Chapter 37: Blazing Warmth
There was no one standing in front of Yexue by the time she managed to get the powder out of her eye.
Her sight was restored but a dark warm feeling was working its way into her head. She felt almost lightheaded.
She turned and retraced her steps back to the village, wincing when her eyes started to hurt. Everything was a bit blurry but she could still find her way back to the palace.
By the time she reached the East gate, she was in a blurry mess and her breath was coming out in short gasps. Like a force had lodged itself in her chest and refused to let go.
One of the guards saw her and immediately rushed over. "The gates are locked, you should come back tomorrow."
Shen Yexue pushed down the hood of her cloak, glaring at him in the process.
The man immediately bowed his head. "Your highness, this way."
She slipped into the palace under the cover of night, only able to think about the little maid that was probably asleep on her bed.
Ru Yi.
When she’d made the discovery that her mother had truly been assassinated the night they’d been at the Empress’s residence—all she could think about was all the blood from that night, the screams that she heard even in her sleep.
But Yexue could never bring herself to confide in her sisters in fear that they’d worry for her. There was already so much on their plate and she didn’t want to add to it.
The only other person she could go to was Ru Yi.
In a rare state of vulnerability, she’d asked the maid to hold her in order to keep the nightmares she knew would haunt her away.
Even now—as Yexue staggered to her residence, she wanted those arms around her again. It was comforting, and she didn’t want to think about Qingyue’s plan to get rid of her.
Her steps started to grow heavy as she neared her door, one of the maids in attendance rushing to her.
"Your high—"
Shen Yexue pushed her away and stumbled to her door, opening it with much more force than was necessary.
Ru Yi was lying on the bed, hair spilling across the pillow. But instead of the longing that had carried her feet back to the room, a new blazing fury tore through her ribs.
With all the strength she could muster, Yexue pulled out the knife at her waist and lunged towards an unsuspecting Ru Yi.
The blade was about to come down when Ru Yi’s eyes sprang open and she rolled away on time to see the knife drive into the pillow, on the spot her head had previously been.
"What the—" the words were barely out of Ru Yi’s mouth when Yexue pulled the knife out and lunged again.
Ru Yi was quick on her feet, getting off the bed and running to the door.
But Yexue was faster. More trained. She threw the knife at Ru Yi, only missing her neck by an inch.
Ru Yi shriveled back in fear, too shocked to scream. She pushed back against the wall when Yexue pulled out another knife.
That was when her brain kicked into overdrive, looking for anything she could use to defend herself.
She knew the triplets were going to abandon her when they had no use for her. But she didn’t think it would be this soon, or that they’d resort to the crude method of murdering her in her sleep.
"Yexue?" Ru Yi’s voice trembled with fear, steel flashing in her peripheral vision. She staggered back in time for Yexue’s blade to slice through the empty air.
"What are you doing?" Ru Yi ran to the other side of the room. She hit her foot on the side of the bed and fell to the floor.
Yexue didn’t answer, her mind was too clouded to process what was happening. Instead her grip tightened on the blade in her hand.
The only thing she listened to was the voice in her head telling her to strike.
"Yexue, stop!" Ru Yi gasped, finally noticing the hazy look in her eyes. "It’s me."
Just for a moment—
Yexue hesitated, as if she had snapped out of the trance-like state.
"Ru Yi?" she asked, unsure of who she was looking at.
"Yes, it’s me." Ru Yi made to stand up only for Yexue to move, blade raised and ready to strike again.
Ru Yi’s breath hitched—
But a third presence cut through the air like lightning, the sound of steel clashing rang out around them.
Yexue’s strike was forced aside with brutal force, the impact sending a shock through her arm. She stumbled back a step.
Lieyin stood between them. "What the hell is going on here?" her gaze flickered to Ru Yi. "What did you do to provoke her like this?"
