Ten days had passed since moving to the main residence.
Suzume, ambling along, came to Maomao.
"Maomao, Maomao!"
"What is it, Suzume? You seem happier than usual today."
Maomao sliced through a large piece of cloth with her scissors as she asked.
"It looks like I might get permission to go out."
"That's wonderful."
"Now, here's the question. What reason do you think they'll give for the permission?"
Maomao set down her scissors and thought, rolling up the cut cloth.
"Something medical? Not enough staff at the clinic, improving the nutrition at the food distribution, or improving the drinking water quality?"
If Maomao were to be involved, it would probably be in managing someone's health.
"You're close, but not quite. I'm not entirely sure myself, but Lady Tsukihime says it's 'been a while since there was an incident.'"
"...Ah, right, right."
It certainly had been quite a while from Jinshi's perspective.
"What kind of matter is it? Should I head to Lady Tsukihime's room?"
"As for that, the guide will be arriving shortly."
Suzume looked outside.
Koroko came hurrying over.
"Maomao, pardon the intrusion."
"Yes. What is it, Koroko?"
Suzume stood beside Maomao with her usual beaming smile.
"I believe Suzume has already told you. This is rather urgent, so would it be all right if we talked on the way?"
"I don't mind, but..."
If it was a request from Jinshi, there seemed to be no need to get permission to go out.
Li Bai had apparently heard Suzume's story too and was preparing to go out.
"First, bring along some medical equipment and such."
Maomao did as Koroko instructed.
They rode in a carriage to a distillery in the northeastern part of the western capital. The general request was that there were many sick people who needed examining, but— "This place is..."
Maomao's eyes lit up. Even from just approaching, the scent of grapes and alcohol filled her nostrils to the brim. If this wasn't paradise itself, what else could it be?
"Hey miss, drool is running down your chin."
Maomao hurriedly wiped her mouth as Li Bai nudged her with his elbow.
"Maomao, let's pick up a few bottles as souvenirs on the way back."
"That sounds lovely, Suzume."
"I don't think it's a bad idea either, but with this group, there's nobody who'd stop us, is there?"
Li Bai was exasperated. As expected, Brother Rahan was truly needed in moments when there was no one to push back.
"I think I could spare a few bottles. My aunt runs a brewery."
"An aunt, you say?"
"Yes. She's my father's sister."
"
Lady Gyokuen 's third daughter?"
I recalled what Suzume had told me a few days prior.
"Yes. My aunt is strict with Chishō, my older brother, but she's comparatively easy on me."
Toraku smiled wryly.
(A brewery, third daughter — that would be...)
The place that had suffered reputational damage because that scoundrel Chishō was peddling illicit liquor.
"That woman is my aunt."
There stood a beautiful woman reminiscent of a bird of prey. She still looked young, appearing to be in her twenties.
Tōmi in presence, though her makeup and clothing were considerably more flamboyant.
"My aunt may look like that, but she's in her mid-thirties, so please watch what you say and do around her."
"Understood."
Toraku, who reliably says exactly what Maomao is thinking.
"So you're the pharmacist they sent."
"Yes. My name is Maomao."
"I heard the imperial physician couldn't come because of his injury, so they sent you in his place — will that be alright?"
The quack doctor was still playing up his leg injury. It had mostly healed, but it seemed he could milk that excuse for a while yet.
"I'm nowhere near the imperial physician's caliber, but I'll do my best. I understand many patients have been coming in, and I'd like to examine their conditions right away — would that be all right?"
"Very well. Come along, then."
Maomao silently followed the third daughter.
The place she was led to appeared to be a rest area.
There were several cots, and it seemed to double as a nap room.
Five people lay about.
All of them were deathly pale and haggard.
They clutched buckets and retched over and over.
"I thought they were fine this morning, but by afternoon, this is the result. As a precaution against the possibility of contagion, I had them isolated."
"A wise decision."
Maomao promptly tied on an apron and covered her mouth with a handkerchief.
"What should I do?"
Suzume asked. Li Bai was staying behind as a guard, so Suzume, who had come along as always, had nothing to do.
"First, I'll examine the patients inside. They need to rehydrate, so could you bring some drinking water, salt, and sugar? If that's difficult, some diluted broth or the like will do."
"Got it!"
Suzume trotted off.
"I don't seem to have anything to do either, so I'll tag along."
Toroga followed after Suzume as well.
"Sorry, but I'll wait out here."
The third daughter watched from a distance.
(She may come across as cold, but her judgment is sound.)
She was Gyokuyō's sister, to be sure, but their personalities were nothing alike.
The members of the Yang family each seemed to possess remarkably diverse personalities.
Maomao entered the room and examined the patient who appeared to be suffering the most. That was the eldest among the five, an old man covered in white hair.
