“Why are you here?” Huli asked with irritation evident in his low voice. Everything around him lay destroyed.

The guards all bent their knee and bowed with a hand over their chest. “Your majesty, the imperial concubine is dead.”

Red covered Huli’s vision. The indescribable sorrow hid under a storm of rage. His blood roared. A snarl indented his face. He glared at Meifan, who fell into a pile on the floor.

“Emperor! Emperor! Emperor!” Meifan sobbed before he could add to the red marks on her neck. “Ju Xiaoli killed her! And Fa Huian is escaping with the true heir tonight!”

“What?!”

“Fa Huian is escaping tonight! I-I gained her trust again, like s-suggested, and gathered this s-secret i-information for your majesty. I am certain this was the reason for Miss Ju’s attack on the dear imperial concubine! You must haste!”

Huli slapped Meifan. The awful, sudden sound had such force that it pushed the maid to the floor. A bright pink mark illuminated on her cheek, burning into a handprint shape. Huli exhaled through his nose and turned back, only to hesitate and decisively kick the maid again. Unfortunately, this did nothing to quell his anger.

“You, disgusting thing, never give me orders!”

“Have mercy, your majesty!” Cheng piped up as he appeared from the hallway. “This woman is lost in sorrow over losing her master. Do not take personal issue with her. The real problems lie with Fa Huian’s escape with the true heir who does threatens your power. What shall we do?”

He offered Huli a note on tattered and stained parchment. On it, a few words messily covered half the page along with a detailed drawing.

Song Meifan,

Meet me at the laundry area when the moon is high. Over the long days, I have chipped away at the hole where water enters. It is big enough for us to swim out and a boat waits near.

Tonight, we will escape with the true heir of Shanhe, Wang Joaolong.

Join us.

The letter shook in Huli’s hands. His mismatched brown eyes glowed as a scowl shadowed his face. “Guards! Threats are at the servant laundry area! Seize them at once! Let no one live! Protect your emperor!”

“Protect the emperor!” The guards repeated and departed.

Huli leaned to follow behind them but Cheng stopped him. “It is unwise. Stay safe. A war is coming and you must be at your full potential. We cannot fight without a ruler.”

“Stay the hell away from me! I will kill you too! Like I will kill them! I will kill them all for my mother’s sake!” Huli seethed and stomped out of the room, hitting walls and furniture in his way. Too absorbed in his overwhelming hatred, he didn’t see Cheng’s scary smile as the palace was thrown into disarray.