Xu Lianhua's POV
It's General Li Jian.
The Emperor stared at me. What?
I thrust the note at him. The handwriting. I've seen it on his reports. It's identical.
Impossible. Li Jian has been with me since I was sixteen
Look at it!
He examined it carefully. His face went pale.
He controls palace security. Could poison prisoners easily. Kill Yue'er. Plant evidence against Feng.
Where is he now?
We looked at each other in horror.
At the east wing. Alone with the investigation files.
We ran.
The east wing was chaos. Smoke. Guards everywhere.
But no Li Jian.
Where's General Li? the Emperor demanded.
He left twenty minutes ago, Your Majesty. Checking the perimeter.
Twenty minutes. Enough to destroy evidence. Or escape.
A messenger burst in. Your Majesty! News from the northern border! Victory! The Empress's strategy worked! Supply lines cut. Enemy retreated. Minimal casualties!
My strategy had worked. The empire was saved.
But if Li Jian was the traitor, this victory meant nothing.
Gather the court, the Emperor said. Morning session.
The Emperor stood before the packed throne room. The invasion has been stopped. The enemy retreated without reaching our borders. He paused, letting it sink in. This victory belongs to one person: the Empress.
Gasps echoed through the hall.
Her strategic insight identified the invasion pattern when my generals dismissed it as banditry. Her tactical planning cut their supply lines. Her intelligence saved thousands of lives. His voice rang with authority. Therefore, I grant the Empress the formal title of Imperial Strategic Advisor. She will attend all war councils. Advise on all military matters.
The room erupted. Half the nobles cheered. Half protested loudly.
This is unprecedented! Minister Zhao shouted. No Empress has ever
So is preventing a war without fighting it, the Emperor countered coldly. The Empress proved her worth. Question me again and you question the throne itself.
Silence fell.
I stood there, overwhelmed. Imperial Strategic Advisor. An official position. Real power.
But all I could think was: where is Li Jian?
I scanned the crowd. Found Li Jian with the Shadow Guards.
Watching me.
He smiled slightly.
He wasn't afraid. Still playing the game.
After court, the Dowager cornered me.
You're overstepping. Your role is to produce heirs, not play at politics.
I bowed. I serve the empire as the Emperor sees fit.
You think you've won. This will end badly for you.
That night, a package arrived. From the Emperor.
Books. Beautiful, ancient military strategy texts.
A note: For the mind that sees what others miss. Your victory proved you deserve this position.
I traced the inscription, emotion flooding through me.
Then I noticed something.
The handwriting.
I grabbed the threatening note. Held them side by side.
Identical.
Either the Emperor sent the death threat, or someone was forging his handwriting too.
I ran to find him.
Guards stopped me. The Emperor is in conference with General Li Jian. No interruptions.
Alone. With the man we suspected.
Minutes crawled by.
Finally, Li Jian emerged. Bowed and left.
I rushed inside. Are you alright?
Fine. Why?
I showed him both notes. Someone is forging your handwriting.
He examined them. These are both mine. I wrote the gift note. But this threatening note...I wrote weeks ago. A draft. I threw it away. His eyes widened. Someone used my discarded papers against you.
Li Jian has access to your study.
So does everyone on my staff.
Another message arrived.
I opened it with shaking hands.
Congratulations on your victory. But cleverness won't save you. By midnight tonight, someone close to you will die. Not a servant. Someone who matters. Someone you trust. Try to stop it. You'll fail. - A Friend
It's a trap, the Emperor said.
Or the truth.
We barricaded ourselves in his study with twenty guards.
Midnight struck.
Nothing.
Then screams erupted.
We ran toward the sound, guards surrounding us.
Servants clustered outside Princess Ruyi's chamber, crying.
NO! I pushed through them.
Ruyi lay on the floor, eyes closed, breathing shallow. Poisoned.
Get the physicians! the Emperor roared. NOW!
I knelt beside her, taking her hand. Ruyi, please, stay with me
Her eyes fluttered open. Lianhua? She smiled weakly. Someone...tried to kill me...tea tasted wrong...
You're going to be fine. You're strong
Tell my brother...I'm sorry I couldn't...protect you better... Her grip tightened. Be careful...the traitor is...closer than you think...
Her eyes closed.
Ruyi? RUYI!
The physicians rushed in, pushing me aside. The Emperor pulled me back as they worked frantically.
She's breathing, the head physician said after endless minutes. Barely. But this poison...I've only seen it once before.
Where? the Emperor demanded, voice shaking.
In the Dowager Empress's private medicine chest. Years ago. He met the Emperor's eyes. This is an imperial poison, Your Majesty. Only the royal family has access.
The room went silent.
An imperial poison. Only accessible to those with royal blood.
Which meant the traitor wasn't Li Jian. Wasn't Grand Scholar Feng. Wasn't anyone we'd suspected.
The traitor was someone in the Emperor's own family.
I looked at the Emperor, saw my horror reflected in his eyes.
Because there were only three people in the palace with royal blood and access to imperial poisons:
The Emperor himself.
The Dowager Empress.
And Princess Ruyi.
But Ruyi was the victim...unless that was the perfect cover. Unless she'd poisoned herself just enough to survive. To throw us off her trail completely.
Your Majesty, Li Jian said quietly, voice strained. We found something in the Princess's chamber. Hidden under her pillow.
He held up a small glass bottle. The poison.
And beside it, a piece of paper. A list of names in neat handwriting.
Minister Xu. Lady Pei. Mingzhu. Minister Zhou. Yue'er.
All the people who'd been murdered.
All in Princess Ruyi's handwriting.
The Emperor stared at the evidence, his face carved from stone. All color had drained from his skin.
No, he whispered, voice breaking. Not Ruyi. Not my sister. There has to be another explanation
But the proof was damning.
The poison in her room. The list in her handwriting. Her access to everything. Her friendship with me that gave her perfect cover.
The only person I'd trusted in this entire palace.
The only friend I'd made.
The one who'd defended me publicly. Who'd taught me to survive court politics. Who'd linked arms with me and called me sister.
Was the one who'd been trying to kill me all along.