The two disheveled men standing behind the young eunuchs were by no means nobodies.
“Zhang Sheng, Zuo Cheng of the Shaofu, pays his respects to Gongzhu and Bazi.”
As Zuo Cheng of the Shaofu, Zhang Sheng received a salary of one thousand shi—a high-ranking official indeed. Yet a king’s daughter and one of his consorts occupied positions of particular significance. Zhang Sheng therefore bowed rather deeply.
“Xia Wuju, Shiyi, pays his respects to Gongzhu and Bazi.”
The short-bearded man behind Zhang Sheng, wearing a small cap, was merely a minor official, humble in standing. He bowed until his body was nearly doubled over.
Xia Wuju!
The physician who made my First Emperor dad utter that outrageous declaration, “Wuju loves me”?!
Ying Yang told them to rise, then cocked her head to study Xia Wuju.
Both men kept their eyes lowered, displaying the proper discretion by looking nowhere they ought not.
Xia Wuju’s earlier sweat had not yet dried before fresh perspiration broke out. In his heart he cursed his wretched superior—and his own former naïveté.
“His surname is Xia, just like yours. He must be related to Furen and Bazi! No one but you will do for this assignment! You’ll be richly rewarded when you return!”
Liar!
He had been dragged into a case involving a Gongzhu and a royal consort purchasing poison. How could a powerless, unconnected junior physician emerge from such a disaster unscathed?
Even if he survived, he would surely be crippled!
“Xia?”
The voice came from beneath the veranda.
Ying Yang looked over. Her mother seemed intrigued.
“You there, Shiyi. Who is your father? And who is your Dafu?”
Xia Wuju answered with the utmost respect.
Halfway through their conversation, the two seemed to switch languages two or three times. Ying Yang was not entirely certain. She narrowed her eyes.
When one’s ears could make no sense of anything, all one could do was work one’s eyes and teeth in vain.
Someone who had understood leaned toward Ying Yang and whispered, “Gongzhu, Bazi and the Shiyi are discussing their ancestral origins in the languages of Han and Wei.”
The mention of the “Han language” nearly made Ying Yang lose her composure.
“A-Luo, you understand the languages of Han and Wei? I remember that although your mother came from Qi, you were born here in Qin.”
A-Luo looked both surprised and delighted.
“For someone as exalted as Gongzhu to remember this servant!”
Her complexion was not especially fair, but whenever she smiled, two small dimples appeared in her cheeks, making her wonderfully endearing.
“This servant was born and raised with her mother in the Yinguan compound. There were people from every state there. I listened to them talking from the time I was little, and after enough years I learned to speak a few foreign languages myself~”
Holy shit! A living language genius!
Ying Yang’s eyes widened.
“Then tell me what A-Mu and Xia Wuju were discussing.”
“Wei!”
A-Luo bent in a perfectly proper bow, then gave her account briskly.
“Bazi asked who the physician’s father and grandfather were, and what offices they had held. He answered that his father had once been a Taiyi Cheng of Qin, while his grandfather had served as Taiyi Ling of Wei. His family originally came from Xia County in Wei, and later settled in Anyi. When Marquis Wen of Wei moved his capital to Daliang, the physician’s ancestor of the sixth preceding generation could not bear to leave his old home and did not follow the court. Afterward his ancestors endured many hardships. They went in succession to Han, Zhao, and Qi, but none found employment worthy of their abilities. Finally, they came to Qin to practice medicine.”
…They tried four states before even considering Qin.
Had Yan not lain so far north, with its bitter cold, and Chu not been so humid and swarming with miasmas that people of the Central Plains dreaded the very thought of it, Ying Yang suspected Qin would have ranked even lower on Xia Wuju’s ancestors’ list of prospective employers.
One branch of the Xia clan had long lived in Wei, the other in Han. Any kinship between them was so distant as to be meaningless.
Nevertheless, Xia Xianshi graciously allowed them to save face.
“In consideration of your anxiety over an important matter, I shall overlook your breach of propriety. Let there be no next time.”
“Many thanks, Bazi! Many thanks, Gongzhu!”
Xia Wuju was filled with regret. What sort of madness had possessed him to announce that a Gongzhu wanted to purchase poison?
He drew a long breath and opened his mouth.
Then closed it.
Opened it again.
Closed it again.
After repeating this several times, Xia Wuju felt desolate.
Knowing what not to say was all very well. The problem was that he had no idea what he ought to say!
