North of the capital, a vast granary region stretches out. A great river flows from west to east, with towns and farming villages dotted along its course.
While the south cultivates rice paddies, the north grows kaoliang and wheat. Further north lies forest, and beyond that, mountainous terrain.
North of the forest lies Zibei Province, which is not under the Emperor's direct jurisdiction.
The region centered on the capital is called Huayang Province. Beyond that are three large provinces, with over a dozen smaller ones filling in the gaps.
Zibei—one could more or less guess from the name. There was a high official named Zichang who hailed from Zibei Province.
(What was it again... the story about the founding of the nation)
The country where Maomao lives
is called Li.
A simple, one-character name—and that alone tells the story of the nation's founding.
Three swords beneath the grass. The grass represents "Hua," meaning "splendor," and it refers to the founding ancestor of the nation. According to legend, she was said to have been a woman. The swords represent warriors—three who served under the ancestor.
She had a feeling there were many more complicated details to the story, but Maomao had been listening while yawning, so she couldn't really remember.
What she could barely recall was that the three swords also differed in size—the top sword was larger than the two below it.
And that was precisely why the current Emperor couldn't afford to defy them.
The north—in other words, the top sword—was summoning high officials for leisurely pursuits such as falconry.
The Emperor himself hadn't come, apparently, but a remarkable assembly of dignitaries had gathered nonetheless.
This was what the military official standing before her had been explaining.
With a clatter and a rumble, Maomao was currently traveling by carriage.
The carriage's speed was
half a period—
about two and a half ri, or ten kilometers. They had probably been traveling for
three periods
by now.
(My backside hurts.)
A candid assessment, and she would have liked to suggest improvements to the situation, but there was at least a cushion laid beneath her. Everyone else was in the same predicament, so there was no point complaining. Maomao stared silently out the window.
Even if it was Shishou's invitation, traveling from the capital all the way to Shihokushu was no small feat. It wasn't a distance one could cover and return home in a day or two. Shishou, too, had taken up residence in the capital. Shihokushu was governed by Shishou's clan.
Well now, the military officer who had relayed all this uninteresting information to Maomao was—
Bashen.
Having explained everything to Maomao with a sour expression, Bashen folded his arms and fell silent. Since they ended up sharing the same carriage for the entire journey, the other officials riding alongside them wore increasingly exhausted faces.
He was still young but apparently held a high rank, and couldn't bring himself to sleep in the presence of his superiors. Jinshi and Gaoshun were riding in a separate carriage.
There was a bit of drool around Maomao's mouth, but that was just part of her charm.
Seeing Maomao like that, Bashen clicked his tongue.
"Why on earth would Father bring along a girl like this…"
(Father?)
No wonder his face looked somewhat familiar.
This man, it turned out, was Gaoshun's son.
(
Gaoshun
and
Bashen,
huh.)
There were things that caught her attention, but she decided not to say anything.
Her first thought upon hearing this was that it seemed odd for a eunuch like Gaoshun to have a son, but then again, eunuchs weren't born eunuchs. Given his age, it wouldn't be surprising to have a child or two.
After hearing this, Maomao thought about the head lady-in-waiting in the Jade Palace, who was in her thirties.
Maomao knew that, because the workplace offered so little in the way of encounters, the head lady-in-waiting had recently taken to muttering that even a eunuch would be fine, and often looked at Gaoshun.
Just then, a large mansion came into view through the window.
As if to signal their long-awaited arrival, Bashen uncrossed his arms, and the other officials visibly relaxed.
Maomao rubbed her sore backside and gazed blankly at the mansion.
The mansion was quite splendid.
The town itself wasn't particularly large, so the estate alone looked as if it belonged to a different world entirely. It would be impressive enough to impress even the jaded eyes of those from the capital.
A three-story building with striking red pillars, its roof tiles carved into the shapes of beasts. A moat surrounded the estate, with brocade-colored koi swimming within.
Dragons and tigers were painted into the white-plastered walls here and there. The craftsmen must have carefully sculpted them with their trowels. It was a style of decoration rarely seen in the capital.
