ingredients were used improperly, they might have an impact on the concubines in the harem.

She decided to inform Quan Wushuang of these findings so that necessary measures could be taken.

"Although these ingredients are common, pregnant women need to be extra careful."

Lin Zhiruo said to Quan Wushuang.

Quan Wushuang is a powerful eunuch in the harem. He discovered Lin Zhiruo's extraordinary talent and promoted her to be the personal maid of the emperor's favorite concubine.

He nodded and said he would pay attention to these issues.

Lin Zhiruo breathed a sigh of relief, knowing that her discovery was taken seriously.

In the harem, fashion trends are like summer rainstorms, coming quickly and going away quickly.

Just as the old fashion of painted nails fades, people are beginning to pursue new trends.

Despite the surge of controversy in the harem, the discussion of the novel has not diminished.

Perhaps it is precisely because books and essential oils belong to two completely different fields that they each shine with their own unique brilliance.

Xiao Cui, like Lin Zhiruo, was tired of this tide of essential oils.

However, in order to read the newly copied novel, she never slacked off in her studies.

When Lin Zhiruo first saw her persistence, she thought it was just a whim, but now she couldn't help but admire her.

"This smell is really disgusting."

Lin Zhiruo couldn't help but complain and put down the laundry basket in her hand.

She felt dizzy just standing there.

She stood there lazily, perhaps accidentally blocking someone's way. A palace maid carrying laundry accidentally bumped into her, and the dirty clothes spilled all over her.

"I am sorry!"

The maid's voice was high-pitched and urgent, and she quickly moved the clothes away.

The owner of this dress is obviously very sensitive to fashion trends, and the clothes are filled with the aroma of cauliflower.

When Lin Zhiruo smelled this familiar scent, she couldn't help but think of the cauliflower water she had made a few days ago.

If I sell it now, I might make a lot of money - but this idea seems a bit inappropriate.

She made a lot of cauliflower water, but never actually used it and saved it all.

Because cauliflower essential oil is harmful to pregnant women, she believes that as long as Concubine Yuyao doesn't use it in large quantities, it will be fine, but it is still better to be cautious.

Now, these cauliflower juices are idle and useless. Lin Zhiruo plans to find an opportunity to sell them in the red-light district before they go bad.

She blinked as she picked up the laundry from the floor.

She twitched her nose and sniffed the scent on the clothes.

Seeing this, the palace maid was frightened and didn't know what to do.

Lin Zhiruo ignored her reaction, threw the fallen clothes into the basket, and then buried her face in another laundry basket.

This time, even the nearby eunuchs and other palace maids widened their eyes, but Lin Zhiruo didn't care.

She kept burying her face in the laundry basket and then moving on to the next basket, repeating this several times.

She didn't get up and leave until she had smelled almost everything, forgetting to take the laundry basket.

Lin Zhiruo knew very well that the place in the harem most susceptible to fashion trends was the Glazed Palace.

That day, the screams of the maids in the Glass Palace echoed in the harem.

Lin Zhiruo thought to herself that the man would definitely come.

As expected, that night, the handsome eunuch Quan Wushuang came to the Liuli Palace with a letter of protest in his hand.

"I thought you were a more principled man."

Quan Wushuang's expression was a mixture of astonishment and anger.

Behind him, Gao Zhongcheng also looked shocked, but seemed exhausted; although Concubine Yuyao was troubled, she was looking forward to watching the show; Caiwei forced herself to hide her inner displeasure with a smile.

Princess Ai Ling was drowsy, and the other maids were gently coaxing her to sleep.

Lin Zhiruo thought to herself, "Well, that's right."

However, it was too late.

To turn speculation into conviction, sufficient evidence is needed.

For this purpose, Liuli Palace is undoubtedly the most suitable place.

Although Lin Zhiruo knew that she was acting impulsively, she couldn't help but be driven by curiosity.

"I'm very sorry. I acted impulsively without permission."

Lin Zhiruo lowered her head and pretended to reflect on herself.

Quan Wushuang looked at her expressionlessly and said:

"What kind of excuse is that?"

Lin Zhiruo thought to herself, "How can a truly wretched person have the right to criticize me?"

But she still lowered her head and continued to pretend to be reflective.

