The beam of the rising sun oozed through the blinds of Xiu Juan’s window and touched her face, waking her up. They had been traveling for three days and three nights with little rest. Luli was still fast asleep before her so she quietly opened the window blinds and peeked outside. She saw Bo alongside her white horse, Shan, marching right next to them.

“Bo,” she called out to him. He immediately turned his head to her direction and came closer.

“Xiu—I mean, your highness,” he greeted her quietly when he was near enough.

“Tell me, how far do we have left?” Xiu Juan asked.

“We’re very near,” Bo informed her. “I can see the walls of Zhao from here.”

Xiu Juan’s heart sank a little.

“I see,” Xiu Juan said quietly. She looked at Bo’s weary face and poured him a cup of water. She handed it to him. “Here, Bo. Hydrate yourself,” she kindly demanded.

Bo smiled and took the cup. He drank it so fast, water dripped down his chin. Xiu Juan tilted her head, smiled at him and sighed; feeling sorry he had to ride outside in the sun for so long. She pulled out her handkerchief.

“Wipe yourself, okay? A man must look presentable among other men to preserve respect,” she caringly advised.

“Thank you, Xiu Juan. I mean…your highness. Sorry, I keep forgetting I have to call you that in front of everyone here,” Bo said as he took her handkerchief and wiped himself with it. He tried to hand it back but Xiu Juan stopped him.

“Keep it. Use it when you need to,” Xiu Juan gently smiled.

Hearing this, Bo smiled in return and thanked her. He folded it neatly and gently placed it in between his garment by his chest.

Nearing the walls of Zhao, horns sounded at their arrival and startled Luli.

“Don’t tell me,” Luli’s shoulder’s dropped. “We’re here already?”

Xiu Juan nodded, her jewels tinkling as she did so.

Luli peeked out the window and her eyes widened at the sight.

“Xiu Juan,” she whispered loudly, “there are so many people out there! They must be out to greet us.” She continued to look and gasped. “The palace is built up on the mountain! It’s gigantic! It’s like a painting from a folklore book!”

Xiu Juan moved her golden chains to the side and peeked through the window herself and saw what Luli was speaking of. The palace was built on top of the mountain with the highest peak that over looked its grand lake and forests. The outside was made of white stone and marble and one would not have noticed the palace in the early morning fog if not for its golden rims and sculptures.

“Quite impressive, isn’t it?” Xiu Juan admitted.

“Quite an intimidating empire itself,” Luli breathed.

Xiu Juan removed her hands from the jeweled chains that covered her face and sat back. She straightened out the crimson silk and adjusted her layers.

“I just want to take everything off. It’s weighing me down,” Xiu Juan frowned.

Luli looked at her and sighed, “You look beautiful, Xiu Juan.”

When they arrived at the stairs of the palace, horns sounded and ceremonial bells rang. A swarming number of maids approached the palanquin and opened the door. Luli stepped out and brushed her skirt. Before one of the maids could step closer to Xiu Juan, Luli stopped them.

“Ah, I got it from here,” she politely smiled at them and blocked their way.

They looked at Luli as if she offended them but they moved aside anyway.

Xiu Juan smiled at this and placed her hand out the door for Luli to assist her. Right as she stepped out, everyone bowed to her. She looked at her surroundings and when she saw the landscape with mountains that emerged from the shimmering lake and swaying trees from high above that sent a breeze to play with the golden chains on her headpiece and kiss her face, her breath was stolen from her lungs.

She turned her head and looked up at the grand stairway and her heart started to beat fast. She took in a deep breath and took a step forward. As she did so, the maids rushed behind her to lay out the long train of her dress. Another wind blew and helped fan the dress out widely before them and they all gaped at the rich material that Qin gifted their parting Grand Princess. Xiu Juan continued forward and felt all eyes on her. She really didn’t want to know if they were stares of hate or adoration as she was already so nervous. When she reached the stairs, she raised her head and saw Hui Zhong already standing at the top, staring down at her. She stared at him coldly through the gold chains that covered her face, gripped onto Luli’s hand and climbed on; the train of her dress dragging gracefully behind her and gleaming as light touched each woven gold thread and gem.

At the top of the stairs, the grim Hui Zhong looked at her. “This way, your highness,” he said as he started to turn and lead the way in.

