Qing Yun set the map made of animal hide aside and stood up. “General Ji Hua, there’s no time to waste. Tonight, under the guise of Tiandu reinforcements, lead your troops into Huohe. If you can occupy it without bloodshed, all the better!”
General Ji Hua straightened his posture and replied, “Rest assured, Your Majesty!” With that, he rose to leave.
“Wait!” Qing Yun called after him, and Ji Hua knelt down again.
“Has there been any activity at Guang Han Palace recently?” Qing Yun asked, picking up the map again and pretending to study it—a gesture that seemed almost childish.
Ji Hua hesitated for a moment, then replied, “No, Your Majesty. We’ve only heard that Na Zhan has been favoring a particular woman, leading to the incident known as the ‘Three Reprimands of Hua Yu Palace.’”
Qing Yun raised an eyebrow and asked, “Which tribe is this woman from?”
Ji Hua wondered why the king was so interested in Na Zhan’s personal affairs, but he still answered truthfully, “They say she was sent by the Zhenqu tribe.”
“His sole favorite?” Qing Yun asked, half-smiling.
“Yes, that’s what they say!” Ji Hua replied, surprised by the king’s curiosity.
Qing Yun waved his hand dismissively. “That’s enough. You may go.”
Ji Hua withdrew, leaving Qing Yun alone in the room. The flickering candlelight danced in his dark eyes as he sank deep into thought.
A moment later, Qing Yun turned back to the table and studied the map. Upon closer inspection, it was a detailed layout of Guang Han Palace, covered in dense annotations and notes.
This was likely the first secret about Na Zhan that Rong Huo had revealed after his surrender.
Na Zhan: The Man
In 318 AD, the 34th King of Yunpei, Na Jing, suddenly died. His father, the retired King Na Qida, lay on his deathbed. As he gazed upon his seventeen grandsons kneeling in farewell, he appointed Na Zhan as king, secretly bestowing upon him a scroll of imperial wisdom and entrusting him with great responsibility. Na Zhan ascended the throne at nineteen, and within a short time, he established his dominance, ruling with strength and wisdom. In Ningdu, a renowned sage bestowed upon him the title of “Exalted King” and left him with two prophetic lines:
"Blood will not block your fate, and if the people are disobedient, they will perish!"
In the thirteen years since he assumed power, Na Zhan had brought Yunpei to a period of prosperity. He had promised to take an empress, and the entire nation eagerly awaited his decision, with marriage alliances multiplying by the day.
That night, after returning to her palace, Huang Bei Shuang caught a cold but stubbornly refused to rest, insisting on going outside every day to dig and plant trees, making her condition worse. Her three maids were extremely worried, but knowing her temperament, they had no choice but to assist her in her efforts.
Huang Bei Shuang planted twenty-one Jiemashu trees in her courtyard, arranging them in the shape of a five-petaled flower. When the maids asked what kind of tree Jiemashu was, she simply smiled and said, “You will understand when the flowers bloom.”
On this day, she leaned against her bed, letting Zai Ping force a bowl of bitter medicine down her throat. She smiled and said, “Torturing your mistress like this?”
Night Pei, heartbroken as she looked at her mistress's pale face, responded, “Once you recover, mistress, you can punish us all you like!” As she spoke, she sat at the bedside, gently wiping the sweat from Huang Bei Shuang’s brow.
Resting comfortably against her pillow with her eyes closed, Huang Bei Shuang asked, “Night Pei, is there something you want to ask?”
Knowing her mistress was perceptive and never treated them as outsiders, Night Pei spoke frankly, “What is your relationship with His Majesty? Since that first night, His Majesty has not summoned you again.” That night, Huang Bei Shuang had tactfully declined the king’s advances, citing the tides of her emotions, hoping to buy some time to gather her thoughts. But since then, Na Zhan had made no further attempts to see her.
Huang Bei Shuang slowly opened her eyes and stared at the canopy of her bed. “His Majesty is a proud and lofty man. Unless I take the initiative, I doubt he will make any further moves. Compared to enjoying beauty under the moonlight, I think he craves a confidant who understands him.”
Hearing this, Night Pei nodded. “So, the ‘Three Reprimands of Hua Yu Palace’—that was your idea, wasn’t it? These past few days, the old general has finally accepted his age and hasn’t caused a stir in the military, and Prince Chang has stopped using his royal connections to form factions in the palace. But why did you have the Yunpei envoy placed under house arrest?”
Huang Bei Shuang sighed. “If I hadn’t, he would have returned home empty-handed, and that would have meant certain death for him—he didn’t even get an audience with His Majesty.”
Night Pei asked, “Why won’t His Majesty send troops?”
Huang Bei Shuang thought for a long time before responding softly, “I don’t know either. It seems His Majesty is hiding something from me. In this palace, there’s little information to go on, but I suspect the situation among the five nations is changing. Fortunately, our Enaci tribe is far to the north and should not be involved.”
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