16-

Chang'An Capital

Shensi Province

T'ang Dynasty

Tang Zhen-Ting

"Bow to Heaven!"

I would forever be a Tang, forever the daughter of Akbaru Alinejad.

"Bow to Earth!"

I would forever be an orphan, one tied to my past and defined by it.

I would always be Adira.

"Bow to your Ancestors!"

I was marrying a Li, one of the royal family...but I would never be a Li, I would stay a Tang.

"Bow to your parents!"

For the first time, for the only time, I would bow before my uncle as the man who took me in, the man who adopted me. It was the only time I would ever accept the Zhao as my parent.

And for the first time in many, I would bow before Li Wuji's aunt and uncle, accepting them as my mother and father-in-law as he accepted them as his parents...

Except we both knew that he didn't.

"Bow to each other!"

The veil barely shielded my sight as I turned to face Wuji, seeing the blasted red color that filled my every sense since the moment I stepped out of the paladin.

He stared me in the eye, even with the veil he held my gaze, reading me as though I were transparent.

"Marry me."

"Better to sink together than alone...don't you think?"

"I wouldn't allow you to get hurt."

"And anyways, wouldn't we make an interesting couple?"

A Li...the world would now see me as a Li.

The wife of a bastard boy raised in the palace. The wife of a rake, of an illegitimate child born out of disgrace. They would not see me as the daughter of the great Tang Huixua, they never had anyways...but this time.

This time it would be so much worse.

Li Wuji smiled at me, a small smile I couldn't let escape without one of my own.

At least if I sunk in this sea of cruelty...at least if he sunk...

We'd sink together.

-

Zhao Liangjie

Fireworks echoed in the air and mingled with the sound of children's laughter.

Laughter.

I could've sworn I heard Adira's laughter. There was no doubt it was hers: loud, choppy, bordering that of a man's...and yet somehow delicate, high-pitched like that of a woman's...just like her.

I hadn't heard my sister laugh since...our father was alive.

It was the same now as it was then, she hadn't laughed enough to change it.

"She's on her way to the wedding chambers...I'm sure you'll want to see her before."

I tensed at the voice, not even needing to look to know who it was. "Xie xie."

Li Mei didn't move as I got up from the stool and turned around, staring at me defiantly as though it were some sort of dare.

I wasn't about to take her up on it. "If you would excuse me."

She raised a brow at me. "Do you know where it is?"

I inhaled deeply. Who was this woman? She barged into my space, scrutinized my every movement...did she think I was below her?

Fine, if she wanted it this way, she would have it.

"I don't, can you take me there please?"

-

Zhao Jiayi

"Are you tired?"

My body tensed as Li Xiao gently grasped my elbow, his lips brushing against the shell of my ear as he leaned forward. "Do you want to stay here?"

The crowd was filled with men half drunk and dignitaries arguing, and I slowly began to realize that not one woman could be found anywhere in sight. Frowning in confusion, I turned to look questioningly at Li Xiao. "Where did everyone go?"

"To their homes, its nearly midnight...let me take you to bed."

His soft voice had me slowly relax, I took his outstretched hand and let him lead me towards our chambers.

He never let go of my hand, not saying a word until he reached the entrance and stopped at the doors. Li Xiao turned to face me slowly. "Go inside and sleep. Your cousin and Wuji will be doing the greeting early tomorrow."

My lips thinned at that. A month since he had returned from the battlefield, nearly two since we had been married ourselves, and yet he still never even slept beside me. It would have hurt me less if it had been because he did not want me...but I knew better as to why.

Gathering my courage once more, I grabbed his wrist before he let go, catching him off guard completely. "You should get some rest as well." Li Xiao forced out a small smile and nodded. "I will, xie xie."

The fear in my rose as my grip tightened, he raised a brow at me. "Stay."

There, I had said it. Relief didn't come however, instead I felt as if I would shrink under the new gaze he gave me. Li Xiao stepped forward cautiously, and it took all of my will not to take a step back.

I, Zhao Jiayi, would never admit to anyone, that I was nervous.

-

Li Xiao

"Stay?"

I stared at her as she nodded quietly, eyes cast to the ground and refusing to look me in the eye. I hated when she did that to me...her eyes were beautiful.

Jiayi still held on to my wrist, and I used that to pull her closer to me, leaving only a few spaces between us. "Jiayi...what did you ask me?" Her bottom lip quivered slightly as she spoke barely above a whisper. "Stay...tonight."

I released a breath I hadn't realized I'd been holding, my feet automatically taking another step forward. "You know what you're asking...right?"

And she nodded. "I'm. Asking you to stay."

Finally.

All the self-restraint I had forced myself through was so close to vanishing at those words, yet I knew that I couldn't scare Jiayi away. It had taken this long for her to let me in...

She let out a small gasp when the palm of my hand brushed against her cheek, and I looked at her in disbelief. A woman whose wit and silver-tongued spared no one was acting like a shy child in front of me. I nearly laughed at the fact. "Now where did the beggar-girl run off to. Jiayi, I'm not going to hurt you."

Jiayi scoffed loudly at that, a sorry attempt in trying to hide her anxiousness. "I know that." Chuckling, I let that same hand drift down to her jaw, then her neck, brushing the hair away my trail. "Stop standing like you're a soldier at camp. No one is going to punish you for slipping up." It made me happy to hear her laugh at that, at least, the corners of her eyes crinkling as she shook her head lightly at what I said.

