Chapter 20 Chapter 20 Jayampe

"So let them come! The people I belong to, when they come to this city, let them always be able to say, 'This is our city, our home, and we can stay as long as we want.' Let this be forever There is room for both herds and flocks (following words are missing). In this way there will be no strangers in the city of Jaampae, only neighbors and friends, who come and go as they please.” The meaning of the sacrifice is this and Everything else was followed. Years later, I read these words on a fragment of a sacred wooden tablet of Chiuda, and from this I finally learned about Jaangpe.But the first time I rode up the mountain to Jaamphe with the party, I was disappointed and amazed at what I saw.

The temples, palaces, and public buildings there remind me of huge tulip buds in both color and shape.The shape of these buildings is inherited from the traditional tents built by the nomads who founded the city with animal skins. As for the color, it is purely because the mountain people like to make everything colorful.Every building had been re-dyed for our arrival and the princess's wedding so the colors were almost gaudy.The dominant color seems to be various shades of purple, complemented by yellow, but there is no shortage of every color.Perhaps the best analogy is that it is like suddenly coming to a garden of crocuses growing through the snow and black soil, as the mountains' bare black rocks and dark green evergreen trees make the bright colors of these buildings stand out even more. dazzling.In addition, the location of the city itself is as steep as Buckkeep, so when you look up from the bottom of the mountain, the various colors and lines in the city seem to be layered, like flowers inserted in a basket. Patchwork flowers.

But as we got closer, we saw tents, makeshift huts, and all kinds of small trellises for shelter from the wind and rain between the major buildings.Because only the public buildings and the royal palace are permanent in Jaampae, all the others are people who come and go, come and see the capital, come and ask the king or queen they call "sacrifice" Be fair and visit places of treasure and knowledge, or just come and trade with fellow nomads.Clans come and go, pitch tents and live here for a month or so, and then one morning there's nothing left but a bare space until another group comes and takes up the place temporarily.However, this place is not chaotic and disorderly, the streets are neatly planned, and there are steps in the steeper places.There are wells, bathrooms, and hot springs scattered throughout the city, and there are very strict regulations on garbage and sewage.It is also a green city, bordered by meadows where those who bring livestock and horses can graze, and the area where tents are set up is demarcated by shady trees and water wells.The city is full of gardens, flowers, and trees trimmed in every shape, more carefully tended than anything I've seen in Buckkeep.People who visited the city left their creations in the gardens, perhaps stone or wood carvings, or pottery animals painted in bright colours.In a way it reminded me of the Fool's room, for both places are filled with colors and shapes created purely for the sake of the eye.

Our guide took us to stop at a meadow outside the city, saying that this place was reserved for us.After some negotiation, it turned out that they expected us to leave our horses and mules here and enter the city on foot.Wei Yi, who is nominally our team leader, was not very tactful in handling this matter. I looked at him uncomfortably and almost angrily, explaining that we brought too many things, and it was impossible to carry them into the city by ourselves. And many of us in the team were tired from the long journey, and couldn't be happier at the thought of walking uphill.I bit my lip and forced myself to stand aside quietly, watching our polite but confused host.Regal must have known about these customs, why didn't he warn us beforehand so we wouldn't look rude and unruly once we got here?

But the hospitable people who received us were quick to adapt to our strange habits.They asked us to rest first, and asked us to be patient.For a while we all stood there, trying in vain to appear comfortable.Chatter and Sevren came over to stand with Shou and I. There was still a few sips of wine in Shou's wine bag, and he shared it with everyone, so Chatter reluctantly shared a few bacon jerky .We chatted, but I have to admit I wasn't paying attention at all, I just wished I had the courage to go to Wei Yi and ask him to behave a little more out of the ordinary, we were here as guests and it was bad enough that the groom himself wasn't there to marry the bride.I watched Weiyi from a distance discussing with some old nobles who came with him, but from their gestures and postures, I guessed that they all agreed with him.

