After an agonizing wait, Doctor Chen turned and met my stare.
I stepped forward to meet him. “Is it the fainting fever?”
“No.” His brow furrowed in confusion. “What did your father eat today?”
“Eat?” I echoed, surprised by the question.
Lilan spoke up, her hands crushing the front of her skirt. “He had congee with steamed fish for breakfast. Rice and vegetables for lunch. And then chicken soup with ginger and dumplings for dinner.”
“Did you eat the same meals as well?” asked the doctor.
Lilan nodded.
“What about drinks?”
She bit her lip, thinking. “Just water and tea throughout the day. I gave him some jujube tea with honey before he left to read in his room.”
“That was the last thing he drank?”
“Yes—”
“No.”
Everyone turned at the sound of Ren’s voice. Doctor Chen visibly startled at the Fu talisman on his head. The physician had arrived in such a hurry, he must not have noticed it until now.
Averting his eyes, he murmured to me, “Is he… a jiangshi?”
“No.” I shook my head. “He’s alive like you and me.” I didn’t bother telling him that the boy before him was one of the princes of Sian. It was much too long a story to explain. Instead, I turned back to Ren and said, “What do you mean? Did my father drink something else?”
Ren rubbed the back of his neck, uncomfortable with the attention. “Master Kang came to the study as I was finishing my conversation with my brother. He wished to greet me personally. My brother left first, and I offered your father tea.”
I frowned, remembering the oolong tea my sister had prepared in the kitchen.
“Did you drink the same tea?” Doctor Chen inquired, having recovered from his shock.
“No,” Ren admitted. “As there were only two cups, and I hadn’t yet drunk any, I gave Master Kang my untouched cup.”
“Could I examine this cup? Do you still have it?”
I cut off whatever response Ren was about to give, forcingthe physician to look at me. “Why are you asking this? What does this have to do with my father’s ailment?”
“I share your confusion, Mistress Kang.” He glanced over at Baba. “Because from what I can tell, Master Kang is showing symptoms of poisoning. If we don’t find an antidote soon, he’ll die within the hour.”
Something splintered in my mind.
“Poison?” I whispered. “Why would anyone want to poison my father? He’s a ganshi priest, utterly harmless. There’s no reason—”
I froze, my eyes finding Ren’s stunned ones. A horrifying thought seemed to cross our minds at the same time. In a dread-stained voice, I asked, “Where’s your brother, Ren?”
“I-in the guest room,” he stammered. “He must be.”
He stumbled from the room in search of the eldest prince. Anshi raced after him. In their absence, Doctor Chen motioned for Lilan to guide him to the study, where the teacups in question had been left behind.
The once-crowded room was suddenly quiet and cold.
And yet the walls felt closer than ever as I stood rooted to the floor. I couldn’t bear to leave my father, but neither was I able to turn to see his sickly face.
This was my fault. I hadn’t been careful enough, clever enough, knowledgeable enough. I hadn’t chased Liqin out of my home, even though I’d known—had felt suspicion buried in my bones like a vicious venom—that he couldn’t be trusted. And now my father would pay for my failures.