Then I bent forward, barely whispering as I stared her in the eye. She didn't look away this time. "I'm going to kiss you."

And when she didn't say anything in response, I did.

-

Tang Zhen-Ting

Married people...what did married people do again?

The day the town found out I was getting married to Li Wuji, nearly all the women crowded around me as I made my usual rounds down the streets. Young and old, married and not, they all had some form of commentary or advice to give me...

More unwelcome than anything else.

"You know he has quite the...experience, right?"

"You'll have brothel women you need to compete with, good luck?"

"Maybe you could sneak into a brothel and ask for advice?'

"A Muslim marrying a rake...how does that work?"

"If you're having any doubt and you want to back out last minute, just tell me. My daughter has her wedding hufu ready and we can make a last-minute switch any moment."

"This bag has herbs in it, put it under your pillow on your wedding night for...you know."

I nearly vomited at that. Now here I was, sitting on the bed and staring out at the opposite wall as he sat beside me and did the same.

It was quiet for about ten minutes before he spoke up. "Are you going to be like Jiayi?" I raised a brow at that, realizing that he couldn't see my face. "What?"

Wuji sighed loudly before rubbing his hands against his knees. "Li Xiao tries to fool me, but I know better. Him and your cousin haven't had a night together...and it's been two months." He turned to face me with a serious expression. "Are you going to be like that?"

I lifted the veil and stared at him blankly. "Are you drunk?" Li Wuji scoffed. "Drunk? I learned my lesson, no getting drunk around you unless you're drunk too." My eyes widened slightly. "Congratulations on learning such a lesson."

It took about a fraction of a second before his face was mere hair-lengths from mine. I didn't blink, but my insides were churning at the sudden act. His look turned to a steady gaze. "Are you?"

"Should I?" He frowned. "Why should you?" I lifted my shoulders to a light shrug. "It seems as though your reputation has quite the experience...mine has none. Maybe I should take my time." A low groan came out of him before he backed away.

I thought he'd get up. I was wrong.

For a woman who had been fighting nearly her entire life, I certainly had slow reflexes when it came to Li Wuji, completely caught off guard when he then pushed me to my back on the bed and moved rather quickly so that his legs were on either side on my frame. The only thing keeping him off of me was the fact that he rested on his elbows while staring at me with a grin...a grin I didn't like. "I'll teach you."

"You are drunk." Now it was his turn to shrug. "Only had a cup. Nerves."

So he was nervous as well, of course he was. "So, are you going to be like your cousin, or no?"

This was it. With a final prayer to God above, I inhaled deeply before reaching down to struggle at the knot of my hufu. I nearly gasped when his hand shot down and grabbed my wrist, looking up to see all humor gone from his face as he studied me for a moment.

"I'll do it Adira...just breathe."

I didn't know what he meant, not until he lowered himself so that there was no more space between us, his lips ghosting over the skin of my neck before pressing down on it as he removed my hand and began undoing the know himself.

And I did what he said, I breathed.

-

Chang'An Capital

Shensi Province

T'ang Dynasty

K'āi Yuán of Ming-huang Wan-sui

Yr. 736

Three years later

Lady Xue

The teacup in her hand fell to the ground and shattered, quickly followed by her almost jumping to her feet as she grabbed onto the table beside her for support. "Wh-what did you say?"

The eunuch bowed before her with arms trembling. "I...I'm sorry gongzhu. It is true."

The Crown Princess didn't even have a chance to collapse before the doors of the hall burst open again, Li Xiao and Chancellor Zhang rushing in hurriedly.

Former Chancellor Zhang.

The news hit her in the stomach and nearly knocked the breath out of her. The Emperor removed Zhang Jiuling from his position as Chancellor. After years of having his support and steadfast protection in the court, she realized that the only shield she had against Consort Wu's wiles was the Chancellors Zhang and Pei. They were trusted, and they trusted both her and her husband Li Ying as the future rulers of great T'ang.

Wu's arrows finally shattered the shield, Li Linfu had spent too many days with the Emperor, too many days wearing him from the duties of court...and now an Emperor fell for an ignorant lie that had him remove his most honest and upright men in court.

And now, both she and Li Ying were targets without protection.

Lady Xue knew that her days were numbered, and that fact sent chills down her spine.

Seeing the two walked in caused her to force out a smile that in no way reached her eyes.

The two, her support force, bowed. "Xue gongzhu."

She reached out a shaky hand to motion for them to rise. They had a sense of urgency in their expressions. "Gongzhu, you've heard the news." Xue nodded slowly, a maid aiding her to sit back down since it seemed as though all the strength escaped her body. "What...who is he replacing you with?"

Li Xiao glanced at Zhang and mimicked his sour glare. "Niu Xianke, on the recommendation by Linfu."

She didn't think that the news could have been worse than what she had first heard. She was wrong. Her voice came out shakily. "Now what do we do...Li Ying. Wu is going after him next."

"Gongzhu...she already has." This time Zhang spoke up. "Linfu has made a recommendation at court..."

"Li Mao, to become Crown Prince."

She heard shouts as she dropped to the floor, vision becoming a blur as she fainted.