Two weeks later, Yixing

Yixing stood outside the entrance to his tent in the Northern Qi military camp, his head tilted up as he gazed at the moon. It had been shining brightly throughout their entire journey, which hopefully heralded a positive result in their favor. Yixing yearned to return home as soon as possible, to hold Zhiruo in his arms and watch over their infant son. It was hard to believe that it had already been two weeks since he had departed from the royal palace that fateful morning. Since then, Yiwei had somehow managed to evade Yixing’s pursuit, and now the Northern Qi army was beginning to approach Jinyong City. Given the traveling period and the slight delay from Yitai’s birth, Yixing was almost certain that the Northern Zhou army had already entered and taken over the city. With half of his forces left to defend the capital, Yixing already had a feeling that he would be greatly outnumbered. Still, he was no coward; there was nothing that could stop him from getting rid of Yiwei and removing Northern Zhou from their territory. A soft sigh escaped his lips as he imagined Zhiruo’s warm smiling face in front of him.

Ruo’er...are you doing okay? Is our son doing alright? I hope everything is okay in the royal palace.

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Northern Qi capital, Zhiruo

Unfortunately, contrary to Yixing’s hopes, everything was not going alright inside the royal palace of Northern Qi. In the time since Yixing had left, Yitai had been growing strongly and safely under Zhiruo’s watchful eye while she allowed her body to recover from the birth. Besides that however, chaos seemed imminent in the palace. Not long after Yixing had left, Zhiruo was roused from her sleep in the early morning hours by the banging sound of someone knocking frantically against her chamber doors. A sleepy maid opened the door, and Zhiruo rose confused from her bed as the king’s personal eunuch rushed into the room.

“My Lady!” He cried, falling to her feet, “My Lady, you must save the king!” Zhiruo stared at him, completely perplexed.

“What has happened to the king at this time of day?” She asked. The eunuch looked terrified as he gazed up at her.

“The king...has been poisoned!” He cried. Upon hearing that declaration, Zhiruo wasted little time. After leaving her son with Concubine Lan, she quickly followed the eunuch to the king’s personal chambers. Inside, the king lay unconscious in bed, all the royal physicians surrounding his bed while chattering in concerned low murmurs. Men who Zhiruo recognized as Yiwei’s half brothers stood in the room as well, their faces deep in thought. Zhiruo could only imagine what they could be thinking right now, but that was a secondary matter at the moment. The king’s lips had taken on an unnatural purple color, which stood out in stark contrast to his pale and sunken cheeks. Zhiruo frowned in confusion. The king had been fine just the night before when she had taken Tai’er to bid him good night; what had happened between then and now? Zhiruo sat down an a stool next to the king, her brow furrowing as she carefully took his pulse. As she carefully analyzed the weak thump below her fingers, her eyes widened as she began to place what it was.

“Find the remains of what the king ate last night!” Zhiruo ordered quickly, “Bring them all to me right away!” Maids scurried off to do as she ordered, and before long Zhiruo was sifting through the remnants of the king’s meal with a thin pair of tweezers. After a few long moments, she reached out and pulled out a single piece of leftover food.

“It’s as I suspected.” She announced. The other royal physicians stared in confusion at the object she was holding.

“Highness, what is that?” They queried. Zhiruo looked up at them grimly.

“Someone put poisonous mushrooms in the king’s food last night.” She said, “It’s called the deadly dapperling.” Shocked murmurs spread throughout the gathered physicians.

“But the taste tester did not fall ill!” One of them noted. Zhiruo laughed dryly.

“But what if the taste tester is the one who put the mushrooms in there?” She replied, “If she knew it was there, it would be simply to avoid eating the mushrooms. Given how little there is in here, it would be easy for that avoidance to go undetected. Taste testers are only good for seeing if poison was sprinkled in the food, not so much whether there was a poisonous plant in the food.”

“Then, what is the antidote?” Another physician asked, “Surely, there is one.” Zhiruo sighed and took a deep breath before replying.

“Unfortunately, there is no known cure for deadly dapperling poisoning.” She replied quietly, “This mushroom is rare enough as it is, and in all the books I have read, there is nothing to show that there is a useful cure.” Panicked murmurs spread through the gathered physicians.

