Jiang Ziwei’s hand faltered. The arrow flew from his grasp, wobbling wildly before burying itself in the scrub along the riverbank without even touching the water.
“Something’s wrong!”
“The horses are out of control!”
The imperial guards lost their balance one after another, tumbling from their saddles in a miserable heap.
Only then did Mingzhu, ebony xun in hand, settle steadily back onto his horse. His star-bright eyes held the radiance of the sky reflected across the river.
In the blink of an eye, the pursuers who had charged in so menacingly had become turtles trapped in a jar. The Crown Prince’s personal guards drew their swords, cold blades instantly pressed against the men’s throats.
Jiang Ziwei hurriedly pushed himself to his feet. Still shaken, he suddenly looked up to find a red-robed rider on a white horse standing before him. From below, his gaze collided with a pair of stern, imposing eyes.
He froze for a moment, then breathed a sigh of relief. Tearing away the cloth covering his face, he shouted, “Your Highness! It’s a misunderstanding! We are imperial guards from the palace, acting on the Emperor’s orders to execute Wen Zhuo!”
Certain that Shen Zheng would recognize him, Jiang Ziwei nevertheless feared that his men might be mistaken for rebels and dealt with accordingly. In his panic, he hastily drew out the secret edict personally bestowed upon him by Emperor Shunyuan and raised it high with both hands, intending to prove their innocence.
But Shen Zheng merely swept him a cold glance. Without pausing for even a moment—or even dismounting to inspect the edict—he spurred his horse toward the river and raced after Wen Zhuo.
Jiang Ziwei had never imagined that the Crown Prince would see the imperial edict and yet not even dismount. He stood rooted to the spot for a moment before turning to look. Shen Zheng’s figure was already rushing toward Wen Zhuo.
Six Monkeys had sharp eyes. The instant he caught sight of the red robe embroidered with dragon patterns, his eyes lit up, and strength surged through his limbs.
Bracing himself against the swift current, he used every ounce of his strength to drag the unconscious Wen Zhuo ashore, shouting excitedly, “Your Highness! We’re here! Over here!”
The very next moment, Shen Zheng had already thrown himself from his horse and rushed to Wen Zhuo’s side.
Wen Zhuo was soaked through, his disheveled hair plastered to his face. His skin was deathly pale, his eyes tightly shut, and almost all color had drained from his lips.
Shen Zheng reached out to check his breath, but his fingertips felt no air.
His heart sank. Terror swept over him like a black storm cloud, nearly swallowing his reason whole.
“Master was still awake just now! He was still awake!” Six Monkeys cried out frantically.
That cry brought Shen Zheng back to himself.
He had no time to grieve. He had to forcibly tear himself away from his emotions and use everything he had learned to save the man he loved.
His eyes burning red, he reached down and violently tore open Wen Zhuo’s heavy, waterlogged robes. Supporting his chin, he cleared his mouth and nose, then pressed both hands firmly against his chest.
Once, then again, and again.
After a long while, water finally spilled from the corner of Wen Zhuo’s lips and trickled down his cheek into the wild grass.
Shen Zheng did not dare stop. He continued the compressions for a long time, but Wen Zhuo’s eyes remained shut, with no sign of regaining consciousness.
Six Monkeys panicked. Crawling over, he slammed his fist against the ground and cried, “What do we do? Why hasn’t Master woken up?”
Shen Zheng said nothing. He bent down and sealed his lips over Wen Zhuo’s, breathing into him again and again, while his palm continued pressing against Wen Zhuo’s chest without pause.
Those soft lips—lips he had kissed with longing countless times before—were now cold beneath his own, offering him no response at all.
Tears struck Wen Zhuo’s face, yet Shen Zheng did not stop giving him mouth-to-mouth resuscitation. His arms had long since gone numb with exhaustion, but it seemed that, apart from his heart, he could feel nothing at all.
He was still too young to bear the terror of loss, too young to endure the thought of the person before him never waking again.
Wen Zhuo was the anchor that had kept him from falling into this world. He was the first person Shen Zheng had seen upon opening his eyes, the pivotal force that had rewritten his fate and set history in motion—the one irreplaceable meaning in his life.
Shen Zheng stared fixedly at Wen Zhuo, unwilling to miss even the slightest movement.
At last, Wen Zhuo’s brows drew sharply together. He turned his head and began coughing violently, his limbs curling inward.
