by JC Kang
Two embassy guards, dressed in dark blue robes and armed with broadswords, stood by the main entrance.
Chen Xin stepped forward and displayed the unique silver ring that signified him as imperial guard. “By order of Princess Wang Kaiya, summon Ambassador Ling.”
Kaiya lowered her hood and shook out her hair. Though still clad in simple travelling clothes, she brushed off the persona of tired traveler and did her best to project the image of imperial grace.
“Dian-xia.” The embassy guards dropped to a knee, fists to the ground. “Welcome to the Tianzi’s office in Vyara City,” they said in unison.
She allowed them out of their salute with a nod of her head.
One jumped to his feet and ran inside. The other beckoned to the entrance and followed them in.
Kaiya took in the foyer with curious eyes. A fusion of several cultures, it didn’t resemble any room back home. A mosaic floor of white, brown, and green tiles depicted a map of the Hua Empire. An Estomari-style framed oil painting of the Tianzi in his youth hung on the wall opposite the entrance. The two scrolls flanking the portrait were unmistakably written in Xiulan’s bold hand. The broad strokes of Hua script sent a shiver of awe through Kaiya’s spine.
The embassy guard guided them to a side room.
Now this felt much more like home! A Hua silk carpet with colorful symbols of health, longevity, fortune, and prosperity covered the tile floor. Brush paintings of famous landscapes in Hua adorned the walls on brightly bordered scrolls.
Kaiya settled on the edge of one of several elegant bloodwood chairs, and ran her fingers through some exotic Ayuri plant that grew in a white porcelain planter with a blue dragon motif. The imperial guards took up defensive positions around her.
Without any invitation, Ayana sprawled into another chair and let out a long breath. So much for the legends of elvish dignity.
Commotion erupted from deeper inside the building. A middle-aged man in dark blue court robes emerged from an arched doorway, flanked by several similarly-dressed officials. It was Ling Xiaomin, a distant relative who had visited Sun-Moon Palace several times in her childhood.
He bowed low. “Dian-xia, it is our honor to receive you here in Vyara City. We had originally expected you two days ago, but since we had heard no word of the Golden Phoenix ever arriving in Ayudra, we were unsure how to proceed.”
Kaiya’s heart sank. The Golden Phoenix carried her wardrobe, personal effects, and official documents. Negotiating with the Madurans in salty rags would embarrass Hua, not to mention her.
She allowed him out of his bow. “Thank you for receiving us, Ambassador. We are pleased to be your guests. I would like to receive a briefing on the Maduran situation once my retinue and I have settled in.”
“Of course, Dian-xia.” The Ambassador bowed again. He motioned a girl forward from behind the wall of aides. “This is Meixi. She will take you to the guest house and assist your handmaiden in attending to your needs.”
Kaiya glanced at Jie from the corner of her eyes. The half-elf wore a half-smirk that told Kaiya she would be washing herself. Again.
The girl, probably no older than Jie’s apparent age, cast her wide eyes downward as protocol demanded. Her hand shook as she extended it toward an arching exit. “Th-this way, p-please, D-Dian-xia....”
Meixi kept her head lowered as she led them to a house within the compound. “We reserve this only for important visitors.”
Kaiya’s second-floor quarters were decorated with bloodwood furniture and fine silk carpets. Fresh fruit, cut into narrow slices, sat in a bowl on a center table. Narrow windows allowed a glimpse of the street, where activity was now winding down for the day. The house had its own private bath on the first floor, which Meixi had started preparing. Cowed by Jie’s narrowed eyes, Kaiya waved the servant off and washed and dressed herself.
Though the simple shirt and dress on hand were more suited to a commoner, at least they were clean. With that small improvement, Kaiya felt a little more like herself. When her reflection in the dressing room mirror looked more like an imperial princess and less like a ragged traveler, she was ready to receive the ambassador.
Her entourage of imperial guards, all looking and smelling clean, joined her in the first house’s audience room. Kaiya ascended the far dais and settled on the edge of a central bloodwood chair carved in the shape of a dragon’s claw. Unlike a formal room in Sun-Moon Palace, where visitors would kneel on floor cushions before the Tianzi, chairs were arranged in a semi-circle facing the dais.
