by Jeannie Lin
There had been rumours that the August Emperor’s sudden death had been due to poisoning. She hid her hands beneath the table, but not before he caught the tremor in them. Deliberately, he folded his fingers over the insignia, hiding the ring from view.
‘You had the most to lose from his death. The Emperor was your protector.’
‘Emperor Li Ming was a great man,’ she declared, looking more vulnerable than he’d ever seen her.
‘Li Ming was a great man,’ he echoed.
It was best he think of her as another man’s woman, even if that man was already dead. It was best not to think of her as a woman at all. He let his gaze slide over her face, assessing her as he would an opponent. By cleverness or coincidence she invoked the name of one of the few men he respected. One of the two men to whom he had ever sworn allegiance. He had betrayed one for the other.
‘You said you knew what would bring down the empire,’ she continued in a more conversational tone. ‘What would that be?’
‘The empire will bring itself down. The imperial court has become removed from the reality of governing.’ The answer came easily. He’d seen the decay from within for too long.
‘And the warlords can smell the blood,’ she countered.
The Precious Consort had done much more than pour wine and play music during her reign in court. He watched her with more care.
‘Men who are accustomed to war find themselves restless during times of peace,’ he goaded. ‘They crave that taste of battle, the feel of death hanging over them.’
The barest of creases appeared between those pretty eyes. He found he liked catching her unaware.
‘How you must miss all those plots and schemes, Lady Ling.’
‘Miss them?’ The melodic quality of her voice sharpened. ‘I fought for my life every day in the palace.’
She tilted her gaze at him and he detected the steel beneath her elegant demeanour. A flash of armour amidst the softest silk. Endlessly elusive. No wonder men tried to capture her in paintings and flowery words. He, for reasons he couldn’t clearly discern, had simply captured her.
It was his eyes, she decided. That was why his adversaries feared him. Endless and black and set deep in a face devoid of any hint of kindness. The eyes of a man who was capable of anything. The cut of the scar across his features added to the sinister aura.
How appropriate that he spoke of battle. She could sense him circling, reading her the same way she tried to read him. The look he gave her now wasn’t warm…but it wasn’t cold. She could feel the blood rise up her neck. The low throb of her heart beat at her defences. Why did her body respond like this now? Why this man, when she needed her wits about her to survive?
He leaned closer. ‘Living with danger for so long changes you.’
Something about the remark felt ominously personal. A ghost of a smile lit his face, more in his eyes than his mouth. She traced a fingertip nervously over the tabletop. His eyes attended to her every move.
‘I don’t miss the danger. I was happy on the river.’ Or she had been, once.
‘Alone and abandoned? The beautiful Ling Guifei was not meant to fade into obscurity.’
‘Don’t call me that.’
Precious Consort Ling. Li Tao’s comment wounded her more than it should have. In the Emperor’s court even a pet name was elevated to an official rank. She was set apart from the world and would be for the rest of her life. It had been a long time since she’d had a conversation such as this one. She welcomed it, even as jagged and treacherous as it was.
She had resigned herself to exile with its loneliness and empty days. At least she had been free. Suddenly she was tired of crossing words with Li Tao, tired of guarding every look.
‘For as long as I can remember, every man I have met has wanted to bed me or kill me,’ she said bitterly. ‘Tell me which one you are so I know which face to wear.’
He straightened, incited by her directness. ‘Which sort of man is Gao?’
She frowned. ‘Gao Shiming?’ The sound of his name after all these years still made her go cold with fear. This was worse than she could have imagined.
‘What does Gao want from you?’
‘I don’t know. I’m nothing to him.’ She burned beneath Li Tao’s steady gaze and wondered if he had ever interrogated the men he’d been sent after. Or had he simply served as executioner under the Emperor’s orders?
‘So it is you and Old Gao challenging each other for the dragon throne,’ she said with forced casualness.
‘You sound bored.’
‘In the imperial court, every man is a conspirator.’
‘I have no interest in the imperial throne,’ he declared.
‘But I’m so rarely wrong.’
He smiled at her banter, but his expression intensified. ‘The empire is falling into ruin because it clings to the idea of one kingdom and one ruler. The Son of Heaven lording over the Middle Kingdom. That dream is over.’
She stiffened at his cynicism. ‘That sounds suspiciously close to treason.’
Speaking out against the Emperor with such scorn was enough to be deemed treason, but Li Tao also had an army at his command. He stood and she noticed he hadn’t touched the tea or any of the food. Cautious, even in his own home. She stared down at her own plate, recalling days in the palace when any bite could be her last.
‘Not close to treason,’ he replied. He moved behind her. A shiver travelled down her spine. ‘It is treason.’
His long fingers curled around the back of the chair, exerting his dominance. The skin of her neck burned. She was afraid to look at him. Afraid of what she’d see. His presence overshadowed her. The surrounding space closed in and she was trapped.
‘Emperor Shen has declared that we limit the strength of the provincial armies.’ His voice was cold and quiet.
‘And you refused?’
‘I will not let him cripple me. Our enemies are waiting to attack. All they need is a sign of weakness.’