“Highness, could you perhaps create an antidote?” Another physician asked, “You were even able to cure the plague!” Zhiruo bit her lip and shook her head. Her heart was heavy as she replied to the man.

“I was only able to help with the plague because there was some information to go off from.” She replied, “But when there is absolutely nothing to even start with, I could only experiment with all possible cures.” Her gaze switched briefly over to the unconscious king.

“But...given the king’s current state, I’m afraid there won’t be enough time for all that.” She concluded quietly, “I know many things about medicine, but I am only human. There are limits to what I can do.” The princes, who had been staying silent this whole time, finally spoke.

“Sister in Law, are you asking that we watch our father die?” One of the princes asked, his eyes wide. Zhiruo gazed for a long moment at the princes around her. They were of all ages and abilities, all aiming for different things in their lives. One thing was certain though: if the king died before Yixing was returned, a fight for the throne would almost immediately ensue. However, Zhiruo was not about to let that happen.

“I can use medicine to keep the king alive until Yixing returns.” She replied after a long moment, “But that is all I can do. I am sorry, Your Highnesses.” Concerned murmurs erupted among the gathered princes before Zhiruo slammed her hand on the table.

“That’s enough! If you’re going to argue, all of you can do that outside!” She said firmly, “Don’t disturb my patient!” Knowing that at the moment, there was little they could do to refuse, the princes quickly left the room. Zhiruo let the doors close behind them before she turned to the king’s personal eunuch.

“Bring me the maid who taste tested the food.” She ordered, “I have a few things to ask her.”

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As it turned out, Zhiruo didn’t need to ask the taste tester maid any questions. The girl was found dead in the royal garden later that night, having jumped into the pond and drowned. Upon examination though, it was a simple task to find out where the girl had come from. A very distinct tattoo was found on the girl’s back that showed who she was.

“Northern Zhou again.” Zhiruo said grimly as she looked at the drawing of the tattoo the head eunuch brought her, “They’ve been keeping spies in our country for years!” In the end though, everything likely linked back to Zhang Yiwei. The maid wouldn’t have dared to do anything if there wasn’t a bigger plan already in place. And with the king’s guard down for the banquet and the gap in security created by Yixing’s departure, it would have been easy to slip in the poisonous mushrooms. However, it did leave an odd gap in time; even if the king died, Yixing would likely win against the Northern Zhou army and return to take the throne. Had Yiwei and the maid banked on the slim chance that Yixing would lose? Even if he did, there was still a good two weeks of travel time between the border and the capital. Anything could happen during that time, so why take the risk? The sound of running footsteps drew Zhiruo’s attention, and she looked up as a soldier rushed in.

“Your Highness, report!” He cried, out of breath. Zhiruo took in the man’s disheveled appearance and knew something had gone wrong.

“What happened?” She demanded, “Why are you in such a rush?” The soldier’s eyes were wide.

“Northern Zhou’s soldiers have been spotted coming for the capital’s gates!” He announced. Zhiruo’s eyes widened, her hand clenching around the tablecloth.

“That’s impossible!” She said, “Even if they came straight from the border, Yixing would have fought them and held them back. There is no way the two armies could have simply missed each other! The timing couldn’t have been that perfect from when they were first spotted by the border until they time they were spotted here.” As she mulled over the news, an answer came to mind.

“Unless…” Zhiruo swallowed hard as the truth dawned on her.

“Unless?” The soldier asked in confusion. Zhiruo drew her lips into a thin line.

“There were two armies.” She concluded grimly, “And one has been moving secretly through our country this whole time under a disguise.”

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Later that night

Zhiruo sat deep in thought in her room, her mind racing as she tried to find a solution to the newest dilemma. It was highly likely that this had been Yiwei’s plan all along; draw Yixing away from the city and attack while he was gone and too far away to double back to save the capital. While the borderline between Northern Zhou and Northern Qi was tight, there were some exceptions for merchants to move back and forth over the border. That was likely what Northern Zhou had taken advantage of. Without Yixing here, defeating the Northern Zhou army through combat was nearly impossible. Even if Zhiruo wanted to evacuate the capital however, there would be insufficient time; the army was merely a few days’ travel time away from the capital. And in any case, where could the people go? As the sun began to rise, Zhiruo’s gaze fell on the potted flower she kept by the window. Then, a soft smile curved up the corner of her lips.

