Poison 3

Duke Shenxiu residence, The Bamboo courtyard.

"An Incense? how inventive, I guess he has to resort to this since the traditional methods of poisoning me won't work".

"Poison!", Deming's hands shook as he looked down at the incense, "how_ why would he do that?"

"Why else, if not for money", Nie Shaoqing replied with a wry smile,

"Your master must have seen something that he shouldn't have. I suspect that his previous illness was as a result of poisoning. His symptoms may seem like pneumonia but why would it affect his legs"

"I should have known, I was too foolish", Deming replied sneering.

"Don't beat yourself up, it is easy to overlook his symptoms. I only got suspicious because of my experience in the Imperial haram, using poison isn't strange to anyone that grew up in the palace", He replied setting his empty cup down on the table.

"However, for reference purposes. You should get suspicious when an elitist physician like him agrees to treat a mere concubine son of a duke.

"Didn't you notice his displeasure at dealing with Madam Nie? To him, she is nothing more than a prisoner of war, yet he would come running as soon as she requests for him. That did not add up, Deming",

Deming tightened his grip on the incense burner so much that his knuckles got whiter. He was tempted to chunk the entire incense burner but Nie Shaoqing stopped him,

"Don't throw it out, whoever put Physician Jiang up to this might have a spy in here", He stood and walked to the attendant with a slight limp.

He took the incense burner from Deming and carried it to the reading table. Now Shaoqing brought the lamp closer and opened the lid, using a stirrer, he checked the ingredients.

Just as he predicted there with small pieces of two poisonous herbs Genko leaves and Munkdo stem.

Both were typical ingredients used when making incense.

They are not lethal when used separately but when mixed would damage the mind of the inhaler.

They both created a hallucinogenic effect and were highly addictive, no one would ever suspect that he was poisoned. It would be assumed that he had lost his mind.

Nie Shaoqing scuffed and shut the lid, "don't draw anyone's attention to this. I need to beat him in his own game".

"Young master, how about starting rumours that you had lost your memory of the last six months? The maids in this residence are excellent gossips, once they catch wind of something as juicy as that. They will spread it far and wide".

There was a spark in Nie Shaoqing's eyes, he had been surprised to hear such a suggestion from Deming. He saw the attendant as someone that liked playing things safe, it was a wonderful surprise.

"That could work", he glanced at the incense and smiled, "we should not disappoint our dear Physician, don't forget to switch out the incense in the pack for healthier options."

"Roger that", Deming nodded and went into the cupboard in the cloakroom. He took out one of their homemade incense and switched it out with physician Jiang's incense. "How am I to get rid of the incense?"

Nie Shaoqing stared at the pouch for a few seconds then replied, "there might be use to it, keep it safe".

"Yes".

********

At a newly established private clinic in the commercial area of Lianxi.

Physician Jiang stood by his medicine cabinet and bent over a bag of coins quickly counting the silver ingots.

His smile widened when he counted past 60 pieces, he glanced up at the stoic-faced hooded man standing in the shadow with a wide smile.

"What a heavy purse, thanks", he pulled the strings on the embroidered pouch and juggled the pouch.

The sound of silver hiring silver was like music to his ears, he palmed the pouch and put it into his medicine bag.

The Stoic-faced man's eyebrows twitched as he watched the physician's disgusting display.

He did not like dealing with men like Physician Jiang but was forced to as he was following his master's orders. His arm moved to the handle of the short dagger hidden in his sleeves.

He was one stab away from getting rid of this greedy man, it was not like the physician would be missed.

It is a pity that his master still had use of this man or he would have put an end to his miserable existence.

Physician Jiang was completely oblivious to the man's thoughts and remained on cloud 9. He was already making a long plan of how he would make use of the coins. He was so stuck in his head that he missed the man's next word.

"You sent word that there was a development in Nie Shaoqing's end?" The man frowned when he failed to answer, he glared at the shorter man for a few seconds before repeating the question. This time he slapped the wall behind him to get the physician out of his thoughts.

Physician Jiang jumped and stared at the hooded man eyes wide, he took a few steps when his gaze met the man's dark glare. He swallowed, "Yes, um_ uh_", he looked at the ground.

The man's face blackened, he held back himself from scolding the physician. He took a deep breath and asked, "what is the new development at Nie Shaoqing's end?"

"Uhh, that is the fever seems to have affected his memories. He seems to have lost his memories of the last six months or there about".

".....", The man tilted his head to the side thoughtfully for some minutes then asked, "Is that normal?"

"Yes it is, prolonged high fevers have been known to affect the patient's brain at times. It is normal to lose one's memory".

"Interesting, keep an eye on his development".

"Am I to increase the dosage of the genko and_"

"No, hold on for now".

"Yes".

******

The Imperial Palace.

The Hooded man knocked lightly on the door of the pavilion.

"Come in"

"Yes", he whispered, pulled back the door and stepped in. He shut the door and took a few steps in before bowing.

"Your Majesty".

"Has the boy been taken care of?"

"Not yet but there is some development. Physician Jiang reported that the fever affected the young master's memories."

"How convenient, never trust a greedy man's words. Look into that yourself".

"Yes", he replied.