Sweet Tea (甘茶)

Part 3: Thief (泥棒) Part 1

#Wss366 #Mastoprompt 7/22
#FanFiction #TheApothecaryDiaries

Mao had the name of the thief now. In a way, it didn’t surprise her. He wasn’t above short-changing clients and bought obviously stolen materials. All petty stuff, and stealing the Gān Cǎo fit the pattern.

She swore he was hiding from her. His spot in the market alley sat empty. It was clean, as far as alleys went. She wouldn’t eat there, but she wouldn’t catch anything walking in. Just as important, the worst you’d find here was a second-rate pickpocket. The vendors likely chose this location for its low rent, and because it wouldn’t scare off decent townsfolk with a little coin to spare.

On one side, a vendor with a thin #stock of secondhand clothes spat and shrugged when she asked about his neighbor’s whereabouts. The fortune teller on the other side was more forthcoming, if not more useful.

“I know not,” she said, “but for twenty wen I can send a spirit to seek him out.”

For a moment, Mao considered saying that “Five wen was already too much.” But five seconds spent on the woman were already more than her services were worth.

Rather than waste more time, she headed back to the apothecary. She had an inventory to finish and other work to do. There was a better way to find the thief than the #taxing . It might take some time, but it was surer than any spirit desperate enough to visit that alley.

On her way to the apothecary, she stopped to talk with Ukyou. He was at his usual place. Most of the women were still sleeping, so he could sit and soak up the sun, sip tea, and think his private thoughts. Madam sometimes complained he was wasting time, but he did his job well, defusing most irate customers and throwing the rest into the street without a fuss. He never forgot the face of a problematic client. He greeted everyone with a smile and made even the once-a-year splurger feel seen and welcome. Whatever Grandma paid him wasn’t enough, so all she did was grumble about him enjoying the late morning sun.

Mao smiled at Ukyou. Like all the other women at Verdigris House, she liked him. “Ukyou, when you see Chou-u, tell him I need to find someone. It’s a twenty wen job.” Her “adopted” son would be happy to earn a little extra money. He pinched wen as hard as Grandma did.

“I will, and thanks for helping Amacha,” he replied. “She’s a little better today. She even had time to complain about your interfering ways. I think she likes you.”

“She ought to,” Mao said aloud, but privately doubted it. People never like the person who gives them bitter medicine.

“The day is going well, even though I haven’t found my target,” she thought. “Maybe I’ll splurge on a pork bun for dinner.”

(Continued in Part 2)

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