Chapter 76

K Qin Jiyi had no idea about things like Suhe Xiang Pills, but it didn’t matter; he had an all-powerful guard...

A glance, and the guard immediately went out to search. Adhering to the principle of asking when you don’t know, Qin Jiyi asked Gu Qiancheng what the Suhe Xiang Pills were for.

Upon learning that Gu Qiancheng used the Suhe Xiang Pills to ward off evil odors, Qin Jiyi looked at Gu Qiancheng with displeasure: "Why didn’t you mention this last time?"

Why didn’t the previous coroners say anything? What was their intention?

Qin Jiyi couldn’t help but overthink it, and in fact, this matter didn’t allow him to think otherwise. When Gu Qiancheng heard Qin Jiyi’s question, he asked, "Didn’t you drink the Three Gods Soup or something to drive away the corpse odor after returning from the morgue last time?"

Qin Jiyi’s face darkened...

His servants weren’t coroners; how would they know about these things?

"Forget I said that." Gu Qiancheng could tell that someone was taking advantage of Qin Wang’s lack of knowledge. If he really pursued it, those people would have an excuse: "This is common knowledge; we assumed Qin Wang already knew." And that would be the end of it.

Could Qin Wang admit he lacked common knowledge?

But in fact, not many people knew this common knowledge. Coroners had low status; even minor officials wouldn’t care about what preparations coroners made before examining a body.

Gu Qiancheng looked at Qin Wang’s expression, thought for a moment, and asked, "You built a morgue under the Six Fans Gate. Did you prepare any Purifying Pills?"

"Say it all at once." Qin Jiyi’s expression grew even worse.

Gu Qiancheng’s intention wasn’t to anger Qin Jiyi; she was just thinking about her own safety...

Before Qin Wang needed her, she would definitely be coming to the morgue frequently. For safety, Gu Qiancheng provided the recipes and methods for making the Three Gods Soup, Purifying Pills, and Suhe Xiang Pills.

The Three Gods Soup and Purifying Pills were relatively obscure, but Suhe Xiang Pills were not. They were sold in pharmacies and had the effect of relieving depression and refreshing the mind.

"There’s only one new corpse now, so the morgue won’t have too much corpse odor. We can just take the Suhe Xiang Pills, and we’ll make the Purifying Pills later." Gu Qiancheng comforted Qin Jiyi, and his expression improved.

"Your Highness, the Suhe Xiang Pills." Just then, the guard had bought the pills.

"Where did you get them?" It wasn’t that Qin Jiyi was being overly suspicious, but after learning about these various pills, he realized someone was making fun of him. Since that was the case, he would give the other party a chance and pretend he knew nothing.

Where could he get the pills in the middle of the night?

The guard looked distressed and said, "I stole them from a pharmacy." Afraid of being blamed, he quickly explained, "I left silver and took many different pills."

"Good job." Qin Jiyi praised him and handed the Suhe Xiang Pills to Gu Qiancheng.

Gu Qiancheng didn’t hesitate, took one for herself, and put the rest in her pocket.

Suhe Xiang Pills weren’t precious; if Qin Jiyi wanted them, he could get a bunch anytime. But she couldn’t...

She couldn’t even leave the house, how could she buy anything?

Putting the pill in her mouth, Gu Qiancheng put on a mask and gloves as before, then walked toward the morgue.

Qin Jiyi was equipped the same way. The gloves were from Gu Qiancheng during the day, and the mask?

Could the embroidery skills of the seamstresses in the Qin Wang’s palace be worse than Gu Qiancheng’s?

After entering the morgue, Gu Qiancheng clasped her hands and silently recited the "Nianfo" for the deceased. Then she asked Qin Wang, "Shall we start now?"

"Sure." Qin Jiyi pointed to the tools nearby.

Gu Qiancheng opened the tool box and selected the tools she needed...

Although she wasn’t entirely satisfied, it was better than just giving her a small knife. The stomach and brain... couldn’t be cut open haphazardly with a dagger.

"I need someone to help me record." Gu Qiancheng said, holding the knife.

Qin Jiyi was prepared. A scribe stepped forward at his glance, waiting for Gu Qiancheng to speak.

Gu Qiancheng gave a start signal, not caring if the scribe understood, and repeated the results of the daytime examination...

This was to verify the body and prevent it from being switched.

"Time of death..." Gu Qiancheng paused, not because she was unsure, but to convert hours into periods: "More than eight periods, it should be between the hours of Yin and Mao (3 AM to 7 AM). There are livor mortis on the arms, the body is stiff, the eyes are rolled back, the mouth is open, the teeth are clenched, and there is saliva coming from the corners of the mouth and nostrils. The hands and feet are curled. Preliminary judgment: death from cerebral hemorrhage..."

Gu Qiancheng meticulously described every detail, even checking the toenails, before preparing for the autopsy.

"Do you need to leave?" Gu Qiancheng asked Qin Jiyi.

An autopsy is more bloody than murder; not everyone can handle it.

"No need." He wasn’t going to be worse than a woman.

Gu Qiancheng had fulfilled her duty of warning. If Qin Jiyi didn’t appreciate it, it wasn’t her problem. She took the knife and made an incision in the chest, trying not to damage the internal organs. As for the incision and direction...

Sorry, she was a forensic examiner, not a surgeon. She didn’t need to draw lines; she just needed to avoid damaging the organs and keep the body intact.

The sound of the knife cutting through flesh made people’s scalps tingle, but Gu Qiancheng was completely unaffected. The knife was a bit dull, and she used more force, being extra careful to avoid cutting the internal organs...

Opening the chest without cutting the blood vessels wouldn’t cause bleeding. Qin Jiyi only saw the tip of the knife with blood on it, not the blood all over the floor as described by the officials.

"Prepare containers." After opening the chest, Gu Qiancheng began examining the organs in the abdominal cavity. At this point, she needed containers to hold things, such as: "Clean basins or bowls will do."

The all-powerful guard acted again, quickly bringing a large bowl and placing it on the autopsy table as Gu Qiancheng requested.

Gu Qiancheng began extracting the contents from the respiratory tract and intestines.

These things were in a semi-digested state, truly disgusting. Qin Jiyi considered himself tough, but seeing these things extracted one by one by Gu Qiancheng still made his scalp tingle and feel nauseous...

No wonder no one wanted to be a coroner. Now, only those who had committed crimes and had no other way out would learn the trade from old coroners...

Note to readers: A little science

Three Gods Soup: Can drive away corpse odor.

2 taels of Atractylodes. Soak in rice washing water for two nights, then dry. 0.5 taels of White Atractylodes, 0.5 taels of Licorice, dry. Grind all the herbs into a fine powder, take 2 qian each time, add a little salt, and take in multiple doses.

Purifying Pills: Can eliminate foul odors.

A small amount of Musk, 0.5 taels of Fine-leaf Chinese Anise, 1 tael of Sweet-scented Sweet Flag, 2 taels of Szechuan Lovage. Grind all the herbs into a fine powder, add honey to make pills the size of a ball, store in a cellar, the older the better. Use one pill each time, burn to produce smoke.

Suhe Xiang Pills: Made from 15 Chinese herbs including Suhe Xiang oil, have the effects of opening the orifices, relieving depression, and refreshing the mind. Used for emergency treatment of stroke, sudden collapse, phlegm obstruction, and angina pectoris.

Take one pill each time, dissolve it in the mouth to ward off evil odors, with particularly good results.

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