9

They served one another the traditional tea. Eirian had no family present and Chenzhou had no family left.

Two maids drapped red robes over their shoulders in the tradition of Chenzhou's line and the priest bound their hands with a red silk rope in the tradition of Eirian's.

Then Eirian bowed to her husband and Chenzhou bowed to his wife and it was all over and they were escorted to the wedding feast by the highest ranked of the court of the Camelia. Which was nothing more than a handful of senior military officers and their partners.

Eirian was still in her travel clothes and Chenzhou didn't even bother to shed his armor as they took their seats at the head table.

Once Eirian had read through the contract, they'd called the priest back in to carry out the ceremony. There was no point in waiting and unless she wanted to abandon Sorrow completely, she was bound by it.

A vicious part of her was pleased to realize that Chenzhou wasn't much happier with the situation. His honesty in discussing the circumstance surrounding the contract had revealed his desperation and now that she knew the miasma was coming from him...

Well...

She was actually curious now. 

There was something deeply wrong here and it started with Ye Chenzhou.

But where did it end?

What was the point of this slow death?

She studied him as the kitchen staff began to deliver dozens of dishes. Several salads of vegetables and fruits, plates of small bites of bread layered with cheese and savory jams and dumplings stuffed to bursting with plum and pork. 

Eirian allowed herself a moment of distraction to dip a dumpling in a red oil and take a bite.

Spice and sweet and rich pork exploded across her tongue and she couldn't help but let out a moan. It would be too spicy for her father, who barely stomach peppers, but it made Eirian's mouth water and sent a wave of warmth through her whole body.

She pulled the plate of dumplings and the pot of oil closer and took another.

When the next set of plates were delivered, she caught the kitchen maid by the elbow. "What is this?"

"Pork and plum dumplings, your grace. With chili oil. It's a traditional dish of the borderlands." The maid paled, "Is it too hot? I can tell the kitchen to-"

"No, no. It's delicious. Bring more."

The relieved maid nodded and scurried back to the kitchen as Eirian worked on finishing the entire plate. 

They were pretty much bite sized anyway, she figured, stuffing an entire dumpling in her mouth only to realize Ye Chenzhou was staring at her with wide, surprised eyes.

She swallowed, "What?"

"Ah, nothing. My apologies." He turned away.

Was that a blush across his cheeks?

"I am relieved you seem to like the food," he added, leaning back to allow a maid to set a plate of silver needle chicken in front of him.

Eirian tossed her braid over her shoulder and picked up another dumpling, "Life is too short for bad food." She glanced at his plate. "That's all you're having?"

He gave a wane smile, "I don't eat much." He hadn't been able to stomach much more than simple chicken for years now.

Eirian swallowed another dumpling, "That's terrible." Was it related to the miasma? Certain poisons had a powerful affect on appetite. 

But that could also mean the poison wasn't delivered via food. 

But he also had to be getting regular doses for it to be that strong and the easiest way to do that was food or drink. Eirian had once slipped a mild laxative to a rival and escaped all suspicion because she'd slipped into their tea leaves and it had taken two weeks of doses to take effect.

Just in time for the biggest summer festival of that year.

It had been well-deserved revenge for said rival paying off one of Eirian's maids to loosen the stitches of her clothes in some embarrassing places.

Eirian still wasn't allowed in the Royal Gallery after that rather humiliating dance.

The empty dumpling plate was replaced with a bowl of cold, spicy noodles and a broth Eirian finished in one go.

That was replaced with a thick steak on a bed of mashed potatoes and cheese and then they started bringing the wine. Voluptuous reds and crisp whites and something that came in a tiny glass and tasted like snow.

Chenzhou wasn't the only one staring at her by the time the deserts started coming out.

"What? It's for my magic."

Chenzhou had already pushed away his barely touched chicken, "How so?"

"What do you think fuels it? It's just another part of me, it needs to be fed as much as muscle does." She'd withstood years of taunts and judgement about her appetite in the capital where a woman's waist line came before her hunger. "Do you not have any wizards here?"

"There hasn't been a wizard of significant skill in the Camelia since before I was born." Chenzhou explained, sipping from a glass of clear liquid.

It was Eirian's turn to stare then. "How is that possible? Magic is rare, but a military estate of this size..." It should have had at least one decent wizard at all times. Armies loved wizards for the destruction they could reek and wizards loved armies because they paid them to do whatever they wanted.

...was a wizard responsible for this poison?

~ tbc