Dawn in the palace192Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfLSangqPZK
—a held breath before the storm.
The candleflames tremble in the corridors,192Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLmkASZOFl2
as do I.
Chen Qing’er’s warning coils in my gut:192Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKY09SHYcqp
"Does the Crown Prince truly trust you?"
A question that now blooms thorns192Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQXGZteRPlC
in every glance he gives me,192Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfh0aaB14L3
every silence between words.
The Summons
Zhang Feng arrives like a shadow,192Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9YsLxIlzaf
his voice devoid of inflection:192Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUxDM6EgcWz
"His Highness requests you."
I follow, counting my heartbeats—192Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAbVdR5peAy
each step a precipice.
The Audience
The Prince’s study smells of ink and iron.192Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7CBt9CP9yD
He doesn’t look up from his documents192Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWEf1AnBLo6
when he says:
"You spoke with Chen Qing’er last night."
A statement, not a question.192Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzagGzIZ9Wn
The blade hidden in the scabbard of courtesy.
I keep my voice steady:192Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHTHHITnkds
"Nothing of consequence passed between us."
His fingers pause on a parchment edge.192Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFMJ36mVOkm
"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,192Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIPEdXm8oXs
backlit by a dawn he cannot yet see:
"Chen Qing’er is the true threat now."192Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCHFpRpeCtj
"Are you prepared to face her?"
The unspoken words hang heavier:192Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpqoLrqsFD8
Are you prepared to betray me?
I give the expected answer.192Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5EqIw2qpRY
He smiles—
—a flash of teeth in the gloom,192Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡstNlAG8WmL
more warning than approval.
"Remember: we play this game together."192Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAlRqVh23u0
His fingers brush his dagger’s hilt.192Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmCGzRWVGQE
"Cross me, and you’ll wish Chen Qing’er had killed you first."
The Aftermath
Alone again, I press my palm to my chest—192Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4h2Qf61RWf
feeling the thing that frightens me most:
Not the Prince’s threats.192Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeNtgtSjmbs
Not Chen Qing’er’s schemes.
But the traitorous whisper in my own pulse:192Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡW5FpiTy8FA
What if I want to choose neither?
