A Plan

The Emperor's chambers was the most heavily guarded area of the palace compound, not to mention the Dragon Palace. There were sullen, bulky guards at 1 metre intervals with large swords. Even a fly couldn't sneak in.

We were stopped by the guards, but as soon as they saw I was Noble Concubine Ling Yue, they let me pass. Although we were too busy to meet each other these days, Lu Qing Yu apparently still had a good opinion of me and had instructed me to be allowed in whenever I wanted to see him. However, in the inner palace, I was stopped again.

His right-hand eunuch, Song Chu, came to attend to me. "Noble Concubine, what brings you here at this late hour?" he asked.

Song Chu was suspicious. All the concubines who came here to seduce his master were turned away immediately. However, the guards didn't seem to be bribed. They were hesitant to turn her away, so they asked him for help. He was the last line of defense! As the closest to the Emperor, he knew best. Song Chu had delivered some gifts to Noble Concubine Ling on behalf of the Emperor. Even if she did come here to seduce the Emperor, the Emperor probably wouldn't mind, right?

Noble Concubine Ling had a very grave expression and was dressed properly, and even brought her maidservants with her. She didn't seem to be joking around. "Song Chu, it's a national emergency. I need to speak with the Emperor." she said. A chill ran down his spine. Whatever. He could just ask the Emperor first. "Noble Concubine Ling, wait here please." he said, giving her maidservants a warning look before he respectfully knocked on the door.

"Your Highness, Noble Concubine Ling is here to see you. Should we let her in?" he asked. "Noble Concubine Ling?" the Emperor asked, sounding a bit drowsy. "Yes, she-" Song Chu was about to explain her reason when the Emperor interrupted him. "Let her in." he said. Song Chu went back to the group. "You may come in, alone." he said.

Although Qiu Ci and Qiu Le couldn't be let in, at least I could come in. I expressed my thanks then made my way down the corridor. It was my first time coming here. Song Chu followed me all the way to the door, announced my arrival, then slid the door open.

I stepped into the room with some hesitation. It was dark, but looked very spacious and grand. Lanterns were lit up at areas of the room to provide some light. Lu Qing Yu was sitting at his desk, reading. The door shut behind me. "What brings you here?" he asked, his eyes looking a little misty. "Could it be you came to find me for..." his gaze traveled downward. Wait... it couldn't be that he misunderstood my intentions, right?

I strode up to him. "Lu Qing Yu. It's a national emergency. I discovered a plot from He!" I hissed silently, in case anyone heard us. "What?" he sobered up immediately.

I nodded and put the things we had gathered on the table. He scanned them before turning to the door. "Song Chu, leave us." he commanded, leaving Song Chu to retreat to the corridor with thoughts running wild. I explained each item to him and read out the paper. Then I told him we covered our tracks, giving us time to plan. I thought he would have said to capture her immediately, but he gave me an unexpected piece of news. "Ling Yue, we can't do that. He has just agreed to be our vassal state. The banquet will be held next month.".

I stared at him, confused. He sighed and explained. Since his father's reign, Huaxia and He had a precarious relationship as He considered itself an empire and was unwilling to submit. However recently, his relationship with the new Emperor was good and they agreed to work together, since He was facing some troubles getting back on its feet after its warring period ended. The officials were already notified and the palace was secretly preparing. The banquet would only be announced tomorrow.

Who knew something like this would happen... What more the Yan clan... he sunk into silence. "Ling Yue, I have to trouble you to come with me. We need to hold an emergency meeting." he said. "Of course." "Thank you, Ling Yue." he smiled as he opened the door. I followed him down the corridor until we met the shocked group still standing there. "Your Highness!" Song Chu exclaimed.

"Song Chu. Gather the Protector General of the East, the sitting warlords and the Minister of Foreign Exchange and Trade in the meeting room now. Tell them it's a national emergency, and keep it discreet. No one will see them here." he commanded. Song Chu, Qiu Ci, Qiu Le, and the guards gawked. Who knew it would be so serious? Turned out Noble Concubine Ling wasn't fooling around... Then again, she always surprised people.

I followed him to the meeting room, while the servants trailed behind. Along the way, my stomach growled. Lu Qing Yu glanced at me and chuckled. "Have the kitchen prepare some snacks for us." he ordered, turning behind. Then he turned back to me. "What would you want to it?" he asked. Erm... "La Mian (拉面 Lā Miàn) " I said automatically, although it was unladylike to eat it at this hour. Ah, whatever.

As some generals lived far out in the capital and it was an ungodly hour, it took up to 2 hours for everyone to arrive. I wasn't looking forward to seeing my "father". In the meantime, Lu Qing Yu and I ate. I devoured the noodles as quickly as I could, hoping to present a better image to the warlords.

Everyone gathered in the room, which was set out with a small feast of midnight snacks and drinks, then looked at me. This combination indeed... couldn't mean good news. This meant there was a national threat. Since Lu Qing Yu didn't object to me sitting here, they turned to him. "The Yan Clan has committed treason, He is planning to usurp Huaxia, and the spy is the new maid Yan Huo in the Lunar Palace." he said in one mouthful, then took a casual sip of tea.

With these 3 pieces of news, the room sank into shocked silence. Lu Qing Yu explained how I discovered it, and I explained the items on the table. Minister Hui left to fetch trade documents with He to compare the letters. They pored over the letter and concluded they were indeed He letters. "But Noble Concubine Ling... how do you know how to read He letters?" the whole room turned to me.

That was true... They might think I was a spy. Since I already knew how to speak Novgorod and Angles with no plausible explanation anyway... I was just going to go along with it. "I'm not sure either. After I nearly drowned, I was able to understand and see things that I couldn't before." I said. Everyone nodded in agreement and went on to discuss the plan.

Only my "father" kept eyeing me. "Your Highness... perhaps we could get a doctor to diagnose Noble Concubine Ling? There might be other side effects." he suggested. "We will do as you say. Ling Yue, just cooperate with the examination. We need to make sure you are healthy." Lu Qing Yu said. I gulped.

It wasn't till dawn that we decided what to do. Going to war with He now would guarantee a victory, but we needed more information first, and we could use this information to make them bow down and be desperate to be our vassal state, rather than just being reluctant. In one month, I had to stall so Yan Huo wouldn't notice anything.

By the time of the banquet, we would have sneakily moved our troops and navy near the He border, and they would have decided a war plan, ready to strike at any time. To communicate the result, we would rely on a series of flares placed at points along the route to the shore. The palace would fire the first flare, and the next city along the route would echo it by firing the next flare, all the way to the border so that they could see it almost instantly and they would be on the lookout the entire banquet.

In the meantime, we had to decide on terms for the vassal agreement, how exactly to pressure them, and other administrative things. And so the long 1 month of waiting... began. I pretended not to be able to speak He-go and continued my usual work, while Minister Hui got to me secret documents and had me translate. We held regular secret meetings to monitor the progress of the case, and I got fitted for the banquet.