"Next time, I will definitely ask for permission before taking any action."

"Why do you have to smell it?"

Quan Wushuang's tone was rude and direct.

Concubine Yuyao blinked her eyes, seeming to be very interested in this farce.

Quan Wushuang also realized that his attitude was a little inappropriate, and softened the corners of his slightly upturned eyes.

Lin Zhiruo was indeed reflecting on herself. She was reflecting on her behavior of forcibly sniffing someone else's scent without permission, and of stripping half of the other person's clothes in excessive excitement.

Moreover, she shouldn't have chosen to attack the maid in Liuli Palace.

However, Lin Zhiruo felt that she had to do this in order to confirm her guess.

(Let’s stop here for reflection.)

Lin Zhiruo raised her head and looked at Quan Wushuang with a firm gaze.

She had to regard Quan Wushuang's hasty arrival after receiving the letter of protest as a blessing in disguise.

Lin Zhiruo believed that this matter must be decided immediately.

"I have my reasons for doing this."

Lin Zhiruo stared at Quan Wushuang. After a moment, Quan Wushuang said expressionlessly:

"Are your reasons sufficient?"

Lin Zhiruo answered decisively:

"Naturally sufficient."

She then asked if there was any paper or pen.

Concubine Yuyao gave Caiwei a wink, asking her to get ready immediately.

Lin Zhiruo began to write some words carefully on the paper.

Since this was the paper given by Imperial Concubine Yuyao, it was of excellent quality. Lin Zhiruo thought to herself, "Actually, the back of a scrap of paper will do."

However, Lin Zhiruo was the only one present who had such a mean thought.

Everyone sat around the table, looking at the words written by Lin Zhiruo.

"Papaya, Job's tears, soft-shelled turtle, jasmine flowers? Are these all ingredients?"

Imperial Concubine Yuyao asked curiously.

Lin Zhiruo nodded and replied:

"This is the name of the ingredient I sniffed out from the palace maid today."

"What's going on?"

Quan Wushuang put his hands in his sleeves and asked with his head tilted.

Lin Zhiruo stopped writing, placed the brush on the inkstone, and said slowly:

"Butler, although the amount of each ingredient is extremely small, they are all harmful to pregnant women."

Hearing Lin Zhiruo say this, everyone fell silent.

"Besides..."

Lin Zhiruo continued,

"In addition to essential oils, the caravan also sells these ingredients."

As she spoke, Lin Zhiruo took out the tea and spices she had bought.

The tea is jasmine tea, and the spices include pepper, slightly more expensive rock salt, and cinnamon which can also serve as a spice.

Because of her pocket money, Lin Zhiruo accidentally bought too much.

In fact, she should have noticed this at the time, and she was probably also influenced by this prosperous harem.

"Jasmine has the effect of strengthening uterine contractions. I think a small amount should be fine, but to avoid the possibility of miscarriage, pregnant women should try to avoid contact."

Lin Zhiruo said.

A few days ago, she and Xiao Cui and others drank this kind of tea at the Shangshi Bureau.

"Let's talk about foods like papaya, coix seed, and soft-shelled turtle. They can increase uterine contractions and are often used to induce abortion."

"So... do you understand?"

Lin Zhiruo's gaze inadvertently drifted to Concubine Yuyao, who had a solemn expression on her face and nodded slightly, encouraging Lin Zhiruo to continue speaking.

Caiwei stood aside. Although she was worried about the news that was about to be revealed, she chose to respect Concubine Yuyao's decision and remained silent.

Quan Wushuang raised a key question at this time:

"Could the use of these ingredients increase the risk of miscarriage?"

Lin Zhiruo's answer seemed ambiguous. She admitted that these ingredients may indeed increase risks in certain circumstances, but not absolutely, unless in extreme cases of accidental ingestion or large amounts of intake.

These ingredients are safe in daily life, which is why they are allowed into the harem.

Each ingredient has its own unique uses, however, if not stored properly, it may cause accidents, especially if pregnant women accidentally consume it.

Lin Zhiruo secretly regretted that she had not discovered this hidden danger earlier.

She proposed to Quan Wushuang:

"Master General, could you please investigate the origins of these vendors?"