Ru Yi shook her head, swallowing hard. "I was trying to sleep when she stormed in and trike to kill me." She looked at Yexue whose grip on her knife hadn’t loosened. "But...she doesn’t seem to be herself."
Lieyin turned back to her sister, noting the tension in her muscles. Her brows knit together in confusion. "Are you alright?"
Yexue’s eyes were glazed over.
"Put the blade down," Lieyin told her, taking a cautious step forward. "Tell me what happened."
Yexue tilted her head slightly, eyes unfocused. As if considering it. Then she moved, faster than before.
Lieyin met her without hesitation.
Their blades crashed, sparks biting into the dark. Yexue’s strikes were precise, merciless—devoid of the restraint Lieyin knew too well.
"She’s been drugged," Lieyin said between movements, her voice steady despite the pressure, "Something is controlling her."
Ru Yi’s voice trembled. "What do we do?"
Lieyin didn’t bother with an answer. Her blade knocked Yexue’s weapon in one sharp decisive motion, sending the knife skidding across the floor.
Before Yexue could react, Lieyin stepped in, catching her wrist and then striking sharply at the side of her neck.
Yexue’s body went slack, Lieyin catching her before she could hit the floor.
Ru Yi let out a shaky breath. "Will she..." she gulped, hard. "Is she still alive?"
Lieyin cast Ru Yi a side glance that made her realize how stupid that question was. As if she’d kill her own sister.
Lieyin carried Yexue over to the bed, tossing the ruined pillow aside. "She’ll wake up by morning." Her gaze lingered on Yexue’s face.
Upon close inspection she could see remnants of the powder. "But whoever did this to her will surely pay."
-
-
There were poisons that killed.
Those were simple.
They moved through the body with purpose, ending breath and leaving the heart still. Death was certain.
But there were other substances the court never spoke of. An ancient practice that had long been banished.
They did not destroy the body, but something far more fragile—Devotion.
Long before the empire had settled into its current peace, when loyalty was still something to be tested, the imperial court commissioned its alchemists to create a different kind of weapon.
Not one that spilled blood, but one that revealed where blood would be spilled, if given the right push.
They wanted certain...to know which hands would turn against them.
That was how ’Lover’s Bane’ was born.
White, with a faint pleasant scent.
It did not force obedience. It did not plant thoughts. It did something far more dangerous.
Lover’s Bane turned the heart against itself. What one cherished, it made unbearable. What one loved—
—it taught the body to destroy.
The powder did not create traitors, but revealed how easily devotion could be undone. It was destroyed, never to be seen under the light of day.
Until now...
Shen Qingyue bent down and sniffed Yexue’s neck, the familiar scent drifting through her nostrils. She had no doubt they were dealing with Lover’s Bane.
Though it was banished, she had encountered it a couple times among merchants traveling through and bandits at the border.
Yexue was still unconscious but breathing well.
The only thing Qingyue tried to understand was why Yexue had attacked Ru Yi. She cast a quick glance at the maid who was still huddled on the floor.
Lover’s Bane could only make you turn on someone your heart was already devoted to. Did this mean...
Qingyue glanced from Yexue to Ru Yi.
Not that she would be surprised if her sister had feelings for the maid. Yexue had always been emotionally needy which made her get easily attached to people. Coupled with the fact that she had exchanged energy with Ru Yi when she’d healed her.
"There’s nothing to worry about," Qingyue told Ru Yi. "The effects of the powder will wear off when she wakes up."
Ru Yi nodded but made no move to stand up from the floor. She wanted Yexue to remain in her line of sight, that way she could defend herself if she attacked again.
"Before now, has Yexue been acting weird towards you?"
Ru Yi thought about it.
Aside from making her sleep on the bed, Shen Yexue hadn’t really been acting out of character. Until she attacked her, that is.
Ru Yi shook her head, "everything was fine when she left this evening."
Qingyue nodded. She had to take care of Ru Yu fast, before things got too complicated for any of them to handle.
