Looking awkward, Maomao and the others headed toward Jinshi's office, but their worries turned out to be unfounded.
In the office, only Suiren was present.
"Oh my, you're already here?"
"(Already here? That means...)"
"Lord Jinshi isn't here?"
Present were Suiren, Maomao, Suzume, and Li Bai. She couldn't help but call him just "Jinshi."
"He should be back any time now.
I was summoned about Lady Gyokuyō's inheritance."
"...Hasn't Lord Jinshi got nothing to do with that?"
"It seems they want a neutral third party involved. At first, when I heard they were going to ask Lord Rakhan, I reluctantly raised my hand."
Suiren let out a sigh.
"What a strange choice of representative. I'd have thought Lord Rikuson would be more suited to the task."
Maomao could only be exasperated.
"Hmm, I'm not really sure about that, but it seems they don't want anyone who spent too long in the western capital to be involved. Oh? Looks like he's back."
Suiren reacted to the sound of footsteps in the hallway.
"So you were already here, Maomao?"
Jinshi glanced at Maomao as he entered the room.
"I've come to report on the matter of the brewery."
Maomao bowed her head.
"Understood. Let's hear it here, then."
Jinshi loosened his collar slightly and settled onto the long sofa. Suiren swiftly prepared tea.
Since Maomao was quick to explain, she gave the full account of the brewery. For good measure, she briefly touched on Gyokuō's grandchildren as well.
"So someone deliberately mixed in poisonous mushrooms?"
"That's highly likely. The key point is that it only becomes poison when consumed with alcohol. In the western capital, there have been virtually no places to properly drink these past few months, so I sense malice in someone going out of their way to get those unusual mushrooms into the brewery."
"Malice? Could it be murderous intent?"
"Unfortunately, it only causes severe intoxication — not enough to be fatal."
Jinshi sipped his tea.
Maomao had been offered tea as well, but the atmosphere didn't lend itself to sitting, so she remained standing. With Suzume and Li Bai also standing, she had no intention of sitting unless directly told to do so.
"Someone mixed it in as a prank, then?"
"Even if someone were to pull such a foolish trick, it would be quite troublesome."
"Very well. First, let's verify who distributed the food."
"I'll leave that to you."
When Jinshi gestured with his hand for her to sit, Maomao finally complied. The report was finished, but now it seemed Jinshi had business with her.
"I was summoned here regarding the Gyokuō matter."
"The discussion must have dragged on."
"Indeed. Gyokuō's children — just look at the grandchildren and you can tell — were clearly raised with blatant favoritism."
Shōkō and Gyokuun — the relationship between those two foul little brats makes it perfectly clear.
"Then were you asked to have the inheritance increased for the second and third sons?"
"No, that's not it. I was asked to persuade the eldest son, who is refusing to accept the inheritance."
Maomao tilted her head.
"I'm not quite following. Lord Gyokuun's inheritance — even with Lord Gyokuen still alive, it must be a rather considerable sum."
"But he says he doesn't want it. I'd heard he was a spendthrift, but..."
Spendthrift — not a word Maomao was familiar with, but she was pretty sure it meant something close to fool.
"If it's something you could receive, you might as well take it."
"There are things one wouldn't want to receive, even so."
Jinshi said this with an oddly wistful tone.
(Ah.)
Maomao thought that here, too, there was someone with an unusual way of thinking — not a spendthrift, but someone peculiar all the same. Of all people, Jinshi should be the one most eager to cast off his various entanglements.
"The eldest son doesn't want it. The eldest daughter wants to receive it, but she couldn't handle the duties that come with the right of inheritance. The second son says to follow what Gyokuun said during his lifetime, and the third son suggests it would be simplest if the second son accepted it."
"The duties that come with it — you mean the successor would take over the Western Capital?"
"Something like that. Also, the relatives don't think well of the eldest son, and I was asked by—"
Taikai "—to look into the matter."
Taikai — if she recalled correctly, he was Gyokuen's third son.
"How complicated."
Maomao spoke as though sympathizing with Jinshi, but inwardly she thought she didn't want to get dragged into this. For matters concerning the inheritance, she'd just nod along at the appropriate moments and slip away when she could.
"Hey — aren't you just nodding along, trying to brush this off?"
"No, no, not at all."
Jinshi was getting better and better at reading the subtleties of Maomao's expressions.
"By the way, will Lord Gyokuun's wife not be joining the discussion? If there were other concubines as well, they might have something to say, wouldn't they?"
Even if a woman's rights were limited, the one who had been his wife should have at least some say.
"Unlike Lord Gyokuen, Lord Gyokuun had only one wife. All four children are hers."
That was unexpected, Maomao thought. Since the siblings had different coloring, she had assumed they were half-siblings.
"Apparently the lady is someone who dislikes appearing in public due to certain circumstances. She didn't even want to show herself before relatives, and she decided not to involve herself in matters of the inheritance at all."
"Certain circumstances?"
Maomao grew interested.
Perhaps thinking the story would grow long, Ri Hakuhaku had gone to wait in the next room. Sparrow had either been roped into running errands or had simply disappeared.
"The lady was originally the daughter of a prominent merchant in the capital, apparently. She was quite attractive and used to help with the business, they say."
"How is she someone who doesn't appear in public, then?"
(She was all over the place, wasn't she?)
"Well, after bearing her third child, she apparently traveled to Saou on business. Her ship was shipwrecked, and for several years her fate was unknown. She returned a few years later, having experienced all manner of things in foreign lands."
"What an incredible story."
It was the kind of tale that could fill an entire book.
"She must have gone through a great deal. After that, she became cautious about appearing in public. Lady Gyokuō's aversion to foreigners may have also been influenced by the lady, for all we know."
"I see, I see." Maomao nodded, all the while thinking it was about time she took her leave. Along with the alcohol, her stomach had emptied out. She wanted to get some food in her soon.
As if to toy with Maomao's aching stomach, a pleasant aroma drifted over.
"Worried about supper?"
Jinshi watched Maomao's expression.
"It's not that I'm not interested—"
"I see. Suiren, what are today's dishes going to be?"
Jinshi called out.
Normally, Jinshi was the sort of person who would have any number of dishes prepared and be served portions so large he could hardly finish them. The fact that he was asking what the dishes were meant that today, they had only prepared food in amounts that even the royal brother could manage.
(He's been keeping things simple.)
"A cold steamed chicken plate, and—"
Dongpo Pork.
"...so there you have it."
(No, this was still far from humble.)
Maomao swallowed her drool.
"Want to eat?"
"...if I may have some."
She felt sorry for the quack doctor waiting in the medical office, but meat won out. Having a meal with Jinshi — Tommei and the others would probably click their tongues at the inequality, but there was nothing she could do about it. Suiren had brought the pork in lotus leaf wraps, so it couldn't be helped.
"Would it be all right if I had the same meal as Lady Moon?"
Maomao confirmed, just to be safe.
"Well, why not? If you're concerned, we could have it tasted for poison."
She got Suiren's permission. And a seat was prepared for Maomao to eat as well.
Maomao pumped her fist. "Yes!"
The only disappointment was that the sake wasn't served, on account of it still being too dangerous.
The meal was delicious, and when she was halfheartedly letting Jinshi's stories wash over her once again, he called her out: "You're not even listening, are you?"