When he saw that Wen Zhuo was finally breathing again, Shen Zheng’s heart—which had been suspended the entire time—settled completely. In a hoarse voice, he called, “Wanshan, Wanshan.”
After coughing, Wen Zhuo slowly opened his eyes. Verdant mountains layered into the distance, wild grass grew beneath him, and the river of stars hung over the open fields, blending sky and water into one. The first thing he saw was Shen Zheng’s face, full of unbearable anxiety.
He stared blankly for a moment, realizing that this was no final flicker of life. The corners of his lips lifted faintly, and he smiled at Shen Zheng.
He raised a hand to wipe away Shen Zheng’s tears. His voice was weak, yet strangely calm. “I knew it… Your Highness would come looking for me.”
Shen Zheng pulled him tightly into his arms. His teeth clenched as he endured the terror of surviving disaster, and the sobs he had suppressed for so long finally broke free.
“Don’t leave me…”
Wen Zhuo wanted to pat his back in comfort, but his strength was so slight that it felt no more than a tickle, utterly incapable of easing the immense grief consuming him.
“Thank you, Your Highness… for not abandoning me,” he murmured.
Shen Zheng pressed his cheek against Wen Zhuo’s and rested his forehead against his. He had just been about to speak his heart when he suddenly realized that Wen Zhuo’s entire body was icy cold.
Thus, Shen Zheng allowed himself only that brief moment of collapse before hurriedly wiping away his tears. He stripped off Wen Zhuo’s cold, soaked clothes, removed his own outer robe, and wrapped it securely around him.
Wen Zhuo caught sight of the glaring nine-dragon motif on the robe and was just about to struggle when Shen Zheng swept him up into his arms and turned toward Jiang Ziwei.
The chill came over him belatedly, sweeping through his entire body. Every inch of him ached, and so he stopped being stubborn and obediently curled up inside the robe, still warm with Shen Zheng’s body heat.
Six Monkeys had already shed his wet clothes and changed into a guard’s uniform. He was an excellent swimmer by nature, and after that brush with death, he had quickly recovered his energy.
Jiang Ziwei remained frozen in place, one hand raised high with the secret imperial decree. He was not still trying to present it—he was simply too utterly stunned to move.
The Crown Prince had actually disregarded the Emperor’s secret decree and insisted on saving Wen Zhuo. He had even ignored the filth and given him breath by mouth, then removed his own court robe and draped it over a minister condemned to death.
Everything unfolding before him overturned his understanding of the world.
Jiang Ziwei stared at Shen Zheng in disbelief. His tongue suddenly felt stiff, and he could not utter a word.
At that moment, he abruptly remembered Liu Quan blocking his path before their departure, wearing an expression that seemed to hold back words.
What, exactly, had Liu Quan been trying to hint at then?
Could it be that in ordering Wen Zhuo’s execution, the Crown Prince and the Emperor stood on entirely opposite sides?
Cold sweat instantly soaked through Jiang Ziwei’s body. Even his raised arms began to tremble uncontrollably.
The forty Imperial Guards were completely dumbfounded as well. Not one dared to make a sound; they all looked toward Shen Zheng.
Shen Zheng looked down at him, his voice cold and sharp. “You have been unwaveringly loyal. I will spare your life for now.”
He turned and gave the order, “Men, take them back to the Three Great Camps and rendezvous with General Jun!”
“Yes!”
The Eastern Palace guards stepped forward and bound the Imperial Guards tightly.
Shen Zheng slid his left arm beneath Wen Zhuo’s knees and wrapped his right around the back of his neck, lifting him onto Taxue Bai Sha and holding him securely against his chest.
Night draped itself over their shoulders. Shen Zheng turned his horse around, shaking off the frosty air as they headed back toward the capital.
Wen Zhuo’s head rested crookedly against his chest, moisture still clinging to his lashes. He reached out and asked unwillingly, “Jiang Mannü, Liu Qiying... they—”
Shen Zheng lowered his eyes, his voice softening. “We encountered them on the road. I gave Jiang Mannü a horse. Liu Qiying’s injuries were rather serious, so I had people escort them back for treatment.”
The worry on Wen Zhuo’s face eased somewhat. He let out half a sigh of relief, then asked softly, “Your Highness has broken with His Majesty, hasn’t he?”
Shen Zheng raised a hand and gently covered his eyes, not allowing him to exhaust himself with further thought. “Rest against me for a while. You needn’t worry about anything.”
