The palace never truly slept. Even in the dead of night, the lanterns along
the vermilion corridors bled a faint glow, as though the darkness itself dared
not enter the Dragon Emperor's domain. The Emperor himself had not slept. His
rage was an invisible storm rolling through the Forbidden Pavilion. Twice now, the
figure had made fools of his soldiers—leaving corpses, whispers, and
humiliation in their wake. Yue Ying. That cursed shadow.
Yet tonight, the silence was broken by the measured march of boots.
The Emperor's Jinyiwei, his personal shadow-guards, returned like hunting
wolves. Their armor muted under black cloth wrappings, their blades oiled to
silence. They carried no banners, no torches — only the cold command sealed in
the Emperor's decree:
"Scour the Eastern Wing again. Leave no place untouched. Turn the palace
inside out. If a single rat hides beneath the Crown Prince's bed, drag it out
by its tail"
The soldiers quaked—not because of Yue Ying, but because they were about to
storm into the chambers of Li Yuyan, the Crown Prince.
The sound of boots on polished jade floors echoed like war drums.
The palace, usually serene with incense and guqin music, now breathed with
fear.
No one dared offend him, not the emperor's own guards, not even ministers
with swollen ranks of power. Li Yuyan's reputation was that of a man carved
from ice, his words sharper than steel. Yet, tonight, the emperor's decree left
no room for hesitation.
Inside Li Yuyan's quarters, the air was so still it seemed every heartbeat
was magnified. Hua Lian remained tucked behind the sliding partition, pressed
into the shadows, her breath shallow, her palms clammy against the wooden
floor. Her mind screamed to flee, yet her body obeyed instinct: stay hidden,
stay silent, live. Yes, she was still unconscious.
The knock came, hard enough to rattle the bronze fittings.
"Open."
The Crown Prince did not rise immediately. Seated at his writing desk,
masked face half-lit by the candle, he let the silence stretch. When he finally
spoke, his voice was cool, toneless.
"Enter."
The doors slid open. Five shadow-guards stepped in clad in black, their eyes
sharp as drawn swords.
The leader of the squad — a scarred veteran named Zhou Liang — felt unease
coil in his gut the moment his boots touched the polished floor.
Why here again? Why the Crown Prince's chambers of all places?
The Emperor had already sent them once that evening. They had combed every
corner, every rafter, every screen — nothing. Yet the order had come again,
laced with rare impatience. The Emperor's words had been heavy with suspicion:
"If the intruder eludes me, it is because someone
shelters them."
That 'someone'… Zhou Liang dared not finish the thought.
"Forgive our intrusion, Your Highness," Zhou Liang bowed low, though sweat
trickled down his back.
Li Yuyan's mask tilted slightly. "Search."
No anger, no defense, no hesitation. Just that one word, as if daring them.
A young guard was shivering so much out of great fear of the crown prince to
the extent his torch fell off and he almost peed on himself.
The guards fanned out.
One knelt to peer beneath the lacquered bedframe.
Another rapped lightly on the wooden panels of the walls.
A third swept a hand across the bookshelves, eyes narrowing at the dust
patterns.
Closer… closer…
Behind the partition, Hua Lian clutched her sleeve with between her teeth to
smother the sound of her trembling Although , she was still in coma.The soldier
approaching was no more than two strides away.
Not here. Please, not here… said Li Yuyan within himself.
His hand reached for the partition. His instincts screamed — there was
something off. The faint trace of perfume, the shallow ripple of air.
But then his gaze lifted.
The Crown Prince sat utterly still, fingers tapping a slow, deliberate
rhythm on the table. Tap. Tap. Tap.
" Enough!"
Zhou Liang's throat went dry.
Everyone in the palace whispered about Li Yuyan's other face — the Emperor's
black wolf, the shadow executioner. None lived after defying him.
If he pulled open that partition and found nothing, suspicion would stain
him, not the Prince.
He hesitated. His hand froze an inch from discovery.
Another soldier called from across the chamber: "Captain, nothing here."
Zhou Liang exhaled sharply, retracting his hand. "Withdraw," he ordered,
though his eyes lingered on the partition longer than necessary.
The squad filed out, the doors closing behind them.
Only once the echo of boots faded into the night did Hua Lian dare release
her breath. Her entire body was slick with sweat, heart thundering against her
ribs.
Li Yuyan rose at last, pacing to the very partition that had nearly betrayed
her. His gloved hand brushed the wood, resting where her head had pressed only
moments earlier.