Life settled down for a couple months. Fall turned into winter, and even the sunny days were still quite cold. Jinshi 's routine was the same day in and day out. Most days he saw the girl, even if it was just for a fleeting few seconds. She continued to offer him the choicest of withering glares, so that was something at least.

Not long after the Lihaku debacle, Lady Gyokuyou had happened to mention that she 'd heard cats could take a long time to warm up to someone. The girl had been in the room at the time, but seemed not to realize that the woman was speaking about her. At least, Jinshi was fairly certain the concubine was speaking about the apothecary. Lady Gyokuyou had added, 'Personally, I 've not had much experience with them, but if what I 've heard is true, it 's important to be willing to have tremendous patience and not try to force affection. If a cat 's trust is earned and it feels safe, it may even begin to reciprocate affection. '

Translation: Don 't rush the apothecary. Be patient and she may decide you 're worth her time.

He took the advice to heart. Mostly. Sometimes he couldn 't resist little things like tucking a stray piece of hair behind the girl 's ear. Something she 'd looked ready to bite him for doing. Unfortunately, for her, she didn 't seem to register that did not have the effect upon him she was hoping. Overall, though, he gave her space, and while she certainly didn 't seem to get less prickly, she didn 't get more prickly either. That had to qualify as progress.

His feelings never grew less. In fact, as time passed, they deepened. Any time he saw her, that was the highlight of his day. Though, he did wish she 'd wear his hairpin. Unlike the other ladies-in-waiting, the girl seemed to avoid wearing any accessories at all. The only time she wore any was when she was required to dress up for something like a tea party. And even then, she wore the bare minimum, primarily a necklace that Lady Gyokuyou had presented her.

There was one thing he 'd noticed her wear constantly. He didn 't think of it as an accessory, since it wasn 't jewelry. She always kept one of her arms wrapped. Since her sleeves were so long, it wasn 't something that was easily noticeable. He wasn 't quite sure when he 'd noticed it initially. Hesitant to broach the subject with the girl, he instead had asked Gaoshun to see if he could glean any knowledge about the matter. The report the man had eventually come back with had left Jinshi uneasy. No one knew why exactly the girl wrapped her arm. There was a general assumption that there were scars from abuse. That would fit with her stating attempts had been made to harm her. If he ever found out that she was concealing evidence of being harmed with that arm wrap, he worried he might not be able to restrain himself from meting out justice to those who were responsible.

***

'Will you let me go? '

Jinshi looked at Maomao, his heart clenched tight at the question. She stared at him unblinking, unmoving beyond the steady rise and fall of her chest with each breath. His own voice was ragged, 'I don 't know. '

She stepped closer, raised her tiny hand, and rested it against his jaw. Her voice was calm, like always, 'Jinshi, let me go. '

He couldn 't. How could she ask him such a thing? His hands raised and captured her face. He rested his forehead against hers, breathing in that earthy herby scent he 'd come to adore. 'Please, Maomao, don 't ask me that. '

She sighed sadly, 'You have to. Promise you will. '

Tears clouded his eyes. How could she expect him to grant such a request? It was '

He woke to hot tears running down his face. Cold, early morning sunlight lit the room. He was alone, and a profound sense of loss weighed heavily on him. It was not the best way to start the day.

***

The day did not proceed to get better. During breakfast, he received word that a woman 's body had been pulled from the outside moat. She 'd drowned, whether by suicide or murder, no one was sure. The woman had been dressed to indicate she was a member of the rear palace, and the doctor was summoned. Jinshi and Gaoshun arrived not long after the doctor.

To his surprise, and relief, Jinshi saw that the girl had accompanied the doctor. She must 've been working in the clinic when the man had been summoned. It was good she was already there, it would save summoning her as well. The doctor wasn 't a bad man, but Jinshi wasn 't quite sure how he had managed to end up in medicine. Something he was again reminded of as he approached and saw the doctor looking faint in the presence of the corpse. Meanwhile, the girl was observing the body calmly.