Xiu Juan paused for a moment at the entrance. Her chest heaved and she clutched onto her skirt, lifted it up, and crossed the threshold of Zhao’s palace. At once, every smiling person in the heavily decorated, white marble grand room bowed lowly to her. She scanned the room for her groom, the emperor of Zhao. Her eyes followed Hui Zhong and, of course, he made his way straight to the emperor whose face was also covered with a sheer crimson silk. Hui Zhong and he both stood there side by side and faced her, not making a move.

Pushing aside the feeling of intimidation they gave her, she lifted her chin up and approached them slowly and gracefully. When she finally came close before the emperor of Zhao, she bent down and bowed lowly to him. When he bowed back, Luli helped Xiu Juan stand back up. While they did their ceremony, Xiu Juan turned her eyes slowly to the Zhao emperor but could not make out his face. She drank her cup of wine Luli handed her and watched the Zhao emperor drink his.

He won’t even look at me. Xiu Juan thought to herself, handing the cup back to Luli. She could feel everyone’s eyes on her but the emperor.

After the many rituals, she thought it was the end of the ceremony but was confirmed wrong when the high priest handed her a gold cup. She looked inside it and raised her brow. It was filled with grains of rice.

“This gold cup represents the embodiment of her royal greatness,” the high priest began, “Grace. Power. Loyalty.”

Xiu Juan raised her eyes to the emperor who still made no acknowledgement toward her.

“With this cup, you will give us your vow of commitment: to serve Zhao and his majesty with all of your existence. In light or in darkness, you will follow. Through laughter or through tears, you will sustain him.”

Hui Zhong was enjoying this and smirked. Xiu Juan continued to stare down at the cup with a heavy heart. With her head still holding up high, she swallowed hard and raised her hand to pick it up. Holding the cup in her hand, her heart thumped hard against her chest at the weight that was placed onto her shoulders.

“You will pour the grains of rice by his feet,” the high priest instructed.

She looked back at the high priest and opened her lips to speak, “I accept the vow. If such small content in this cup is capable of upholding the wellbeing of an Empire, I shall perform no less than a grain of rice with the strength inside of me,” she raised her cup and turned her eyes to the emperor of Zhao, “and, as heaven is my witness, if one of us must fall, the other shall prevail,” she subtly threatened.

Hui Zhong glared at her for this comment. However, it was also this very comment that turned the head of the Zhao emperor. At this moment of silence, a breeze stole its way into the room and ran its gentle touch across Xiu Juan’s gold chains and made them sway; revealing her white skin, red lips, and piercing eyes in flashing moments as the jewels danced side to side to the soft tinkling noise they made. Xiu Juan stared at him coldly and, with her head held high, poured the grains of rice out of the cup before the emperor and onto the floor where it bounced like beads, ending the ceremony and finally parting Qin from herself.

Waiting inside the Zhao emperor’s chamber alone, she clutched onto Ying-tai’s charm to keep herself from trembling out of anxiety. She sat quietly and listened to her thoughts and, from time to time, glanced at the lamp beside her. As it grew darker in the room, she looked back at the lamp and noticed the candle was about to burn out. Xiu Juan turned to the door and decided that no one was ever coming for her. She got up and lit another candle and replaced the one in the lamp. The room instantly became brighter. She looked around her and felt small in the big room. She walked toward the doors that lead to the balcony. She opened one of the many doors and looked outside. A chilly breeze immediately broke in but she allowed it. She stared at the lake that cradled the crescent moon’s reflection and smiled gently at the charming sight.

Xiu Juan shut the door quickly when she heard footsteps approach. She ran her eyes through the room to find a weapon to defend herself. She scurried to the study desk and picked up the paper weight and gripped it tightly in her hand. Before she could sit back down, the doors creaked open and in came two young maids who got startled at Xiu Juan’s presence before them. They immediately bowed at her sight.

“Empress,” they softly squeaked.

Xiu Juan realized she was holding her weapon in the air ready to strike. She quickly put it down and apologized.

“I’m sorry. I thought you were…his majesty,” she straightened herself out.

“We came here to take you to your chamber, Empress,” they politely smiled at her.

