Chapter 6

My sister was the first to hear of the betrothal.

She intercepted me at the palace gate, rage filling her eyes.

“So that is why you refused to enter the palace. You had already found a husband. How did I come to have such a selfish sister—one who cares only for her own happiness and not whether her family lives or dies?”

I answered calmly, “You know how dangerous the palace is, yet you remain determined to send me inside. Have you ever considered me?”

She choked on her reply.

I quietly studied the face that had turned almost vicious.

In truth, she had never been as weak and helpless as I imagined. If someone else could do the cruel work on her behalf, there was no need to become the villain herself.

She benefited whenever I removed an enemy. When I brought order to the Six Palaces, I gave her all the credit and never claimed a word for myself.

That was how it had been at home, and how it remained after I entered the palace.

Humiliated and furious, she slapped me.

“How dare you speak to me that way?”

She had never assumed the airs of an empress with me before. But when weakness no longer worked, her true nature emerged, and she used her authority to crush me.

“You have offended the Empress. Kneel here in the street for six hours.”

She left without noticing Wei Zhe in the distance.

Under the scorching sun, he walked over and his shadow fell across me.

I looked up, moved despite myself. “My lord…”

He lowered his eyes and gave a soft snort. “You deserve it.”

“If you dislike me so much, why did you agree to the marriage before the Empress Dowager?” I asked sullenly.

He did not answer.

I no longer had the strength to press him.

When the Emperor summoned Wei Zhe to discuss state affairs, Wei Zhe’s palm hovered near my forehead, offering support without quite touching me.

“When I come out, I will ask the Empress Dowager to intercede.”

I watched his departing figure with reluctant eyes.

The noonday sun cut into my face like a knife. I knelt with my head bowed, uncertain how much time had passed.

Then my body suddenly went limp.

In the last moment before darkness claimed me, someone caught me in his arms. A faint trace of ambergris lingered around me, so much like Qin Zheng’s scent.

I awoke with a start.

I was already home.

My maid rushed forward anxiously. “My lady, you fainted from the heat.”

My throat was raw. “Who brought me back?”

“Someone from the palace. How would a servant like me recognize him?”

I said nothing. Closing my eyes, I waited for my racing heart to settle.

After tonight, my betrothal to Wei Zhe would be announced to the entire realm. Surely nothing could go wrong now.

The sky abruptly darkened. Mountains of cloud gathered, heavy with an approaching storm.

At dusk, a palace eunuch finally arrived with a decree.

“Shen Wanning, second daughter of the Minister of Rites, is gentle in disposition, virtuous, and worthy… She has found favor in the eyes of the Empress Dowager and is hereby appointed Noble Lady, to enter the palace and serve His Majesty.”

The smile froze on my face.

It felt as if a hand had closed around my heart, crushing the breath from my lungs.

In a daze, I accepted the decree. The moment the rites of gratitude were finished, I nearly ran from the house.

But when I reached the palace gate, I stopped dead.

Qin Zheng watched me from afar.

“We have been waiting for you,” he said gently.

I fell to my knees before him, choking on tears. “Your Majesty, this morning at Cining Palace, the Empress Dowager personally betrothed this humble woman to Wei Zhe. How could she now order me into the palace?”

Qin Zheng lifted one brow. “Did she?”

“Then perhaps you truly should not enter.”

It was as if I had seized a rope thrown to a drowning woman. I knocked my forehead against the ground again and again.

“I am coarse and vulgar by nature. If I enter the palace, I will only stir up trouble, disrupt the harem, and vex Your Majesty. I beg Your Majesty to persuade the Empress Dowager to withdraw her decree…”

Every word came from the heart. I sobbed until I could barely speak.

Then Qin Zheng said slowly, “We know exactly what sort of creature you are.”

I could not believe my ears. “What?”

All expression faded from his face.

He caught my chin and looked down at me. “The Empress Dowager’s decree might just as easily be called an imperial decree.”

“Consort Chen, willing or not, you will enter the palace.”

Thunder seemed to split my mind.

I collapsed to the ground, shaking from head to foot.

Qin Zheng watched me for a long time. Then he bent and pressed his lips to my cold ones.

“All beneath heaven belongs to the sovereign…”

“Where do you think you can run?”