Frost-laden winds swept through, and snow began to swirl like smoke in a growing blizzard.
By dawn, the capital would be frozen beneath a blanket of white. The stone-paved streets were already buried as if draped with a white curtain. Kicking through the fresh snow, Fei Ling continued her search for Zhen.
“Zhen!”
Zhen was on his way back, crossing the bridge that connected the palace and the inner court. Though Zhen was the feng shui master of the noble palace, as a man, he was not permitted to live within the inner court and commuted from the main palace. Hearing Fei Ling ‘s voice, he turned back.
The snow reflected the light of the hanging lanterns, glowing faintly like blood-soaked silk.
In the middle of the bridge, Fei Ling stood face-to-face with Zhen.
“…Snow Mei Concubine has been poisoned. Her cloak was embroidered with threads of silver poison. The toxin turns the body to water upon contact. It mimics natural poison but was clearly refined by a master. I need your knowledge of poisons.”
The memory of their earlier argument unsettled her heart.
Conflict churned within her. She felt wary, yet Snow Mei’s life was at stake.
Zhen remained silent and unmoving, his gaze cold and calculating, as though appraising her worth.
“Please,” Fei Ling lowered her head, “help me.”
“…If you were poison itself, I would gladly lend you all the strength you need. I would even kill every enemy who despises you. But as long as you are medicine, it’s a different matter,” Zhen said, curling his lips into a frosty smile.
“And don’t you think relying on a poison master is a disgrace to your clan, the Bai Ze?”
“I don’t,” Fei Ling replied firmly. “If it were just any poison master, I wouldn’t even consider it. But there is no one as knowledgeable about poisons as you.”
Still, Zhen showed no sign of softening.
“I see no reason to help you. Unless,” he added mockingly, “there’s some reward that makes it worth my time. In that case, I might reconsider.”
“…I have nothing to offer you,” Fei Ling said.
The only shame she felt was in that admission.
“I would wager my life if I must.”
“I don’t want your life. A life you’d risk for any patient is worthless to me,” Zhen spat.
Snow continued to fall in the tense silence that followed. Then, breaking the quiet with a harsh laugh, Zhen let his malice show.
“Not once did it cross your mind to suspect that I was the one who concocted the poison?”
The wind grew fiercer, icy gusts lashing against their faces.
“I told you, my clan excels in alchemy,” he added with a smirk.
Silver threads are made by coating silk with vaporized metal, an alchemical process perfectly suited to poison crafting. Considering who stood to lose the most if Snow Mei bore a child, the answer was clear—Zhen’s mistress, Empress Xin Hua. As empress, she could easily bribe a court lady to carry out her will.
Even so, Fei Ling quietly shook her head.
“I do not doubt you.”
“Oh? Despite having every reason to? Spare me the nonsense about trust. That’s not the kind of relationship we have,” Zhen sneered, his eyes gleaming with cruelty.
Their exchange was like a duel of words, each thrust met with a parry. Fei Ling pressed on.
“This poison reeks. Someone as skilled as you would never leave a scent behind. Isn’t that right?”
“…!”
Her words struck a nerve, and Zhen’s violet eyes wavered.
“Sulfur. Faint, but it’s there. And the smell of unfamiliar herbs. Check for yourself.”
Without a word, Zhen donned his gloves and accepted the poisoned cloak from Fei Ling . Carefully examining the embroidery, his gaze sharpened in realization for the briefest moment.
“…I take back what I said. Circumstances have changed. I’ll investigate this poison for you,” he declared.
Without asking for compensation, Zhen flipped the crimson cloak over his shoulder and strode across the bridge. Whatever had caused his change of heart, Fei Ling could only watch his retreating figure with a mix of gratitude and confusion.
“Thank you,” she called after him.
With a flick of his sleeve, Zhen brushed away the falling snow.
Snow Mei Concubine would live.
(After all, there is no poison stronger than him.)
