In the spring of the tenth year of Zhenghe, Li Yu, founding emperor of the Great Xia, was assassinated while touring Jiangnan. Not a single attendant or official aboard the ship survived.
Taking advantage of the chaos, the regent purged the court, altered the imperial edict, and installed a young ruler with himself as regent.
As old and new factions clashed at court, the martial world was no more peaceful. The assassin organization Ghost Mill killed twelve legitimate officials in a row, leaving everyone on edge.
"My lord, why the long face? Did I kill the wrong person?" Su Qianqian studied the list over and over. "The governor of Huizhou... I remember him..."
Li Moxing said each word distinctly. "He raises a private army."
"Exactly. Since he raises a private army, I..."
"So you went to assassinate him alone and came back covered in wounds?" Li Moxing rose from behind the desk, struggling to keep his voice under control. "Su Qianqian, if we're going to work together, we both have to stay alive to get what we want."
Su Qianqian nodded. He had a point.
Li Moxing had always been a very reasonable man.
So she spent three months learning music, chess, calligraphy, and painting, another three months arranging chance encounters, and then three more months finally winning the favor of the son of the Vice Minister of War.
Everything went smoothly, except that on the night the moon was full and the flowers were in bloom, her lover never showed up.
Halfway through a song, Su Qianqian lifted the red veil and discovered that the person standing in the room was none other than Li Moxing, who was supposed to be in the northern frontier.
And on the table, the cup of wine she had secretly dosed with a lethal amount of aphrodisiac was now empty.
The two stared each other down for a long moment.
Su Qianqian had dressed up carefully that day. Her spring robe slipped halfway off her shoulder, and her eyes brimmed with tenderness. Looking at Li Moxing, whose expression hadn't changed, she suddenly felt utterly defeated.
Unable to bear it, she asked, "...Your Highness, is there something... wrong with you?"
Theme: May everyone obtain what they seek.
