Ten li outside San Shui county town stood a pavilion where travelers rested their feet. Usually busy with foot traffic, today it was completely empty. Beside the pavilion, local farmers normally came to sell tea water for pocket change, but today the tea vendor huddled trembling to one side, his eyes filled with terror as he watched the black-clothed man drinking alone in the pavilion.

The man was very young, sitting with his back to the official road. He wore a black satin robe of simple yet exquisite tailoring, his long hair secured only with a white jade hairpin. It was impossible to tell which was more lustrous—his black hair or the black satin, which more slender—the jade hairpin or his fingers.

Several men of varying heights stood in the pavilion—some with arms crossed, some leaning against pillars, some looking up toward the incoming road. Their postures differed, but all were sighing.

“My lord,” one man frowned, his expression disapproving. “You clearly found His Majesty already. Why insist on giving up, withdrawing from San Shui county, and yielding the way to Gong Yin?”

The black-clothed man didn’t answer. His finger tapped the bowl rim with tinkling sounds. It was just an ordinary coarse ceramic bowl provided by the pavilion for tea service, even chipped at the edge, yet this noble person used it to drink without the slightest concern.

Another person snorted coldly. “My lord isn’t yielding the way to Gong Yin. What does Gong Yin amount to?”

The black-clothed man smiled slightly, his finger tapping the bowl with clear, measured sounds that never varied in pace.

“I really don’t know what he’s here for,” someone said angrily. “He already monopolizes power in the palace, controls court affairs, and squeezes out my lord. Isn’t that enough? Why must he stick his foot into something like going abroad to welcome the master? Isn’t he afraid that once he leaves Dahuang, the six kingdoms and eight tribes will take the opportunity to rebel?”

“A rebellion would be perfect!” someone laughed heartily. “Gong Yin’s power overshadows the court. Even royal succession is decided by him. If this continues, he’ll probably sit on that throne himself before long and become our dynasty’s first male emperor. Our dynasty’s founding Sacred Ancestor decreed that Dahuang could never have a male emperor for generations. How dare he covet the great treasure? He’s simply seeking his own destruction!”

“The late Sacred Ancestor Emperor was skilled in astrology and divination. He once said that the Dahuang female imperial dynasty would face a momentous turning point at the 108th generation—those who conform will see great prosperity throughout the realm, those who oppose will see Dahuang’s downfall. Isn’t this precisely the 108th generation? Could the Sacred Ancestor’s prophecy refer to Gong Yin replacing Dahuang’s female imperial tradition to become Dahuang’s first male emperor?”

“His ambitions go far beyond that. He also wants central authority and Dahuang unification. Currently, the Dahuang Dynasty can only govern Imperial Song City and the surrounding three provinces and twelve commanderies. The remaining six feudal kingdoms and eight tribes were all enfeoffed during the Sacred Ancestor’s reign as vassal states with autonomous rights. After generations of development, they’ve become states within the state. Each king cowers in his own kingdom, paying lip service to dynastic commands while secretly defying them, gradually becoming too powerful to control. But ever since Gong Yin took power and forcibly summoned the six kingdoms’ princes as hostages to reside in Imperial Song, the attitudes of the six kingdoms and eight tribes have become quite delicate.”

“Speaking of the hostage incident, I really don’t understand—what methods did Gong Yin use to make the six kingdoms and eight tribes obediently send their sons as hostages? Simply incredible!”

“What’s incredible isn’t just this one thing. He ordered nationwide land re-surveying, established commercial laws, lifted many trade prohibitions, exercised commercial control over the six kingdoms, and simultaneously formed alliances and sowed discord among the various states, forcing several weaker vassal states to cling tightly to him. Just as his influence grows ever stronger, out pops a destined female sovereign…”

“Ding!” The black-clothed man’s finger tapping became slightly crisp, and everyone immediately fell silent.

The pavilion fell quiet, breathing sounds somewhat oppressive. The tea vendor wanted to leave but didn’t dare, hearing those treasonous words and feeling uneasy, wishing he could cover his ears.