The continent held many poison clans. Some specialized in herbal toxins, others wielded the poisonous curse of words.
But none could rival Zhen. Not merely because he carried a forbidden poison within him—
(He must be one of the poison masters who once served the imperial court—a descendant of the clan that was scattered after the former emperor severed ties with them.)
Even among his kin, perhaps none could match his mastery of poison.
He was a man who burned his life away because he was poison itself. A man walking the same hell as Fei Ling , yet on an entirely opposite path.
As she exhaled a breath, Fei Ling gazed at his retreating back.
To doubt yet rely on him, to distrust yet seek his aid—she understood the foolishness of it.
(…Even so, this is the nature of our bond. It doesn’t need a name.)
◇
It took Zhen less than an hour to analyze the poison.
“Fool’s Mercury. It’s also known as galena.”
Galena is a mineral composed of lead and sulfur, which explained the lingering smell of sulfur.
“And then there’s the petals of Sankayou (山荷葉), a plant rooted in water veins laced with water poison.”
“Sankayou?”
It was an unfamiliar plant to Fei Ling .
“It’s a plant that grows exclusively on the eastern islands. Its leaves resemble lotus leaves, and white flowers bloom as if protruding from the leaves, eventually producing blue fruit. When the petals come into contact with water, they turn transparent—an unusual trait, like glass. Though harmless on its own, it absorbs water poison and transforms into a deadly toxin.”
“So that’s why Snow Mei Concubine’s arm became transparent.”
“In the eastern islands, it was once prescribed under the name Kikyō (鬼臼).”
As Zhen spoke, Fei Ling ’s mind unraveled the information like reading from a bamboo scroll.
The term Kikyō referred to the fruit of Hakkakuren (八角蓮), which was used as a remedy to prevent stillbirths. Essentially, it was medicine for pregnant women, but when substituted with similar yet different substances, the effects could be toxic. A plant that had absorbed water poison would only amplify this danger.
“We need to create an antidote quickly.”
Not only Snow Mei Concubine’s life but also the life of her child was at risk.
While the poison contained several elements, the primary concerns were the two identified substances.
“As a poison master, my work ends here. From here on, it’s the domain of an apothecary. Good luck.”
Galena tarnishes when wet, and the petals of Sankayou become transparent. Both are heavily influenced by water.
However, this wasn’t solely a “water poison.”
Lead was a poison associated with the element of wood, while Sankayou, despite absorbing water poison, had petals aligned with the element of metal. Metal, water, and wood were sequentially linked by the elemental cycle. In this case, water had connected the two substances, intensifying the wood and metal poisons.
(An earth-based medicine can neutralize water poison easily. But that alone won’t fully counteract the poison. The remaining toxins will seek water and circulate to the amniotic fluid, harming the fetus.)
Both lead and the false medicinal plant caused stillbirths or inflicted harm on the fetus.
(This poison becomes more harmful after detoxification.)
The person who had administered this poison must have known that Snow Mei Concubine had access to a food doctor capable of neutralizing water poison.
(If the metal and wood poisons are mild, they can be neutralized by fire poison. But if water poison is still present, administering a fire-based medicine will have no effect. Therefore, the order must be…)
Fei Ling pieced together the formula in her mind.
(First, administer this medicine, then let it overflow later… The principle of gunpowder should work.)
The greatest challenge lay in obtaining the ingredients.
A strong earth-based medicine was required for detoxification. In terms of flavor, earth was associated with sweetness, but substances like honey or sugarcane would be dismissed by the water poison. The ideal ingredient was an exotic fruit, but obtaining it would be difficult.
(I remember—soon, the Winter Banquet will be held.)
As with the spring festivities, Fei Ling was tasked with overseeing the banquet’s menu, which meant rare ingredients from across the continent and even distant lands had already been gathered. They had likely been stored in the palace kitchen’s warehouse.
Although Fei Ling initially headed back to the Spring Palace, she altered her course and made her way to the palace kitchen instead.
