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Jinshi was feeling quite pathetic. Oh and why not considering how completely the little apothecary had bested him at the Western capital. It had been a couple of weeks since he'd been back yet thus far it had been Basen or someone else who had carried his messages to her. The young prince was not yet ready to see her, not until he'd found a way to get even.
His mind went back to that evening; he had seen the apothecary sneak out and had followed her. To say that he had been annoyed and rather jealous wouldn’t be amiss - at a banquet to find a consort for him, the only woman he desired had danced with another man in front of him and he had to contend with being a mere spectator!
What followed next couldn’t have turned out worse even if he had tried..
Jinshi grimaced and pinched the bridge of his nose. The young prince was smarting from the unfairness of it all, as the gardener of his brother's flower garden he had years of experience making the most beautiful women in the land dance in the palm of his hand. Yet he had come unceremoniously undone when Maomao kissed him back, and then proceeded to go on her way as if it was nothing at all. He who could reduce women to puddles with a mere smile had failed so spectacularly when it came to the one woman he desired! A mushroom, even a weed growing on the side of the road got more reaction out of her! Of course, she had trained under the best courtesans in the country, but he still liked to believe he knew how to play this game.
The thought gave him pause. While he'd been searching high and low for the ox bezoars he'd been gifted all manners of rare ingredients and herbs, one of which had been a mushroom which was said to be a potent aphrodisiac for women. The official who had brought it said it grew in his native southwestern region and had vouched for its potency - just one whiff of it would make you indescribably desirable to the woman of your dreams. Of course, the official had ulterior motives in mind, he was trying to insinuate his beautiful younger sister in with the young lord.
"Basen?" Jinshi called for his attendant. To his surprise, Gaoshun opened the door. "Basen had some military work to attend to this morning so I'm filling in for him until he gets back, my lord." "It's good that you are here, Gaoshun!" Jinshi replied happily. Gaoshun's brow started to furrow. What was his troublesome young master up to now? "Do you remember that mushroom we were gifted when we were searching for the bezoar? The one that was supposed to be especially appealing to women?” Jinshi added delicately while having the grace to look away.
Gaoshun's pinched the bridge of his nose, he hadn't been back half an hour and the young lord was already up to new shenanigans. "May I ask what this is about?" "I haven't sent the apothecary any new rare ingredients lately and I was thinking what better way to test its efficacy?" "Are you sure that's a good idea?" Gaoshun quipped back. Jinshi had a sheepish grin on his face, and at that moment Suiren entered the room with his breakfast. "Oh, I thought I heard your voice, Master Gaoshun. It's been long!", the old caretaker addressed the attendant affectionately. "Yes Suiren sama, I'm just filling in for Basen this morning" Gaoshun replied with a smile. Suiren turned her attention to Jinshi, "Why do you look like you've been caught with your hand in the sweet jar, young master?" Jinshi blushed and proceeded to explain to her what was going on.
The shrewd old lady had suspected as much, the young lord had seemed out of sorts since coming back and his usual visits to the pleasure district had not resumed. Suiren waited for him to finish, and said, "This is Xiaomao we are talking about, if it has anything to do with poisonous herbs and mushrooms it would be better not to think that you can outsmart her. But I may have the perfect solution to your predicament, one even Xiaomao will not see coming. You must of course take her another rare medicinal ingredient as a gift too." the attendant replied with a mischievous twinkle. "I'll leave you to it, my lord", Gaoshun bowed his way out. He had had enough; it seemed that furrow would make a permanent home between his eyebrows if he stayed there any longer.
And that was how Jinshi turned up at the apothecary's doorstep with a velvet antler in tow.