In the Takamiya Court’s kitchen, Fei Ling clutched her head in frustration.
(Even though prescribing salt brought the Empress’s fever down a little, with her current condition, any food could ignite into flames. She’s capable of evaporating even drinks…)
What should she do? She needed food that wouldn’t burn. While pondering this, she picked up various ingredients. Fish? No good. Mushrooms? Also no. What about fruit? She remembered an experiment from long ago where she dipped candle wicks into different fats to light them on fire. Beef tallow, pork fat, fish oil—all of them burned. Olive oil and camellia oil did too.
“…There was only one fruit that didn’t burn… but,” she murmured.
Could it be procured? No, it had to be procured. Fei Ling immediately called out to one of the court ladies and requested the fruit.
“I had it searched and procured from one end of the capital to the other, but can such an unsightly fruit really serve as medicine? It looks like crocodile skin, disgusting to even touch… Feeding this to the Empress? If this is treachery, you know what will happen.”
The court lady, frowning deeply, handed over a basket filled with the fruit. Fei Ling bowed her head respectfully. She picked up the fruit from the basket; its texture indeed resembled that of a reptile.
This fruit was so toxic that neither monkeys nor birds would touch it.
(But humans alone can render it harmless…)
She made a cut around the circumference of the fruit and split it open. Inside was a large seed. She used her knife to extract it. The edible portion wasn’t juicy like typical fruit; instead, it had a dense, sticky texture, much like well-kneaded butter.
(Perfectly ripe. Thank goodness.)
She filled the hollow left by the seed with cheese and baked it in a kiln. Cheese is known to moisten the lungs and counteract the dryness caused by prolonged exposure to “fire poison.” Using it could alleviate the damage.
While it baked, she mixed egg yolk, vinegar, and salt to make mayonnaise, which she added to the dish before baking it again until golden brown.
“It’s ready. Let us go,” she said.
“What is this…?” the Empress exclaimed, seeing the unfamiliar dish.
“This is medicinal cuisine that will not burn—avocado cheese,” Fei Ling explained.
The avocado, topped with beautifully browned cheese, looked far more appetizing than it had before. The court ladies behind her couldn’t help but swallow their saliva. When scooped from the fruit’s natural bowl, the melted cheese dripped and stretched into a tantalizing string. Since even a silver spoon might melt in the Empress’s hands, a court lady gently brought the spoon to her lips. The Empress parted her pale lips and took a bite.
The cheese melted further as it touched her hot tongue.
“…Delicious.”
The Empress lowered her lashes, smiling blissfully.
“I’ve never tasted such a fruit before… It isn’t sweet, is it? But it melts together with the cheese… It’s like plant-based butter.”
“Indeed, this fruit is known as the butter of the forest,” Fei Ling replied.
The cause of the “fire poison” was a combination of oleander and burnt bone. There was no true antidote for oleander’s poison. However, poison disrupts the balance within the body, which is what makes it toxic. Oleander’s poison targets the heart, depleting and destroying its tissues. If those could be replenished, the damage could be mitigated.
The best remedies for this were lean horse meat and bananas. However, they alone would ignite. The addition of bone—an “yin poison”—posed further complications. An investigation revealed that the bones weren’t solely human; they appeared to have been gathered from burnt remains, with many belonging to fowl kept by the Hao tribe. The solution lay in avocado, which, while toxic to birds, became medicinal for humans. Pairing it with “yang medicine” like butter created the ideal remedy.
“…Thank you,” the Empress whispered after finishing the meal.
The blue flames surrounding her body flared momentarily before subsiding and extinguishing. The oppressive heat that had filled the room dissipated. Tentatively, the Empress reached out to touch a decorative rose nearby.
“…Ah.”
The flower did not burn.
“Thank you… Fei Ling ,” the Empress said, tears of relief spilling from her eyes.
The detoxification had succeeded. The court ladies behind her murmured their admiration.
“…Perhaps you could cure my legs someday,” the Empress said softly, gazing at her unmoving legs, which lay limply like the broken wings of a crane.
“These legs… even your mother couldn’t heal them. But you might. Children surpass their parents, after all.”
Fei Ling ’s green eyes widened in surprise, her expression one of uncertainty.
Her teacher and mother, Hakutaku, had cured countless poisons. All but one. If there were another poison beyond that…
(If so, perhaps my duty as her successor lies there…)
A vague sense of mission took root in her heart.
“…I will try my best,” she finally said.
She couldn’t bring herself to promise outright. Her mother’s shadow still loomed large, but someday—someday, she hoped to surpass it.
After completing the detoxification, Fei Ling crossed the bridge of Takamiya Court and returned to the inner palace.
“Well done, food doctor. It seems the detoxification was successful,” said Zhen, who had returned earlier, holding a birdcage. Inside the cage was a hawk with striped wings and intelligent eyes.
“I didn’t know bird-catching was under the jurisdiction of feng shui masters.”
“Birds move according to feng shui, after all. You might not care about finding the culprit, but others do. Look, just as you imagined—there was a leather pouch tied to the hawk’s leg.”
Zhen held the cage up for Fei Ling to see.
“Go ahead, untie it.”
When Fei Ling loosened the string, ashes spilled out. She inhaled and coughed—it was toxic. Zhen, covering her mouth with her sleeve, had kept her distance.
“So you made me untie it, you rascal.”
Fei Ling glared, but Zhen only shrugged unapologetically.
“Judging by this, the one who prepared the poison must also be afflicted with the ‘fire poison.’”
Grabbing the cage, Fei Ling began to walk.
“Where are you going?”
Fei Ling glanced back, her silver hair adorned with a peacock-shaped hairpin swaying behind her.
“I’m a food doctor. Where else but to my patient?”
