Jin qing sat in her room in the palace as the other servants brought her things from her old house into this one. 

Xi jian has offered to give her more servants and maids, but she refused, saying the two she has is already good enough. 

It has been around three days since she moved in, and the only thing she was happy about was the fact that no one in the family moved in as well, that includes Huan le and her mother. 

They were still allowed to visit, but now at least she had the privacy of her own room with little people to bother her.

"Jin qing." 

She mentally sighed. Who could it be now?

She looked up and there Shang ye was, a small smirk on his face. He had his hand upon the wall as if he was knocking just a few seconds before. 

"Shang ye." Jin qing lifted up her pale robes and stood up as her maids curtsied. "What brings you here today?"

"Do you always stay in your room?" He asked. 

Jin qing closed her eyes, a small smile on her face. "Well, yes."

"I have nothing to do. Xi jian Is trying his best to negotiate a peace with the Song, so the army is currently at rest, meaning I have nothing to do."

"Well, if you came to me in search of something to entertain yourself with..." Jin qing shook her head "I'm sorry to disappoint, but I have nothing here."

"Oh?" He tilted his head "Then what do you do all day?"

"Sit around, being a good lady."

"Then a good lady should know how to keep company." Shang ye countered.

Jin qing looked up with an amused grin. "And you expect me to do that? I was raised a tactician, not a housewife."

"No!" Shang ye said, aghast. "I don't mean that! What I mean is I'm terribly bored and I came here for some better company."

Jin qing nodded to her maids, an idea clicking in her head. "Bai yan, fetch a game of XiangGu. Ye bing, get us some tea and snacks. We'll be here for a while if we play that game." She said quietly. She then looked up to see Shang ye already seated at the table, and she sat down on the opposite side. 

"So?" He asked. "Your maids scurried off. What did you tell them to do?"

"We are both people that control armies and oversee strategies. A game of Go would be ideal, but I believe we would like a game that requires more thinking." Jin qing smiled slyly. She reminded herself to calm down. "So," She said, waving her hand as Bai yan set the pieces "Let's play a game of Xianggu."

Shang ye chuckled. "To warn you, I'm quite good at this game." He warned.

"Let the game speak for itself." Jin qing said. 

"Let us raise the stakes." Shang ye said, his eyes gleaming with mischief. 

"What do you mean?"

"If I win, I get something from you. A favor, a piece of jewelry, anything." He said. "And same if I lose."

"Anything that is proper and possible." Jin qing said, excitement bubbling up within her. Oh, she loved this!

A game of Xiang gu is simple.  Players will attempt to capture squares to increase the amount of the game board that they hold by using their pieces. Differently from Go, the board is smaller and with a river in the middle. 

Jin qing loved this game. When evenly matched, this game can go on for hours without an end. The smallest of a mistake can result in a disadvantage for you and a huge advantage for your opponent. 

Just like in war.

When two equally intelligent and skilled generals are placed against each other, who knows how long war can go? Who knows how many people will die? Who knows if the plan you are executing will be a mistake?

And with the added stakes, Jin qing loved it even more.

<>

For those few times in his life, Shang ye felt nervous in playing a board game.

Not because he was going to lose, no, he was winning.
And that's what worried him. 

To every single disadvantage, to every ruination of a plan, the Xue Xian never once seemed to be worried. Never once had her gentle grin fall from her face. That made him nervous, what was this lady planning? Is he simply falling right into her plan?

The reason why Jin qing was smiling because Shang ye was really bad at hiding his emotions. 

She didn't have a single plan. Not one. All she was doing was dragging out the game so she can enjoy the anguish that was currently being displayed on his face like a painting.

She did intend to win, so after a few hours of nervous coughs from Shang ye and sipping tea from herself, she started trying.

And it was easy to say she suddenly wanted to drag out the game even more to enjoy the sudden confusion on his face.

Shang ye was even more confused now. Why did all of a sudden it seem like all of his plans was stopping even before the moves got dangerous? It was only like that before.

He looked up at Jin qing, who had a cup to her face. He was sure she was smiling behind it.

She was.

Less than an hour later, the game was finished and Jin qing came out as the winner.

"Well! That was an interesting round." Shang ye noted.

"Yes, it took up most of the afternoon." Jin qing replied "So? Are you satisfied?"

Shang ye rested his cheek on his fist and looked up "Well, yes and no."

"Why would you say that?"

"Because clearly you did something that I don't know about."

"I did what?" Jin qing asked innocently.

"I don't know. But I intend to find out what" he crossed his arms. "We were in a pointless standoff for most of the afternoon. During that time, you barely played, allowing me to move my pieces in a plan that would have cost you the game and stopped me one or two moves before it happened."

"Perhaps I really didn't see them until that time." Jin qing replied, refilling his cup.

