The cloth is wet between my fingers.
"Bring ginger. Strong tea. Lemon rind." I list names as orders.
"Where from?" Xiao Mei whispers.
"Different stalls. Different hands." I do not look up.
She runs.
"The red blurs." I say.
I press the stain to the basin again.
"Cold water," I mutter.
"The leaf will help." I pull a leaf from the tea pouch.
"It smells of ash and warmth." I tear the rind with nails.
"Don't mix them wrong." Xiao Mei says, back already.
"I won't." I answer.
A scrap of paper rests in my palm.
"Measurements." I fold it into my sleeve.
"They say the poison eats inwards." Xiao Mei says.
"I want it to stop eating." I say.
"Water boils," I say when the kettle hisses.
"Two minutes." I count.
"Three." I breathe out.
"Smash the ginger." I mash with the flat of my palm.
"It hits the nose." Xiao Mei blinks.
"How will this help?" she asks when she returns.
"It soaks the agent." I keep the answer short.
"Try the strain," I say. "Linen."
"The cloth traps sediment." I press until only clear water slips.
"Drink." I hold a cup out.
"Will it work?" she asks.
"Try," I order.
She sips. She winces.
"Strong," she says.
"It must be." I drink.
The bitterness bites my tongue.
It scorches like an iron line.
I drag breath low and slow.
"Record it," I tell Xiao Mei. "Amounts. Times."
She scribbles.
"The metal at the back of the mouth," I say.
"Not wine?" she echoes.
"Not wine. Something made for harm." I keep it short.
"Who is he?" Xiao Mei asks once, too softly.
"A man who wanted forever," I answer.
"Did he love you?" she asks, naive and dangerous.
"Complicated." I say. "Love and greed overlap."
She breathes, a snapped sound.
A knock at the door.
Eunuch Gao's shadow crosses the threshold.
He pauses. He does not enter.
"Careful with words," he says low.
"Always," I answer flat.
I set a small brazier alight.
"I grind ash." I grind it to powder.
"We mix with the cooled brew." I add paste that smells of iron.
"This will bind the agent," I tell her. "Apply after the first drink. Not before."
Her hands shake when she prepares the bowl.
"Steady." I touch her wrist. "Steady."
"We time each sip," I say.
"We test pulse." Xiao Mei counts.
"The brew pulls heat." My palms go clammy.
"Do not tell anyone," I say. "Not yet."
"Why?" she asks.
"Proof." I answer. "We need proof."
"Make a copy," I say. "Ledger marks. Place them where attendants find."
"Risky," Xiao Mei whispers.
"Necessary," I say and fold the copy into a paper I hide.
"Night is small and loud," I say as lamps tilt.
"I test a drop on a wilted leaf." The leaf straightens, then flops again.
"Not perfect," Xiao Mei says.
"Not enough," I say.
"We go to the west garden." I move to the beds.
"The western beds hide odd flowers." I pluck one bloom.
"Pollen powders my palm." I hide it in linen.
"She visits the eastern pavilion each morning," I tell Xiao Mei. "She tends jewels and letters."
"She counts worth aloud." Xiao Mei bites her lip.
"She is allergic to pollen." I name it plain. "A faint reaction. Visible."
"How do you know?" Xiao Mei asks.
"I read a clerk's note." I fold my fingers. "Like flavored ink."
"Plan?" she asks.
"She will borrow a ribbon." I outline.
"She will drop a sachet 'by accident'." I show the steps.
"I don't like it," Xiao Mei says.
"Then you will do it where servants pass without seeing," I answer.
"Alright." She nods.
"We fold linen thin as breath." We press a pinch of pollen and seal with wax.
"Hide it under a cushion," I say.
"At dawn," I whisper, "we wait."
"Dawn opens the yard." Xiao Mei moves like a shadow.
"She hums a tune and brushes a tray." I watch.
"Slip the ribbon." Xiao Mei slides it.
"A maid fetches the missing ribbon." The maid's hand dives under the cushion.
"The powder dusts the air and hides in corners." The maid coughs.
"The concubine inhales." I hold my breath.
"She freezes." Xiao Mei's voice is small.
"Her throat tightens." I count the beats.
"Her eyes flare with red veins." The hand claws her chest.
"Help!" she screams.
Thin panic, sharp.
"Guards rush," one cries.
"Consorts lean in, hungry for scandal." They close in.