Niches in the walls displayed samples of Hua’s most treasured goods: bolts of silk, porcelain wares, and tins of tea leaves. A second-generation Hua musket, less accurate than the current model and therefore allowed for export, occupied the most prominent spot behind the central chair.
Kneeling, Ambassador Ling motioned toward a slender man in blue robes. “This is my Information Minister, Yi Minshou.”
“A Moquan brother,” Jie whispered in her ear.
How did Jie know? Had she exchanged some secret message with the gaunt, middle-aged man? Kaiya allowed the two out of their bows and motioned them into chairs facing her. “Ambassador, what have you learned about Madura’s relationship with the Teleri?”
The ambassador took a seat. “Dian-xia, Madura is a staunch ally of the Teleri Empire. Any meeting that occurs between Madura and other nations will invariably be attended by a Teleri advisor.”
“Do you believe that the Teleri Empire, not Madura, is behind the unrest in Hua?” Kaiya asked.
Yi Minshou bowed. “Dian-xia, if I may speak. The maharaja of Madura believes he can manipulate his relationship with the Teleri. It certainly seems that Madura has a free rein with regards to its aggression.”
Ambassador Ling nodded. “We think the Teleri chose Madura as an ally because of its belligerent nature toward its neighbors.”
“However,” the Moquan said, “there is nothing to suggest that Madura instigated any of the trouble in Hua.”
Kaiya twirled a lock of her hair. If it wasn’t Madura behind the unrest in Huajing, then who was it? “Are you certain? And if not, how much of a threat is Madura to Hua?”
Li bowed his head. “We can never be fully certain. We only have limited reach into Madura’s inner workings. Their Golden Scorpions root out our spies with ease.”
The ambassador unfurled a map. “As for the threat, Madura has occupied Ankira at our border for ten years. Though much of the populace still pines for the return of their own maharaja, the land is mostly subjugated.”
Ankira. Prince Hardeep. Kaiya’s hand strayed to the lotus jewel, concealed in her sash. Yes, they would make time for a visit to the Ankiran villa here.
The ambassador pointed out locations on the map. “Madura will not directly confront the Ayuri Confederation because of its Paladin protectors. The wild lands to its east between Madura and the Kanin Kingdom of Tomiwa are controlled by the dragon Avarax. Therefore, Hua is the most available target.”
A full-on assault? Unthinkable. Kaiya straightened. “The Great Wall and thousands of muskets stand between us and Madura. Are their Golden Scorpions so formidable they could breech the Wall?”
The ambassador gave a slow half-nod. “If Madura could deploy half of its two thousand Golden Scorpions, then Lord Peng’s provincial army would have a difficult time defending the Great Wall’s south gate. However, many Scorpions are stuck in Ankira to stifle a potential insurgency.”
Minister Yi raised his hand. “The Teleri have been breeding an auxiliary Bovyan army in occupied Ankira for almost ten years. Within another four or five years, they may have enough numbers to control the populace and escalate the threat to us.”
Kaiya shuddered. The Maduran army, bearing down on the Great Wall. Tens of thousands would die on both sides, and if the Scorpions could fight half as well as Master Sabal... And to think Minister Hong wanted to bring so many soldiers into Huajing. She might not have a mind for strategy, but even she knew such moves would leav
e the defenses in the south thin.
She stood and glided over to the map. She ran a finger from Hua north to the Nothori kingdom of Rotuvi. An aggressive neighbor and independent tributary nation to the Teleri Empire, they had tried several times to recapture Wailian County, where Ming had served.
Her eyes turned south to Madura, another friend of the Teleri. Prince Aelward had insisted that there was an unholy alliance among the three nations, and Ayana insisted the Teleri were pulling the strings. Their encounter with the spy earlier in the day lent credence to those assertions.
She looked up from the map. “It seems, then, that even if Madura is not a threat now, it may be one in the future. We must gain the support of those who might help us deter Maduran aggression—either current or future.”
