Page 94 of The Blood Orchid
The Empress smiled. “Now, that’s the kind of question you should be asking,” she said. “First, you will return to the palace in Chang’an.”
“It’s under siege,” I said dully. “They’d imprison me before I made it to the front gate.”
“You think I can wipe out an entire city but not a couple of peasant soldiers in my palace?” she said. “Chang’an is mine. I will clear the way for you.”
I tightened my grip on the bark. “You have so much power over Chang’an, yet you let a couple ‘peasant boys’ hang your body?”
She clenched her teeth. “I was a bit preoccupied with an errant alchemist,” she said. “And, as I’m sure you know, they did not hangmybody. But regardless, once in Chang’an, you will schedule a public execution for Hong.”
“What?” I said. “On what grounds?”
“Treason,” she said airily. “For turning his mother in to the private armies because he wanted to hold power alone. He was always so shortsighted. But don’t worry, you won’t be around for that part.”
“And why not?” I said, trying my best to keep my voice even.
“First,” she went on, “you will meet with Gaozong, who will remove your soul and replace it with mine.”
I clenched my teeth. I’d known that this was what the Empress wanted, but hearing her finally say it still made my breath come short and sweat break out across my forehead. I imagined her wearing my skin like a dress, saying cruel words with my lips.
“The Scarlet Alchemist—the new empress—will then order the hanging of her beloved prince, and become the sole emperor of China.”
“Emperor?” I said.
“Yes,” the Empress said, her eyes blazing. “Empresses must share power. Emperors do not. I will be the first and last female emperor.”
My grip tightened on the bark. I closed my eyes and took a steadying breath, feeling like I was going to tumble into the broken black sky.
“Am I supposed to believe that you’ll show mercy to Guangzhou if I obey?” I said.
The Empress made a dismissive gesture, like my words were flies to swat away. “Guangzhou’s existence does not threaten me, and its erasure does not benefit me. Its only value to me right now is thatyouvalue it. There is no reason to destroy parts of my empire to spite a dead girl.”
She shifted, her shadow falling over me, an eclipse of black and gold.
“My husband will be waiting for you in my throne room at dusk in one week’s time,” she said. “If you haven’t done everything exactly as I’ve described by then, I will pour chicken-blood stone into the Pearl River, and you can say goodbye to Guangzhou forever.”
“But that’s hardly enough time to make it back to Chang’an!” I said.
The Empress only smiled. “Then you’d better hurry.”
I opened my eyes to the wood slats of the ceiling at the inn, halfway convinced that all of it had been a dream. But Zheng Sili and Yufei were looking over me, both talking frantically.
I sat up and rubbed my eyes, trying to make sense of their words.
“Where did you go?” Yufei demanded.
“Me?” I said, frowning. “You two are the ones who got sucked into the forest!”
“We ended up in some sort of cave,” Zheng Sili said. “I don’t know what happened, but eventually it spit us back out here, only you wouldn’t wake up.”
“And neither will Wenshu Ge,” Yufei said.
I glanced down at Wenshu, who was lying still on the ground. I shook his shoulder, but he didn’t react at all.
I sank back against the wall and buried my face in my hands, trying to think as Durian pecked at my feet.
“Zilan?” Yufei said tentatively. “Did you at least find the ring?”
I shook my head and hugged my knees tighter, not wanting to look up because I already felt tears dampening my skirt. The ring didn’t matter anymore. We were never going to make it to Penglai, because Wenshu and I were going to die in Chang’an.