Xiu Juan didn’t quite believe what she just heard. “W-what?” She asked to make sure.

“His majesty won’t be coming in tonight,” the smaller maid confirmed. “You will be sleeping in a separate room we prepared for you.”

Xiu Juan exhaled in relief. “That’s…understandable,” she nodded.

When they opened the door to her chamber at the opposite side of the palace, she was surprised by the adorned room. It also had a balcony facing the grand lake with paper screen doors and hanging white drapes that swung with the wind. There was a mini library with a study desk that was sectioned off from her room by a wall decorated with carvings. Xiu Juan had her very own tea table that faced the balcony, and a hall that lead to her dressing room. In contrast to the emperor’s room that was of dark colors, her room was of bright shades and white.

“This is my room?” Xiu Juan leaned to one of the maids.

They smiled and lead her in.

“You didn’t have to go through all the trouble preparing this for me,” Xiu Juan sighed at them.

“Oh but we did! We were all excited about having a new Empress,” they beamed.

“Where is the maid that came with me?” Xiu Juan asked about Luli.

“Ah, she’s with the head housemaid,” the taller maid said. “She’s being shown around the palace.”

“Ah,” Xiu Juan said. She didn’t feel right to ask about Bo so she kept her lips sealed. They wouldn’t have known about a man’s whereabouts anyway. “Well, you may leave,” she ordered them.

They looked at each other. “Don’t you want us to help you get ready for rest?”

Xiu Juan finally took off her headpiece and revealed her face. Her hair fell long down behind her back. She looked at them and they were caught in her enchanting gaze. “I’ll be fine, thank you,” Xiu Juan said.

They gaped at her graceful beauty and quickly bowed their heads in shame. “Ah…we’ll leave you now, Empress!” They stammered and backed their way to the door. As soon as they walked out, Luli found her way in. She turned her head, watching them rush out the door.

“Luli!” Xiu Juan addressed her and smiled.

“What’s with them?” Luli asked as she scratched her head before closing the door. When she turned around, her mouth fell open at the view of the room.

“Wow. Being an Empress is no joke,” Luli gawked as she walked around the room.

Xiu Juan carefully untied her charm and placed it by the table before stripping off all of the crimson colored layers that fluttered to the floor until she only had on her sheer white layers. She stepped through the white drapes hanging from above her and entered the balcony. She had Ying-tai’s charm secured tightly in her hand.

“Qin,” she whispered into the windy night as her hair rose to dance in it, “I’ve never been so far from you.” She sat on a bench and leaned on the railings of the balcony and held up the charm to her face. “My heart must not yearn, but the voices in my head keep calling your name and I cannot help but keep being reminded of you, my dearly beloved!” She pulled the charm in to her chest and laid her head down as she wept. “How do I keep myself living in the cold eyes of the enemy?”

Luli watched Xiu Juan lay herself out on the balcony and bit her lip to keep herself from shedding anymore tears. She walked to Xiu Juan and placed her hand on her shoulders gently.

Xiu Juan raised her eyes to Luli, dropped her shoulders as she tilted her head to the side and cried, “Oh, Luli. Did I do the right thing?”

“You did what you thought was best,” Luli comforted. “Don’t punish yourself for that.”

“He didn’t even want to look at me. And when he did, I could only feel coldness. I stood up to men before. Fearful men of Qin. I don’t know why I started to doubt myself in his presence. If I can’t stand up to the emperor of Zhao, how can I stand up to its Empire?”

Luli thought for a moment. “But…what if you can?” Luli encouraged. “Isn’t the emperor of Zhao himself just another man?”

Xiu Juan looked at Luli and Luli took her hands.

“Ever since we were little, you always knew how to get away with things. You knew how to win people’s hearts! What if you win his by opening his eyes?” Luli smiled at Xiu Juan, “You have more power than you know! You can sway an empire for you have the ability to hold the hearts of people in your hands!”

Xiu Juan widened her eyes and remembered those exact same words that Ying-tai said to her. She sat up and smiled. “Luli, you’re right. The emperor of Zhao is just another man.” She stood and swept her long, white skirt to the side. Clutching the phoenix charm close to her chest, she strongly declared, “I will move him. Zhao will watch my every stir as it is my intent to bring them to awe.”