The men in black brought A’Luo into the palace, and she noticed their direction led straight toward the Eastern Palace. Once inside, she was thrown directly into a small chamber. Her pressure point was released, and then they left.

A’Luo looked around. This was clearly some hidden chamber of the Eastern Palace, likely used for punishing servants—much like the secret room at Suxin Study, windowless, with only a few translucent roof tiles letting in faint light. In the corner lay a huddled figure. A’Luo hurried over and turned her around. “Xiao Yu!”

Having been held here for days, Xiao Yu, barely clinging to life, was terribly weak. Hearing the voice, she murmured, “Young… young lady?”

A’Luo held her close, gritting her teeth with fury at Wang Yanhui. “It’s me, Xiao Yu. What’s wrong? Where does it hurt?”

Tears welled in Xiao Yu’s eyes. “It really is you, young lady!” She burst into sobs.

A’Luo checked her over carefully and found no injuries, finally relaxing. She sat beside her. “They didn’t hurt you!”

“I refused to eat. I wouldn’t let her use me to threaten you!” Xiao Yu gasped out.

A hunger strike? A’Luo’s head throbbed. Good thing she’d come—otherwise Xiao Yu might have starved herself to death. Looking around, she found the room bare except for a wooden lattice barrier in front. She called out loudly, “Is anyone there? Come here!”

The door opened in response, and Wang Yanhui stepped in unhurriedly. “What does Sister Qingluo wish to say?” A servant brought over a chair for her to sit.

A’Luo looked at her. “You’re not planning to kill me, are you?”

“How could that be? Bringing you here so forcefully was my mistake. Qingluo, please don’t be upset,” Wang Yanhui said gently, smiling warmly.

“The Crown Prince and Zili are fighting over the throne—the palace is naturally dangerous right now. It’s only natural I wouldn’t want to come, and only natural that Sister would insist on it. I’m not upset.” Of course I’m not upset, A’Luo thought—I’m just terrified. Terrified of dying, of being maimed, of getting hurt.

Wang Yanhui seemed to relax. “Since you’re not upset, then stay in the Eastern Palace for a few days and keep your sister company.”

“Wonderful—I’ve always loved the water pavilion here. Oh, and the food Sister treated me to last time was delicious too,” A’Luo said with a smile.

“Aren’t you afraid I’ll poison you?”

“Poisoning me wouldn’t gain you anything. Besides, someone as brilliant as Sister wouldn’t find poison the least bit interesting.”

“Whatever you’d like to eat, just tell me.”

“Well, breakfast: milk and eggs. Lunch: four dishes and a soup—nothing vegetarian, I don’t care for that. And mung bean soup. Dinner: pork liver congee with a few side dishes. And milk before bed. Nothing too troublesome.” A’Luo gazed at Wang Yanhui with an air of complete innocence, as if she really were an invited guest.

How could she stay so composed? Wang Yanhui thought it over, then smiled. “Very well. But what about your maid—should we prepare a portion for just one?”

A’Luo glared at Xiao Yu. “She’d better eat. Two portions—make sure they’re generous. I have a big appetite, and I especially love milk and mung bean soup.”

Wang Yanhui instructed the servant, “Make note of all this. See that the third young lady is satisfied with her meals and comfortable in her stay.” The servant bowed nervously and withdrew.

She studied A’Luo. In the dim light, that face remained radiant, showing not the slightest trace of panic. She said quietly, “Qingluo’s composure is truly admirable. Frankly, it surpasses even your elder sister’s. No wonder both princes are so taken with you.”

“Sister is mistaken. In composure, in bearing, in strategy, Qingluo could never hope to match Sister. It’s only that men fall for three things—power, wealth, and women. And with women, it’s best not to be too strong. If a woman outshines a man, he grows ashamed of himself and dares not love her.”

“Oh? By your reasoning, men only love weak women?” Wang Yanhui thought to herself—no wonder the Crown Prince, despite relying on her so heavily, had never shown her the kind of tender affection he showed Qinglei. No wonder Zili, despite his grand ambitions, had his heart tangled up in A’Luo instead. She sighed faintly.

“That’s because they’re too proud—too proud to bear a woman surpassing them,” A’Luo said, her eyes glinting as she began her persuasion in earnest. “Though, in my view, someone as extraordinary as Sister deserves a truly extraordinary man to match her. Failing that, why not become queen yourself? You’d lose to no man!”

Could a woman truly become ruler in this world? The more she considered it, the more oppressive the thought became. Her expression darkened. “Are you mocking me?”

A’Luo pressed on, “Bring some tea, and let Qingluo tell you about Empress Wu Zetian—we’ve nothing better to do anyway.” She then launched into an elaborate, embellished account of how Wu Zetian had risen from a minor consort to sit upon the throne itself, governing the realm in peace and prosperity. Wang Yanhui listened, utterly captivated.

A’Luo quietly watched the light filtering through the roof tiles, gauging the time, and when her story reached the point where Princess Taiping had also sought to inherit the throne as a female ruler, she paused deliberately, sighing. “Sister, I’m hungry. Could we eat first, and I’ll continue after?”

