“And can you tell me what’s written on page 501 of this book?” Na Zhan, now in a playful mood, waved the book in his hand and asked a question that Huang Bei Shuang had no way of answering.
“Your Majesty, ever since I received this book, page 501 has been missing. Moreover, having read the entire work, I can tell that all the important content ends by page 500. That final page likely holds little significance,” Huang Bei Shuang answered calmly.
“Heh!” Na Zhan chuckled lightly.
“Huang Bei Shuang, do you know why I haven’t touched you?” Na Zhan asked.
“Because I told Your Majesty that I’m unwell,” Huang Bei Shuang replied.
Upon hearing this, Na Zhan unexpectedly reached out and touched her cheek, causing her to tremble slightly.
“You showed no fear when facing Ruo Wen, yet here, in front of me, you tremble,” Na Zhan said, withdrawing his hand. He spoke again, his voice carrying an ethereal quality: “Huang Bei Shuang, I need a woman like you. That’s why I’m willing not to possess you. If you’re willing, we can be husband and wife. If not, we can be confidants.”
Huang Bei Shuang’s mind was in turmoil. Clearly, Na Zhan had thoroughly investigated everything she had been through, yet his words left her uncertain whether this was a blessing or a curse.
They sat together by the small table near the window, both lost in thought, neither speaking for a long time.
The next day, Huang Bei Shuang returned to her chambers, exhausted. Her three maids quickly rushed over to assist her.
“Na Shou, did last night…” Qing Yi started to ask, her voice filled with concern, but she hesitated to mention anything related to the intimate affairs of the bedroom.
“I spent the whole night talking with His Majesty. It’s nothing,” Huang Bei Shuang replied. She was extremely tired and lay down on the bed, her mind swirling with thoughts. What exactly did Na Zhan mean with his words? She had a nagging suspicion that there was a deeper plan behind them.
Suddenly, there was a loud knock at the door. Zai Ping hurried over to open it, revealing none other than General Wu Jihai, a rare visitor in the inner palace. His face was solemn, his eyes conflicted, clearly uncomfortable being in a place filled with royal consorts. His expression showed his awkwardness. Without a word, he handed over a brocade box. “His Majesty ordered me to personally deliver this to Consort Shuang,” he said, his tone quick and precise.
Huang Bei Shuang nodded as Lian Huan, who was standing by the door, accepted the box. In that brief moment, the two men—both tall and powerful—sized each other up, each emanating a faint aura of hostility, testing one another’s strength.
This man is no ordinary guard, Wu Jihai thought. Few people could match his presence, but this one seemed to be an exception. He glanced again at Huang Bei Shuang, lying on her bed, being massaged by her two maids to relieve her exhaustion. There was something remarkable about this woman. Though he had come to deliver a gift from the king, it felt as though he had entered the room of another ruler, so strong was her aura of dignity and depth. Who was she, really?
With no answer to his question, Wu Jihai quietly withdrew, his mind full of questions.
When the brocade box was opened, it revealed another book. Huang Bei Shuang’s heart skipped a beat as she immediately turned to the last page. As expected, it was a complete version of The Collected Works of the Great Desert, and on page 501, there was a cryptic message from Na Qida, Na Zhan’s great-grandfather:
"Under the cold moon and falling rain, on a battlefield wrapped in horsehide, one may be called a king, but never an emperor!"
Huang Bei Shuang’s hands trembled as she gently closed the book and placed it back in the box. She then sat on the bed and sighed deeply. Her maids, Qing Yi and Lian Huan, exchanged worried glances, unsure of what could have caused their mistress such distress.
Huang Bei Shuang looked up at Qing Yi and suddenly asked, “If I told you to make peace with the people of Nakuo’er, could you do it?” Her question was unusually serious.
Qing Yi thought for a moment before replying, “You are our mistress now. If you command us to get along with them, we will do it. But if I may speak from the heart, even if we act friendly on the surface, it would be hard to truly reconcile our feelings. I imagine they feel the same way. In the Northern Desert, the largest ruling nation is Tiandu, but they keep to themselves and rarely interfere with the affairs of other tribes. The biggest slave nations are Ernaqi and Nakuo’er. The conflicts between us aren’t new. We take from them, they take from us, we kill them, they kill us. In the end, everyone’s just trying to survive. But if it weren’t for both sides having the support of larger nations, and thus being evenly matched, I don’t think either of us would stop until one side was wiped out. In the end, everyone wants a better life, but there’s only so much land and so many resources. What else can we do? It’s just the will of the heavens.”
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