As Maomao stared, she was poked from the side. Looking up, she found Basen glaring at her, so she obediently followed behind him.
When she was led into the room, Jinshi was lounging on a sofa in a completely relaxed posture. On the table sat a cloth in a stifling shade of color, and she realized it was a head covering.
(So that's how it is.)
Being too beautiful truly was a sin. That one needed to go so far as wearing a mask just to hide from others when traveling abroad.
Indeed, if this man so much as smiled at a naive village girl, it might just stop her heart.
What an annoying face to have.
The room was a guest chamber, and from the layout of the estate, it was clearly meant for the highest-ranking visitors. The furnishings and furniture were splendid, but having grown accustomed to the Jade Palace and Jinshi's quarters, she simply assessed it as "about what you'd expect." Still, it was more than adequate for hosting distinguished guests.
All the same, this room is terribly hot, Maomao thought.
The windows were shut tight, and lanterns hung in their place instead.
She would have liked to loosen her collar, but she couldn't very well do that, so she endured.
Jinshi had already unbuttoned the front of his robe, and before she knew it, she was making the face she usually reserved for looking at a flattened frog.
Perhaps it was because only Maomao, Gaoshun, and Basen were in the room. That was the extent of his relaxation.
Was the shadow on Jinshi's face due to the flickering light of the lanterns?
"What am I called here?"
Basen asked Gaoshun.
"Inside, just use the usual form. Outside,"
Kousen
"—that's what you call me."
"Understood."
Kousen
"my lord."
It was Jinshi who answered in place of Gaoshun.
Tilting her head in puzzlement, Maomao looked at Gaoshun.
Gaoshun stroked his chin while looking at Jinshi, and Jinshi narrowed his eyes at Maomao.
Mashin looked at this scene with even more puzzlement.
Trotting over to Gaoshun,
"Father, what is going on here?"
he asked.
Gaoshun's expression clouded over slightly, and he exchanged a glance with Jinshi. He then pulled Mashin by the arm and began whispering something in a corner of the room.
Whatever Gaoshun said made Mashin stare at Maomao with a shocked expression. He seemed to be arguing back against Gaoshun, but Gaoshun silently delivered a knuckle rap to his son's head.
Maomao wondered what that was all about, but figured it wasn't really her concern, so she decided to put her luggage away for the time being.
If she didn't do her work properly, she'd get an earful from Suirei later.
The falcon hunt was scheduled for tomorrow, so they would be staying at the mansion for the night.
A banquet was being held in the courtyard, but Jinshi and the others showed no signs of going outside. They simply stayed in their closed room, reading books and playing go to pass the time.
The room was sweltering, but having received some ice, it was somewhat bearable. It had been brought by fast horse from the ice house—a supreme luxury in the summer.
Since Maomao was looking at the ice with such obvious envy, Gaoshun quietly slipped her a chip of it. He really was a considerate eunuch.
Rather than that, they could just open the window, Maomao thought, and she went ahead and asked.
"Why don't you open the windows?"
She had directed the question to Gaoshun, but it was Jinshi who answered.
"For starters, try tasting the evening meal."
You'll understand once you do, Jinshi said with a weary look.
Just as he instructed, when the evening meal was brought in, Maomao scooped some onto a small plate and began her usual poison testing.
"..."
"You get it now, don't you?"
Jinshi looked at the lavish spread with an exasperated expression. It had been brought in on a cart, and while it appeared to be exquisite cuisine that made the most of its ingredients—
"Soft-shelled turtle meat, and on top of that..."
Soft-shelled turtle—turtle meat. It was a creature that, once it latched on, would not let go. Its living blood was used as an aphrodisiac. Naturally, the meat would likely have similar effects.
When she took a sip of the aperitif as well, it had been made to look refreshing by adding fruit juice, but what was actually mixed in was quite potent.
From the aperitif to the appetizers, side dishes, main course, and even the dessert, every dish was packed with ingredients said to boost vitality.