The ambassador bowed. “The princess is wise. Just remember that it is our national policy not to enter into alliances with other nations, so that we may trade unfettered with all.”
“Of course, Ambassador,” Kaiya said. “Yet the perception of an alliance can be just a powerful tool as an actual one. Please make arrangements for me to meet with representatives of the Ayuri Confederation.” Another thought crossed her mind. “And Ankira’s exiled maharaja.”
“What about the meeting with the Madurans tomorrow?” the ambassador asked. “You are supposed to dine with their prince at the half-waxing crescent.”
If the Madurans weren’t behind the insurgency in Hua... “I do not see the urgency. Let us delay the meeting for one week. By then, my retinue will hopefully arrive on the Golden Phoenix and I will have met with potential foreign friends. When we negotiate a non-aggression treaty with Madura, it will be from a position of strength.”
The ambassador shifted in his chair. “Prince Dhananad has been pestering us about the meeting for the last several days. It would be unwise to offend him with a postponement.”
She twirled a lock of hair. “Then I will have lunch with him, and relay our desire to negotiate a non-aggression pact at a later date.”
The ambassador gazed at her, a smile forming on his lips. “As the princess commands. I will send messengers to all of the embassies at once.”
Kaiya raised a hand to stop him from leaving. She pulled the Maduran copper rupiya from her sash and passed it to him. “Who is this?”
Ambassador Ling held it up to the light before passing it back. “This is old Maduran coinage. You can tell by how worn the images are. I would guess it is Madura’s former Grand Vizier Rumiya.”
The name sounded familiar. Kaiya received the coin and stared at it. “Who was he?”
Minister Yi tapped his index fingers together, a symbolic gesture to ward off bad luck. “He was an evil magician who rose to power in the Maduran court a century and a half ago.”
An evil magician! As if elf wizards and Oracles weren’t enough excitement for one lifetime. Kaiya twirled a lock of hair. “He must have been influential to have ended up on a modern coin.”
Minister Yi nodded. “It was his idea to recruit castoffs from the Paladin Order and establish the Golden Scorpions. In a few short decades, Madura tripled in size, until it reached the border of the Paladin mandate.”
And then north into hapless Ankira. Kaiya’s hand strayed to the lotus jewel in her sash.
“Rumiya himself,” the minister said, “used black magic to suck the life force from others to preserve his own. Until thirty-two years ago, he remained young and hale.”
Evil magic. Kaiya shuddered. “Then what happened?”
The ambassador paused a second. “He just disappeared.”
Disappeared? She rubbed her finger over the image on the coin. Perhaps the familiarity came from having seen it in a history book before. “Do you have any paintings of him?”
“No, but I am sure the Maduran embassy does. He would be a national idol if their current maharaja didn’t downplay his role in their history.”
Kaiya pushed the coin into her sash, joining Tian’s pebble and Hardeep’s lotus jewel. She hadn’t wanted to request anything of Prince Dhananad in tomorrow’s meeting, but she felt compelled to see a painting of Grand Vizier Rumiya.
CHAPTER 31:
Even a Carp Dreams of Becoming a Dragon
Though not an accomplished poet like that fop Zheng Ming, Hong Jianbin felt inspired to compose. It was not the full white moon Renyue reflecting in the carp pond of his courtyard garden that stirred him, though he watched it as he sat on the adjacent veranda on this warm spring evening. Without a doubt, his muse was the deflating feeling of failure. The poetry he wrote tonight would sing of unfulfilled dreams and monumental disappointments.
The only path he could see to Chief Minister now travelled through Lord Peng. The treacherous lord might very well have him executed instead of promoted. He had always planned on poisoning the Tianzi and his sons, but on his own terms, not Peng’s.
Now, the Tianzi might be the only one who could keep him alive. All those years getting into Prince Kai-Wu’s good graces would also be meaningless if Crown Prince Kai-Guo inherited.
