Dawn in the palace87Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFDUAOzi3mF
—a held breath before the storm.
The candleflames tremble in the corridors,87Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwMK4WIi81C
as do I.
Chen Qing’er’s warning coils in my gut:87Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmsRAziqra3
"Does the Crown Prince truly trust you?"
A question that now blooms thorns87Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvmw2O8iANK
in every glance he gives me,87Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAPFVzd3v5Z
every silence between words.
The Summons
Zhang Feng arrives like a shadow,87Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEGnEf0bgqN
his voice devoid of inflection:87Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHGHTfaDG4F
"His Highness requests you."
I follow, counting my heartbeats—87Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaSJ6XVZK2j
each step a precipice.
The Audience
The Prince’s study smells of ink and iron.87Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc8zpmg7nYN
He doesn’t look up from his documents87Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgOH6IJliv8
when he says:
"You spoke with Chen Qing’er last night."
A statement, not a question.87Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnX0ieZ5Q13
The blade hidden in the scabbard of courtesy.
I keep my voice steady:87Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzGQg8P4lmW
"Nothing of consequence passed between us."
His fingers pause on a parchment edge.87Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZxIIcu3SKT
"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,87Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcrEWCeGAn5
backlit by a dawn he cannot yet see:
"Chen Qing’er is the true threat now."87Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuwiFLCy7uy
"Are you prepared to face her?"
The unspoken words hang heavier:87Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8hS9zfQObH
Are you prepared to betray me?
I give the expected answer.87Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4J43UDdtko
He smiles—
—a flash of teeth in the gloom,87Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5fbLWd7u7o
more warning than approval.
"Remember: we play this game together."87Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOivPF3T3qF
His fingers brush his dagger’s hilt.87Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQcxQFccNLf
"Cross me, and you’ll wish Chen Qing’er had killed you first."
The Aftermath
Alone again, I press my palm to my chest—87Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqxeemp8pSU
feeling the thing that frightens me most:
Not the Prince’s threats.87Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqYSmPxObJd
Not Chen Qing’er’s schemes.
But the traitorous whisper in my own pulse:87Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0TW41iI1M1
What if I want to choose neither?