In a tremulous voice, the doctor asked her, 'Would you mind taking care of this, little lady? '

The girl was kneeling beside the body, and Jinshi watched her look up at the doctor and shake her head, 'I cannot. I was ordered to never touch the dead in that way. '

Jinshi was surprised. She 'd poison herself without question, this was where she drew the line?. He made his presence known by teasing her, 'So, there are things even you won 't do. '

She shrugged and gave him a momentary glance, 'I figured you 'd show up. '

He watched her turn her gaze back to the dead woman. Despite her unwillingness to touch the body, she still seemed calm, unlike the crowd of onlookers that had gathered. He came to stand beside her, 'You seem rather comfortable around the dead. '

She didn 't look up, 'They were part of life growing up. The pleasure district is surrounded by lawless chaos. '

'In that case, what keeps you from being able to touch them? '

'I was forbidden by my teacher. He pointed out that parts of bodies could be used as medicinal ingredients and was concerned I 'd become a grave robber. '

The onlookers made horrified, choking noises at the apothecary 's reply, but Jinshi couldn 't help but smile. It made sense. Whoever her teacher was, he understood her curiosity and stubbornness all too well. 'It 's a fair point, ' Jinshi replied. When she said nothing in reply, he turned back to the doctor and asked him to perform the examination.

As the day wore on, Jinshi tried to get his own work done, but the girl kept taking up his mental space. Something about her mood had seemed to shift while being near the dead woman. The girl was almost always quiet and reserved, but something else had seemed to be troubling her. There was a heaviness she carried, but he couldn 't make sense of it. When he summoned the girl late that afternoon, that same, strange heaviness still weighed on her.

He wanted to hear the girl 's thoughts regarding the details they 'd been unable to recover. 'As far as we can find, the woman was not forced into the moat. What do you think? '

The apothecary was quiet for a bit before stating, 'What you have told me sounds as though you think it was suicide. '

He nodded, 'Do you disagree? '

She shook her head, 'I cannot say for certain one way or the other. However, I do find it difficult to believe she operated alone. The wall is quite tall and scaling it is not a simple matter. '

'Are you saying it 's impossible to get to the top? '

She shook her head, 'Almost, but not quite. '

'What does that mean? '

'Do you remember when Lady Fuyou was dancing on it? I was curious how she had managed to get to the top, and performed my own investigation. There is a place, on the wall, where there are protrusions placed all the way to the top. The way they are spaced makes it possible to climb. It is not easy, but it is possible. However, the woman who drowned had bound feet, and I suspect that would have made climbing significantly more difficult. '

Jinshi thought about what she had just said, and his stomach tightened with discomfort, 'Are you saying she was murdered? '

'I cannot say that, because I don 't know. Evidence would suggest that she was alive when she went into the water. Her fingers were damaged and bloody, likely from struggling to get hold of the wall in an attempt to escape the icy water. '

The girl turned and walked away. The late day sun bathed her in golden light. She was silent, and fixed her attention on a plant that had been placed right in front of the window. The quiet permeated everything. She was completely lost in thought.

Jinshi gave her a few minutes, before he stood and moved to stand beside her. She seemed so far away, seemed to have forgotten they 'd been in the middle of something. The look on her face was an unfamiliar one. Curiosity compelled him to ask, 'What are you thinking about? '

She didn 't look up, just focused on the plant and stated simply, 'The kind of poison I 'd pick for my death. '

'You 're not considering taking your own life, are you? ' he asked, hoping his sudden panic at the very thought wasn 't completely obvious in his voice.

She shook her head, 'No. It is not something I wish for, but I 'm well aware that there are those that would not hesitate to cause harm to me. Look at what happened to Master Kounen. None of us knows when our time will be up. That 's simply the nature of fate. It cannot be avoided or resisted. '

What a horrible thing to think about. How could she discuss it so calmly? The worst of it? She wasn 't wrong and he knew it. Much as he might fight fiercely against what fate seemingly had in store for him, she almost seemed to be accepting hers without question. The dreams he 'd had of her dying came to mind, and he wished he could make them go away. Wished he could erase them all.

