Dawn in the palace83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡALsE9zdCy5
—a held breath before the storm.
The candleflames tremble in the corridors,83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQccwvavaf8
as do I.
Chen Qing’er’s warning coils in my gut:83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNNIbg4aajF
"Does the Crown Prince truly trust you?"
A question that now blooms thorns83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWfQ8Q52OQs
in every glance he gives me,83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6DzoaiAqQw
every silence between words.
The Summons
Zhang Feng arrives like a shadow,83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYOtatf2j5j
his voice devoid of inflection:83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEVnbDgGpjI
"His Highness requests you."
I follow, counting my heartbeats—83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJ6TPKygsNT
each step a precipice.
The Audience
The Prince’s study smells of ink and iron.83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡikwWL7BrFv
He doesn’t look up from his documents83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKfxNpkW1cV
when he says:
"You spoke with Chen Qing’er last night."
A statement, not a question.83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmjiEFMd7Bt
The blade hidden in the scabbard of courtesy.
I keep my voice steady:83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5eB3wosKq0
"Nothing of consequence passed between us."
His fingers pause on a parchment edge.83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡv7KhIZYS0l
"I hear you’ve grown… close to certain officials."
Another knife, poised at my throat.
I parry: "All for the sake of reform."
The Warning
He rises, silhouetted against the window,83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPkrFHCRqUl
backlit by a dawn he cannot yet see:
"Chen Qing’er is the true threat now."83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUKgl8Gk0xW
"Are you prepared to face her?"
The unspoken words hang heavier:83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡn9lEJYIj7v
Are you prepared to betray me?
I give the expected answer.83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCfH2B744Xl
He smiles—
—a flash of teeth in the gloom,83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZrYLdeMYna
more warning than approval.
"Remember: we play this game together."83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOaq4iRlJRM
His fingers brush his dagger’s hilt.83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrFZlpKqzYe
"Cross me, and you’ll wish Chen Qing’er had killed you first."
The Aftermath
Alone again, I press my palm to my chest—83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUtMYmPAB3z
feeling the thing that frightens me most:
Not the Prince’s threats.83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡApz6Agl91p
Not Chen Qing’er’s schemes.
But the traitorous whisper in my own pulse:83Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVRjlKSx3x5
What if I want to choose neither?