(Symptoms include vomiting and a flushed complexion. His head seems to hurt as well, but—) She checked the old man's eyes, tongue, and pulse. He still seemed too weak and incoherent to speak with, so she turned to the patient who appeared relatively better off.
"What are your symptoms?"
"...Y-yes. I feel really nauseous. My head is pounding, and I get dizzy when I stand up, but the nausea has mostly settled down."
"Just nausea? No abdominal pain or diarrhea?"
"...No, I don't have those. My stomach just feels queasy."
(That means...)
Maomao looked intently at her surroundings. Nearly everyone showed the same symptoms. Some were vomiting into buckets, but— the outhouse —no one was rushing for it.
"I have one more question."
Maomao asked the other patients the same things. And then, a conclusion was reached.
"Well? How was it?"
The third daughter, who had kept her distance out of fear of infection, asked.
"There is no risk of an infectious disease."
"I see... Then what's causing it?"
"Apparently, they all sampled the sake as part of their work. The eldest gentleman seems to have drunk more than the others."
"Could the sake be poisoned?!"
"No."
Maomao shook her head.
"It's just a hangover. Since it hasn't carried over into the next day, I suppose 'bad drunk' would be more accurate."
Maomao removed the cloth from her face and took off her apron.
"A bad drunk? That's impossible! A sake-brewing craftsman wouldn't get drunk from mere tasting! You'd have to be chugging distilled spirits for that!"
"You produce distilled spirits too?"
Maomao's eyes lit up.
"We do, but it's still aging right now. Right, Auntie?"
Komaki stepped in between the third daughter and Maomao. She was holding a large pot in her hands.
"Maomao-san! For now, I brought yesterday's leftover soup and some fruit water."
Suzume arrived as well.
"Thank you."
Maomao lifted the lid off the pot that Torako was holding.
A ladle.
She took it and stirred the contents of the soup.
"As I thought."
"'As you thought'? What's that supposed to mean?"
The third daughter gave her a puzzled look.
"It's not a plague, and it's not poison. It really is just a hangover."
"How can you say that for certain?"
"This soup was made here, wasn't it?"
"That's right."
Suzume answered.
"Did everyone who is currently suffering eat this soup?"
"...Come to think of it, yes. It's only those who were here last night."
It seemed they had been staying the night on some kind of rotating shift system.
Maomao examined the ingredients floating in the ladle.
"There are dried mushrooms among the ingredients in here. They were probably added to make the broth."
"...That's not a mushroom I see very often."
"I don't claim to know every variety of mushroom out there, but I believe this is the kind that makes people unable to hold their liquor."
"A mushroom that makes you a lightweight? Do such things really exist?"
Torako stared at her with a bewildered expression.
"They do. Apparently, it interferes with the body's ability to process alcohol."
Mushrooms held all manner of mysteries. Their toxins came in endless varieties, and nearly all of them became poisonous when eaten raw. Some even had delayed effects, with their toxins taking hours or even days to kick in—and there were mushrooms that had been considered edible for a long time before that was discovered.
"Well, I haven't eaten this particular mushroom shape myself either. So let's get right to it."
Maomao scooped some of the ingredients onto her spoon, popped them into her mouth, and slurped the broth.
"Do you have any sake?"
"Sake?"
"Yes, preferably dry if you could."
"..."
She thought the third daughter was looking at her with a flat, unamused gaze, but she didn't pay it any mind. She ordered a servant to bring a sake bottle.
"Well then, let's have some. Mmm, yes."
Maomao licked her lips.
"It has a mellow flavor. There's a faint trace of fruit sweetness lingering, but it's merely a pleasant nuance at most..."
She was just reaching for another cup when— *(Oh, this is bad.)* The hand visible in her field of vision was bright red. Her body grew warm, then past warm into hot, and with that her vision began to sway.
"Hey, miss!"
Li Bai caught her. His voice sounded far away.
"Maomao, pardon me for a moment."
Before she knew it, Sparrow was waving her hands around, and then one of them was shoved right into Maomao's mouth.
"Uuublah!"
She remembered a horrible sound erupting from her.
Her sour mouth was rinsed out with fruit water. Her dizzy, lightheaded body felt somewhat better.
"Normally, I handle my liquor quite well, as you can see."
The third daughter and Koko were watching Maomao, covered in vomit, with strained expressions.
"I imagine the others will sober up from their bad drunk if given a little more time."
"R-Right. But may I ask one thing?"
"What might that be?"
The third daughter had somehow started using polite speech. Rather than showing respect, it was the kind of tone that put a step more distance between them.
"Was there really a reason you had to eat it yourself to prove it?"
"...Yes, there was."
"What kind?"
"Well, when you ask me what kind..."
(That it was a perfect opportunity to drink some good sake...)
Since she couldn't say that honestly, she decided to just smile sweetly and let it go.