She breathed with relief as he stepped away. The jiedushi had become too strong. Men like Li Tao and Gao Shiming listened only to their own ambitions. She wanted no part of it any more. Let the warlords fight their battle. All she wanted was to go home and be left in peace, but she was no longer safe there. Her past had come for her.
With Li Tao standing so close, his presence caging her in, she couldn’t help but consider the obvious solution. She could become Li Tao’s lover. From the way he devoured her with his eyes, she knew he wouldn’t refuse. She had yet to touch any part of him, but she could imagine how he would feel. Steel and fire. He would demand complete devotion, but he would be a fearsome protector. The idea sent a disturbing anticipation through her that she couldn’t comprehend.
But she had been bartered away too many times in her life. She would not sell herself again. Not when she had finally tasted freedom. She turned to him, but never had the chance to speak.
One of his guardsmen approached and stood a respectful distance away. Li Tao looked to him, and then left her with nothing more than a brief nod. One moment he was an overwhelming, overbearing force behind her. The next he was gone again as if she were too insignificant to be dismissed.
She watched Li Tao’s imposing figure as he left the courtyard. Her armed escort returned to her side. The soldier stood beside her, a pillar of unmovable rock as he waited patiently for her to stand. He would have probably waited until noon if she had decided to stay there.
Gao must be using her somehow to bait Li Tao. She needed information and Li Tao revealed so little. She needed to get away quickly. The two warlords were starting a civil war. It would pull the other warlords into the conflict as well the Emperor himself.
She stood and started back toward her chamber. The guardsman who followed her like a second shadow was perhaps a little beyond twenty years, not a veteran, but not a novice either. His face was by no means soft, but it was infinitely kinder than Li Tao’s.
The gardens were empty in the secon
d courtyard. Ah, not completely empty. The boy with the withered arm crouched in the corner, pulling at weeds. He was so slight and unassuming, she had nearly missed him. Once again, he caught her eye before looking away hastily. When one was weak and vulnerable, the only defence was to watch and listen and learn, much like a frightened rabbit sniffing the air for the wolf. She had been that rabbit all her life, but the key was never to show the fear.
The guardsman urged her to keep moving. He lifted his hand to gesture towards the stairs. How steadfast were Li Tao’s people? Did they serve out of fear or loyalty?
‘What do you call yourself?’ she asked as she started up the steps.
‘Yao Ru Shan.’
She listened to the deliberate fall of his footsteps as they climbed upwards.
‘You must have accomplished great things to serve in such a trusted position,’ she ventured.
Nothing. Silence. She longed to find someone in this household who was not so stingy with words.
As she reached the door to her apartments, she let the end of her shawl slip from her shoulders. The delicate cloth wound down her body as it fell to the floor. She paused, allowing Ru Shan enough time to bend to retrieve it. He caught her eye as he straightened and bowed stiffly. He had a broad face, square in shape. His emotions were clearly evident in every movement. Proper, righteous, loyal above all else.
She forced back a triumphant smile as she lifted the cloth from his hands.
‘Thank you, Ru Shan.’
Loyalty could be shifted. She glanced at the soldier once more before pushing the doors open and slipping inside.
Of the servants she’d met, she wasn’t yet sure who was strong enough to stand up to Li Tao, but she needed to work quickly. She knew how this would end. Emperor Shen and the other warlords would come for Li Tao. They would cut through his barricades and destroy his army. If he hadn’t already fallen on his own sword, he would certainly hang.
Chapter Three
Li Tao’s captains assembled in a half circle before him outside the mansion. The canyon opened wide behind them. He had summoned them from their posts to give their reports in person. He needed to look each man in the eye. Now more than ever before, loyalty was critical.
‘Governor Li.’
Lady Ling’s voice rang out over the expanse of stone, much like the floating beauties of Luoyang. They would coo and flirt from windows that overlooked the streets, but their entreaties were never for him. He kept his back to her pointedly.
‘My lord, I have something to discuss with you,’ she said, with the carelessness of a breeze. ‘Oh, forgive me. You’re occupied.’
Grey-haired Zhao glanced upwards. ‘Ling Guifei?’
The other men seemed to lose focus at Zhao’s breach of etiquette. Their gazes drifted past him to seek out the infamous beauty. Even the most seasoned of them could not remain disciplined.
‘Gentlemen.’
A single, sharp reprimand brought all eyes back to him. The captains straightened with deliberate attention.
Suyin did nothing without a purpose. She’d chosen this moment for a display of will. By mid-morning, word of the Precious Consort would spread through the barracks along with the rumours.
What an enticing picture she must present overhead, elegantly poised over the balcony as she held his men in rapture. He didn’t need to look upon her. He could see the furtive desire reflected in every man’s face. Li Tao’s blood simmered.
How had the August Emperor dealt with the knowledge that every man wanted his concubine? Of course, a sovereign was supposedly blessed by heaven and above such jealousy, while Li Tao was just a man.
And Suyin was not his concubine.
He listened to the rest of the reports and then dismissed the captains. He turned once the last man was gone. ‘Yes, Guifei?’
Her gown was blue today, evoking cool air and sky. She leaned forwards with her hands braced against the rail, tapping a nail against the polished wood in agitation. ‘I don’t like being called that.’