Wang Yanhui, lost in thought, reflected on how she’d always resented that men alone could lead armies into battle and command the realm, while she, despite all her talents, was confined to the deep palace. This tale of Empress Wu truly resonated with her. She wondered what had become of the Great Zhou dynasty Wu Zetian had founded. Seeing A’Luo gazing at her plaintively, hand on her stomach, she felt an unexpected pang of tenderness and hurried to order food brought in.

Once the food arrived, A’Luo helped Xiao Yu sit up and fed her. “If you don’t recover your strength, how will we ever manage to escape?” She drank down the milk in large gulps—supposedly it helped detoxify and protect the stomach, so she figured it couldn’t hurt.

Once they’d eaten their fill, she examined the wooden lattice before them carefully and gave a soft chuckle—bars this thick wouldn’t be hard to break through at all. She glanced at Xiao Yu again and sighed.

“Young lady, if you can break through, go on without me. I’ll only slow you down,” Xiao Yu said softly.

“You fool. If breaking these bars were enough to get us out, I’d have left already. I’m worried that even outside this room, we still wouldn’t be able to leave the palace grounds—and it would only put Wang Yanhui on higher alert for nothing. Better to stay still for now. I’m certain that once tonight passes, Liu Jue will come with reinforcements—wouldn’t it be better to coordinate from inside and out?” Liu Jue would definitely come; she didn’t doubt that for a second. Wang Yanhui’s ambitions reached higher than the sky, and she looked down on ordinary men—yet in an era like this, she had no real outlet for that ambition. The tale of Wu Zetian’s rise to the throne had offered her a kind of dream, and psychology taught that repeated suggestion could eventually become self-hypnosis. She would keep craving this fantasy to satisfy her own longing. As long as she needed that fantasy, she wouldn’t harm A’Luo. After Wu Zetian, she’d move on to Empress Dowager Cixi—weaving both women, each risen from deep within the palace to the very pinnacle of power, into models for Wang Yanhui to aspire to. And if that still wasn’t enough, she’d bring up the Queen of England next.

In strategy, she knew she was no match for Wang Yanhui. In power, she was currently a prisoner. All she could do was stall her, play these mind games with her. Whatever else was lacking, her knowledge of theories and ideas from another world far outstripped Wang Yanhui’s—any single one, tossed out casually, would give her plenty to mull over. Of course, it had to appeal to exactly what she wanted to hear.

As dusk slowly fell, A’Luo held Xiao Yu close and drifted quietly to sleep. Suddenly she heard a sound at the door and cracked her eyes open. By flickering candlelight, a figure slipped inside—it was Qinglei. A’Luo sat bolt upright.

Qinglei looked flustered, hurrying to the wooden lattice. “The Crown Prince hasn’t returned all night—I fear he’s lost. I saw Grand Commandant Wang enter the palace, his face like thunder, and now he and Wang Yanhui are meeting deep into the night in the private chambers. Sister, leave now while you still can—if it’s much later, you might really end up dragged to the city wall as a hostage.”

A’Luo startled. Her earlier plan no longer applied. If the Crown Prince had lost, Feng City would surely fall under Liu Jue’s control. What awaited her then would certainly be being pushed onto the city wall as a hostage.

“I can only take the risk of warning you—you,” a flicker of sorrow crossed her eyes, “please, don’t forget to look after my Xin’er.” With that, she turned to leave. The door swung open, and Wang Yanhui’s clear laughter drifted in from outside. “How touching—such sisterly devotion! I never noticed it before.”

Qinglei startled, stepping back, her body pressing against the wooden lattice. A’Luo sighed and said nothing, watching Wang Yanhui step through the doorway. In the candlelight, she wore an ambiguous smile. “The night air is cold. Escort the Liangdi back to her chambers to rest properly—wouldn’t want her catching a chill.”

Two servants stepped forward, supporting Qinglei as they led her away. Trembling, she was too weak to resist. Suddenly she cried out, voice raw with anguish, “Wang Yanhui, you’re jealous the Crown Prince favors me—now that he’s away, you mean to confine me!”

“I’m doing this for your own good. With chaos about to descend on the palace, it’s safest for the Liangdi to remain in her own quarters,” Wang Yanhui said, looking at her with a mocking glint in her eyes. “Jealous of you? Do you think yourself worthy?”

Qinglei froze. Wang Yanhui stared at her steadily. “I won’t kill you. You’re nothing more than a woman pitiful enough to have fallen for the Crown Prince. Behave yourself and stay in your own palace.”

The servants led Qinglei away, and Wang Yanhui turned to look at A’Luo. “Do you know, sister—the Wang family has been one of Ning Guo’s great noble houses since the founding of the kingdom. We rendered great service to the nation in those early years. These past decades of peace and prosperity, of friendly relations with the four kingdoms, my father commanding all the nation’s armies, my aunt becoming queen—my Wang family’s influence has grown as bright as the noonday sun. But Prince Ning was weak-willed by nature, and no matter how I tried to persuade him, he refused to send troops. And I—ever since I was young, I dreamed of conquering the four kingdoms, of unifying all under Ning Guo’s banner. I hoped to accomplish what my father never could, with my own hands.”

