Mei Lin's POV
The stone floor was still wet under my knees when the guards grabbed my arms.
Get up. The commander's voice cut through the morning air like a blade. Imperial Noble Consort Lian has accused you of theft.
My scrubbing brush clattered to the ground. Around me, other servants scattered like frightened birds. I tried to pull free, but iron fingers dug into my shoulders.
There's been a mistake
Move.
They dragged me through the palace corridors. My bare feet scraped against cold marble. Nobles turned to stare as we passed. Their silk robes whispered like snakes. My rough servant's tunicstill damp from scrubbing, marked me as prey.
The Imperial Court rose before me like a mountain of gold and crimson. Hundreds of officials filled the hall. At the center, on a platform draped in white silk, stood Imperial Noble Consort Lian.
She was beautiful the way a knife is beautiful. Her robes shimmered like blood in water. Jade ornaments hung from her hair, each one worth more than my entire life.
Her lips curved into a smile that didn't reach her eyes.
The guards forced me to my knees. The impact sent pain shooting up my legs. I pressed my forehead to the floor and tasted dust.
Mei Lin. Lian's voice was sweet as poisoned honey. Do you know why you're here?
No, my lady.
Liar. The word cracked like a whip. Yesterday, my jade bracelet disappeared. This morning, the guards found it hidden in your quarters.
Gasps echoed through the hall. I lifted my head just enough to see a guard step forward. He held a jade bracelet on a silk cushion. Green stone carved with dragons—worth enough to feed a village for years.
My stomach dropped.
I didn't
Silence! Chief Minister Shen's voice boomed. He was a mountain of a man with a beard like gray wire. The evidence speaks clearly. Confess your crime, and the Emperor may grant you a quick death.
Quick death. My hands started shaking.
Six years. Six years I'd scrubbed floors and emptied chamber pots and kept my head down. Six years of being invisible, collecting secrets, waiting for my chance at revenge.
And now Lian was going to have me executed over a bracelet I never touched.
I pressed my forehead harder against the floor, mind racing. Why now? What had I done to make her notice me?
Then I remembered. Three days ago, I'd cleaned Lian's chambers. She'd been arguing with someone behind a screen—a man's voice I didn't recognize. They'd spoken about money. Embezzlement. Someone named Wei.
I'd pretended not to hear. But Lian must have suspected.
This wasn't about theft. This was about silencing a witness.
The Emperor approaches! A eunuch's voice rang out. All kneel!
The hall exploded into motion. Hundreds of bodies dropped to the floor like puppets with cut strings. I stayed frozen, forehead pressed to cold marble, heart hammering against my ribs.
Footsteps. Slow. Measured. Coming closer.
They stopped directly in front of me.
Rise. The Emperor's voice was younger than I expected. Sharp as broken glass.
I lifted my head.
Emperor Zhao Yiren stood five paces away. Twenty-nine years old but his eyes looked ancient. Beautiful in the way storms are beautiful—dangerous and impossible to look away from. His dragon robes seemed to drink the light from the room.
Imperial Noble Consort Lian. He didn't take his eyes off me. Explain.
Lian bowed gracefully. Your Majesty, this servant stole my jade bracelet. The guards found it in her quarters. I demand justice.
The evidence, Chief Minister?
Shen stepped forward with the bracelet. The Emperor took it, turning it over in his hands. Light caught the carved dragons.
Mei Lin. My name in his mouth sounded different. Do you confess?
This was it. My last chance to speak before the sentence fell.
I could grovel. Beg for mercy. Play the terrified servant.
But groveling wouldn't save me. Lian wanted me dead. The Emperor would agree because a servant's life meant nothing.
Unless I made myself interesting.
I took a breath that felt like swallowing broken glass.
Your Majesty. I kept my voice steady. I am guilty of many things. I was born to poverty. I scrub floors while others wear silk. These crimes I confess freely.
The Emperor's eyebrow lifted slightly.
But theft? I met his eyes, something no servant should ever do. That crime I did not commit.
