Dawn in the palace213Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2KLDG7R5ns
—a held breath before the storm.
The candleflames tremble in the corridors,213Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡChDUyiFtX7
as do I.
Chen Qing’er’s warning coils in my gut:213Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡprGP4XCpwv
"Does the Crown Prince truly trust you?"
A question that now blooms thorns213Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNizHlKvLVH
in every glance he gives me,213Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO4TaRxul7T
every silence between words.
The Summons
Zhang Feng arrives like a shadow,213Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyibnMPObSK
his voice devoid of inflection:213Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1iwUji1Xid
"His Highness requests you."
I follow, counting my heartbeats—213Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaWh6JRz2OJ
each step a precipice.
The Audience
The Prince’s study smells of ink and iron.213Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRtQ9m27Yay
He doesn’t look up from his documents213Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ143MnxhzGo
when he says:
"You spoke with Chen Qing’er last night."
A statement, not a question.213Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsx4pqyHv92
The blade hidden in the scabbard of courtesy.
I keep my voice steady:213Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSMKWDjGfAM
"Nothing of consequence passed between us."
His fingers pause on a parchment edge.213Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3YzFQBlqOK
"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,213Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPPNpIu73W6
backlit by a dawn he cannot yet see:
"Chen Qing’er is the true threat now."213Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡr7NWlk37AX
"Are you prepared to face her?"
The unspoken words hang heavier:213Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡK3G7TLtDOx
Are you prepared to betray me?
I give the expected answer.213Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzEktAUVNWX
He smiles—
—a flash of teeth in the gloom,213Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2zLj7GfL16
more warning than approval.
"Remember: we play this game together."213Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡg9bIWroKrA
His fingers brush his dagger’s hilt.213Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtY3WOiT4fr
"Cross me, and you’ll wish Chen Qing’er had killed you first."
The Aftermath
Alone again, I press my palm to my chest—213Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuq0giNWzLG
feeling the thing that frightens me most:
Not the Prince’s threats.213Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGZS4ihTI38
Not Chen Qing’er’s schemes.
But the traitorous whisper in my own pulse:213Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRwdMJo9R1q
What if I want to choose neither?
然後按「加至主畫面」