After quite a while, someone muttered lowly: “The dynasty’s control over the six kingdoms gradually weakens, yet the six kingdoms are wary of the eight tribes surrounding them. The eight tribes, now squeezed by the six kingdoms into difficult circumstances, are seeking aid from our lord, aren’t they? My lord, what do you think…”

Everyone fell silent again. Dahuang’s territory was vast, but the entire country’s regional distribution was quite peculiar. The innermost area was the royal city and the provinces and commanderies under its influence, the six kingdoms surrounded the royal city, the eight tribes surrounded the six kingdoms, and the outermost layer consisted of various natural marshlands that isolated them from the continent’s other nations. All of Dahuang resembled a gigantic layered cake, emanating various mysterious aromas in corners beyond human reach.

This pattern couldn’t exist in any other continental nation. A royal city surrounded by powerful vassal states at the very center—wouldn’t that mean destruction at any moment? But Dahuang had its special characteristics. The outermost eight tribes had generational blood feuds with the six kingdoms’ rulers. If the six kingdoms wanted to attack the royal city, they would inevitably be bitten back by the eight tribes. When fighting enemies on both fronts, the six kingdoms were destined for tragic ends.

Yet the eight tribes also couldn’t rashly attack the six kingdoms, because the eight tribes had various conflicts among themselves. Once any tribe began warfare, they had to guard against neighboring tribes taking advantage of the chaos, and they had no retreat since marshlands lay behind them.

Therefore, over the years, relationships between the dynasty and six kingdoms, between six kingdoms and eight tribes, became increasingly complex with ever more entangled interests. They survived in stalemate and interacted in balance, truly forming a situation where pulling one hair moved the entire body. Everyone wanted to make a move, yet no one dared move first.

Whenever discussing such chaotic situations, while getting headaches, people couldn’t help but marvel at the founding Sacred Ancestor Emperor’s wisdom and painstaking efforts. This national structure related to Dahuang’s special circumstances during founding, but the founding Sacred Ancestor Emperor’s creation of this mutually constraining pattern from such disadvantageous conditions, maintaining it stably for hundreds of years until now—the planning and control involved approached the divine.

Thinking of the founding Sacred Ancestor Emperor, everyone inevitably recalled the generational entanglements between the founding Sacred Ancestor and the Yélu family, and couldn’t help but tightly close their mouths.

People thought on one hand about Right State Preceptor Gong Yin’s monopolization of power and ambitious desire to subdue the six kingdoms and intimidate the eight tribes, while on the other hand about Left State Preceptor Yélu Qi’s unwillingness to accept his family’s gradual decline, similarly moving among the six kingdoms and eight tribes to form alliances against Gong Yin’s encroachment on imperial power. Their most direct current conflict centered on attitudes toward the female emperor—Gong Yin was unwilling to install a female sovereign lest it disrupt his wishful thinking, while Yélu Qi and the forces behind him insisted on installing the female sovereign, delaying time and disrupting Gong Yin’s plans.

Thus that unfortunate female sovereign unknowingly became a filling of unknown fragrance or stench. Hopefully after the struggle ended, some scraps of her would remain…

Everyone fell silent, but Yélu Qi seemed to gain some interest in speaking. His finger tapped the bowl rim once as he drained the bitter tea in one gulp.

The tea leaves were crude, the tea water bore an unclean oily sheen, far inferior to even his usual worst tea, yet he drank it smoothly without even frowning.

He could eat delicacies and taste grass roots alike—the world of those in power didn’t concern itself with earthly trifles.

Setting down the tea bowl, he asked with a smile: “They’ve already left?”

“Yes,” someone answered. “Gong Yin has taken them from San Shui.”

Yélu Qi nodded and smiled. “Since Gong Yin personally came to receive the female sovereign, then let him receive her. We shall return to the country.”

“My lord!”

Yélu Qi raised his palm vertically, and everyone immediately fell silent.

“What are you shouting about? Feeling very wronged and humiliated?” Yélu Qi smiled amiably. “We’ll return first, clearing the way for State Preceptor Gong and Her Majesty along the route. Of course, since we’re returning to the country first, we naturally must convey news of finding the female sovereign throughout the nation, so the ministers can prepare in advance to welcome Her Majesty from a hundred li away.”

