Page 42 of A Song to Drown Rivers
“Xiaomin.” I regarded her without any outward feeling. This was a rare opportunity to come by, and I would not waste it. “I’m going to give you two choices. I can invite King Fuchai over now, and tell him you attempted to poison me. He will most definitely sentence you to death;howis the key question here. Perhaps it will be death by a thousand cuts. Perhaps it will be a public beheading. Perhaps it will be by attaching your head and four limbs to different chariots, so you are torn apart. Perhaps it will be by cutting off your nose, and letting you bleed to death on your own.”
Another piteous whine rose from Xiaomin’s lips. She clutched her nose as if it had already been severed.
“Or,” I said, louder, over her sobs, “I can pardon you for your crimes. I will not speak a word of what transpired today to another soul. We can settle this matter personally, so long as you pledge your unwavering loyalty to me from now on.”
Xiaomin stilled mid-sob, her warm brown eyes glassy with tears. “You—you mean it?”
“If you agree.” I stared down at her and raised a finger before she could speak. “But if you ever give me reason to question your trust again…” I let the threat hang in the cold, dark air.
“I promise,” she gasped, scrambling to stand. “I will prove that I’m trustworthy.”
I nodded, satisfied at last. In my head, I had already started to compile a list of information she could retrieve for me, errands she could run without anyone else knowing. A thrill shot through my blood. The thing about maids was that they’d been trained to stick to the shadows, so nobody ever noticed them, but really, they were the eyes and ears of the palace, always listening, always watching. “Good. You can begin by telling me where Lady Yu is. I would like to speak to her.”
I found Lady Yu alone in her private gardens. Her back was turned to me, her lovely head bowed as she pruned a bright bloom of peonies. She could have blended in with those flowers herself, dressed in carefully arranged layers of pink gauze, intricate floral patterns threaded down her spine. A white fountain ran beside her, its quicksilver waters tinkling like little chimes. The air was thick and redolent with the fragrance of chrysanthemums and pale azaleas and countless other plants I could not name, a kind of secluded heaven on earth.
My footsteps crunched over the fallen petals, and she whipped around, her face brightening for a moment—perhaps assuming it was the king—before she saw me. Immediately, her features soured, as if she’d just bitten into a rotten plum.
“You,” she said stiffly, not bothering with pleasantries. At least this would be quick. “What are you doing here?”
“Surprised to see me alive?”
Her expression did not change. She was a good actress, I could credit her with that. Only her hand gave her away; the slightesttremble, the flowers quivering under her fingers. A petal fluttered to the ground. “I have no idea what you mean,” she said.
I affected an indulgent air, my tone amiable. “Would you like me to explain it to you in detail, then?”
She pressed her lips together. I studied her face while I waited. She was undoubtedly beautiful, less in the way her physical features were arranged and more in the way she wore them. We’d never spoken more than a few words before, but I’d heard the palace gossip about how her kisses were worth dying for, how her skin was soft as silk, her waist slim and sleek as an eel’s, and I’d seen for myself how many of the ministers and guards secretly lusted after her, though they would never dare act upon it. It was said that the king used to visit her at least seven nights for every full moon, charming her with honeyed words and promises and generous gifts: this garden was one of them. But in recent weeks, I did not think the king had set foot into her chambers even once.
“To save both of us time, your maid has already confessed,” I said, keeping my tone pleasant. We might have been discussing the flowers, or admiring the butterflies dancing over the blossoms. “Perhaps you should have just done it yourself. It would have been less obvious, at least. You may even have succeeded.”
She tensed, covering her face with her sleeve. “I still don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“How about this, as a reminder?” I unearthed the vial from my inner robes; the poison swirled within it. Her pupils narrowed, turning thin and black as a cat’s. In another fluid motion, I pocketed the vial again. “If I were to bring it to the royal physician now, what do you think he will say?”
“You wouldn’t,” she said, but she sounded uncertain.
“You’re right. I have a better idea: I will summon His Majesty to my chambers—”
Her complexion paled; it was like watching fresh snow hardento ice. “The king is not to be—to besummonedby a lowly concubine—it should be the other way around—”
“With me, he can be,” I said, smiling. I knew I was being callous, that if the positions were reversed, I would’ve wished to slap myself; as it was, I felt more sorry than anything for the girl before me. Still I continued. “I need only say the word, and he will come running, everything else forgotten.” A pause. Another smile. “Why, is he not like that with you?”
She was silent.
“But what was I saying? Oh yes, I shall ask him to come, along with the physician, and his food taster, and my palace lady, Zhengdan, and of course yourever-loyalmaid, Xiaomin—it will be like a party, with all of us there. We can go through the day’s events and decide on your punishment together.” When she made no response, I spun around on my heel, turning my back to her. “Don’t believe me? I will go there right now.Icertainly have nothing to lose.” I walked as I spoke, counting every step I took away from her.
One.
Two.
Three.
Four—
“Wait.” Her voice cut through the air. “Are you… really going to tell His Majesty?” she asked at last, her façade falling.
“That depends.” I shrugged, pretending to admire one of the begonias dangling from a clay pot. The wide petals were tinged a deep blood-red at the edges, and slowly lightened toward the center. “I may not mention it to Fuchai if I’m pleased enough with our conversation.”
A stem snapped between her fingers. “You dare call him directly by name?”
