Page 24 of Song of the Crimson Flower

“Her Majesty awaits you in the rose antechamber, sir,” one of the captains said, glancing at Lan and Bao with surprise. “Are these the smugglers?”

“No, we found them nearby,” Commander Wei said. “I’m taking them to Empress Jade for further questioning. Lead the way.”

They entered the house and found themselves in a bright room full of elegant scrolls and priceless vases. Carved rosewood embellishmentshung all along the walls, matching the furniture, and over each doorway hung white lanterns painted with red peonies. Lan stopped to admire them, thinking how much her mother would love these.

“Come along,” Commander Wei said impatiently. “Let’s not keep Her Majesty waiting.”

“I’m sorry, sir,” she said, scurrying to catch up. “Those lights reminded me of the old folktale about the thousand lanterns. My grandmother told me that each winter on Empress Jade’s birthday, the people of the Great Forest hang lanterns in the trees to honor her family. I always begged to go and see it, but my parents said I was too delicate to travel as a child.”

To her surprise, Lan saw the Commander’s face soften. “It’s been a tradition for the past eight years, since Her Majesty took the throne. It’s quite a sight to see.” He glanced at her. “You seem in good health now. Minister Vu still hasn’t taken you?”

“I haven’t asked my father to go for years now,” Lan said, surprised by the realization. “I suppose I’ve been too busy worrying about other things.”Like getting married, she thought. She wondered when that had happened—when she had stopped wanting to see Empress Jade’s lanterns and started caring more about wedding clothes.

“Well, we all grow up sometime,” Commander Wei said, some of his gruffness returning as he strode ahead with his men, leading Lan and Bao down an elegant corridor.

“This family, whoever they are, must be well connected,” Lan said to Bao in a low voice.

“Better connected than your family?”

Lan stifled a laugh. “My family can’t compare to this. I wouldn’t be surprised if these people were kin to the king of the Grasslands himself, with a guest like Empress Jade.”

“So you are to them as I am to you?”

She raised her eyebrows at him in delight. “Bao, was that a joke? Take care or we might end up being friends before we even get to the witch.”

Bao blushed and ducked his head, and then they were ushered into the room in which the Empress of the Great Forest awaited them.

11

The rose antechamber was decorated in warm pink tones, with chairs upholstered in silk from the Great Forest and tables inlaid with pearls from Kamatsu. It was a room her mother would have adored, which made Lan feel a bit more at home.

Lan had expected Empress Jade, descendant of the Dragon King, to be a magnificent, powerful-looking person. As such, she was stunned to see a small-framed, delicate young woman sitting at the mahogany tea table in flowing robes of deep red silk. Commander Wei bowed low to the Empress and the man beside her, and Lan was astonished to see Her Majesty incline her head back. She had never imagined a monarch showing respect to anyone, let alone the man who merely commanded her army. Lan nudged Bao, who stood flustered and staring, to bow with her.

“I’m glad you’re back safely, Wei,” Empress Jade said, with an affectionate smile at the Commander. She was in her mid-twenties but looked much younger, with a round, sweet face and wide, expressive eyes. Shewore no ornamentation except for a few gold hairpins and a gold ring or two on the hand that rested on her heavily pregnant belly. “What have you to report?”

“Your Majesty, we intercepted a wagonload of black spice,” the Commander said, his back impeccably straight as he addressed her. “The information from our scouts proved to be correct, and we were able to ambush the bandits before they went on to Surjalana.”

“Well done.” The Empress turned to the man sitting with her. “You were right. To think a whole wagonload could have slipped through our fingers if not for the scouts. These smugglers would have been deep in the desert in a matter of days, selling their wares legally.”

The man furrowed his brow in agreement. “The river road is the fastest route north from the Gray City,” he said, then looked at the Commander. “This is welcome news indeed, but I’m afraid there will be many more attempts in the future. The king of Surjalana refuses to join in our efforts to outlaw black spice entirely, and so the smugglers will continue going north to sell it. I suppose they aren’t called thelawless marble citiesfor nothing.”

Lan recognized the man speaking as Lord Koichi, the Empress’s husband and head of her royal cabinet of ministers. He was one of the handsomest men she had ever seen, with a sweep of jet-black hair over a strong forehead and chiseled jaw. His feet rested on a high brocade footstool that had been provided for his comfort, as a person of short stature. She remembered asking her father why Lord Koichi hadn’t become Emperor after his wedding, and her father had explained that it was because Empress Jade was the one who had descended from the ruling familyandhad chosen to rule in her own right. “He supports his wife in her choice, and in all other aspects,” Minister Vu had said with a hint of admiration.“The man has no interest in power.”

Now she listened as Commander Wei continued giving his report to the royal couple.

“The smugglers must have expected an attack, because they were well armed and fought viciously,” he said. “I lost several good men, but I would have lost many more if it hadn’t been for one of Lord Nguyen’s new explosives. It’s fortunate that the nobleman is on our side and not the Gray City’s, despite all of their efforts. I must admit, Your Majesty, that I had the audacity to doubt his word and yours when he gifted them as weapons to our army.”

“Caution is a virtue,” Empress Jade reassured him. “But I’m glad the nobleman’s new weapons were able to help you.” Her eyes moved to Lan and Bao, and Lan felt a nervous jolt as she lowered her gaze with respect. Her mother had taught her all of the necessary etiquette, but it all flew right out of Lan’s head as the Empress studied them. “You say you captured none of the smugglers alive, Wei. Who are these young people behind you?”

“I found them hiding nearby, Your Majesty. They claim to be citizens of the Sacred Grasslands, and as such, would fall under their king’s jurisdiction, but I discovered that the boy is originally from the Gray City.” Commander Wei’s stern gaze swept over them. “They were also searching for a woman taken to the city by the surviving bandits, which concerned me.”

Lan kept her eyes lowered and heard Bao’s intake of breath as Empress Jade rose and approached them.If only Ba and Mama could see me now, she thought, feeling awed.I’m standing before the woman who brought down the scourge of the empire.Lan had been ten years old when the Great Battle had happened, and had listened hungrily to all the details when her father and older brothers had discussed it.

Empress Jade’s family had once reigned over all five kingdoms ofFeng Lu: the Great Forest, the Sacred Grasslands, Kamatsu, Dagovad, and Surjalana. After Jade’s mother had died, her father the Emperor had wed Xifeng, a woman of legendary beauty and cruelty who had nearly sent Feng Lu into devastation. Eight years ago, at barely eighteen, Jade had gone on a quest to summon the Dragon Lords, the gods who had created the continent, to defeat Xifeng, and had subsequently disbanded the empire to render all of the kingdoms free and independent.

A smell of orange blossoms and white jasmine followed the Empress as she stood in front of Lan and Bao. But when Lan allowed herself a quick glance upward, she saw that Her Majesty was not looking at her, but at Bao.

“Young man, what has happened to you?” Empress Jade asked, and Bao’s head snapped up, astonished. “Years ago, when I undertook my quest, I came across a ghost who was holding on to a crane-maiden’s cloak, and I saw, too, my mother and my eldest brother, Fu, long after they had passed from this life. You are not a spirit, and yet I have seen too many people not of this world to mistake your strange form. Please tell me your story.”

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