After a while, many strong Qiwuda young men and women appeared on the road above us, coming to carry our things into the city, and at the same time, brightly colored tents were set up one by one, and they were left here to take care of them. servants of horses and mules live.I am very sorry to find that Hand has to stay here too.I entrusted Soot to his care, and with the cedar box of Jane's herbs on one shoulder and my own duffel bag on the other, I walked into the city with the others.As I left, I smelled meat and root vegetables cooking, and saw our hosts set up a large, pointed tent with no walls around it and set up tables inside.So I figured Hand would be quite comfortable here, too, and almost wished I had nothing else to do but take care of the livestock and explore this brightly colored city.

Not long after we walked along the winding streets uphill into the city, many tall Qiwuda women came to welcome us carrying sedan chairs.They cordially invited us to take sedan chairs into the city, and repeatedly apologized to us for our exhausted journey.Wei Yi, Sai Tianlun, the older nobles, and most of the ladies in our team seem to be very happy to accept this invitation, but for me, being carried into the city is a very humiliating thing.But it would have been even more impolite to refuse their politely insisting invitation, so I had to hand the box over to a boy obviously younger than myself, and ride in a palanquin carried by a woman old enough to be my grandmother.I blushed to see people on the street cast curious glances at us, and wherever we passed, people stopped and gathered together to talk quickly.There are very few other sedan chairs on the street, and even if there are, the people sitting in the sedan chairs are obviously elderly and infirm.I gritted my teeth, trying not to think how Verity would feel about our display of ignorance, and tried to look pleasantly at us and show my admiration for their gardens and elegant buildings.

At this point, I probably performed quite successfully, because my sedan chair slowed down quickly, allowing me more time to look at things, and the women who carried the sedan chair also had more leeway to catch things I might have missed. Show me something.They spoke Qiwuda to me and were pleased to discover that I had a somewhat rudimentary understanding of their language.Chade had taught me what he knew, but he had failed to show me how musical the language was, and it didn't take long for me to discover that the tone of a word is as important as the pronunciation.Fortunately, I have a good understanding of language, so I bravely used sentences full of mistakes to chat with the person who carried the sedan chair for me. Such a stupid foreigner's accent.One of the women took the initiative to explain to me everything we passed by. Her name was Jiang Di, and I told her that my name was Fitz Junqi. never forget.

It took me a lot of effort to persuade the bearers to stop for a while and let me come down and take a closer look at a certain garden.It wasn't the bright flowers that attracted me, but a tree that looked like a willow, but with spiraling, curved branches, quite different from the straight willows I'm used to seeing.I reached out and touched the rich bark on a branch, thinking that if I could cut it back and bring it back, I would be able to coax it to sprout, but I dared not cut it casually, for fear that it would be considered rude.An old woman bent down beside me, grinned, stretched out a hand to brush a low herb with tiny leaves, a burst of amazing fragrance followed and tangled in my nostrils. She laughed.I really wanted to stay there a little longer, but they kept stressing that we must hurry up and catch up with the others and enter the palace together.I guess there will be a formal welcoming ceremony at the palace, and you cannot be absent.

Our procession climbed higher and higher along an elevated street, and finally the sedan chair stopped outside a palace, which was composed of many flower-bud-shaped buildings.The main building is purple with a touch of white on top, reminding me of the roadside lupines and beach peas in Bucksburg.I got off the sedan chair and stood by and looked up at the palace, but when I turned my head to express my admiration to the people who carried the sedan chair for me, they were gone.After a while they reappeared, like the rest of the palanquin bearers, in robes of orange, blue, peach, and rose, and came to us, bringing basins of scented water and soft towels, to wash off our faces. The wind and dust on the upper and neck.Boys and youths in blue camouflage coats and belts brought berry wine and small pieces of honey cake.After every guest had washed his face and received wine and honey, they asked us to follow them into the palace.The interior of the palace seemed to me as foreign as everything in Jaampeh.The main building structure is supported by a very thick pillar in the center. When you look carefully, it turns out to be a huge tree. The arched roots can be clearly seen under the stone slabs laid under the tree.The gracefully curved walls are also supported by trees, and I learned a few days later that the "growth" of the palace took nearly 100 years.They first selected a central tree, cleared the surrounding area, and then planted a ring of supporting trees and tended it, tying and pruning the trees as they grew so that they all bowed towards the central tree.When the tree reaches a certain stage, all excess branches are cut off, and the upper branches are interwoven to form the top of the building.Then began the building of the wall, at first just a layer of finely woven cloth, then hardened with varnish, and layer after layer of strong cloth made of tree bark coated with some local A special kind of clay, and then painted with a layer of brightly colored paint made of resin.I didn't ask later whether every building in the city was built in such a laborious way, but the "growth" of the palace did produce a kind of living space that stone buildings could never imitate.

The vast space in the palace is open, somewhat like the Great Hall of Buckkeep, with a similar number of fireplaces.There were tables lined up here, and several areas obviously dedicated to cooking, weaving, spinning, and preserving food, and everything else necessary for a large family.The private rooms seem to be just wall pets with curtains, or like small tent rooms built against the outer walls.In addition, some rooms are on high places, which can be walked up by open wooden steps extending in all directions. It looks like a tent on a platform supported by pillars. As for the pillars supporting these rooms, of course they are also trees.My heart sank, as I found this kind of room to be quite difficult for the kind of "quiet" work I needed to do without much privacy. I was then taken to a tented room where my cedar box and duffel bag were waiting, along with warm scented toilet water and a plate of fruit.I quickly exchanged the dusty clothes of my travels for a robe with embroidered patterns and colorful slit sleeves, paired with tight green trousers approved by the master of the frightening wind.I wondered again about the menacing stag embroidered on the robe, and then gave it up.Perhaps Verity thought this offensive crest was less humiliating than the original one, clearly announcing my bastard status.Anyway, this will do the trick.I heard bells and drums from the great central room, and hurried out of the room to see what was the matter. Beneath the great tree a raised platform was erected, decorated with flowers and draping evergreen branches, and on the platform Majesty and Regal stood facing an old man, flanked by a entourage in simple white robes.The crowd formed a large circle around the platform, and I hurried to join it.One of the people who carried the sedan chair for me appeared next to me after a while. She was wearing a draped rose-colored dress and a crown of ivy on her head, smiling down at me. "What's going on now?" I dared to ask. "Our Iyo Sacrifice, uh, ah, the king of Iyo you say, welcomes you now. He wants to introduce his daughter to all of you, to be your sacrifice, uh, ah, Queen. And his son, who will govern here for her." She stammered this explanation, pausing many times, and I nodded my head many times to encourage her to continue. As we were having trouble hearing and speaking to each other, she explained to me that the woman standing next to King Iyo was her niece, and I struggled to utter a compliment, meaning that She looks healthy and strong.At that moment, I couldn't think of better words to praise the tall woman who stood beside the king and seemed to have all her heart in protecting him.She had the thick, yellow hair I had grown used to seeing in Jaampeh, partly tied up in a braid on top of her head and the rest hanging down her back.She has a dignified look, and her bare arms are muscular.The man on the other side of King Iyo was older than her, but he resembled her as much as her twin siblings. He also had green jade eyes, a straight nose, and a serious mouth, but his hair was cut very short. Length just reaches the neckline.After some difficulty, I asked the old lady if he was also her relative. She smiled, as if thinking that I might be a bit dull, and replied, of course, he was her nephew.Then she shushed me to be quiet like I was just a kid because King Yiyo started talking. He spoke slowly and carefully, but even so, I was glad that I could understand most of his speech after chatting with the sedan chair bearers earlier.He welcomed us all formally, Regal included, for he said that earlier he had only seen him as an envoy to King Shrewd, and now he was a token of Prince Verity's presence.This welcome also included Majesty, and both of them received several gifts, including jeweled daggers, precious scented oils, and luxurious fur shawls.As the shawls were draped over them, I thought with chagrin that they both looked more like ornaments than princes, in stark contrast to the modestly attired King Iyo and his entourage, for Regal and Majesty were laden with rings and jewels , wearing clothes of rich fabrics and cuts that were both luxurious and impractical.They both seemed to me like vain dandies, and I hoped our hosts would simply regard their strange and grotesque attire as a part of our foreign customs. Then, much to my dismay and chagrin, the king called the man in charge forward, and introduced him to us as Prince Ruresh, and the woman, of course, was Princess Kettricken, Verity's fiancée. Now I finally understood that those who carried our sedan chairs and brought cakes and wine to welcome us were not servants, but the royal family members, that is, the grandmothers, aunts, and cousins ​​of Verity's fiancée. Pei's tradition of serving the people.Horrified at the thought of how casually I had spoken earlier, I cursed Regal again in my mind for not telling us more about the customs here, except for listing the piles of clothes and jewels we were to bring to him.Then this old woman standing beside me is the king's sister.I think she must have sensed my embarrassment, because she patted me kindly on the shoulder and smiled at me, who blushed and stammered an apology. "You haven't done anything embarrassing." She said to me, and then asked me not to call her "Madam", just call her Osmanthus japonica. I watched as Prestige presented Verity's selection of jewels to the Princess, including a fine silver chain woven of silver with red gemstones for her to wear on her head, and a silver chain with larger red gemstones. collar.There is a big silver ring in the shape of vines, with keys dangling on it, Weiyi explained that this is the key of her family after she married in Bucksburg, and there are 8 plain silver rings for her to wear on her hands .She stood still and asked Emperor Zun to put these ornaments on her.I thought to myself that silver and red stones would look better on a woman with a darker complexion, but Kettricken's smile was so bright, so clearly a girl's joy, that everyone around me cheered. They exchanged whispers with each other, praising their princess for being so well dressed.I think, maybe she will like our strange and strange colors and ornaments! Thank goodness the rest of King Iyo's speech was very short, just welcome, let's rest, relax and enjoy the city, and if we need anything just ask anyone we come across and they will definitely try Achieved.The celebration of the marriage will start at noon tomorrow and last for 3 days. He hopes that we can all rest and have fun.Then he and his children came off the stage and chatted casually with everyone, as if we were all soldiers on guard at the same time. Jiang Osmanthus had obviously followed me. Since I couldn't politely escape from her company, I decided to take this opportunity to learn as much as possible about their customs as soon as possible.But she brought me to Prince and Princess right from the start.They were standing with Virgil, who seemed to be explaining how Verity would witness his wedding through him, speaking very loudly, as if that would make it easier for them to understand.Jiang Ou listened for a while, then apparently decided that Majesty was done, so she spoke, sounding as though we were all children, and she gathered us together for cake so our parents could concentrate on the conversation. "Ruris, Kettricken, the lad is very interested in our gardens, and perhaps we can arrange for him to speak to those who look after the gardens later on," she added, as if especially for Kettricken listened, "His name is Fitz Junqi." Weiyi frowned suddenly, supplementing her introduction to me. "His name is Fitz, the illegitimate son." Kettricken seemed shocked by my nickname, but Lu Ruili's fair face darkened.He turned slightly towards me, and turned his shoulder to Wei Yi; anyway, the meaning of this gesture was clear without any verbal explanation. "Yes," he said in Qiwudah -- looking straight into my eyes. "The last time I saw your father, he mentioned you to me. It was with great sadness that I heard of his passing. He did many things while he was alive, paving the way for this union between our two countries. Road." "You know my father?" I asked stupidly. He smiled down at me. "Of course. When he first heard about you, he and I were drawing up a treaty with Mooneye City, which is located in the northeast of here, and negotiating to open a place called Blue Rock Pass. When we finish talking, we will talk about it as envoys. We sat down to eat and discussed what he should do next in a man-to-man manner. Frankly speaking, I still don’t understand why he thought he couldn’t succeed as king. Every Every nation has different customs! But after this wedding, we can make the relationship between the two countries closer, do you think he will be happy about it?" Lu Ruishi focused his attention on me , and his speaking of Qiwuda is tantamount to completely excluding dignity from the conversation.Kettricken looked interested.At the end of Lu Ruishi's shoulder, Wei Yi's face became expressionless, and then he smiled grimly, full of hatred for me, and turned to rejoin the group beside Regal who was talking to King Iyo people.For some reason, Ruris and Kettricken's attention was entirely on me. "I don't know my father well, but I think he'll be glad to see . . . " I started, but then Lord Kettricken smiled at me. "Yes yes, how could I be so stupid? You're what they call 'Fizz'. Don't you usually go out with Lady Thyme, King Shrewd's poison expert? Aren't you her apprentice? ? Regal mentioned about you. "It's very kind of him," I said feebly, completely unaware of what was said to me next and what I answered myself.I'm glad I didn't feel dizzy and unstable on the spot.At the same time, for the first time, I admitted in my heart that my opinion of Regal was more than disgust.Ruresh frowned at Kettricken reproachfully as a brother, and turned to speak to a servant who was eager to ask him something.All around me the people were chatting happily amidst the colors and scents of summer, and I felt my insides and lungs freeze to ice. When I came to my senses, Kettricken was tugging at my sleeve. "This way," she told me. "Or are you too tired to go now? If you want to go to rest first, there is nothing rude. I understand that many of you are too tired to even walk into the city." "But we There are also many people who are not tired, and are willing to take the opportunity to take a walk in the city. I have heard of the 'Blue Fountain', and I really want to see it." When I said this, I only He hesitated for a moment, hoping it had something to do with what she had said to me earlier.At least it has nothing to do with poison. "Someone will take you there, maybe tonight. But let's get out of here now!" She walked me away from the crowd without saying anything or being polite.Weiyi watched us leave, and I saw Regal turn around and whisper something to Chatter.King Yiyou had withdrawn from the crowd, and looked at everyone kindly from a high platform.I wondered why I hadn't stayed outside the city with the horses and the other servants, but Kettricken had pulled back a painted door and we were out of the main chamber of the palace. We were, in fact, out in the open, on stone-paved paths, with arches of trees overhead.These were willows, whose still-growing branches were interwoven into a green canopy against the present noonday sun. "And it will keep out the rain, at least most of it!" Kettricken added, noting my interest in the roof. "This path leads to the shade garden, which is my favorite garden. But you may want to see the herb garden first." "I'd love to see either garden, Your Majesty." I replied, at least this One point is true.By being outside, away from the crowd, I have a better chance of clearing my mind and thinking about what to do in this difficult situation.It occurred to me then that Prince Ruresh showed no signs of injury or illness as Regal said.I need to get out of this situation and reassess. The situation here is much more complicated than I expected, and I am not mentally prepared. But I tried to distract my mind from my own dilemma and focus on listening to the princess talking to me.She enunciated clearly, and I found it easier to understand her words when I left the hall full of voices.She seemed to know a lot about gardens and let me know that gardening wasn't just a hobby, it was something she had to know as a princess. As we walked and talked, I kept reminding myself that she was a princess, Verity's fiancée.I've never met a woman like her.She had an air of quiet dignity, unlike the ones I often see of people of higher birth than me who are usually just conscious of their place.But she also didn't hesitate to smile, to get eager, to bend down and dig the dirt around a plant so I could see what the roots of the plant she was describing looked like.She wiped the mud off the root, and with the pocketknife in her belt, she cut a piece of the center so that I could taste its special taste.She showed me a certain pungent herb used to flavor meat and insisted that I taste a leaf of each of the three varieties, since the plants, although similar in appearance, tasted very different.In one way, she was like Patience, without Patience's eccentric habits; in another, she was like Molly, but without the ruthlessness that Molly had to develop in order to survive.She spoke to me directly and frankly, like Molly, as if we were equals.I began to think that Verity might find this woman more to his liking than he had expected. Yet another part of me worried about what Verity would think of his bride.He is not the kind of man who hunts for sex everywhere, but anyone who has been with him for a while can easily see the type he likes.The women he would smile back at were usually petite, plump, dark-skinned, many of them curly, with childish laughter and soft little hands.What would he think of this tall, pale woman who dressed as simply as a servant and who said she enjoyed tending the garden herself?During our conversation, I found that she talked about raising falcons, taming falcons, and raising horses for breeding, as well as any groom.I asked her what she likes to do in her spare time. She said that she has a small workshop with smelting furnaces and tools for making metal. She also raised her hair to show me the earrings she made by herself. The earrings are in the shape of a small flower and hammer chain A small gemstone as white as snowdrops is surrounded by very fine silver flowers.I had told Molly that Verity deserved a capable and active wife, but now I wondered if she would charm him.I know he'll respect her, but is respect enough between a king and queen? I resolved not to trouble myself, but it was more important to keep my promise to Verity.I asked her if Regal had told her a lot about her husband, and she went quiet.I sensed her steeling her will and replying that she knew he was a crown prince with many problems of state.Regal had warned her that he was much older than her, a simple man, and probably wouldn't be very interested in her.Emperor Zun promised to stay by her side all the time to help her adjust and try her best to keep her from feeling lonely in the palace, so she was already mentally prepared... "How old are you?" I blurted out. "18," she replied, smiling at my surprised expression. "Because I'm tall, you seem to think I'm much older than 18," she confided to me. "Well, you're younger than Verity, then, but the age gap between you isn't much greater than many couples. He turns thirty-three next spring." "I always thought he was much older," she said in surprise. "Regal explained that they were half-brothers." "The Rider and Verity were indeed born of King Shrewd's first queen, but they were not many years apart. Verity wasn't as dour and serious as you might imagine when he was there, he was a man who knew how to laugh." She glanced sideways at me, as if to see if I was trying to glorify Verity. "Really, princess, I've seen him laugh like a child watching a puppet show during the spring festival, and he did the same when everyone went to the winepress to make autumn wine for good luck. Participate. But his greatest pleasure is hunting, he has a wolfhound named Leon, and some men don't love their sons as much as he loves Leon!" "But," Kettricken ventured Interrupted and said, "This is just him before! Because Emperor Zun said that he was an older man than he actually was, bent over by the worries of the people of the country." "He is like a big tree bent over by snow , when the spring comes, it will spring up and return to straight. Before I leave, princess, the last sentence he told me was that he hoped that I would say something nice for him in front of you." She lowered her eyes quickly, as if trying to hide her sudden lightness. "When you talked about him, I saw a different person." She paused, then closed her mouth tightly, not allowing herself to ask the question I had heard. "I've always thought of him as a benevolent man. His parentage puts a lot of responsibility on him and he takes his duties very seriously and refuses to let himself not be doing what the people need. That's why he can't come here and marry you in person , he's fighting the Red Ship raiders, and he can't fight them here. He gave up his desire to be a man, just to fulfill his duties as a prince, not because of his own apathy or lack of energy." She glanced sideways at me, trying to suppress the smile on her face, as if what I said were sweet words that a princess should not take seriously. "He was taller than me, but only a little bit taller. He had dark hair, and he sometimes had a beard and a very dark beard. His eyes were even darker, but they sparkled when he was eager and