The moment Zhan struggled to hold back his tears, he shook his head in denial. King Yibo, who had been watching him with a cold, piercing gaze, turned toward Prince Yuhui, who was holding the parchment containing the charges against Zhan.
Prince Yuhui stood respectfully and bowed slightly to the King before turning to face Zhan again.
"Your royal consort, this honorable court seeks to hear your response to the charges brought against you," he said firmly. "Did you truly commit these acts as accused, or is there another truth behind them?"
Before Zhan could speak, Jasrah, blurted out angrily, "So it's false then? Are you saying we fabricated the entire thing after your own confession...."
But she froze midway when King Yibo's sharp glance silenced her instantly. She swallowed her words, bowing her head. Yibo's eyes turned back to Prince Yuhui, signaling him to proceed.
Prince Yuhui inclined his head again and returned his attention to Zhan.
Zhan showed immense composure, trying hard to keep his tears from falling. Yet the ache in his chest was almost unbearable, each breath shallow and heavy. He didn't need Jasrah to say anything....he could read the tension and unease in all their faces. Only Daneen seemed a little gentler; Zhan knew he had nothing harsh to say about her.
"The court will now hear from the royal consort," Prince Yuhui announced respectfully.
To everyone's shock, Zhan smiled faintly....a calm, unsettling smile...and slowly raised his head for the first time, meeting no one's eyes directly. Adjusting his posture, he looked toward the section where Prince Deng and his kin sat, noticing their nervous glances and feigned composure.
(Relax. We're not there yet…) he thought quietly, lowering his gaze again.
Then, in a steady and clear voice, Zhan faced the court.
"My name is Xiao Zhan. Let me first apologize before saying what everyone wants to hear. I know that even if I hadn't been brought here, rumors would already have spread that I no longer breathe....simply for being the one harming a man as powerful as the King himself. So let's not waste the court's time. Yes...it was I who gave him the milk laced with serpent's venom."
Gasps filled the living room. Every eye widened in disbelief at Zhan's boldness.
Prince Yuhui, simply stared at him, astonished by the courage....or madness....of the young man before him.
Zhan, unfazed, shrugged lightly and continued, his voice still calm but firm.
"However, what should surprise this court is not that I gave him the milk, but why I had it in the first place. I shouldn't be the one standing trial, nor should I be the target of this desperate hunt for punishment, as if my very breath threatens the peace of the palace.
If I were you, I would focus on discovering where that poisoned milk truly came from. Still, I want my King and his family to investigate thoroughly....not because I fear judgment, but because I want the truth exposed.
And it's not because I'm unwilling to name names. I want you all to uncover the truth yourselves....before I speak it. Because even if my last breath leaves my body, I'll make sure every root of this plot is unearthed. Let those who murdered the former royal consorts prepare themselves; their reckoning is coming.
Lastly, I ask this court to release the King's loyal attendant and the royal cooks. They are innocent. But for those who believe they've buried Xiao Zhan....prepare yourselves. The game isn't over. The ground hasn't even been cleared yet. You will answer for the blood of my kin and my parents, even if my chapter ends here."
King Yibo's expression didn't change, but a faint thought crossed his mind as he half closed his eyes, still watching Zhan's inviting lips.
(This audacious boy will make them bury me alive one day…)
A faint smile threatened to escape him, but he swallowed it. Outwardly, his face was stone... calm and unreadable....but the quiet fire in his eyes was enough to make anyone who looked at him tremble.
The entire hall seemed to exhale at once. Their hearts thudded like drums....Zhan's words had landed like a sudden explosion in the marketplace, leaving everyone dazed and unsure where the blast would hit next.
They stared at one another in disbelief, each wary of making the first move for fear suspicion would swing toward them. Dowager Cixi shifted her gaze angrily, about to speak, but Dowager Liu Mei clamped her hand over Cixi's wrist and forced a swallow, silencing her.
Dowager Taihou, too, felt uneasy. Despite the force of Zhan's statement, she suspected a trap.... some scheme designed to evade justice.... and when she tried to argue, Daneen shook her head sharply, stopping her.
Prince Yuhui, papers in hand, stood frozen for a moment, steady despite the strain on him. He turned to look at King Yibo.
King Yibo said nothing for several minutes while tension rippled through the room. At last he cleared his throat and, with the calm authority everyone had come to expect, glanced at Zhan in a way that made Zhan shiver.
(Inwardly King Yibo muttered: "Show another face now that you dropped a bomb.") "Outwardly composed, he announced, "Given the severity of the accusation in this case and the statements from the accused, we will adjourn this session for three days. Security for the accused will be tightened. The request to release the servants has been denied. If anyone has further evidence to present, the court will hear it."