Gaoshun silently prepared portable rations he had pulled from deep within his luggage. With a proper meal sitting right before him, the man chose to have a modest dinner instead.
"Aren't you going to eat? There's no poison in it."
"Poison or not, it's not something I'd put in my mouth. Besides, how can you eat it with such a straight face?"
Jinshi and Gaoshun both stared at her in disbelief. Ma Kisen, meanwhile, was boiling water in the corner of the room. On a night this hot, of all times.
"It's absolutely delicious. If I leave it untouched, people might get suspicious — would you mind if I ate it instead?"
"Do as you please!"
Jinshi narrowed his eyes and pursed his lips slightly at the sight of Maomao looking so satisfied.
Maomao tucked into the soft-shelled turtle soup with visible enjoyment.
Jinshi watched her intently the entire time.
"Is it good? That."
"Yes. I don't exactly have fond memories of soft-shelled turtles, but this one is quite good, actually."
"What do you mean, fond memories?"
Jinshi picked up the bowl of soup with mild curiosity.
"It's nothing, really."
Maomao had been helping her adoptive father since she was small. One of her errands involved purchasing medicinal ingredients from the market, and on one such trip, she had run into a truly wretched adult.
It was an exhibitionist who had untied his sash and thrown his kimono wide open. Apparently, this was a common sight in winter.
The startled Maomao had tried to flee, but in her panic, she ended up hurling the bundle she was carrying at the man.
"That bundle had a live soft-shelled turtle in it, and it — "
"All right, that's enough. You don't need to go on."
Jinshi set the bowl down and gazed into the distance.
The Gaoshun parent and child looked equally uncomfortable.
(Though apparently, it had gone over well with the pleasure girls.)
People of good upbringing just never could see eye to eye with her, Maomao thought as she set down her empty plate.
Still, it really was a waste, she mused.
"Everything besides the soft-shelled turtle is delicious, but are you really sure you won't eat?"
It felt awkward to continue eating food that was already half-started, and it wasn't a quantity Maomao could finish by herself. Besides, with just the dried meat rehydrated in hot water and
dried rice,
that alone surely wouldn't be enough to fill the bellies of three men.
"...Is it really alright if I eat?"
Jinshi asked Maomao, seeking confirmation.
"Please, go ahead."
It would be a waste to leave it, Maomao thought.
"Are you truly sure?"
Jinshi stared intently at Maomao.
When Maomao tilted her head, not understanding why he was making such a big deal about it, Gaoshun interjected from the side. At the sight of him shaking his head in rapid little motions, Jinshi reluctantly nodded.
"I'm fine. Basen, you go ahead and eat."
"If Lady Kosen wishes."
Basen sat down with a stiff, formal bearing. Maomao handed him a cup of aperitif.
Basen slowly drank it to the last drop.
"It's delicious."
"I'm glad to hear that."
"However—"
"However?"
When Basen's movements stopped, blood began to trickle from his nose.
His face turned deep red, and he appeared to be enduring something. When Jinshi leaned in to look at his face, Basen's body shuddered.
"Why is this girl unaffected?"
"I wouldn't know what to tell you."
It was simply her constitution—there was nothing more to say about it.
Basen's eyes had gone soft and glazed. His cheeks flushed red, and he looked around as though longing for something.
"…Basen, go to sleep already."
"Understood, Father."
Basen wobbled toward the next room, then collapsed right where he stood.
"What should we do?"
When Maomao asked,
"Let him sleep here. I'll take the next room."
Jinshi said.
"Jinshi, I'll make sure to carry him to his room properly."
"He must be exhausted."
"But…"
If Jinshi said so, then Gaoshun relented and laid his son on the canopied bed. Maomao helped a little too. He looked overheated, so she loosened his sash, which improved his complexion somewhat. She felt a little bad about the nosebleed staining the bedding.
Jinshi slept in the next room, and Maomao was allowed to use the room after that.
Having a room all to herself was quite the luxury, Maomao thought. She was a little happy that she could take a bath.