Work Text:
There were only a few poisons in existence which Shen Jiu did not develop immunity for. Unfortunately for him, the one he knew Huan Hua Palace had prepared for him was amongst that number.
And even though he knew it in advance, he still couldn’t do anything about it! He still had to attend the meeting — if only to ensure that Qi-ge would not let them walk all over himself — and, since his proclivity for drinking tea was well-known, he wouldn’t be able to avoid it without raising suspicion. He couldn’t risk his informants; He’d need to play the long game here, even if it meant suffering in the short term.
All he could do was take a moment out in the gardens to prepare himself.
Thanks to his reputation, no one would consider it odd for him to come in late, but he couldn’t put it off forever, no matter how much he might want to-
“Poems!” Someone exclaimed as they entered the garden, so engrossed in their troubles that they failed to notice Shen Jiu’s presence. “Whose ridiculous idea was it to allow literature talk as a valid duelling medium? I was brought here to fight, not flap my mouth! I can’t do my job in those conditions!”
“Oh, you think that’s so bad?” Shen Jiu rolled his eyes, watching the newcomer startle. “I have to drink poisoned tea and somehow still handle my sect’s strategy without showing it!”
The newcomer stared at him with eyes opened wide, his arms frozen where he had been gesticulating. Alright, so perhaps putting his words into a spontaneous couplet was a bit much, but Shen Jiu felt like venting some of his frustration so, sue him!
“What a coincidence,” the newcomer said, slowly dropping his hands. “I just so happen to be an expert at drinking poison.”
Great. So the two of them had problems which would perfectly suit the other’s skillset. Wonderful to know that fate has such a sense of humour!
But… As the stranger approached closer and walked into the ring of light from the closest lantern, Shen Jiu had to admit they shared a certain level of similarity. Enough to trick people unfamiliar with them…
“Just swapping the outer robes and hair ornaments…” The stranger said, clearly following the same track of thought. “We could handle each other’s meetings and then meet up in the evening to switch back.”
Grabbing the stranger by the elbow, Shen Jiu dragged him behind the nearest bush, hiding them from view. They started changing as fast as they could, sharing information at the same time.
Shen Jiu had shared his name and role in the sect and information about his zhangmen-shixiong, as well as the nickname Qi-ge used for him since the stranger could not appear surprised by it.
In turn, Shen Jiu learned that he was switching roles with the Dark Saint Tang Bo, the strongest asset in the Tang Family’s arsenal. Tang Bo’s fighting style — focused on throwing knives — was possible to replicate by using his Plucked Leaves Flying Flowers technique, if it came down to it. Which it shouldn’t, because his opponent decided on a literati duel, and Shen Jiu had explicit permission to trample all over him.
He quickly ran Tang Bo through the broad strokes of his plan for handling the Huan Hua Palace, and outlined which terms would be acceptable, and which should be avoided at all costs. Qi-ge should be doing most of the talking — Shen Jiu had not drilled him for nothing! — so all Tang Bo would need to do was just sit there looking unaffected and ensure Qi-ge kept to the plan.
As they switched their hairstyles, Tang Bo quickly explained that he was there with Tang Cheolak, the Poison-Hearted Lord of the Sichuan Tang Clan. And, just in case someone were to come in calling him “Bo-yah” and asking whether he came up with any new interesting techniques, Shen Jiu was to avoid fighting with that “hyung-nim” without alienating him.
They were ready to step out from behind the bush when Shen Jiu reached into the sleeve of what used to be his outer robe, pulling out a fan and pressing it against Tang Bo’s hands.
“Use that as often as you can,” he said.
In turn, Tang Bo reached to tap the gourd now fastened by Shen Jiu’s side. “Whatever you do, don’t drink that. It’s very poisoned.”
Shen Jiu headed out first, pausing right at the threshold of the room. He felt a bit naked without his fan, but he could stomach that better than he could stomach poison, so it would be fine.
There was a finger pressing against the right side of his back and, when Shen Jiu looked towards the left side of the room, he noticed someone wearing robes in the same shade of green as his. That must be Tang Cheolak, then.
He quickly scanned the room and found Qi-ge already looking at him, his brows furrowed. Making a gesture behind his back, he waited until Tang Bo tapped him twice — a confirmation that he found where he was meant to go — and, feeling a bit mischievous, he winked at Qi-ge.
Then, he beelined for the empty seat at Tang Cheolak’s side, sliding into it without a word of apology. From the corner of his eye, he could see Tang Bo making his way over to the correct table, sitting down by Qi-ge’s side. And Qi-ge seemed to accept it, carefully not looking back towards Shen Jiu.
Reassured that nothing would go terribly wrong straight away, Shen Jiu turned his attention towards the conversation going on at his own table.
Straightening out, he spoke up, already shaping his words into poems. Judging by the startled expressions on his opponents’ faces, they were not expecting that. Now, Tang Cheolak seemed faintly surprised, too, but he hid it far better.
It had been a long while since the last time Shen Jiu did something this fun!