"No, you did. Usually, a plan that far would have been impossible to stop, yet you managed, within one step. That takes planning, you knew exactly where I was going to go and put your pieces in a way for you to stop me." He contradicted. "And clearly you decided enough was enough and started playing for real. That's why the game ended so quickly."

Jin qing didn't say anything, she only started to put the pieces away.

"You sly little fox."

Jin qing smiled and handed the box to her maids.

"So now I owe you a favor."

"Yes, you do."

"So?" He asked, spreading his hands. "What will it be?"

"You tell everyone to leave me alone tomorrow unless they want to get hurt or something that needs my attention."

Shang ye laughed out loud. "You really just want to be left alone, huh?"

"Yes."

"Have I pushed my luck too far today?"

"Perhaps."

"Then I'll take my leave."

Jin qing let out a sigh of relief when his footsteps faded into the background. Her posture relaxed and she took in a deep breath. "Oh, finally he's gone!"

"If you were so bent on having him gone, why didn't you quickly finish the match?" Bai yan asked.

"Because it was entertaining." Jin qing rolled her eyes. 

"He was very frustrated." Ye bing grinned "Even we saw it."

"Oh? So it wasn't just me huh?"

"Not at all."

Jin qing rose a cup of tea to her lips and took in the heavenly aroma. "Guess like I'll be alone at last tomorrow."

"Perhaps." Bai yan nodded. 

"Was that his highness Shang ye just now?"

Jin qing sighed and put down her cup of tea. "Huan le, how may I help you?"

Huan le stepped by, glancing at everything in her room. "How nice of a place the emperor has given you. It has changed quite a bit since the last time I have been here."

Jin qing remembered the first day when Huan Le came charging in and almost smiled "Well, I am the Xue Xian after all."

Huan le sat across from her without an invitation and leaned toward her. "Rumors have been flying around that the Emperor has taken a liking to you."

"Oh?"

"Yes, and by putting you in the palace, it is almost guaranteed he'll see you every day." Huan le slammed her hand on the table. "I'm smarter than I look."

"Oh? So what have you figured out?"

"You may be the Xue Xian, but I remind you one thing- You are an illegitimate daughter who spent most of her life in the countryside."

"And so?"

"You know what I mean." Huan le sat up straight, her confidence growing. "I am the eldest daughter of the most prosperous family in the kingdom."

"What does that have anything to do with me?"

"Ever since you came into the spotlight, everyone only talks about you." she snapped "Do you know how shameful it is?"

"Then what would you like me to do?"

"Stay out of my business with the emperor." 

"Never intended to meddle with your affairs." Jin qing grinned.  

"Good." 

"Is that all you came for?"

"That's not all." Huan le smiled "right before you left to that city to help out, Yi ping went with the section of the army that was heading for the western fields with his highness Fu chen at the head."

Jin qing looked up, her smiled wiped clean off her face in an instant. "Wasn't the advancement of the western fields a disaster?"

Huan le grinned "Right."

"Where is he?!" Jin qing demanded, her heart fluttering with frustration. "Is he at home? Or in a hospital recovering?"

"For all we know, Yi ping, the Prince, and a good portion of the land and army were taken captive and is currently being used as hostages."

"When did we learn of this?"

"Two days ago."

"Why didn't anyone tell me?!" Jin qing said, her voice rising.

"Careful." Huan le cooed with a smug smirk on her face "A lady doesn't raise her voice."

Jin qing had other things in mind than lowering her volume. "Answer my question."

"The price they said we had to pay for the safety of the army and the prince... The emperor didn't want you to know."

"Then why are you here?"

Huan le smiled and looked up "To tell you. Yi ping is still my brother."

Jin qing needed to hear no more. She shot up to her feet and ran out, not caring anymore that it was unladylike.

Huan le smiled when Jin qing left. What she said was the truth about the whole hostage issue, but she didn't care about Yi ping like she said she did. Besides, Jin qing was too distraught to read her emotions as she would usually do. 

From her pocket, she took out a small packet and walked over to her sister's tea cabinet. 

Over every packet of tea leaf, she sprinkled some drops of oil of the Ricinus bean. It wouldn't kill, she wasn't evil enough to do that, no, unless she drinks an unusually large amount of tea. But it will be enough to leave her bedridden for a week or two. 

To prevent those from getting traced back to her, she moved the ones she poisoned to the back where it will have to wait several weeks to be consumed. 

Huan le smiled. 
She had a plan to get what she wanted, and this only step one.

If you can't defeat them, you might as well use them to your advantage.

Ahhh Im late

Sorry! I was busy yesterday...

And oh my goodness this book is exploding!

Thanks again for everyone who is reading and I hope you are all are still enjoying this!
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