The ward keeper records arrived before the meal ended. They included the tea recipe, the hours of each watch, and a note on sleepiness afterward. Seli had added a line stating that the salt could bind the spirit to the ward, though the meaning remained uncertain.
Qinghe read the page, then looked at Yan. “The dose is small. I can’t predict how the salt will affect you. If you still want to try it, I can watch your pulse and attention. We stop after one sip.”
“I want to know what it does,” Yan said. “The calming effect interests me, and so does the binding.”
“Do you understand that we don’t know whether the binding influences choice?”
“Yes. I’ll take one sip and stop if I feel a pull I don’t want.”
Han sat where she could see both Muo and the terrace entrance. “I’m staying at the table. If the test changes its terms, we end it.”
Muo placed the corrected ingredient strip beside Yan’s cup. “The dose is recorded. No one will ask you for more.”
Yan raised the blue glass. Qinghe checked the amount again, then nodded. He took a small sip.
