CHAPTER FIFTEEN: Beneath the Blossoms

The cherry trees in the outer court were blooming early.

Liora stepped beneath the petals, sleeves trailing like whispers behind her, and paused at the edge of Lady Zhen's pavilion.

Soft laughter drifted through the carved screen. Not joyous — nervous. As though laughter were a defense.

Liora signaled her attendant to wait outside.

She stepped in alone.

---

Lady Zhen was seated by the window, bathed in sunlight, her fingers absently stroking her rounded belly. She looked up with startled eyes, then quickly lowered them.

"Lady Liora…"

"I didn't come to frighten you," Liora said gently. "May I sit?"

A hesitant nod. "Of course."

Liora settled across from her, quiet for a moment. "The palace is talking."

Zhen's fingers curled in her lap. "They always talk."

"But it's not always about you."

Zhen looked away. "I didn't plan this. I didn't... try to take anything from anyone."

"I know," Liora said. "But that doesn't mean they'll spare you."

Zhen's eyes welled up then — fast, uncontrollably. She turned her face to the wall.

"They'll call him weak if he's small," she whispered. "They'll call me cursed. They'll say I used his life to climb. But I never—" Her breath hitched. "I only wanted someone to love."

Liora's voice softened. "You may not be trying to play the game, Zhen, but you're already on the board. Your child makes you a piece. You need protection."

"I have the King's favor," Zhen said, but even she sounded uncertain.

"You had his favor. Briefly. Elira will take it back the moment your back is turned."

Zhen wiped her eyes, trembling.

"Then… what should I do?"

Liora leaned forward. "Stand beside someone who will fight for your child. Not just for favor — but for his future."

Zhen looked at her then, properly. "And that someone… is you?"

"I don't need your loyalty," Liora said. "Only your trust. For now."

A long pause.

Then Zhen nodded once — small, but sure.

---

Word spread more slowly this time.

That Lady Zhen had received an embroidered baby blanket — ivory and sky-blue — delivered not from the Queen's quarters, but from Liora's.

That she had begun requesting Liora's physician rather than the palace midwives.

And that in the gardens, Lady Zhen had been seen smiling again — only when Liora was near.

---

In her own chambers, Elira listened with cold amusement.

"She allies with the weak," she said, eyes on her silk embroidery. "The girl is still learning."

"Should we intervene?" her maid asked softly.

"No," Elira murmured. "Let her gather the fragile. One gust of wind and they'll scatter."

But behind her fan, her smile faltered.

She would need a firmer grip on her own power soon.

Because the balance in the harem had shifted.

And Liora… was no longer alone.