'Master Jinshi. '

Her voice pulled him back to the moment. Back to her. 'Yes? What is it? '

Finally, she looked up at him. The sunlight turned her sapphire eyes almost violet. He 'd have marveled at how lovely they were, if not for the unbearable heartache he felt at the thought of her dying. Heartache that was not eased as she said, 'If you 're tasked with executing me, could you make sure it is with poison? '

This time, he was completely unable to keep his voice even, 'What are you talking about? '

Her normal calm seemed undisturbed by his obvious discomfort. 'If I were to make a mistake. Commit some kind of great offense. You would be the one responsible for ordering my death, would you not? '

For several long seconds they just stared at each other. A million thoughts raced through his mind. How was he supposed to reply? He had no idea. And she just seemed to take it in stride, finally saying, 'I apologize, I overstepped. If you decide on hanging or beheading, I 'll accept it without question or complaint. '

His hands clenched into tight fists and his blood boiled at the very thought of what she was suggesting. He demanded, 'Why are you saying any of this? Where is this coming from? '

Her head was lowered, eyes fixed on the ground, hands held up in the bow of respect. 'I 'm a commoner, sir. Low born. I can lose my head over the smallest mistake. '

He really didn 't like where her thoughts had gone. Did she truly think so little of him? Of his protection? 'I wouldn 't do that. I would never do that, ' he insisted.

She didn 't look up, just shook her head and stated simply, 'It 's not about would or would not. It 's could or could not. ' When he was unable to make any reply, she excused herself and left him alone with Gaoshun.

Jinshi didn 't move for a long time. His eyes remained fixed on where the girl had stood as she made her unexpected request. He couldn 't imagine what could possibly have been going through her head to say anything like she had. Of everyone in the palace, her future was the least likely to include an execution, especially by his order. Her crime would have to be so egregious that the Emperor would not be able to be swayed for leniency, even by his little brother.

***

That night, his dreams were nightmares. He woke multiple times, and every time he would fall back into a troubled sleep. A sleep that would feature scene after scene of the girl being executed by every method he was aware of. Never did she fight back. Not once did she plead for her life. Just allowed herself to be killed, over and over.

By the time dawn arrived, he was so worked up, he was glad he had training with Basen. Fighting would burn off some of the raging inferno that had burned hot since the day before.

Training helped a little, but it didn 't take away the frustration over the apothecary. What would it take to get it through her head that she was safe? Well, at least as safe as the rest of the royal family, which if he was being completely honest, probably wasn 't all that safe. Still, she had more than proved her loyalty to the Emperor, given the lives she 'd saved. No small mistake was going to end her life. At worst, she might be banished from the palace, and even that would take a very significant offense.

Thinking about the possibility of banishment was almost as unbearable as thinking about execution. What would he do if she were cast out? If it were up to him, he 'd let himself be cast out as well. However, he sincerely doubted his brother would be agreeable to that. He 'd probably lock Jinshi in his room with no way to escape until such a time that either Jinshi would be made emperor or the Emperor 's son would be. Provided the Emperor ever had a son. Things sometimes felt more than a little bleak on that front.

Jinshi had no idea how he 'd manage it, but if the girl was banished, he would make certain she was neither broke nor alone. He 'd keep an eye on her, somehow. He would take care of her, and he would figure out how to keep from completely losing her.

***

One thing that came out in the course of the investigation was that the woman who had drowned, likely had been responsible for the attempted poisoning of Lady Lishu at the garden party. It made no sense. The woman had served Lady Ah-Duo. From everything Jinshi had witnessed, there was no animosity between the two concubines. In fact, Lady Ah-Duo had seemed to have a soft, almost maternal feeling for Lady Lishu. So why would one of her servants attempt the poisoning? Even worse, that wasn't the only mystery he had on his hands tied to the Garnet Pavilion, Lady Ah-Duo's residence.

A few months earlier, right before the garden party, a eunuch had experienced a rash on his hands. The man had been terrified, assumed he had been cursed, and gone to the rear palace doctor. The apothecary had recognized what the rash was, and had been able to treat it. It was no curse, rather, it had been irritation caused by something he 'd handled. Something that after a months ' long investigation had turned out to have originated from the Garnet Pavilion. It wasn 't the concubine that had been responsible. Instead it had been her head lady-in-waiting, Fengming.

None of it made sense. There were pieces of the puzzle they were missing, and the only way there would be even a shred of hope of finding them would mean someone would have to spend time in the Garnet Pavilion undercover.