In his previous life, Wen Zhuo would never have dared to let down his guard at such a life-and-death juncture. Yet now, he could entrust his back—his very life—to Shen Zheng without fear.
Because he knew that Shen Zheng was no less intelligent than he was, and would surely see that everything was arranged properly.
Wen Zhuo was truly exhausted. Every bone in his body felt as though it had come apart, and his eyelids were too heavy to lift. He curled closer into Shen Zheng’s embrace, listening to the steady, powerful heartbeat in his chest, and murmured drowsily—
“I want to kill Shen Chen.”
Shen Zheng pressed a light kiss to his earlobe. “As you wish.”
Night completely swallowed the earth. The mountain pass was black as ink; the birds had fallen silent, while the night wind whistled through, sending dead leaves rustling across the ground.
Half asleep in the wind, Wen Zhuo murmured, “Your Highness... force the palace and ascend the throne.”
Shen Zheng’s hand tightened briefly around the reins before he answered with crisp decisiveness, “All right.”
Within the narrow ravine, their words echoed amid the rapid thunder of hooves.
As they burst out of the pass, a full moon hung high in the sky, bright as a silver plate, with countless stars strewn across the heavens.
The bitter north wind swept over the northern outskirts of the capital. On the great parade ground outside Desheng Gate, hundreds of thousands of soldiers stood in formation, immovable as mountains. Their banners snapped and billowed in the wind, and in the firelight, an enormous character—“Jun”—stood out in stark relief.
The Five Armies Camp wore dark armor, their long halberds rising like a forest. The Divine Pivot Camp was arrayed along both flanks, bows and crossbows strung. The Divine Engine Camp held the rear, weapons at the ready, heads bowed.
Set against the distant mountains, this most elite force of Great Qian resembled a slumbering beast. At a single command from the Crown Prince, it could march upon the city and turn heaven and earth upside down.
Jun Dingyuan, clad in armor and armed for battle, rode forward with a stern expression to meet Shen Zheng.
Reining in his horse, he cupped his fist in salute. “Your Highness, the Three Great Camps have fully assembled! My senior brother has already led the Ministry of War’s men to secure the capital’s nine gates. Should Your Highness wish to enter the city, the gates can be opened at any time!”
The uncle and nephew met each other’s gaze. Shen Zheng gave a slight nod. “You have my thanks, Uncle.”
Wen Zhuo, still in Shen Zheng’s arms, slowly woke as well, having managed to recover a little strength.
He lifted his lashes, which trembled faintly, and looked toward the capital in the distance. Then he spoke in a weak voice, “Your Highness, the longer the night, the greater the chance of trouble. The sooner, the better.”
Shen Zheng immediately gave the order: “A disturbance has arisen within the palace. We must not alarm the people. Generals, follow me into the city under cover of night and seize those villains who have deceived the sovereign and thrown the court into disorder!”
—
Emperor Shunyuan stood stunned for a long while before finally wrenching himself free from his boundless desolation.
Staring at the empty palace doorway, he felt an indescribable fury flood his very being, burning him from within.
How dare Shen Zheng? How could he dare?!
Emperor Shunyuan clenched the armrest so tightly that his nails nearly sank into the hardwood. His aged eyes slowly narrowed into two sharp slits of icy light. “Fine... Defying the ancestral laws, insisting on having his own way—such a rebellious son is unworthy of being Crown Prince!”
“I will replace the heir! Replace him at once!” he roared again and again, one trembling hand pointing toward the hall’s entrance as his breath rasped like a bellows.
At this, Liu Quan fell to his knees in anguish, his voice hoarse. “Your Majesty, replacing the heir would shake the court and endanger the foundation of the realm. You must not act in anger!”
Emperor Shunyuan’s eyes bulged with rage. He coughed violently, spittle scattering across his dragon robe. “Y-you traitor! You dare lecture me to my face after betraying me?!”
Liu Quan merely shook his head, prostrating himself on the cold golden tiles as he wept in grief.
Emperor Shunyuan could not be bothered to look at him again and shouted toward the doorway, “Guards! Guards!”
The Imperial Guard’s footsteps had scarcely sounded beneath the eaves when a graceful figure stopped them outside the doors.
Consort Zhen arrived in resplendent court attire. She first cast a cold glance over the guards, then, at precisely the right moment, replaced it with a smile and stepped into the hall.
