Little Pink Starfish

If I’m in Hell, You Must Be Too

Consort Zhao’s bedchamber had never been this silent. Alone on her massive bed, she lay listening to the rustling wind and birdsong outside, her heart colder than ice. If she hadn’t seen her own hopes wither before her eyes, how could she have been so desperate as to risk bringing those twin beauties from the Zhao estate into the palace?

“Imperial love,” she murmured to herself, then laughed bitterly. What a fool I was, she thought. She’d thought she could capture the emperor’s heart, become the most favored woman in the harem, the one who eclipsed all others. And now? Look at what she’d become.

“Your Grace,” came a soft voice from outside the chamber. “The medicine is ready—”

“Get out!” she snapped.

Silence fell again, not even footsteps retreating could be heard.

After mocking the notion of imperial love and herself for believing in it, Consort Zhao ground out three venomous words: Yu Linglong. That wretched girl had not only made her son a hostage to the Zhuri tribe, but had also cost her the chance of ever bearing children again. If Yu Linglong thought she could live comfortably in the palace while Zhao Fei withered in pain, she was dead wrong.

Yu Linglong was married now. Her only solid support in the royal family would be the Seventh Prince, Yu Ziyi. Without Yu Ziyi, what could she possibly scheme or rely on? What would she flaunt?

Before long, Cuiyu limped back from the imperial study. She bowed low by the bed and whispered, “Your Grace, Eunuch Jing says not to worry. He knows what to do. But whether His Majesty will punish the Gu family for Gu Xingyan’s absence—that, he cannot guarantee.”

Consort Zhao’s voice was cold. “Leave the palace. Go to Yunyun Mountain.”

The mere mention of Yunyun Mountain made Cuiyu’s face go pale. “Your Grace, you still want to deal with those people…?”

“Tell them,” Consort Zhao said icily, “I don’t want the boy anymore. Kill him.”

“Understood,” Cuiyu said in a trembling voice. “I’ll leave now and make sure I return before the city gates close.”

“And once it’s done—forget it ever happened,” Zhao Fei said, staring her down. “My situation is precarious. If you…”

“Your Grace!” Cuiyu dropped to her knees. “My life is yours! I would never dare harbor disloyalty.”

“Then go,” Consort Zhao said coolly. “No matter what happens, I won’t treat you poorly.”

Cuiyu got up without another word, not daring to look at her mistress again as she limped away.

Zhao Fei watched her leave and thought once again of Princess Yu Linglong. She had long predicted that the Gu family would find a way to spirit Yu Ziyi out of the capital, so how could she not prepare a countermeasure? Her father had advised her not to act until the prince was out of the capital—too risky to move within the imperial city. But Zhao Fei thought differently.

Who said the emperor’s own territory was the safest place? The moment of escape would be when the Gu family’s guards were most relaxed. That was the perfect time to strike.

Years ago, the pirates of the East Sea had been hunted to near extinction by the Li family. But Zhao Qiuming had saved a handful of them and turned them over to Zhao Fei. She had been hiding them in Yunyun Mountain ever since, waiting for a day like this. Raise troops for a thousand days, use them for one.

She slowly lifted her blood-stained hands. She didn’t mind adding royal blood to the list. Gu Xingyan’s blood too.

At first, she’d considered keeping Yu Ziyi and Gu Xingyan alive as bargaining chips. But now? She’d changed her mind. With a cold smile, she thought: If Yu Ziyi dies, will the Gu family still serve Yu Linglong so loyally? If Gu Xingyan dies for Yu Ziyi, won’t they blame her?

If I live in torment every day, she vowed, then she has to live in hell too!

---

In the imperial study, the old Marshal Gu stood beside Gu Xingnuo. The two knelt before Emperor Xianzong to offer thanks for his grace.

The emperor yawned. Playing chess with the national preceptor was always a beatdown. He never won. Worse, he could see how hard the preceptor tried to not humiliate him. The effort on his face felt like a personal insult to his intelligence.

“Your Majesty?” the old Marshal prompted, seeing they had already kowtowed and expressed gratitude, but the emperor hadn’t responded.

“Rise,” Xianzong finally pulled himself away from the board. Seeing his daughter wasn’t here today, his mood improved. “This time your Gu family has suffered injustice. Zhao Beicheng—I won’t let him off easily.”

“Your servant thanks Your Majesty,” the old man replied.

“Sit, have some tea. Talk with me awhile,” Xianzong gestured. He didn’t really have anything to say, but etiquette demanded he exchange a few words after such formalities.

They thanked him again and sat on either side.

A young eunuch entered with a tray of tea. He poured for the old Marshal and Gu Xingnuo—but the tray still had one cup left. Confused and awkward, the eunuch stood frozen in front of Gu Xingnuo.

“Insolence!” Eunuch Jingzhong immediately scolded.

Xianzong glanced at the kneeling eunuch, then at the Gu men. “What’s going on, Jingzhong?”

Jingzhong quickly dropped to his knees. “This servant deserves death.”

The trembling eunuch stammered, “Your Majesty, I thought Second Young Master Gu would be coming too, so…”

Gu Xingnuo gave the two an icy stare.

Only now did Xianzong realize something was off. “Gu… what’s his name again—Gu Xinglang’s second brother. Where is he?”

Gu Xingnuo knelt again and calmly said, “Your Majesty, my second brother is unwell and couldn’t come. I beg forgiveness.”

He lied as easily as breathing. The old Marshal, however, looked a little uneasy and kept his eyes lowered.

Jingzhong asked, “Is Second Young Master seriously ill?”

“I’ll send a royal physician,” Xianzong offered.

Gu Xingnuo said, “Thank you for your kindness, Your Majesty. But the Princess Consort said she can cure my brother, so… I fear calling the imperial physician might upset her…”

“No need then,” Xianzong waved it off quickly. He knew exactly how volatile his daughter was. “If he worsens, let me know and I’ll send a physician then.”

“Your servant obeys. Thank you, Your Majesty,” Gu Xingnuo said gratefully.
With the Princess around, he thought, everything’s just that much easier.