That’s it!

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A few hours later, Zhiruo stood in front of the army that Yixing had left behind to protect the city. Despite the early time, the men stood with their backs straight and eyes focused on the princess, ready to listen to what she had to say.

“Men!” She announced, “As you have likely heard, a Northern Zhou army has been spotted heading for our city gates. They likely think that by drawing the Prince of Lanling away, the capital will be easy to take over! But, we will show them that they are terribly mistaken!”

“Your Highness, how will we fight and win against the army?” One soldier asked, “The prince is not here to lead us, and we will surely be outnumbered!” Zhiruo smirked.

“Who says we have to fight them head on?” She replied, “I have a better idea.” Zhiruo turned and pointed at a map of the capital she had set up behind her.

“In the forest just outside of the capital, there is a beehive on one of the trees.” She said, “Few people know about it, but the bees inside are especially vicious. If you disturb them, they will sting their attacker a thousand times over and cause you to suffer a terrible death. When the Northern Zhou army arrives, they will be lured here, and as a result die from the bees.”

“But Your Highness, how will the army be lured there if they know the Crown Prince is not in the palace?” One soldier asked. Zhiruo took a deep breath before replying.

“I will dress as Yixing does.” She answered, “From a distance, they won’t be able to tell the difference if I am wearing a mask.”

“Your Highness, that is suicide mission!” Another soldier protested as the others nodded in agreement, “You are the Crown Princess! How could we let you do something so dangerous?” Zhiruo smiled and shook her head.

“There is one way to stay safe among those bees.” She said, “Those bees are more attracted to attack dark colored creatures. As long as all of us wear white, we will be safe. The Northern Zhou military wears dark colors, and so they will be stung instead.” Indeed, she had seen it with her own eyes before. Zhiruo had found the beehive while searching for herbs outside the city one day in the past, and had seen the bees attack an unknowing traveler who accidentally disturbed the hive. Although Zhiruo had tried to save the man, it had been far too late. At the same time, despite her proximity, Zhiruo had been spared from the attack. She had been wearing a white dress that day, and that was the only thing that could explain the difference. The men exchanged concerned glances among them, and Zhiruo could hear the uncertainty in their voices as they murmured to each other.

“If anyone is unwilling to go with me, he may stay here to guard the city in case my plan should fail.” She said, “I will not force any one of you to go should you not desire.” After a few long moments, the soldiers fell quiet, and then one of them cried out.

“We will follow the Crown Princess even if it costs our lives!” He declared. Zhiruo’s eyes widened as the other men picked up the cry, and soon the entire army was echoing the same supportive cry. Zhiruo almost laughed in disbelief.

“You will not regret it?” She asked. One of the generals at the front shook his head.

“We are only soldiers, but we have seen Your Highness’s intelligence and bravery with our own eyes.” He said, “We choose to trust Your Highness’s judgment!” Zhiruo felt her heart grow warm as she gazed down at Yixing’s trusted men.

“Very well!” She declared, “In two days when the Northern Zhou army reaches our gates, we will get rid of them once and for all!”

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Two days later

Before long, the Northern Zhou army was seen fast approaching the gates of Northern Qi’s capital city. Zhiruo’s preparations were quickly put into place, but there was still one piece of the plan left to execute first. Zhiruo knew that once she left the palace to get rid of the enemy army, the throne would be free game for any prince who wished to steal it. With both Yixing and Zhiruo away and the king just a hair’s breadth away from death, it would be easy for a prince with support in the court to stage a coup. And so, Zhiruo decided to deal with them before any prince had the chance to even get close to a successful coup. In the early morning hours before she led the men out and after the Northern Zhou army had been seen on the move again, Zhiruo summoned the princes without their guards from where they were temporarily staying in the palace to one of the chambers near the edge of the palace. Although it may have seemed strange, given Zhiruo’s status as Crown Princess, the princes had no choice but to listen.

