Housekeeper of the Hundred Blossom Palace

In her previous world, lajiao was known as chili pepper.

It’s a stimulant potent enough to use in tear gas spray, so getting thrown with fine powder made from pepper could spell quite the disaster.

Chen sniffed the scent when he heard Yui Mei’s remark.

“Yeah, you’re right, it does smell. But what do you mean by lajiao? I never heard of that name before.”

It seemed that Chen didn’t know what lajiao is, so it’s a product that shouldn’t have gotten inside the Palace as a medicine.

Libin was the one who answered Chen.

“Lajiao is an extremely expensive food. It has a spiciness akin to huā jiāo (sichuan pepper). It is only possible to obtain it from the tributes of the Eastern Kingdom, and even His Highness Prince Ming Xian very rarely enjoys this in his meals.”

Thanks to Libin’s explanation, Yui Mei also learned about how the people of this world perceived hot pepper.

Since Libin also had information about lajiao it meant that being with the crown prince also allowed him plenty of opportunities to encounter rare ingredients.

Du also brought spicy mooncakes to the Mid-Autumn Festival, and it must have been a fittingly precious commodity.

In other words, according to Libin and Chen’s conversation, hot pepper was not something commoners, much less someone imprisoned in the penitentiary, could easily access. 

‘Hmm, something smells fishy here! Is this a detective case!?’

Yui Mei’s eyes were twinkling, her heart ‘busy’ pounding, torn between the possible hint of trouble and her desire as a Chinese Drama geek to watch it unfold with her own two eyes.

She was in that state, but Libin didn’t pay her any heed; he turned to the other guy instead.

“Did Jiang Qing use that fine powder?”

The man frowned, and a few seconds passed before he answered.

“…I guess it’s useless to hide it. Yeah, that’s right.”

The man confirmed Libin’s suspicion. It turned out that the patient was the reason why there was a huge commotion going on behind Jiang at that time.

He was probably closest to Jiang so he bore the brunt of her pepper spray.

The case of Jiang having chili pepper, which was supposedly a very rare commodity, on her person must be similar to her possession of poppy juice.

However, it was somebody else’s job to get to the bottom of this mystery; Yui Mei was currently here to help Chen.

“Well, even hua jiao (sichuan pepper) hurts a lot if inhaled or if you get some in your eyes.”

“Lajiao will be several times more painful than hua jiao. If you inhale it or get some in your eyes, your nose and throat will get irritated and it’ll definitely hurt.”

Yui Mei added to Chen’s remarks.

The fact that the scent of chili pepper still lingered meant that the powder was just dusted off and had not been rinsed off.

In that case, it would have hurt indefinitely.

“Then, we can’t do anything but wash the powder off.”

“That won’t be enough treatment. When you wash him, please use cold water instead of hot water. If you wash him with warm water, it will increase the pain unnecessarily, and the effect will be prolonged. Please make him gargle to deal with his sore throat.”

Yui Mei spoke to supplement Chen’s advice.

“I see, then let’s open the bathhouse.”

The man listened to Chen and Yui Mei, and he promptly ordered the use of the bathhouse.

“While washing him, please be careful not to rub the affected part that stings because of the pepper. It’ll only make the pain worse. Rinse if off, and the pain should subside within a day at most.

Also, everyone involved, including those who were with the patient when the powder had been thrown, and those who touched the patient, might have pepper still remaining on their hands. Please be careful not to touch your eyes and other parts of your face. And please, bathe in cold water, alright?”

“I see, got it. I’ll gather all those who were on site when the incident happened.”

The man listened earnestly to Yui Mei’s orders, and he immediately said that in reply.

“I didn’t know lajiao could be such a big deal like this.”

Libin saw how troublesome the aftermath was, and he couldn’t help but mutter those words with a dark expression.

“It’s spicy and delicious, but that spiciness is also an irritantThe kitchen staff must have been trained regarding this, but yes, it is an ingredient that must be handled with care.”

Yui Mei explained to Libin.

In her previous world, a farmer she knew told her that it was necessary to wear gloves, goggles and masks when grinding chili peppers into powder so that the eyes, face and hands are protected.

Even if you are used to handling pepper like that veteran, it was still an ingredient that required care.

After that, a considerable number of people were hurriedly ushered to take a bath. Because of that, the bathhouse was cramped, but the people who got pepper sprayed were able to wash it off successfully.

The person who caused the poppy juice incident must be far more troublesome than Yui Mei thought, based on how that person pulled out this pepper powder explosion incident.

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