No one spoke. Many suspected there was a reason to be cautious....King Yibo's decisions had weight, and his caution signaled depth.
He scanned the living room and let his gaze rest on the Dowager Ruyan. Eyes across the hall followed hers. Dowager Ruyan inclined respectfully and addressed the court in a measured voice. "We appreciate the court's fairness. We request that the accused be grant bail and that strong measures be taken to protect his safety. Those he accused of such crimes must not be sit free to hide while proceeding to trial, they will try to harm or silent him."
Silence followed, heavy and expectant. After several moments King Yibo replied, "The court accepts the petition. However, bail cannot be granted until some minimal, persuasive new lead is produced. Bail may be reconsidered at the next session."
He rose, regal and composed, and left the living room. Everyone bowed their heads until he had gone.
Zhan, sensing all the eyes on him, lifted his head slightly. He could see Prince Langya and Prince Deng staring as if they might crumble under their own intensity. Zhan gave a short, wicked smile, winked at them and raised three fingers in a mocking salute.
The guards moved to lead him away to his cell.
- - - -
They walked in tight formation, silence and tension thick as they reached Prince Deng's sitting room....the place where they would plot their response.
"I'll kill him myself," Prince Langya hissed. "With my own hands."
"That would only give the king the excuse to hand us over," Prince Deng snapped, grabbing Prince Langya's collar. "What do you expect? That this street-rat refuses to name us is protecting our secrets? Pull yourself together. This is a trap laid for us...a direct threat to our families and our influence. I never imagined that sort of audacity."
Prince Deng's voice softened as he patted Langya's shoulder. "There are grievances to settle," he said. "We will make him pay in a way that suits our standing. We'll show the world that we...the families.... control the narrative. Be calm, brother. He's only one, and we can neutralize him if we act carefully."
He let out a small, cold chuckle and trailed off....the plan already forming between them.
Prince Langya let out a short, sharp snort. "Calm down? Do you think I can calm down when I'm staring at the end of my ninety-nine days? Deng, be careful....don't underestimate the one you belittle. He's become my obsession. Look at the way that contemptible kid looks at you; you know he's crossed a line. I suspect this troublemaker is backed by Yibo.... isn't he?"
Langya's words seemed to steady Prince Deng a little; the heat left his face as he inhaled and nodded. "You're right, Langya. But understand this: killing Zhan outright won't be simple. No one will dare show negligence or fail to protect him, not while Dowager Ruyan and his husband is protecting him."
"Our only real option now is to go to Barbushi. He's the one who should handle this."
Langya bowed, satisfied.
★★★
King Yibo fought the smile that kept trying to surface; he lost the battle and let it slip, then closed his eyes. "Remarkable," he said softly, folding back into the quiet dignity of his chair.
(Do you not understand the value of people?)
Memory after memory from that first encounter with Zhan — moments that have never been erased...rushed back to him, as if those lines were etched and refused to fade. Zhan's words returned to him now.
(You almost crushed the kid, but because you're so confident you thought you could get away with it. Come see how it feels when you cross us....the wealthy, the powerful who shove poor people aside with your fancy tires paid for by our money.)
(No one will leave this place unless you check the boy and apologize to his grandmother. Otherwise, we would be here all night.)
"You have the gut," Yibo murmured, allowing a faint half-smile at the corner of his mouth, as if someone else were in the room with him. He fought to hold back everything, but the struggle left a trace.
(If your hand ever dares to touch even my coat again, I will break it. Even if your King ordered it, he wouldn't leave this place alive. From now on, if you see me coming, change course....even if you're on a plane.)
Yibo closed his eyes and brushed his palm over the black fabric of his lapel. Then, with measured composure and a slight dismissive smile, he said, "Drama queen."
(Seems King Yibo has wandered into the rose garden.) 🤭
★★
"Mother, honestly, that Zhan makes me uneasy," Daneen admitted, anxiety plain on her face. Dowager Ruyan smiled, teeth flashing, and looked at her sharply. "What is there to fear, Daneen?"
"Mother, listen to what he says. He's provoking the guilty ones on purpose. I've tried to contact Princess Nan" (her sister) "but the calls won't get through."
Dowager Ruyan watched her closely, then gave a warning smirk. "You won't tell her? Good. Don't start a fight you can't finish. You know her character.... she's dangerous. She doesn't filter anything, and she's always been hostile toward that marriage and toward pulling Zhan into our affairs from the start. She refused to look at him even when the story broke."
Daneen nodded. "True, Mother. But I'm worried....his remarks about things no one else knows, his knowledge of events before he had any connection to this palace… How does he know? Could Zhan be something else entirely?"