The hall erupted. Nobles shouted. Guards moved forward. But the Emperor raised one hand and silence crashed down like a hammer.
You speak well for a servant. His voice was soft. Deadly soft.
My father believed education was a gift to be shared, Your Majesty. Even with daughters.
Something flickered in his eyes. Curiosity, maybe. Or suspicion.
Lian's face had gone white. Your Majesty, she lies. The bracelet
Was found in my quarters, yes. I kept my eyes on the Emperor. But I've cleaned Imperial Noble Consort Lian's rooms every week for six months. I know her jewelry well.
I gestured toward the bracelet in his hands.
That bracelet has a scratch on the dragon's eye. I caused it myself last week while polishing. I apologized to her personal maid.
Lian's face drained of color.
But the bracelet you're holding, Your Majesty... I took the biggest gamble of my life. It has no scratch at all.
The Emperor's eyes narrowed. He lifted the bracelet, examining it in the light.
The hall held its breath.
His gaze shifted to Lian. Is this true? Does your bracelet have a scratch?
Lian's mouth opened. Closed. Her hands trembled.
I... I don't recall...
You don't recall a flaw in jewelry worth a province? The Emperor's voice could freeze blood. Guards. Fetch the Imperial Noble Consort's jewelry box. Now.
My heart was a war drum. I'd bought myself minutes. Maybe.
The Emperor turned back to me. Studied me like I was a puzzle he wanted to solve.
You're either very clever or very foolish.
Perhaps both, Your Majesty.
His lips twitched. Almost a smile. Almost.
The guards returned running, carrying a lacquered box. The Emperor opened it himself. Inside, nested in silk, lay an identical jade bracelet.
With a tiny scratch across the dragon's left eye.
The silence was so complete I could hear my own heartbeat.
The Emperor looked at Lian. Then at the bracelet in his hand. Then at me.
It seems, he said slowly, someone has attempted to deceive the throne.
Lian dropped to her knees. Your Majesty, I can explain
Silence.
She flinched like he'd struck her.
The Emperor walked toward me. Each step echoed in the silent hall. He stopped so close I could see gold threads in his robes.
You've proven your innocence, Mei Lin. But you've also revealed something... interesting. His eyes burned into mine. You're no ordinary servant. Your education. Your composure. The way you speak.
My throat went dry.
So I offer you a choice. He leaned closer. His next words were meant only for me, but his voice carried through the hall like thunder. Confess what you're hiding and accept execution. Or become my concubine, survive one year in the harem, and earn your freedom.
The world stopped spinning.
Become his concubine. Live in the Inner Court where Lian ruled through poison and politics. Where seven women had died mysterious deaths in the past three years.
Where my family's murderers walked free.
Or die now. Quick and clean.
I looked into the Emperor's eyes and saw something unexpected. Loneliness. Hidden beneath layers of power and distance, but there. Real.
He was offering me survival. But also a cage.
Behind him, Lian's face twisted with pure hatred. If I accepted, I'd be her enemy forever.
But if I died now, my father's killers would win.
I met the Emperor's gaze and spoke the words that would change everything.
This unworthy servant accepts Your Majesty's mercy.
The Emperor smiled. It was sharp and dangerous and made my stomach flip.
Excellent. He turned to address the court. Mei Lin is now a concubine of the Imperial household. Rank: Promised Maiden. Anyone who harms her answers to me personally.
He looked directly at Lian when he said it.
Then he leaned close to me again, his breath warm against my ear.
Welcome to the harem, Mei Lin. Try not to die too quickly. I'm curious to discover all your secrets.
He walked away, robes flowing like water.
Guards lifted me to my feet. As they led me out, I caught Lian's expression.
Murder. Pure, cold murder.
I'd just made the most powerful woman in the palace my mortal enemy.
And the Emperor—the man whose trusted advisor had destroyed my family—wanted to uncover who I really was.
I'd gambled my life to survive one more day.
Now I just had to figure out how to survive a thousand more.