Quan Wushuang responded that although an investigation could be conducted, the records of the goods might not be exhaustive. Spices, spices, and tea were all recorded in a general manner and were not broken down into specific categories for each product.

However, Quan Wushuang guaranteed that all goods had been inspected. Lin Zhiruo believed that he had fulfilled his duties as a manager and it was not appropriate to blame him further.

In addition, Lin Zhiruo also mentioned something that made her feel suspicious.

She asked vaguely:

"Is this incident related to that incident?"

Quan Wushuang was curious about Lin Zhiruo's hint.

What Lin Zhiruo was referring to was a product that was once legally sold in the harem, but contained unknown side effects - heroin.

Last summer, the sons of Princess Ai Ling and Imperial Concubine Ping Lan of the Eastern Palace both fell ill for unknown reasons, and the latter unfortunately died young.

Nowadays, the white powder used in the harem no longer contains lead, and the poisonous white powder has been banned from entering the harem.

However, this may also lead people to misunderstand that other commodities are safe.

Quan Wushuang asked tentatively:

"Can we assume that someone deliberately brought poisonous substances into the harem?"

Lin Zhiruo did not respond directly because it was only speculation and there was no solid evidence.

Although the speculation is close to the truth, other possibilities cannot be completely ruled out.

This incident is quite similar to a case in the past. The whereabouts of the resurrected female official, the food and medicine officer, is still unknown, and her background and relationships remain a mystery.

Quan Wushuang may have grasped some clues, but he did not feel the need to tell Lin Zhiruo.

Lin Zhiruo continued:

"I simply noticed that many of the goods brought into the harem could be made into poisonous food. But no single item, taken individually, would be considered poisonous food."

She did not want the vendor to be punished innocently because of her words, so she just stated her views objectively and let her superiors make the judgment.

She added:

"However, I think it would be best to warn the other concubines."

After the conversation, Lin Zhiruo felt tired.

She recalled her father's calm and sophisticated words:

“Don’t jump to conclusions based on mere speculation.”

Lin Zhiruo began to think about which of her words were guesses and which were certainties, which made her feel a little uneasy.

Lin Zhiruo walked into the kitchen and prepared to boil water.

Bring the water to a boil, let it cool slightly, then pour it into the glass container containing the jasmine tea.

Although the glassware was valuable, she planned to clean it and return it after use.

Lin Zhiruo had finished her jasmine tea, but Hu Lan'er returned her portion to Lin Zhiruo, saying that she would be satisfied just to have a taste.

Although Lin Zhiruo hoped that she could accept it generously, since Hu Lan'er said so, Lin Zhiruo had no choice but to accept it.

She also liked this kind of tea. The ladies in the store once secretly asked her to taste it when there were no customers, which made her miss it very much.

The flower buds slowly bloomed in the hot water, and Lin Zhiruo sat aside, watching leisurely.

The room was filled with the scent of jasmine.

Suddenly, a beautiful voice came from above:

"Isn't that poisonous?"

Lin Zhiruo looked up and saw a beautiful face.

It was getting dark outside, and only a lantern lit the kitchen.

In the flickering firelight, the face looked even more charming.

Lin Zhiruo replied:

"A small amount of poison can be used as medicine. Besides, it's just a cup of tea, it's not a big deal. This is the kitchen, not a place for Chief Steward Quan."

Quan Wushuang looked at Lin Zhiruo with dissatisfaction, but could do nothing.

Lin Zhiruo put the kettle back on the fire and added tea leaves into the teapot.

She felt that brewing with slightly warm water was enough. Without waiting for the water to boil, she picked up the kettle and poured it into the teapot, letting the tea fragrance slowly release.

Finally, pour the tea into the teacup and place it in front of Quan Wushuang.

Quan Wushuang picked up the teacup unhappily.

Lin Zhiruo deliberately shook the glassware so that he could see the scented tea:

"Besides the aroma of tea, it has other benefits."

Quan Wushuang asked curiously:

"What effect?"

Lin Zhiruo replied:

"It has a certain therapeutic effect on male infertility."

Quan Wushuang gave him a cold look.

Lin Zhiruo realized that she might have been too blunt, and sweat broke out on her back.

In order to please Quan Wushuang, she searched the cupboard for snacks.

She heard Quan Wushuang sipping tea, and then Quan Wushuang said: