We found Prince Huang in the city. He was sitting in one of the inns, drinking wine. Horse and I bowed, and he gestured for us to sit. We did. I couldn’t help but notice that the prince’s cups were all too similar to the ones that were used in my master’s house. I pointed this out.
“Ah, yes. Those cups. Would you mind retrieving them for me?”
“Not yet. We have to find out who murdered our master,” Horse replied, “and we may find something in it that may help us.”
“Yes. Were you drinking any kind of sweet wines, by any chance?” I asked.
“Plum wine from the Northern state of Yi, where we are from,” Prince Huang stated. “Lovely and refreshing, eh? It’s a pity about your master, though. It really is.”
Horse and I looked at each other. The royal seemed sorry, and he even sighed.
“How long have you known your cousin, Lady Li?” Horse asked.
“Since birth. Our mothers were friends,” he replied. “Why is that?”
“Why were you put in charge of her marriage?” Horse continued.
“Kings delegate, do they not? And my father, the king, has decreed that I supervise. With this marriage, our kingdom, no, an empire will be built. We will have more land and territory, and when I go home, I will be honoured. I have every reason to ensure that the farmer and my cousin are happy with the arrangement.”
That made me remember the sheaf of papers we had taken from the house. I laid them out on the table, presenting them to the prince. He was not surprised to see it.
“Ah, yes. The agreement.”
“What does it say?” Horse asked.
“That there will be a joining of assets. That he will be a nobleman after the union, and also stand to gain with her wealth. Of course, the land will be theirs. Seems reasonable enough,” the royal said.
That seemed to settle it.
“Do you know of anyone who disagrees with the marriage?” I asked.
“Lady Li’s mother, who thinks she can still marry Lady Li into a far better family.”
“Why would that matter–” Horse asked.
“Since she is already nobility?” I finished. We looked at each other. It turned out we were thinking the same.
“Rumours swirl around that Lady Li is a–bastard,” he whispered the word, glancing around at the patrons in the inn, who didn’t care about what we were doing.
“And do you think that’s true?”
“Those are mere rumours. But the women in our court, especially those not in direct line to the throne, marry to expand territory. That has been the king’s strategy, and it has worked so far.”
There was some silence as the prince sipped on his wine.
“So, are you joining me for a drink, or not? I bet you haven’t ever tasted alcohol as animals.”
“This early?” Horse asked.
“I still have some of the wine I brought yesterday. Have a taste. And you will see that I am not the killer.” With a grand gesture that befit a royal personage, he asked the waiter to bring the wine, and the server poured it for us. I made it a point to watch the waiter’s wrists, as sometimes poison could be hidden in those voluminous sleeves of theirs. The waiter set down each and every cup, and we looked at the prince.
“Normally, the host will allow the guests to drink first, but to prove that there is no poison, and that I am innocent, I shall take the first sip.”
The prince lifted the cup to his lips and drank.