Dowager Ruyan laughed, then stopped when Daneen looked back at her with expectation. "There's no spirit, my dear. He's a man like any other. And whatever you think he knows, he learned in his short time here. I myself suspect Zhan is exceptional....there's something hidden about him, a weighty secret even he may not fully understand."
"Mother, you're creeping me out," Daneen said.
"Should I become a ghost then?" Dowager Ruyan teased, smiling.
"Please, Mother....don't do anything dramatic in the palace. You know I only mean well." She glanced at her daughter and smiled, relieved. Ruyan adored Daneen; she had always favored her. Daneen carried qualities her siblings lacked, and a fate had settled over her that none could explain. Ruyan breathed out a soft, ironic sigh, hiding the worry beneath it.
★★
Zhan laughed and cried at once.... the laughter spurred by remembering the faces of Prince Langya and Prince Deng, and by the baffled shock on their faces at his words. The tears came from the knowledge that there was nothing he could do now: he had already lost his family in the scheme....lost them forever. Still, there was a cold satisfaction in him today. If they can killed King Yibo, Zhan knew they were the ones killing the king's royal consorts. The upheaval he'd sown in the hearts of the court's great families would be a wound that never fully healed.
It would also fuel the people of the Beiping Empire's hunger to know who King Yibo truly was, to uncover whatever truth lay behind the façade. Yibo himself would be forced to explain himself to the nation, even if the constitution never required it. Fear would follow the people who had plotted against him....and maybe protection reach the wives he might wed in future.
He'd thrown two birds with one stone: a scandal that would unsettle the princes and test loyalties. Zhan suspected Prince Deng as well...if they could scheme to kill King Yibo, they might also eliminate his consorts to stain his name or to cover their motives.
"Enjoy your Beiping household," Zhan muttered, chuckling again as he paced the cell. The scent that had stuck his nose....that same trace perfume....made his smile halted. He tried to deny the flash of memory, lifted his head and pressed his hands into his knees, shaking his head as if to clear himself.
King Yibo sat across from him, in the austere dignity he brought everywhere. The new cell appointed for Zhan had been laid out that day in a way that suited Yibo's taste for control.
"How did the King enter without Zhan knowledge, from where"
Even in modest clothing, Yibo carried an air of careful refinement; every small choice in his appearance seemed deliberate, almost ornamental. His feet were planted on one heel; Zhan caught the movement and flinched, forcing himself to look away.
Yibo, in his usual composed manner, averted his eyes from Zhan and rose slightly as if to acknowledge him. His hands were tucked into his pockets; he made a small shift, the sort of confident posture a man uses to impress or unsettle another, then turned his gaze back to Zhan with that blade-like intensity.
Slowly, with the deliberate calm of someone who expects to be obeyed, Yibo opened his mouth in a low voice. "Who are you? What do you want? Were you sent here to me, or to my family? Power? Wealth? Or reputation....a name for yourself?"
King Yibo's words cut Zhan, but Yibo's charisma and the dignified light in his eyes held him still.
For nearly a minute Zhan said nothing. Then, as if driven on by some stubborn courage, he drew a long breath, exhaled, forced that bravery into his face and let a small, controlled smile slip out. Barely keeping his composure, he swallowed that smile and answered.
"I don't owe anyone anything," he said. "I need nothing from anyone. Wealth... pearls, gold, all the riches of Beiping....none of it can buy what I want."
"Power isn't on my list; it never interested me. If I want a name, there are ways beyond this place to make the world know me...not just Beiping. I sent myself here to avenge what was done, to confront the killer, even if he calls himself king."
Zhan fell quiet, turning his head away from Yibo's gaze. Yibo kept watching him, expression tightened exactly as before.
A flicker of resolve crossed Zhan... adrenaline making him stand a little straighter. He fixed Yibo with a steady, deliberate look. Yibo held that stare; Zhan's gaze carried a different kind of pressure, and Yibo's body tightened in reply.
Then, as if to push aside the feeling that was rising between them, Yibo began to close the distance. Zhan moved as though to retreat, an almost seated step that still left him within reach. Yibo rested a hand on the metal of the bedside rail, inclined toward Zhan. The breath between them quickened.... Yibo's exhale seemed to return Zhan to a ragged awareness. Yibo's nose brushed Zhan's nose, and in that instant it felt as if Yibo might press their lips together; the king's eyes softened, the color shifting subtly, a sleepy, unreadable tenderness settling over his face.
"Even the biggest beast can be outwitted," Yibo said quietly, his voice low and dangerous. "Your are fearless and courageous . Don't push me into a corner and force me to do what my heart keeps whispering I should."
Zhanxianyibo💚❤️💛