Hong let out a long sigh. He was to meet Leina tonight in the Floating World—not for the celebratory lovemaking he had planned, but for advice. He could not count how often great ideas came to him through her idle banter. If the silly girl had an eye for political maneuvering, perhaps she would be a high official.
He studied the rocky stream that fed the pond, thinking of the ancient story of the carp that swam up a waterfall and transformed into a dragon. Chief Minister was still within reach. If he played his game carefully, if he courted the right people and betrayed them before they realized what was happening, he could very well become father of the future Tianzi.
“You will need help,” the stone dragon overlooking the pond said.
Hong’s heart jumped into his throat as he gawked at the sculpture. Had it read his mind? His first impulse was to call for the guards posted just outside his pavilion.
They would think him insane.
“No need to call your guards,” a frog on a rock said in the same voice. “If you did, I would be gone long before they arrived.”
Hong found his wits. “You are the renegade agent. Tan’s asset.”
“One and the same,” said a just-opening blossom on a cherry tree, forcing the minister to turn again in confusion. “I am impressed you know me.”
“Will you stop doing that?” Hong wagged a finger at the blossom.
A painfully plain, middle-aged man with a walking stick melted out of the shadows, a bemused tone in his voice. “As you command, Chief Minister.”
“Apparently, your information sources have failed you for once.”
The man smirked. “Oh, no. My information is early. The title...and all its benefits...can still be yours.”
Being beholden to a traitor didn’t seem much better than having to trust Lord Peng. “What do you want from me?”
“First, let me thank you. You knew of the former Chief Minister’s method of contacting me, and warned me of the trap, did you not?”
“I did not,” Hong said, now thoroughly mystified. He had set the trap.
The man shook his head. “Oh, but you did, though perhaps you had intended the opposite. No matter. Which brings me to the reason for my visit. I am here to accept your assignment.”
Hong’s confusion grew, though he tried his best to hide it. “What assignment?”
“The unwritten one.” The upturn in the man’s lips almost connected to the crinkles at the side of his eyes. “The removal of Chief Minister Song.”
Hong stared at the man through narrowed eyes. “How would you do that?”
“First, you must promise to pursue war with Madura once you become Chief Minister.”
The man was perplexing. Hong threw up his hands. “Everyone now knows Madura had nothing to do with the insurgency.”
“You are a smart man. Make it happen. If you go back on your promise with me, I will not be as incompetent as Minister Tan when I try to throttle you.�
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Was he referring to the bathhouse incident? Hong could not keep the incredulousness out of his voice. “How do you know such things?”
“It is my business to know,” the man said. “For example, I know how Peng has been rendering the Tianzi and his sons sterile for four years now, by replacing the imperial tea with Ayuri gooseweed.”
Hong had learned this from a business associate long ago, which was one of the reasons he had approached Peng with his plot. How did the renegade agent know? Perhaps he would spill his secret. Let him monologue.
“Your contact inside the imperial kitchens orders from your business acquaintances in Yutou province, and that acquaintance in turn procures a certain Levanthi spice through my shipping company, Golden Fu Trading. The otherwise harmless spice, which goes into the Tianzi’s longevity elixir, interacts with gooseweed to cause respiratory distress.”
The man knew of Hong’s actual treasonous actions, even more than Peng did.
“That on your command, your kitchen contact will mix that spice into the palace meals so that the princes will consume it as well. And lastly, you knew the asthma-treating herb Ma Huang, when mixed with gooseweed, will cause heart failure.”
He knew. Did he know about—
“Just as you did to the Tianzi’s brother and nephews two years ago.”
He did. Aching face muscles told Hong he must have been wearing the most ridiculous expression.
“You see, Minister Tan’s plot was simple; yours more subtle and entertaining. Mine is even more complicated, and ultimately, you will be one of the main beneficiaries if you play along.”
Though always ahead of his political opponents, Hong was completely baffled by this man. “What is your stake in this?”
The man shrugged. “I have nothing to gain personally. I only wish to make Hua strong before its neighbors swallow us. Tan was my greatest hope for success until he betrayed me, which is why I led Young Lord Zheng to him.”