interested. Bright. Yes, his hair is indeed mixed with some gray now, which was not there a year ago; his job also does not allow him to have the opportunity to be exposed to the wind and sun, so the muscles in his shoulders are not as strong as they used to be. Rip shirt. But my uncle is still a real man, and I'm sure he'll ride and shout and hunt with his hounds again when the dangers of the Red Ships are driven from our shores." "You let me My spirits lifted," she said vaguely, then straightened up as if admitting a weakness of her own.She looked at me solemnly and asked, "Why didn't Regal talk about his brother like this? I thought I was going to marry an old man with trembling hands. He was overwhelmed by state affairs and would only treat his wife as a Just another duty." "Perhaps he..." I began, but couldn't think of any noble and proper way to say that Regal was often a liar, if only he could get his way.Even if he killed me, I can't see what he could accomplish by making Kettricken so disgusted and afraid of Verity. "Perhaps he... spoke other things... badly too." Kettricken suddenly expressed her doubts.She seemed to be worried about something, took a deep breath, and suddenly confessed. "One night, we were in my room after dinner. Regal probably got a little too drunk. He said something about you. He said that you used to be a spoiled kid with a bad face all the time. Unworthy ambition, but since the king sent you to poison and kill people for him, you seem to be satisfied with your position. He said that this job seems to be suitable for you, because you have been eavesdropping since you were a child, and you like to sneak around doing things Unspeakable things. Now I tell you this, not to sow discord, just to let you know what kind of person I thought you were at first. The next day Regal asked me to believe that what he said was drunk nonsense , instead of drinking and telling the truth, but one of the things he said that night was a fear too cold for me to put it all out of my head. He said that if the king sent you or Lady Thyme, That is to poison my brother and make me the sole heir to the kingdom of the mountains." "You're talking too fast." I scolded her gently, hoping that the smile on my face didn't betray my sudden dizziness Nausea. "I didn't quite understand what you were saying." I tried desperately to figure out what to say.Even though I was trained to lie, I still felt uncomfortable being confronted so directly. "I'm sorry. But you speak our language so well it's almost like a native, as if you're reminiscing rather than newly learning it. Now I speak more slowly. Weeks, no, over a month Once, Regal came to my room. He asked if we could have a meal alone, so we could get to know each other better, and—" "Kettricken!" Luresh called, coming down the path to find us. "Regal wants you to meet those knights and ladies who came from afar to watch the ceremony." Jiang Ou hurried over behind him, and a wave of undoubted dizziness hit me again, and in an instant I realized that she looked too confident.I asked myself, what would Chade do if someone sent poison masters to Shrewd's palace to get rid of Verity?The answer is too obvious. "Maybe," Jiang Ou suddenly suggested, "Fitz Junqi is willing to see the blue fountain now. Letrice said she would be happy to take him there." "Maybe we can talk about it later in the afternoon!" I tried hard to say Speak up. "I suddenly feel so tired now, I think I should go back to my room." None of the three of them looked surprised. “要不要我派人送点酒去给你？”姜萁殷勤地问。 “或者要不要喝点汤？其他人很快就会开始用餐了，但是如果你累了，我们也可以把食物送去给你，一点都不麻烦的。” 多年的训练发挥了效用。我保持姿势笔直，虽然我肚子突然火烧般痛了起来。“那就太谢谢你们了。”我努力说出，强迫自己稍微鞠了个躬，那简直像是精致的酷刑。“我相信我很快就会再加入你们的。” 然后我告退了，没有跑，也没有蜷缩成一团倒在地上哀嚎，虽然我恨不得这么做。我用走的，带着欣赏各类植物的神色，穿过花园走回大厅门口。他们3个人看着我离开，轻声交谈，说着我们全都心照不宣的事。 我只剩下一招可以用，也不确定它能不能奏效。回到房间后，我掏出了弄臣给我的海之清涤，心里想，我吃下那些蜂蜜蛋糕已经多久了？因为如果换成是我，我就会选择在蛋糕里动手脚。我宿命论地决定信任我房里的那壶水。我脑袋的一小部分说这样太愚蠢，但一波波晕眩紧接着席卷而来，我已经无力多想别的事了。我用发抖的手把海之清涤倒进水里，干药草吸了水变成绿绿黏黏的一团，我好不容易连灌带吞的咽了下去。我知道它会把我的肠胃清空，唯一的问题是，它会来得及吗？还是齐兀达的毒药已经扩散到我全身了？ 我过了悲惨的一晚，此刻我就不多描述了。没有人拿汤或者酒到我房间来，在我神智清醒的时刻。我判断他们会一直等到确定毒药己经发挥作用之后才来，也就是明天早上。我判断他们会派一个仆人来叫我起床，仆人会发现我已经死了。我还有到早上的一点时间。 过了午夜，我终于站得起来了。我迈开发抖的双腿，尽可能安静离开房间，走进花园里。我在园里找到一池水，拼命喝到我觉得肚子快撑爆了才停止。我冒险往花园更深处走去，步伐很慢很小心，因为我像被殴打过一顿似的全身疼痛，每走一步头就怦怦作痛。但最后我终于找到了一处有很多果树的地方，果树优雅地沿墙栽种，树上如我期望的结满了累累果实。我动手摘起果子，塞进背心。我会把这些水果藏在房里，让我有安全的食物可吃，然后明天我会找个时间、编个借口到城下去看看煤灰，我马鞍上的袋子里还有一些肉干和硬面包，希望足够我熬过这段作客的时间。 我走回房问：心里想，等他们发现毒药没有发挥效用的时候，不知道还会再试什么其他的方法。