“What is the matter, Your Majesty? You are so enraged—please take care not to harm your imperial health.” She curtsied gracefully, the gold hair ornament at her temple swaying softly. “I have brought you sweet soup again.”
Having just suffered Liu Quan’s betrayal, Emperor Shunyuan was filled with misery and desperately in need of comfort. At the sight of his most favored consort, a sense of grievance surged up within him, and he could not wait to unburden himself.
“Rouzhen, come here,” he said, extending his hand to her.
Consort Zhen stepped forward with measured grace and steadily supported his hand. Behind her, a maidservant lowered her head and presented a bowl of sweet soup.
Emperor Shunyuan did not spare the soup a glance. He only gripped her hand tightly and said through clenched teeth, “The Crown Prince has rebelled! He actually dared defy my decree and violate the laws of the realm!”
“Could such a thing truly have happened?” Consort Zhen feigned surprise, lifting a hand to her chest, though her eyes remained utterly still.
Emperor Shunyuan nodded heavily, his breathing growing ever more ragged. “I will replace the heir. I... have decided to name Shen He Crown Prince. I still have time—I can surely train him into a worthy successor. What do you think?”
At this moment, Emperor Shunyuan had been thoroughly consumed by his rage. It was not that he valued Shen He so highly; rather, in his lonely isolation, the sight of Consort Zhen had instinctively brought her son to mind.
Half a year ago, Consort Zhen would have been overjoyed to hear those words. Now, however, she merely smiled faintly and said lightly, “Your Majesty, I do not even know where the child is at present.”
Only then did Emperor Shunyuan remember to summon him. Completely disregarding Liu Quan, who remained kneeling on the floor, he instructed a young eunuch in the hall, “Go at once and summon the Fourth Prince. I have urgent business with him!”
The young eunuch did not dare delay. After receiving the order, he hurried out in a stumbling rush.
Consort Zhen lowered her lashes unhurriedly, concealing the chill in her eyes. “Your Majesty, have a sip of sweet soup to warm yourself.”
As she spoke, she withdrew the hand he had gripped hard enough to hurt, picked up the bowl of sweet soup, and stirred it leisurely.
The lukewarm soup was fed to Emperor Shunyuan’s lips. He reluctantly took a mouthful, only to find it utterly tasteless and devoid of appeal. With no appetite at all, he spat it out. “How can I possibly be in the mood for this?”
Consort Zhen did not take offense. Taking up an embroidered handkerchief, she gently wiped the corner of Emperor Shunyuan’s mouth. “If Your Majesty does not drink it now, I fear that shortly, you will be even less inclined to do so.”
Emperor Shunyuan froze at her words, sensing a hidden meaning in them. He turned to look at her in surprise.
Yet Consort Zhen still wore the same gentle, tender expression. For a moment, he thought perhaps his worries had made him overly suspicious, and turned his head away again in irritation.
Not long afterward, the young eunuch came rushing back in a panic. The moment he entered the hall, he dropped to his knees with a thud, his voice trembling on the verge of tears. “Your Majesty! Disaster! The streets throughout the capital have all been sealed off by the Five City Military Command! Without the Crown Prince’s order, no one can leave or enter!”
Emperor Shunyuan abruptly tried to rise, but his aged body would not obey him. He could only force himself upright, his eyes filled with disbelief. “What did you say?”
“His Fourth Highness may not be able to enter the palace!” The young eunuch knocked his head heavily against the floor, not daring to look up.
“Outrageous! Utterly outrageous!” Emperor Shunyuan slammed his palm against the table, only for the jolt to send waves of darkness swimming before his eyes.
Consort Zhen watched his discomfiture coldly. Slowly setting down the sweet soup, she drawled, “Third Prince and Fourth Prince are both trapped outside the palace now. Seventh Prince is still young, with neither sufficient prestige nor any support to speak of. But… is there not still Sixth Prince in the palace?”
Emperor Shunyuan paused. His clouded gaze fell upon her face, carrying a trace of something strange.
But he had long since ceased to care about a consort meddling in affairs of state. He merely nodded slowly, his voice dry and hoarse. “Yes. There is still Sixth Prince. Only Sixth Prince remains.”
When Shen Chen received the news in the desolate residence for imperial princes, he was beside himself with joy. His hands trembling, he hurriedly changed into a reasonably presentable court robe. In his haste, he even set his crown askew, and nearly tripped over the threshold as he rushed out the door.
