Pharmacist Penumbra (Draft)

Chapter 2: Poison Taster

Ying Yue dressed in her regular servant clothes and ready for another day at work, as she opened the door she was face to face with another personal attendant. "I am here to clean Consort Ming's room," stated Ying Yue. But the woman simply smiled and gently pushed Ying Yue back into her personal room.

"It's quite alright. We are also finished cleaning anyway, have some leftover sweet" she reassured, smiling gently but her eyes told a different emotion pity.

Probably because Ying Yue was going to be the new poison taster. The last poison taster had ingested poison and was paralyzed from her arms down. Consort Ming had only five personal attendants including herself, while Consort Yong at up to ten personal attendants at her beck and call. It was strange for a highly ranked woman to have so little personal attendant, but Consort Ming was smart because she was surrounded by enemies and she only had her four trusted attendants who had her full trust and rely on.

Ying Yue was called to test out the meal of Consort Ming, as she sat in front of a small portion of the full meal. She sniffed each dish and took an experimental bite out of each dish, as the Consort, four personal attendants and General were staring at her for a reaction. No indication of strange colour smells or tingling sensation.

Parting her lips, "The meals are safe." confirmed Ying Yue, as all the ladies sighed in relief.

Ying Yue was just a disposable pawn to help protect the favoured Consort. The Consort had to be cautious of the small possibility that the meal served was laced with poison. But the job if the poison taster was to ingest food to evaluate if there was any poison and only fast-acting poisons applied if there were slow acting poisons then there isn't much use of a poison taster.

When Ying Yue was a child, she would experiment poisons on herself. Salves, snake bites and burn. Her bandaged arms were proof of her various experiment and little by little, she had gained a resistance against poisons, aphrodisiac and alcohol.

She gave a ghost of a smile, which unsettled the group. "What?" asked Ying Yue, returning back to her original indifferent face.

She was talking to the head of the four personal attendants, Li Ju. "It would be suggested to use a silver plate," stated Ying Yue. Li Ju was a beauty, she was tall and had great skin and was a gentle motherly like figure to the three other attendants.

"Yes I am aware, but General Fan wanted to test out your knowledge," she said. Ying Yue sighed. It is to be expected. "You are rather knowledgeable in poison and herbs," commented Li Ju.

"I use to work in an apothecary. So I am well versed in the field, and my kidnappers are having a portion of my wages," said Ying Yue.

"So if you were to work and seem useless for two more years you are released from here," she said, as she grabbed an expensive vase and handed it to Ying Yue. Confused, but she attempted to grab it but it abruptly slipped her finger and dropped to the floor, as a spider-like pattern appeared on the vase. "Oh, my. This was quite the expensive vase, it would seem you will have to pay what you have broken," she said, cheekily. Ying Yue was starting to like this woman.

"Please use the funds that were meant for my kidnappers. If it is insufficient you may use the funds for my wage to pay for the damages." said Ying Yue.

Li Ju wrote her a wooden tablet officiating her role of poison taster. So instead of the wage going to her kidnappers, it would go to her as compensation for the dangers of the job. "Thank you for your help. I look forward to our cooperation together." voiced Ying Yue.

As she was walking to her personal quarters, the three other maid Li Hua, Li Mei and Li Lian. Li Hua was a soft-spoken and gentle woman who was talented at her job. Li Mei was an got hot-headed but loyal to the bone and Li Lian was cheerful and optimistic and a tad bit childlike. They peeked around the corner and stared at the back of the walking Ying Yue. "So it is true. She does various experiments on herself," said Li Mei.

"Even though she hides it, she must be a great deal of pain." sobbed Li Lian.

"She must have been through a rough childhood and then kidnapped and sold into the imperial court only to become a food taster." sobbed Li Hua.

Oh, how exaggerated this three girl's stories, but they were very kind and caring to Ying Yue in the following days to come. Each day she woke up a test for the large meals of the Consort, then her own meals and also the extra food on the side that the three attendants. She was confident enough to identify the poison and resist the poisoning even if she went over the lethal dose.

But all Ying Yue wanted to do was make medicine. There were an abundance of herbs everywhere in the garden, pond and even near the toilets, but she didn't have the necessary equipment to conduct any experiments even a snake would do.

"Ying Yue. General Fan wishes to see you now." informed Li Hua. Annoyed at the General.

Doesn't the General have more important matters to attend to, but visit a Consort much less a poison taster. "What can I do for you, General Fan?" asked Ying Yue.

He places a box with four steamed buns in it, "I've received these from a fellow military, but it seems to be too suspicious to be a gift. So I would like for you to test if there is anything in the buns." he stated. Ying Yue grabbed a plump and fluffy steam bun and broke it in half with no problems and sniffed the contents.

"There's a light aphrodisiac in here. It wouldn't do anything bad. It's fine." said Ying Yue. "If there is nothing else, I should head back to my room," informed Ying Yue.

"But I do have a favour to ask of you," responded General Fang. This request piqued her interest. Satisfied with her reaction, "I would like to a concoction that will help me with my insomnia problem." he said.

Ying Yue smiled, but it was a genuinely beautiful smile despite the freckles on her face. "Please leave it to me."