Chapter 2

I sat in the main hall of the Lin residence.

“Ah Xi told me about you.” The tall man in the seat of honor had a voice like a great bronze bell. “You’re the little girl she took in, aren’t you?”

He was Lin Yuanshan, the Grand General of Cavalry, and my sister’s maternal grandfather.

I nodded.

Once the greetings were over, the man in blue beside him came straight to the point.

“You’ve come to us with Siqiong’s jade pendant. Is there something you need my help with?”

He was my sister’s youngest maternal uncle, Lin Shao, the General Who Pacifies the South. When my sister died, he had been on campaign with General Lin. Reeling from the sudden news, he was caught in a surprise attack and died on the battlefield.

Nor was that all. A traitor in the camp had fed General Lin false intelligence. The entire Lin army was destroyed, their dead brought home wrapped in horsehide. People had mourned their fate.

Only after I entered the palace did I learn that the man on the throne had planned it all, to take back control of the Lin family’s troops.

I looked at him. “I want to join the army.”

“What did you say?”

“I want to join the army,” I repeated. “I would like you to give me an identity, General, and lend me a hand when I need it in the future.”

He stared at me as though I were a monster. “Do you realize that would be the grave crime of deceiving the emperor?”

“The Lin family has enormous power. If you want to survive, you should withdraw while you still can. Then you’ll need someone to carry on what your family has built.” I spoke earnestly, as though I had not heard him. “I can do it. If I can’t, you can sever all ties with me.”

The other members of the Lin family blanched.

“Little girl.” The Grand General of Cavalry was not angry. He merely waved a hand. “Tell me. What do you want?”

“I want to go to war and carry on Madam’s wishes.” I thought for a moment. “She taught me martial arts and strategy. She wouldn’t have wanted me trapped in the women’s quarters for life.”

The general shook his head. “A lie.”

It was a lie. Madam had never said what she wanted to do, or what path she hoped I would take. All of that was my own guesswork.

After a long silence, I said, “I want to save someone.”

I wanted to save someone.

Mountains of blades or seas of fire—it made no difference.

“Before you came, I received a letter from Qiong’er. She said exactly what you have said: she hoped the Lin family would step aside while it could.” General Lin rose. “At my age, it isn’t power I’m clinging to. But the Hurong remain unconquered. I can’t quite let it go.”

“You’ve given me your reason, and Qiong’er even gave you her pendant. I’ll trust you this once, child.

“But I, Lin Changshan, had a daughter—Lin Xijun—who was a fierce warrior before she married. She killed enemies in battle and could take on ten men at once. War is dangerous. I don’t want a young girl like you throwing her life away. You say she taught you to fight. Then prove it.”

“Lin Shao!” he called. “Send for the third boy.”

Lin Shao frowned. “Father…”

“Every son of my family is a brave and capable fighter. The third boy is my grandson, of your generation. I raised him myself, and he has spent a year campaigning with me.” General Lin spoke as though the matter were trivial. “Last against him for the time it takes a stick of incense to burn, and I will take you to the camp myself.”

Everyone in the Lin family was startled. Lin Shao grew more anxious still. “Father, she’s only a young girl. This may be a passing impulse…”

General Lin ignored him and simply watched me.

I met his gaze without flinching. “Yes. I will do my utmost.”