Dawn in the palace76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9tqUWc7Xt3
—a held breath before the storm.
The candleflames tremble in the corridors,76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVAZwEE0FpW
as do I.
Chen Qing’er’s warning coils in my gut:76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5uJdGNU4gj
"Does the Crown Prince truly trust you?"
A question that now blooms thorns76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGvH8Np5wuV
in every glance he gives me,76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdHekkoZjiu
every silence between words.
The Summons
Zhang Feng arrives like a shadow,76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOJW60M9ZF8
his voice devoid of inflection:76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuyUJIxfkH2
"His Highness requests you."
I follow, counting my heartbeats—76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9nwfoCQz9q
each step a precipice.
The Audience
The Prince’s study smells of ink and iron.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBYmVwDhn7r
He doesn’t look up from his documents76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrb45RQ5oOp
when he says:
"You spoke with Chen Qing’er last night."
A statement, not a question.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmyh47sCcXA
The blade hidden in the scabbard of courtesy.
I keep my voice steady:76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlMJvdyZvYJ
"Nothing of consequence passed between us."
His fingers pause on a parchment edge.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2cO87s3UI1
"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,76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡa0fBfIAaPs
backlit by a dawn he cannot yet see:
"Chen Qing’er is the true threat now."76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1SBUgnEp9L
"Are you prepared to face her?"
The unspoken words hang heavier:76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAChCz8KvRl
Are you prepared to betray me?
I give the expected answer.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5rXfffh1MO
He smiles—
—a flash of teeth in the gloom,76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGze8Pu7MBT
more warning than approval.
"Remember: we play this game together."76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvavcLMeRBc
His fingers brush his dagger’s hilt.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYKodz59r0Y
"Cross me, and you’ll wish Chen Qing’er had killed you first."
The Aftermath
Alone again, I press my palm to my chest—76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE3a8Ik0Vwa
feeling the thing that frightens me most:
Not the Prince’s threats.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8eKkwX3nvl
Not Chen Qing’er’s schemes.
But the traitorous whisper in my own pulse:76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtXm8wqJR6O
What if I want to choose neither?
然後按「加至主畫面」