Longing desperately for a copy of The Art of Speaking in the Workplace, Xia Wuju screwed up his face and forced himself to begin.
“G-Gongzhu, do you know what salt bittern is?”
“The residual liquid that seeps out during salt production. When heated and boiled down, it forms white or grayish granules. I want to use it to make something. Why do you call it poison?”
Xia Wuju stood dumbstruck for several seconds.
The Gongzhu knew nearly as much about it as he did!
If his ancestors had never traveled to Qi, his family would not even have known what salt bittern was. People born and raised in Guanzhong certainly knew nothing of the stuff!
He had thought he could explain the dangers of bittern, discreetly hint that some villain might be leading the Gongzhu astray, and consider the matter settled.
Instead, the Gongzhu was far from ignorant of the substance.
Now Xia Wuju had no idea what she intended to do with it.
Surely she isn’t actually going to make poison…
My three clans—!
“I-if this bittern is swallowed by mistake,” he stammered, “it can cause d-dizziness, headaches, tightness in the chest, and vomiting. And if someone touches it with bare hands rather than through a wrapping of cloth or silk, the skin can become red, swollen, and itchy…”
When Xia Wuju’s ancestors had traveled to Qi, one of them had toured a salt-drying field with an old friend. He had asked why the friend deliberately collected the liquid produced during the drying of salt.
In answer, the friend had told him a story from Lu.
Once, a man of Lu had been unable to afford salt. He stole liquid from a salt-drying field and used it at home in place of salt water. His entire family suffered for it.
Later, someone else refused to give up. Gritting his teeth, he spent money on firewood and tried boiling the liquid down into salt. But the “salt” he obtained was poisonous. His family ate it and nearly lost their lives.
Xia Wuju’s ancestor had asked in astonishment why people continued trying to use the liquid when it was poisonous.
His friend had shaken his head.
“Because they’re poor. They can’t afford salt.”
Why people living in a salt-producing region still lacked the money to buy salt—and why so many impoverished people from Lu were living in Qi—were questions for another occasion.
A Qin Gongzhu would certainly never be too poor to buy salt.
So what does she want salt bittern for?!
“Gongzhu surely cannot have known of these dangers!”
“I did know.”
Xia Wuju’s legs gave way.
Thud!
He dropped to his knees.
“Gongzhu! Gongzhu!”
“Zhang Zuo Cheng, please say something!”
He appealed desperately to his superior.
His superior proved worthy of his position. With a single question, he rescued the situation.
“Zhang Sheng, Zuo Cheng of the Shaofu, ventures to ask Gongzhu: for what purpose do you intend to use salt bittern and gypsum?”
He paused, then cautiously ventured, “Might it have something to do with food made from shu beans?”
“Exactly,” Ying Yang said serenely.
“Xia Shiyi is well learned. He was simply so anxious for my safety that he lost his composure. I don’t blame you. There’s no need to be frightened.”
She smiled at Xia Wuju.
Then she turned to Zhang Sheng.
“I intend to make the beans into a drink, into porridge, and into… er… yufang ru—jade-square milk.”
Calling the dishes “rot” and “brains” would not merely sound unpleasant. It was downright frightening…
Zhang Sheng, who had been maintaining a solemn expression while striving to appear approachable, was completely bewildered.
“What sort of jade? What sort of milk?”
Ying Yang lost patience and flicked her hand.
“Why so many questions? Once I’ve made it, you’ll know what it is! Just tell me whether you’ll give me the things I asked for!”
That imperious tone! That impatient attitude!
Now this was the sort of behavior one expected from a noble person!
For some inexplicable reason, Zhang Sheng felt considerably more at ease. Even so, he spoke cautiously.
“May we have permission for the Shiyi to observe from the side? These are medicinal substances, and Gongzhu’s person is precious beyond measure. Should you come to any harm, even our deaths would be of no use!”
“Fine, fine, fine.”
Ying Yang glanced toward the veranda.
Her mother stood there with wide eyes and tightly pressed lips. In front of outsiders, she was making a determined effort to preserve her daughter’s dignity.
“Did you bring both substances?”
They had brought them, certainly.
But were they really supposed to hand them over?
Xia Wuju touched the medicine pouch at his waist and looked toward his superior.
Zhang Sheng gave the faintest nod of his chin.
The fortunate junior physician was to hand both substances to the Gongzhu’s attendants.
Zhang Sheng also gave him a meaningful look: he must watch the Gongzhu’s every movement and, whatever happened, prevent her from “accidentally” tasting poison right before their eyes!