“Sister in Law, why did you call us here so early?” One of them asked after they had gathered in the room. Zhiruo folded her hands neatly in front of her.

“I have found a way to cure the king’s poison.” She replied. The princes’ eyes were wide with shock, as startled murmurs immediately broke out among them. Zhiruo kept her face placid, betraying no emotions that lay beneath the perfect mask. Of course, she had not really found a cure to the poison the king suffered from; no such cure existed. But this lie was essential as a part of her plan to keep the princes from staging a revolution while she was gone.

“What is your method?” Another prince queried as the murmurs died down. Zhiruo motioned at the cups of tea laid out neatly in front of the princes.

“I will tell you after you drink the tea that is in front of you.” She replied, “The method is rather dangerous, but it is the only way that exists to cure the poison. By drinking my tea, Your Highnesses are agreeing to listen and follow the method I am about to propose. What will Your Highnesses choose?” The princes seemed to hesitate, but Zhiruo knew better than to worry. Although some surely desired the throne, it would be unseemly for them to refuse to drink the tea. When it came down to the bottom line, it was their father’s life that was at stake. None of the brothers wanted to make it obvious that they wanted their father dead. Sure enough, a few moments later, the princes each gulped down the tea that Zhiruo had placed in front of them.

“Now can you tell us what this new method is?” One of the elder princes asked. Zhiruo stayed silent, her fingers tapping lightly against her wrist behind her back.

One...two...three…

Like clockwork, after three seconds had passed, each of the princes began to waver, their eyes growing confused as their steps wavered.

“You…did you poison us?” One of the princes cried, pointing his finger at Zhiruo. Zhiruo smiled reassuringly at the boy.

“Please be at ease, Your Highness.” She said, “It is a simple sleeping draught that will not harm you. For now, just take a nice nap here in this room with your brothers.” Before any of the brothers could say anything more, they each fell over and were soon asleep. Zhiruo locked the door and windows behind her just in case as she left the room, and left trusted men behind to guard the sleeping princes. Her steps were firm as she returned to her room and calmly bound her chest, slipped into one of Yixing’s older battle robes that had been quickly hemmed to fit her. Unfortunately, none of Yixing’s armor fit her, so Zhiruo was going to have to hope that the enemy leader’s curiosity and desire to defeat Northern Qi was going to be enough to draw them into her trap. She tied up her hair into a long high ponytail, and then grasped one of Yixing’s masks from the closet. A soft sigh escaped Zhiruo’s lips as she gazed at herself in the mirror. The woman that gazed back at her was not the royal physician Shangguan Zhiruo, but a warrior princess, something completely unfamiliar to Zhiruo.

Perhaps this isn’t a very smart idea…

Should the plan to draw them into the trap failed, Zhiruo knew nothing about military tactics to maneuver around the enemy’s counterattack. And while Yixing was known for his almost ethereal beauty, there was really no guarantee that the enemy army would believe that Zhiruo was Yixing. On top of that all, her body still ached from Yitai’s birth; typically, she would have stayed inside for at least a month to recover, but desperate times called for desperate measures. Zhiruo could only hope for the best. She swallowed hard, then stepped out of the room and into the cool morning air to greet the waiting army.

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Yixing

Something was off. Yixing could taste it like a piece of bitter melon on the tip of his tongue as he slipped onto his horse and prepared to set out for Jinyong. The Northern Zhou flag had been spotted on the top of the city walls, meaning that his guess had come true. The army was likely waiting for them just outside the gates, and Yixing couldn’t wait to destroy them once and for all. Something seemed off though, and the cool morning breeze failed to calm Yixing like it normally did. Unlike the clean crisp air that it usually brought to his lungs, it chilled his throat and his chest,as if trying to warn him of danger ahead. As the Northern Qi army approached the city of Jinyong, Yixing could begin to see why. As he had expected, the Northern Zhou army was waiting for them outside the city, and Yixing was certain there was more inside just in case he actually managed to break through the gates. However, there was something strange about the formation of the Northern Qi army. Yixing had expected to see Yiwei standing at the front as the main leader, while the other generals would be standing in the row behind him. But as Yixing drew closer, he saw no sign of his deposed cousin.

