The Peace Bride

A Royal Decree

General Qin Han Yu and General Yan Li Xin both received their Royal Decree at the same time.

In front of each one now stands a royal eunuch, presenting the unknown future for each of them.

Kneeling as per orders to receive the reading of the Royal Decree, they could not hear each other's orders as much as they wished.

The eunuch before Li Xin unrolled the yellow silk with a crisp snap. His voice, high and thin, sliced through the morning mist.

Li Xin’s fingers pressed hard into the dirt of the courtyard as he heard the words "frontier deployment." He was being sent to the Iron Pass, the furthest edge of the empire, effectively an exile under the guise of a command. But right before that, he is to marry a royal member of the enemy kingdom Yan, Princess Lin Yue, a "virtuous, noble and the embodiment of ethereal elegance fairy" as a gift for his outstanding credits.

Being the brother of the king was not a good thing now.

What could he do, return to the court and stand as a danger to the throne now? The king could not afford that, of course he is to eliminate all valid competition.

As payment for his services, he would settle with a peace bride, a Yan princess from the royal family.

That would have to put an end to the years of war. For the moment.

He was unmarried yet, so maybe it was not such a bad order. At least he would win a wife from the enemy side. And a peace, right?

If only she would not kill him at night, in his bed.

He bowed, showing respect, and the royal eunuch placed the decree in his hands. That went well, he thought. And fast!

The scroll was rerolled, the seals pressed, and the eunuch bowed, leaving the two warriors to face a peace that felt more dangerous than the war they had just survived.

He looked to the right- his enemy was on his knees also, listening to the Yan royal eunuch reading his decree.

Oh, how he wished he could hear what he was reading! But the distance would not allow him to do so!

A few yards away, separated by a heavy silence, Han Yu listened to a not much different fate.

His decree spoke of "ancestral obligations" and "the strengthening of bloodlines."

The Emperor had not ordered him to the front, but to the inner chambers—a marriage to the enemy, designed to neutralize the name's growing influence.

-Now, receive the Decree! The royal eunuch stated, awaiting for General Han Yu to stretch out his hands and take up the edict.

But General Han did not move.

-Receive the Decree now! The royal eunuch raised his voice so that the General heard him right, just in case he did not hear in the first place.

But the General would not move his hands to receive the Decree...

-I can not accept this Decree, the voice left everyone with a gasp.

-You must receive the Decree! The eunuch spoke with a faint voice.

-I can not.

General Li Xin noticed that the other ceremony did not end, and he could read that there was something wrong on the faces of the enemy guards. A few yards away, however, the silence was shattered. General Li Xin noticed that the other ceremony did not end

What was happening? He was so curious to find out, but he could not really hear.

Something was definitely wrong there. How could he find out??

He could only watch as Han Yu remained stone-still, and even with his head bowed and eyes on the ground, he would still be defying the order that would have perhaps traded the sword for a marriage bed as well.

Was it that bad for him to take a peace bride and stop this war??

Li Xin's guard came closer, also noticing the ceremony and the other side's struggle.

-What now? They wanna fight again?

-I don't know... something's off...

-He does not look too happy with the decree, it seems... Maybe he does not want a wife?

-Who knows what is he ordered to... ssshhhtt.... Whoaa...

The Yan Royal Eunuch raised his voice enough to be heard now by the enemy side:

-If you do not receive the decree, your entire family will be executed!!

General Han Yu still did not move. His hands clenched into fists, and he screamed, jumping to his feet, determined to kill the royal eunuch who was presenting him with his sentence.

-If he really wants to kill me, why doesn't he come kill me himself???

Before Han Yu could take another step, a blur of motion erupted from the surrounding guards. Two hulking figures in the emperor's crimson livery slammed into him, their armored forms grunting with effort as they wrestled his arms behind his back.

-General, please!

Others converged, forming a wall between the enraged general and the trembling eunuch. Han Yu roared, a sound more animal than human, straining against their grip, his eyes still locked on his target.

-General, please!

The air crackled with a dangerous tension, the delicate peace of the pavilion shattered by the raw violence of the moment.

Even on the other side of the Peace pavilion, some swords were half-drawn from their scabbards, and the glint of steel reflected the fear and apprehension on every face present. They could all sense danger as they knew how unpredictable and dangerous General Han Yu could be.

Even Li Xin, from his distant position, felt an icy dread creep up his spine.

This was no longer just a decree; it was an open act of defiance against the Imperial throne.

For certain, his enemy would face capital punishment.

-Come on! Is it really worth it?? Li Xin shouted to his opponent, trying to cause a disruption. Perhaps he just did not want to see him losing his head now. If he were to die, it was his to take. Really.

-Maybe he is not given a wife... his guard spoke close to him, so his comment made an idea to grow in his head.

-What? They give me your sweetheart or what?

His enemy seemed to notice his position and raised his hands in peace as his guards released him and kneeled in front of him, now, still on guard.

General Han was still standing and locking into the trembling eunuch's eyes. Somehow, the official gathered a final spark of courage and thrust the edict forward, in a desperate hope, just in case the general would obey.

-If you defy the Royal decree, you will be executed, all your soldiers will be scattered among the lowest divisions, under other commanders. Think about your people!

All the soldiers present bend their heads in a kowtow, their voices rising in a singular, haunting plea:

-Please, General, think about your people!

General Han froze on spot.

The fire in the eyes didn't die, but it flickered with a sudden, painful realization. The weight of the men's futures—the lives of those who had bled for him—now sat heavier than any imperial chain. His fists remained clenched, but the murderous tension in his shoulders began to give way to a crushing defeat.

He wasn't just a warrior; he was their shield, and to strike the eunuch now would be to shatter them all. He looked down at the sea of bowed heads, the silence following their plea more deafening than the roar of battle.

Inside Han Yu, a tempest raged. Every instinct honed on the battlefield screamed at him to strike, to cut down the sniveling messenger of a cowardly Emperor and die on his feet, a soldier to the last. The thought of the 'inner chambers'—of silks, perfumes, and a harem's whims—felt like a slow execution, a way to smother the flame of who he was.

As he looked at the trembling backs of his men, the fire of rage met the cold reality of the responsibility. Choosing pride, was signing their death warrants; scattering them to be broken in the mud of the lowest divisions.

Neither looked at the other, but the weight of their divergent paths settled over the pavilion like a shroud.