Jinshi barely had to think about who would be the ideal undercover operative. He had no doubt she 'd agree, but he hoped she wouldn 't fight him too much about it.

***

'I 've had a thought, ' Jinshi told Lady Gyokuyou the next time he visited her.

'And what is that? ' the lady replied.

The girl wasn 't present, which was disappointing, but probably for the best. She 'd be less suspicious if she wasn 't present for this particular conversation. Jinshi proceeded to lay out his request, 'It has come to my attention that Lady Lishu has not had much interaction with the other high ranking concubines. I thought a tea party with you might be a good place to start, provided you 're amenable to the idea. '

He wasn 't surprised when Lady Gyokuyou responded enthusiastically, 'What an excellent idea. She 's so young. I 'm certain it must be quite lonely for her. '

There was competition between the top-ranked concubines, simply because the Emperor still had not selected an empress. That would likely not happen until he had a son. Jinshi would not have suggested a tea party between Lady Lihua and Lady Gyokuyou, but he felt safe suggesting it between Lady Gyokuyou and Lady Lishu. Lady Lishu was fourteen, and the Emperor had made it clear that, unlike his father, he had no interest in girls so young. Lady Lishu had at least another four years before the Emperor would show any interest, and even then Jinsh felt it was unlikely his brother ever would. The young concubine had a complicated history with their family, and the Emperor seemed to consider her more of a foster daughter, than a potential wife or mistress.

Jinshi had another reason for wanting the tea party to take place. He needed the apothecary to make observations. After her last interaction with Lady Lishu, he doubted that it would go very well just sending her to spend a few days at the Diamond Pavilion. Perhaps, the apothecary would be able to figure out what could possibly have been a reason for Lady Lishu to have been targeted. Had the young concubine 's ladies-in-waiting somehow been involved? Gaoshun had reported back to him that the apothecary suspected the women bullied Lady Lishu. Surely they wouldn 't go so far as poisoning the younger woman as one of their bullying tactics, but there was no way to know for sure without getting better eyes on the situation.

The tea party was scheduled to take place the following day. Normally something like that would 've taken days or weeks to plan and set up, but Jinshi supplied the Jade Pavilion with plenty of extra help, and the tea party took place as planned.

The party had just finished by the time he arrived at the Jade Pavilion. Lady Lishu had already departed, and he got there just in time to see the apothecary get sent out by the rest of Lady Gyokuyou 's ladies with orders not to lift a finger to help with the cleaning. The girl stared back at the door she 'd been pushed out of, and he was standing close enough to hear her mutter, 'I 'm not too tired to help out, y 'know. '

She hadn 't seemed to notice him, and he didn 't hesitate to make himself known, 'How was the tea party? '

She barely looked at him, as she walked his direction, 'I should 've known that you 'd be involved, seeing how quickly such a large event was put together. To answer your question, it was a lovely party. '

It amused him that she thought she was going to walk right past him without stopping. Before she could, he grasped her shoulder, 'Leaving so soon? '

She glared at him, 'Remove your hand. '

'I haven 't finished talking to you. '

She pushed his hand off with far more force than was necessary, and took a few steps away before coming to a stop. Her glare had turned fiercer, but she didn 't sound too annoyed when she said, 'I 'm listening. '

He grinned at her. She was softening toward him, even if she would never admit it. 'Have you heard the rumor about the woman who drowned being the same one who did the poisoning at the garden party? '

'I have. '

'Do you think she did commit suicide? '

She shook her head, 'We already discussed this. My answer remains unchanged. I cannot make that determination. '

Why was she so determined not to even attempt to make a suggestion? He was going to get something out of her, somehow. 'What reason could the servant have to poison Lady Lishu? '

Again, the girl shook her head, 'I really don 't know. Is that all, sir? '

Well, this wasn 't going the way he 'd hoped. Might as well move onto the main point of the conversation. He smiled at her warmly, 'I did want to ask if you would be able to help at the Garnet Pavilion, starting tomorrow. '

She shut her eyes and inhaled deeply, almost as if she was trying to remain calm. When she looked at him again, she replied, 'Yes. '

'Excellent, ' he beamed. 'I 'll meet you here again in three days and will be very interested in what you have to say about the experience. '