“Something is going on…” Yifan murmured from next to him, and Yixing nodded in agreement. Still, he forced himself to remain calm, his back straight and confident as he led his army forward. The man sitting astride a large black horse strode slightly forward as Yixing drew closer.

“Prince of Lanling.” He greeted with a mocking bow, “I am General Hou of Northern Zhou. It is an honor to meet you in battle at last.” Yixing bit his lip and stayed silent, his grip on the reins of his horse tightening slightly as he surveyed the enemy in front of him. As expected, there was no sign of Zhang Yiwei. Taking note of his silence, General Hou scoffed.

“Perhaps the Prince of Lanling is searching for a certain someone.” He noted, “Your cousin perhaps?” Yixing’s gaze narrowed from behind his mask.

“Where is that bastard?” He growled, “I came to personally to punish him for what he has done.” General Hou smirked.

“Unfortunately, Your Highness will have to be disappointed.” He said, “Zhang Yiwei, our future king of Northern Qi, is not here.” Yixing stared at him in surprise for a moment, temporarily caught off guard. It was impossible that Yiwei wasn’t with this army; where else could he have possibly gone after fleeing the city? He also had a head start on Yixing in leaving the city; it was unlikely that Yixing would have overtaken him and missed him entirely. That only left one possibility.

“Yiwei never left the capital.” Yixing’s throat went dry as the final realization slipped out of his lips. General Hou chuckled.

“You are a smart man, Prince of Lanling.” He said, “Yes, your cousin never left the city. Around this time, he should be just about ready to attack the capital and take back what is his. And then, our great Northern Qi will have another puppet to use.” Yixing’s heart pounded loudly in his ears. He should have thought of it earlier; in his haste to get rid of Yiwei once and for all, the possibility hadn’t occurred to him that a fugitive prince would stay in the capital. It was the most unlikely of all possibilities, but that was what made taking that path useful. It had all been child’s play; draw Yixing out of the city by making him think Yiwei had fled, and then attack the capital while its security was lower than usual. It had been a simple distraction tactic, and Yixing had fallen right into its trap. His body tightened along with his grip on the horse’s reins as he realized what Yiwei attacking the capital meant.

Zhiruo!

Yifan turned to look at Yixing before reaching out and squeezing Yixing on the shoulder.

“Calm down.” He murmured under his breath, “Even if you turned around and headed for the capital now, you’re too far away to make a difference. Zhiruo is a smart woman, she’ll find a way out of it.” Yixing took a deep shaking breath before reaching up and squeezing his brother’s hand in return. In fact, he really had been half thinking of turning around right then and there, but Yifan was right. He would have to trust Zhiruo’s intelligence and end his own battle as soon as possible. Besides, she would never forgive him, and he would never forgive himself if he sacrificed the entire city and its people like that. Yixing took another deep breath before pushing Yifan’s hand away with a slight pat. His eyes narrowed as he gazed at the enemy general in front of him.

“General Hou, was it?” Yixing said, “I think we’ve wasted enough time talking. I’ve already sent enough of your men to the underworld. Perhaps now it is time for you to join them.”

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Zhiruo

Zhiruo sat tall and straight on the back of her horse as she watched the enemy army approaching from below the hill leading up the capital. The plan was that as soon as the two armies made enough eye contact to know of each other’s presence, Zhiruo would lure the enemy to follow them, and then the Northern Qi army would plunge into the forest behind them. Zhiruo could only hope that their confusion and curiosity would be enough to draw them away from the city as opposed to taking the chance to attack it. Surely, their desire to defeat Yixing was large enough of a lure. As the army approached Zhiruo though, she quickly noticed that something was different from what she had expected. At the front of the army was a man wearing the dark black and red colors of Northern Qi armor. His face however, was one that was very, very, familiar to Shangguan Zhiruo. Zhiruo felt go dry as she recognized the man leading the enemy.

Zhang Yiwei.

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Author's note: How about a plot twist? I hope I'm not stretching reality a little too much! The bees Zhiruo is talking about are modeled off the Africanized killer bees, which attack in large swarms and kill very very easily. Please look forward to the next chapter!