"Medic!" someone calls.
"Carry her." The servants haul her inside and slam the door.
"Consort Li smiles." Her smile edges steel.
"Allergic?" a maid asks.
"Medic!" someone repeats.
"A servant cries when the sachet drops." A hand finds linen.
"The Consort picks it up with two fingers." She inspects.
"Her eyes narrow." She smells the linen.
"I did not order this," she murmurs.
"Who would do this?" a maid asks.
"No one," Consort Li says, flat and cold.
"Probably a prank among the girls." She tosses the word like a stone.
"They take samples," another adds. "Lab results will be sent to Revenues."
"Track the water routes," Zhao Kang orders.
"The room goes brittle." Hands shake.
"They question servants." Names appear and vanish.
"I sit quiet in a corner." My hands fold.
"Did you do this?" Gao asks softly when he passes.
"I arranged for it," I answer.
"Bold." He nods once.
"Necessary." I repeat.
"The Consort holds the pouch under torchlight." Her fingers toy with the powder.
"You play a dangerous game," she says to the empty room.
Her voice carries threat.
"Then play it well." I whisper to the cushion.
"Lady Ru is near the eastern beds," a clerk reports.
"They take samples," another says. "Lab results will be sent."
"Track water," Zhao Kang orders again.
"Who benefits?" the Consort asks aloud.
The question has teeth.
"The palace pivots." Each servant steps lighter. Each door clicks with new caution.
"I taste iron again," I say.
"Hunger, clean and hard," Xiao Mei says and spits the word.
"What's next?" she asks.
"We wait." I hold my face still.
"And then the news runs through the court, fast and wild." The rumor rolls.
"She wakes with swelling," a maid says, breath sharp. "Her face is covered. She cannot open her eyes."
"Who would do this?" someone repeats, panic, sharp.
"Careful," Zhao Kang says. "Do not accuse without proof."
"Proof," Consort Li replies. "We will find proof."
"She looks at the door." Her gaze lands on me raw for a second.
"Prepare the carriage now," she orders. "The concubine must be moved to the healing wing."
"Guards bow, eyes on me as if measuring my weight." They read me.
"The war has begun." I fold my hands.
"Remember, no loose tongues. No bragging." I order.
"Yes," Xiao Mei says.
She bites the inside of her cheek.
"The palace breathes around us, tense and sharp."
"I fold the empty sachet into a scrap." I hide it in my robe seam.
"Night comes and the lamps drip light."
"From the window I watch the Consort's carriage move through the courtyard, black and slow."
"My hands do not shake."
"She will pay." I whisper.
"Someone outside the gate laughs short." A sound like a snapped twig.
"A shadow opens the door." Gao stands there steady.
"Good," he says. "She reacts as expected."
"Good." I repeat.
"I press the back of my hand to my mouth." Iron tastes sharp.
"I will make the antidote better." I vow.
"I will make the ledger sing." I touch the hidden copy.
"I will pull the thread until the robe unravels." I map the names.
"A messenger arrives with a sealed note." Zhao Kang reads it quick.
"He frowns." The paper folds under his thumb.
"Bring Mingyue to the Revenues," he says.
The eunuch replies.
"I smooth my sleeve." Xiao Mei grips my fingers.
"Stay calm," I whisper.
"They lead me past ledgers." Clerks fold at my dress.
"Zhao Kang waits at a table." He places a ledger between us.
"Explain your hand," he says.
My palms are empty.
"I learn from ledgers," I answer.
"Names teach," I add.
He watches me counting coin.
"Who taught you the Lingnan mark?" he asks.
"Old books," I say. "And practice."
He taps ledger.
"Practice is learned in places not meant for girls," he says.
"Perhaps," I answer.
He leans forward.
"Do you fear the Consort?"
"No," I say.
"Bold," he replies.
He stands then.
"Return to your pavilion now," he orders. "But remain ready."
"Yes, Prince," I say.
Back in my rooms, I set the brew to cool.
I fold the ledger copy and hide it under a stone.
"I write a note in code to Gao." I slip it under the mat.
It reads: WATCH THE FAN.
I place palm over the note.
A steady heat climbs my arm.
"Court spins with rumor." I keep my breath small.
I keep my hand quick.
The game is only beginning.
We breathe and plan.
For now, we stay silent.
And the court waits for the next move.