Dawn in the palace97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbGtqNQRqrO
—a held breath before the storm.
The candleflames tremble in the corridors,97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkqqBqyXBmh
as do I.
Chen Qing’er’s warning coils in my gut:97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhqv7dXOgtg
"Does the Crown Prince truly trust you?"
A question that now blooms thorns97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEXDV7lYi57
in every glance he gives me,97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiKgTVbGZw1
every silence between words.
The Summons
Zhang Feng arrives like a shadow,97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFFBHBz3G4u
his voice devoid of inflection:97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡelViJ8PZWL
"His Highness requests you."
I follow, counting my heartbeats—97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAIofDJ2QQP
each step a precipice.
The Audience
The Prince’s study smells of ink and iron.97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxF0ykKm6d1
He doesn’t look up from his documents97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIfNn7s1RJo
when he says:
"You spoke with Chen Qing’er last night."
A statement, not a question.97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLMAAA6VLD2
The blade hidden in the scabbard of courtesy.
I keep my voice steady:97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAwteuuzDZA
"Nothing of consequence passed between us."
His fingers pause on a parchment edge.97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7GNwUXjcdG
"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,97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVMqCWjrj6J
backlit by a dawn he cannot yet see:
"Chen Qing’er is the true threat now."97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3jXreH338T
"Are you prepared to face her?"
The unspoken words hang heavier:97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVAK5VmJUso
Are you prepared to betray me?
I give the expected answer.97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgfI75N7Qrc
He smiles—
—a flash of teeth in the gloom,97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyZ8A2RjDI6
more warning than approval.
"Remember: we play this game together."97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡX2B66h4fl6
His fingers brush his dagger’s hilt.97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJUrFUS92hj
"Cross me, and you’ll wish Chen Qing’er had killed you first."
The Aftermath
Alone again, I press my palm to my chest—97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJyBrECrSQ7
feeling the thing that frightens me most:
Not the Prince’s threats.97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMqwnSEW58i
Not Chen Qing’er’s schemes.
But the traitorous whisper in my own pulse:97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMkFGXiujqs
What if I want to choose neither?
然後按「加至主畫面」