Everyone seemed to understand.

“Da Yan is an enemy state, the thousand-li journey fraught with wind-knives and frost-swords,” Yélu Qi sighed, his expression worried. “I wonder if the State Preceptor can successfully accompany Her Majesty back to our country. Truly worrisome.”

Everyone’s eyes brightened.

A thousand-li journey with enemies all around—if anything happened to the State Preceptor while escorting Her Majesty home, wouldn’t that be the State Preceptor’s great crime? And with their master returning to the country first while Gong Yin was absent, it would be perfect timing to make some arrangements…

Seeing their master’s unfathomable smile, someone recalled the letter their master received a few days ago. Perhaps State Preceptor Gong had already received some “care” on the road.

“Moreover, when the late female sovereign was alive…” someone smiled darkly.

Everyone immediately understood, lips curling into smiles.

The late female sovereign died suddenly and posthumously bore accusations of infidelity, along with various unsavory rumors circulating inside and outside the palace that painted that unfortunate woman’s aftermath in shades of scandalous pink. The rumors hadn’t yet dissipated when the new female sovereign appeared. Though the new female sovereign was another person, in the hearts of Dahuang Ze people who deeply believed in reincarnation, the new female sovereign was the previous one’s reincarnation, naturally inheriting all the predecessor’s past affairs, reputation, and character. The previous female sovereign was also the only one among all generations of female sovereigns to die suddenly due to disgraceful charges. Under such circumstances, what those rule-abiding old fossils and the late female sovereign’s enemies might do was predictable…

“But my lord,” someone asked in confusion, “didn’t you advocate installing the female sovereign? If something happens to her, wouldn’t that be…”

Yélu Qi looked at him with a smile, his expression truly gentle and amiable, yet the questioner couldn’t help but shiver, feeling vaguely uneasy in his confusion.

The others all sighed.

This newcomer would never have opportunities for advancement again.

Emperors could exist anytime, but opportunities to incriminate Right State Preceptor Gong Yin wouldn’t come anytime. Gong Yin’s power reached the heavens, he was cautious by nature, and for years never stepped foot outside Jade Radiance Palace. Finding his oversights was harder than ascending to heaven. Now that he’d finally left the palace and even left the country, anyone who let this opportunity pass didn’t deserve to survive in Dahuang’s power struggles.

So when their master heard of Gong Yin’s arrival, he immediately withdrew far away—this was also to clear suspicion for future plans.

Yélu Qi flicked his finger, set down the tea bowl, and rose to leave.

“Remember, before interests and the greater situation, there are never goals that require absolute persistence.”

His black robes fluttered like shadows of darkening sky after dusk, sliding out soundlessly. From beginning to end, he never glanced at the tea vendor.

Everyone bowed and followed.

The tea vendor who had been trembling fearfully at the side waited until they’d been gone a long while before scurrying into the pavilion. He immediately noticed ten taels of silver beside the tea bowl—blue-white with frost, finest quality—and couldn’t help but smile with squinted eyes.

Just one bowl of tea water, yet these customers were so generous. But the content of their discussion was too alarming. Should he find time to mention it to the pavilion keeper…

While thinking, the man collected the silver and casually reached to collect the tea bowl. The moment his finger touched it, he exclaimed in surprise.

Countless radiating cracks had appeared on the tea bowl at some point.

Presumably caused by the black-clothed man’s finger tapping earlier. Strangely, with so many cracks it should have shattered long ago, yet the bowl remained intact with the remaining tea water not spilling a single drop.

The tea vendor curiously touched it.

“Crack!” The tea bowl shattered, a porcelain shard with tea water shot out from the bottom, “slash”—it pierced the tea vendor’s throat.

The tea vendor fell backward. Before blood could flow out, it was blocked by the shard. Only at the shard’s edges did slowly darkening bloodstains seep out.

Fearing one killing method might fail, there was a second—even the last drop of tea water was poisoned.

The tea vendor lay quietly on the ground, ten taels of silver fallen beside his hand.

A beech wood coffin cost five taels of silver, mourning clothes and rites three taels, hiring someone to dig the grave two taels.

Added together, exactly ten taels of silver.