Born into a poor family, Lu Zheng clawed his way out of the mud, walking through blood and snow until he stood before the emperor.
He should have been the coldest, hardest blade, seeking only power and advancement. Yet the moment he saw the Princess Royal Ji Xingye, he conceived a desire he should never have had.
She was the late emperor’s eldest daughter and the current emperor’s older sister.
In public, she stood before the great noble families, keeping the young emperor in check even as he kept her in check. In secret, however, she followed the late emperor’s final command, helping the emperor reclaim power, vet the noble families, and settle old scores.
And Lu Zheng was the blade she had chosen with her own hands.
By day, he was the newly crowned top scholar, a poor-born compiler sent to the Ministry of Revenue to investigate old cases.
In secret, he investigated military funds for her, uncovered hidden records, and pried open the darkest corners of the political landscape.
The deeper he dug on her behalf, the more clearly he saw how cold her methods were and how colder still her heart could be. He also knew all the more that he should not love her.
Yet he loved her with a madness all his own.
He knew his low birth made him unworthy. He knew that a nobleman like Pei Heng was the most respectable and suitable partner for her to work with in public.
He also knew he was merely a blade she kept hidden in the shadows, never meant to see the light, and not necessarily meant to stay.
But so what?
He could act obedient, gentle, and harmless.
He could kneel before her desk with his head bowed in submission, and in places where no one could see, he could bite through the throats of anyone who stood in her way.
He wanted no title, asked for no reward, and did not care what others thought.
Everything he did was for the chance to earn her protection, to make her look his way just once more.
Later, Ji Xingye lowered her eyes and asked him, “Lu Zheng, what is it you really want?”
Kneeling before her, madness simmering in his eyes, Lu Zheng replied, one word at a time:
“This servant wants to help Your Highness claim the realm, and he wants Your Highness herself.”
“This servant can be a blade, a dog, or the most obedient piece on Your Highness’s chessboard.”
