Chapter 1

Zhu Qingqing’s face went deathly pale. She immediately struggled to get up from the ground.

At a glance from me, my servants pinned her in place. I lifted her chin with the tip of my crimson nail guard.

“So you can move now? A moment ago, you were writhing on the ground like you were at death’s door. Lie still and wait for the physician to examine you. Don’t worry. I promise you will miscarry today.”

Tears pearled in her eyes as she began to sob in a delicate, pitiful voice.

“Xu Qiangyuan, how can you be so cruel? The child in my belly is the only blood left by a soldier who died for our country. If word gets out, you’ll break every soldier’s heart.”

She turned to the guests. “Are all of you really going to stand there and watch her bully a helpless widow?”

She searched the gathering for someone willing to stand beside her and condemn me.

Every lady present suddenly found it convenient to pretend she had heard nothing.

My maternal grandfather was the Duke Protector of the Realm.

My maternal grandmother was the richest woman under heaven.

My mother was the only female general in the dynasty to hold an imperial title.

My elder brother was the chief minister of the court.

And I? I was merely Lady Rakshasa, a bully who knew exactly how powerful her family was.

Even the emperor showed my family a measure of respect. Who would dare speak for Zhu Qingqing and risk crossing me?

The Grand Princess hid her face behind her feather fan. “Did I just hear a pig squeal?”

Smiling sweetly, I released Zhu Qingqing.

“You still look full of spirit. While we wait for the physician, why not entertain us? This winter gathering could use a proper performance. Pei Wenji told me a few days ago that your dancing was famous beyond the frontier. Go dance on the ice and let us admire that celebrated skill of yours.”

When she saw the dancing shoes my servants brought, her legs gave way and she crumpled to her knees.

The shoes were packed with silver needles. Forget dancing—merely forcing her feet inside would drive every needle into flesh and bring pain down to the bone.

I had given her fine food and every comfort since bringing her into my home, yet she had shown me no gratitude.

Instead, while I was hosting the noblewomen of the capital, she had thrown herself down the steps and accused me of resenting Pei Wenji’s care for her—of trying to kill the child in her womb.

Then she could have a taste of what it truly felt like when I meant someone harm.

I had no need to skulk about in secret.

“Miss Zhu seems rather clumsy. Help her with the shoes.”

“Xu Qiangyuan, you dare torment me? Lord Pei will never forgive you when he finds out! My husband died on the battlefield saving him. Lord Pei promised to care for my child and me for the rest of our lives. You cannot hurt me!”

I slapped her. “What a noisy creature. He made you a promise. What the hell does that have to do with me? I have no obligation to put up with you.”

Then I drew the dagger strapped to my ankle and laid it across her throat.

“Put on the shoes and dance, or spill your blood where you kneel. The plum blossoms are white today—far too pale for my taste. Your blood would lend them just the right shade of red.”

As I spoke, I pressed the blade harder.

A bloody line appeared across her neck. When she saw the ruthlessness in my eyes, she picked up the dancing shoes with trembling hands and began forcing them onto her feet.

With every inch, more sweat beaded on her face and more color drained from her lips.

She managed half a foot before she could bear no more.

“Must I teach every one of you how to use your eyes? Help Miss Zhu properly.”

I had my servants hold her down and force both shoes all the way on. Then I calmly took a sip of tea.

“Now let us see how exceptional Miss Zhu’s dancing truly is. She invited my husband to admire it in the middle of the night, saying that she owned nothing with which to repay him and could offer only a dance. As mistress of this household, I have cared for her for some time myself. I, too, would like to see the dance that dazzled everyone beyond the frontier.”

She had barely completed half a turn when the agony in her feet, combined with the slick ice, sent her sprawling.

She tried to rise, but the piercing pain dropped her again.

The sight was absurd.

Cold and pain brought a sheen of sweat to her skin.

Whether from the freezing air or the needles in her feet, her whole body shook. She bit down hard on her lip, no longer daring to make a sound.

We sat in the pavilion by a brazier, boiling tea over the coals.

The Grand Princess flicked her feather fan with a look of disgust. “She really is a pig. What made her think she could provoke Lady Rakshasa, whom no one in the capital dares cross?”

I propped my chin on one hand, already bored by Zhu Qingqing’s misery.

“She probably thought Pei Wenji would protect her.”

The Grand Princess studied me with interest. “And will he? If he does, what will you do?”

“Cast him away with her. The farther they go, the better.”

“I truly adore that temperament of yours. Clean, decisive—even your own blood gets no mercy once they cross you. How did you learn to be so ruthless?”

I poured myself another cup of tea.

“Because I can see the Mandate. If I am not ruthless, my ending will be anything but kind.”