‘Lady Ling, then. What is it you need to discuss with me?’
‘The artwork in this chamber.’
‘There is no artwork there.’
‘Precisely.’
Conversation with her was indeed an intricate dance. He waited.
‘If I am to be held prisoner in this room, there should be something to look at besides these four walls,’ she said.
‘You are not being held prisoner.’
She stared down at him incredulously. ‘I am not?’
‘Go to the door.’
He was unable to resist a smirk as she disappeared through the curtain. In a heartbeat, she appeared around the side of the house. She aimed a line towards him, lifting her skirt out of the way of her feet. Ru Shan followed closely behind.
Li Tao assessed her quickly, not allowing his gaze to linger. Her hair was carefully pinned and her cheeks held a hint of colour. That was the essence of Ling Suyin. All she ever permitted was a hint.
She came up right beside him, close enough that she had to tilt her head to meet his eyes. ‘Am I free to leave, then?’
He shook his head. ‘The house, the gardens. Explore them as you wish.’
‘But not beyond?’
‘I cannot ensure that you are protected otherwise.’
She made a derisive sound. ‘Protected.’
Even her indignation was somehow charming. He had always assumed a courtesan’s power was in distraction, in idle conversation and empty flattery. Suyin was much more complicated.
She gestured at the now-empty area. ‘Were those your notorious captains?’
‘An interesting display you put on for them. If they were young and brash, one of them might consider putting a knife in my back to take possession of you.’
‘Like a trophy,’ she said with a sigh. ‘The August Emperor always boasted about your soldiers, how fierce and disciplined they were. How does a new army gain such a formidable reputation?’
He shrugged away her attempt at flattery. ‘Young men have something to prove.’
‘Perhaps their leader has something to prove?’
‘You can’t truly be interested in this.’
She tilted her head in what wasn’t an answer. When she turned away, he found himself following obligingly as she wandered toward the gorge. There must be a wisp of sorcery within her.
‘This house looks like it’s about to fall off the edge of the world.’ She peered into the misted depths.
‘The cliff provides a natural barrier. Easy to defend.’
‘Have you ever seen the bottom?’ She inched forwards until her toes touched against the emptiness beyond. A breeze stirred from the chasm.
‘Stand back,’ he cautioned. What he wanted to do was wrap an arm around her and drag her back to safety.
She took her time before complying. The silk of her gown rippled against him while he inhaled, then exhaled slowly. He hadn’t moved, yet his heart was pumping fast. She was playing with him. He was…he was letting her.
‘You know that bringing me here can be seen as an act of defiance.’ The words were a warning, but her tone was one that stroked his skin. ‘It would be best if you released me. What use could I be to you when you already have soldiers from the mountain to the sea?’
‘Where would you go?’ he asked. ‘Old Gao was looking for you. He expected you to be alone.’
She swallowed. ‘Gao again.’
‘Gao sent assassins after you that day.’ He stepped close, fighting the urge to touch her. ‘It’s not me you should be frightened of.’
‘You stopped them? Why?’
Why? He didn’t have to be a hero to want to save a lone woman from being destroyed senselessly.
‘I’m grateful, then. All this time, I thought that I…that you…’ She blinked up at him, looking confused and vulnerable.
‘I don’t want gratitude,’ he spat out. ‘All I want is answers.’
She flinched and the mask returned. Good.
The seasoned courtesan was an easier adversary to deal with.
‘What have you done to make an enemy of Gao?’ he asked.
Her gaze became distant. ‘Perhaps I do know a few things about Governor Gao Shiming.’
Suyin didn’t know if it was the chasm at her back or Li Tao’s imposing presence that had her heart beating so wildly. He was fearsome to behold up close, with nothing and no one between them to shield her.
‘Everyone knows Gao wants that throne,’ she said.
He threw her a look of mild impatience. ‘I do not need to know what everyone knows, my lady.’
The strength of his face fascinated her. She had never seen anything like it. From his sun-darkened skin to the short crop of his hair, he looked nothing like the cultured ministers of the court. He was staring at her intently, willing her to reveal her secrets. There was an almost frightening beauty to his harsh features.
‘Should I write you a list? Recall every plot he’s orchestrated? Every man he’s sent to the executioner? Gao has built his influence over the reign of three emperors.’
‘Then what do you have that could possibly be a threat?’
She had to be careful. The secrets she kept were enough to cut her own throat. ‘Do men like you need a reason?’
He grew very quiet. ‘Men like me.’
He met her eyes with a look that took her breath. She had no answer. Li Tao had raised a strike force so fierce that no one dared to challenge him directly, not even Emperor Shen. But he had saved her life.
She would not play these men against each other. She had never used the art of secrets in that way. All she’d ever wanted was to stay alive. And, as single-minded as Li Tao was, she wasn’t even certain he could be manipulated.
‘Gao is cunning,’ he continued when she said nothing. ‘More clever than I. Probably cleverer than you. It could be that he planted you here, so conveniently in my hands.’
She’d had the same thought, but she denied it vehemently now. ‘Gao is nothing to me. We haven’t spoken in all these years.’