“And now the Crown Prince has lost—likely fallen into the Fourth Prince’s hands. Your dream is over,” A’Luo said flatly.

“The Crown Prince,” Wang Yanhui’s eyes filled with even deeper scorn, “he’s competent enough handling state affairs, but he has no experience commanding troops whatsoever. His defeat was well within my expectations.”

A’Luo was startled, unable to grasp what Wang Yanhui was driving at. “You’re the Crown Princess—yet you sent a man with no military experience to fight Zili and Liu Jue. Now that the Crown Prince has fallen, you—you…”

“I merely wanted the Fourth Prince to see clearly—to see that only I am worthy of standing beside him, of ruling the world together!” Wang Yanhui’s words struck like a bolt from the blue.

“You’re already married to the Crown Prince—the whole realm knows it!” A’Luo looked at Wang Yanhui as though her thinking were utterly incomprehensible.

Wang Yanhui laughed softly. “Prince Ning wished for me to marry the Crown Prince. My aunt wished the same. That gentle, soft-hearted Crown Prince—how could he ever be a match for me? Prince Ning resented my Wang family’s overwhelming influence at court. My father, pleading with me endlessly, urged me to help the Crown Prince ascend the throne, believing that by sidelining Prince Ning’s authority, we could still secure real power for ourselves.”

A’Luo asked carefully, “Then why not help the Crown Prince take the throne, and become empress yourself, holding real power?”

“From the day Prince Ning promised Gu Tianlin’s hand to Zili, I knew his final decree would name Zili as heir. But I also realized Zili himself didn’t know this. Prince Ning would entrust the final edict to Prince Anqing, never to Zili directly. So, at the moment Zili needed help most, I made a pact with him. If I helped him become king, he would name me Imperial Noble Consort.”

A’Luo felt thoroughly stunned by these revelations. She and Zili had already made a pact? Did Prince Anqing and his son know? Had Wang Yanhui understood everything that had happened these past days all along? Her mind spun, trying to untangle the web of connections.

Wang Yanhui continued, “After I helped him seize command of the Right Flank Army, with Chancellor Gu’s support as well, once he left Feng City he transformed like a dragon taking flight. That’s when I knew—win or lose this battle, the Crown Prince was doomed either way.”

“But the whole world knows you’re the Crown Princess!”

Wang Yanhui smiled, extending her arm—the vivid red mark of her chastity guard gleamed starkly in the candlelight. “Gu Tianlin can be his empress. After our pact, Zili truly never laid a hand on her either. Crown Princess or not, once Zili ascends the throne, he’ll declare to the realm that I, Wang Yanhui, endured in silence and preserved my chastity for the greater good. This mark is the very proof—the ritual officials will verify it at the ancestral ceremony.”

A’Luo could hardly believe it. She’d served three years as Crown Princess without ever truly belonging to the Crown Prince. Wang Yanhui, reading the doubt in her eyes, said, “It’s no great difficulty—the Crown Prince never cared for me to begin with. In my presence, he’s never once dared speak a harsh word.” She laughed softly, then her gaze sharpened as she looked back at A’Luo. “But that day at Prince Anqing’s residence, I could see clearly that Zili’s heart belongs to you. I can tolerate Gu Tianlin becoming empress—but I cannot tolerate you standing at his side.”

“I won’t be at his side either. The one I love is Prince Pingnan, Liu Jue!” A’Luo said warily—jealous women rarely listened to reason.

Wang Yanhui studied her for a long moment before her tone finally softened. “I know. And truly, I hope the two of you end up together. It’s only that,” her tone shifted, “I need you to help me secure Zili’s promise to me!”

“Aren’t you afraid Prince Anqing and his son will oppose the Fourth Prince naming you as consort?”

“Prince Anqing and his son are loyal only to Ning Guo—as long as Zili ascends the throne, as long as the kingdom prospers, why would they resent me over this? It’s also the best way to preserve what remains of my Wang family’s influence,” Wang Yanhui answered confidently.

You’re wrong, A’Luo thought silently. No dynasty, no ruler in any era, tolerates the consort clan seizing power. Zili may want to use you to secure the throne, but he won’t necessarily tolerate the Wang family growing strong enough to command troops of its own. “Then why go through with a battle at all?”

“Victory would be best—it would earn me great merit in Zili’s eyes as he ascends the throne. And even in defeat, it lets Zili see clearly that only I, Wang Yanhui, can help him realize his ambitions. Besides, without this battle, how could Zili claim the throne with true legitimacy!” Wang Yanhui smiled. “I know exactly what you’re thinking, sister. Tomorrow’s battle at the palace—I intend to sacrifice my own aunt. I’ll have my father submit his resignation. I’ll let my entire Wang family’s power crumble and scatter. Zili need not fear the consort clan seizing power—this act of righteous sacrifice, of putting the nation above my own family, will only earn me universal praise. What could possibly stand in the way of my future then? As for you—once everything is settled, I’ll ask Zili himself to officiate your marriage, so you and Prince Pingnan can finally have what you both wish for. We hold no grudge against each other. What you want is a devoted man to spend your life with. What I want is to unify the four kingdoms and leave my name in history!”