If the Gongzhu touched some bittern and then, following a child’s natural instincts, licked her fingers, their entire families would be lucky to escape with nothing worse than a sentence of building city walls…
“What are you dithering and dragging your feet for?!”
Ying Yang barked the command, snatched the pouch, and tossed it straight back to Xia Wuju.
“Pour them into dishes.”
Xia Wuju untied the pouch and carefully opened two little wooden boxes.
Both contained pure white substances.
One was finer: salt bittern.
The other came in lumps: gypsum.
Ying Yang picked up a little bittern with her chopsticks, prodded it a few times, and nodded.
With another pair of chopsticks she lifted a piece of gypsum, then frowned.
Isn’t this raw gypsum? Can I use it? In the past, whenever I made tofu, I used either brine or calcined gypsum powder.
【System, help me test these, pretty please~】
【Certainly. This examination is complete. One hundred popularity points have been deducted.】
Ying Yang’s mouth twitched.
She had her own sophistry and could threaten to withhold value, but the System was not stupid enough to work for free.
【The substance to the host’s left is solidified seawater bittern, consisting primarily of magnesium chloride…】
【The substance to the host’s right is raw gypsum, consisting primarily of calcium sulfate…】
【It is recommended that the host use calcined gypsum, whose principal component is calcium sulfate hemihydrate, as a food coagulant.】
Having a rough idea of what she was doing was one thing. But this was something people would put into their mouths, and the state of medical knowledge in Qin was what it was.
Spending a few popularity points for peace of mind was a good bargain.
“I didn’t explain myself clearly before. What I want is gypsum powder that has been fired, allowed to cool, and then ground fine. Do you have any?”
Xia Wuju nodded.
“Small amounts of raw baihu, taken orally, can clear heat and fire, relieve vexation, and quench thirst. Calcined baihu, applied externally, can absorb dampness, close sores, heal ulcers, and promote the growth of flesh. It is especially effective for carbuncles, open wounds, ulcerations, and burns from hot water or fire. Both are medicines regularly kept by the Taiyi office in summer.”
He opened his medicine pouch once more and found a small box.
“This humble official happens to have one *he* on his person! Might it be enough for Gongzhu’s purposes?”
One he was approximately twenty milliliters. Filled with water, that would be twenty grams. Calcined gypsum powder had a different density from water, making its weight difficult to estimate, but it would certainly be enough for a batch of tofu.
Three to five grams of calcined gypsum powder could set more than three jin of tofu from one jin of soybeans.
“Xia Shiyi is conscientious in his duties and cautious in his conduct. Excellent!” Ying Yang praised him.
Xia Wuju was overwhelmed by the unexpected favor. In his excitement, he seemed to want to say something, but held back.
Ying Yang continued, “I won’t take the salt bittern or the gypsum powder today. When I need them another day, you must bring them to me. I’ll keep a little raw gypsum, though. Don’t worry, I won’t eat it. I only want to use it to absorb grease and impurities from hair.”
A flicker passed through Zhang Sheng’s eyes.
“As commanded!”
Xia Wuju was a beat slower.
“Nuo!”
Ying Yang thought that, now everything had been explained, the two men would withdraw.
Instead, Zhang Sheng stepped forward.
“This humble official has a matter upon which he begs Gongzhu’s instruction.”
“May I ask whether Gongzhu knows of toothbrushes and tooth powder?”
Ying Yang did not even need to answer for herself.
A-Liao stepped forward.
“Both were made from immortal prescriptions bestowed upon Gongzhu in a dream. May I ask what Zuo Cheng means by his question?”
Zhang Sheng swept a quick glance over her and immediately understood.
She wore brightly colored silk, with silver comb ornaments in her twin-bun hairstyle. A maid dressed so finely must be greatly favored by the Gongzhu. What she said could therefore be taken as what the Gongzhu herself wished to say.
Zhang Sheng hurriedly explained.
“This minister would never dare offend his superior. I venture to ask only because, the day before yesterday, the Shaofu Qing received a verbal command from Dawang…”
Author’s Note
Some passages quote relevant medical texts.
Gypsum has been used medicinally in China since very early times. It has also been called baihu, hanshui shi, and xishui shi~
Translator’s Notes
– Xia Wuju (夏无且): The physician remembered in accounts of the attempted assassination of Ying Zheng.
– Yinguan: A compound or institution associated with people under official control.