Yet this minor embarrassment could not diminish his wild delight. He straightened his crown haphazardly and hastened to the Hall of Mental Cultivation. Dropping heavily to both knees, he called out with eager hope, “Father Emperor!”
Emperor Shunyuan looked upon his young face, his eyes complicated. In the end, however, his expression hardened into resolve. In a rasping voice, he said, “Shen Chen, exposing the illicit affair between the Crown Prince and Wen Zhuo was a great service indeed! The Crown Prince has defied his sovereign and father, overstepped his station, deceived the Five City Military Command, and placed the entire capital under lockdown. His crimes are unforgivable! I have decided to replace the heir and appoint you Crown Prince. At once, carry out my decree: take command of the Five City Military Command and arrest its commander, Han Zhengping!”
At his words, the dimples on Shen Chen’s cheeks shone brightly. His chest rose and fell with excitement, and even his voice cracked. “This son obeys Your Majesty’s decree!”
The throne was still his. After all the twists and turns, he was still the one chosen by fate!
“Come. I am issuing an edict...” Emperor Shunyuan’s face was grim as his thin, withered fingers reached for the writing brush.
Consort Zhen stepped forward and, without preamble, drew the inkstone before her. “This concubine will attend Your Majesty in drafting the edict.”
Emperor Shunyuan nodded wearily. Consort Zhen picked up the ink stick and slowly ground it against the inkstone. While everyone’s attention was fixed on Emperor Shunyuan, her fingertips moved slightly, silently shaking the blue vitriol concealed in her sleeve into the ink.
Ever since Jun Mulan had sent word, she had calculated that, in his fury, Emperor Shunyuan would replace the heir apparent.
Blue vitriol dissolved the moment it met ink. The writing would remain black when first put to paper, but the characters would vanish within half the time it took an incense stick to burn, reappearing only when exposed to water.
Of all the imperial princes, only Shen Zheng had been willing to protect her Zhaoyue with genuine sincerity. She would never allow anyone else to take the throne.
Only after the ink had thickened sufficiently for writing did she stop, gently pushing the inkstone before Emperor Shunyuan.
Emperor Shunyuan lifted the brush and dipped it in the ink, but his wrist trembled so violently that the tip hovered over the xuan paper for a long while, unable to make its mark.
The pain in his chest flared with anger. Another fit of wrenching coughs seized him, and in an instant, his palm was streaked with blood.
Using his bloodied left hand to grip his right wrist tightly, he barely managed to steady the brush and scrawl, in crooked strokes, upon the paper—
“Since the foundations of the state are insecure, the hearts of the people cannot be at peace. If the heir apparent is wrongly chosen, the realm is imperiled. Shen Zheng, formerly Crown Prince, is unworthy of his station; he has shown disrespect to the ancestral temple, been led astray by male desire, and thrown the proper order into disarray. He is truly unfit to bear the grave responsibility of carrying on the ancestral line. Among the imperial princes, the sixth prince, Shen Chen, is benevolent, filial, respectful, frugal, intelligent, and upright. He accords with the will of Heaven above and enjoys the confidence of the people below. I hereby appoint him Crown Prince, to take his rightful place in the Eastern Palace. Let this be proclaimed throughout the realm, that all may obey.”
More than ninety characters long, the edict had been written in fits and starts, its ink unevenly dark and pale.
By the time the final stroke fell, night had deepened beyond the windows. Emperor Shunyuan laboriously set down the brush, and a chilling wheeze rose from within his shrunken chest.
Before the ink had fully dried, Emperor Shunyuan rolled up the imperial edict and handed it to Shen Chen. With the last of his authority, he said, “Go... Go. Take this edict and set things right. Assume command of the Five City Military Patrols. Then order them to search the Marquis of Yongning’s residence, arrest Consort Jun and the deposed Crown Prince Shen Zheng, and bring them to the Hall of Mental Cultivation to see me!”
Having spoken those words, he seemed to have exhausted all his strength. Slowly, he closed his eyes, his breath faint.
As though he had obtained the most precious treasure, Shen Chen clutched the edict to his chest. “This son will not fail Your Majesty!”
He turned and strode from the Hall of Mental Cultivation, eager to fly at once to the Five City Military Patrols and seize command of the troops.
Consort Zhen stood to one side, watching his exhilarated departing figure. An almost imperceptible cold smile touched her lips.
