THE DEAD LOVE

Chapter 02: Tea With a Puppet Queen*

Shi Xoun returned to his estate.

He went straight to his study. Alone.

He wasn’t thinking of rewards. He was thinking of how to escape the trap.

Because he knew it was a trap. A trap within a trap.

The system in his head pinged:

`[Warning: Assassination attempt tonight. Target: Empress Dowager.]`

Interesting. The Queen was going to the study at night… and someone wanted her dead.

The next day, in the forest outside the palace, Shi Xoun found her.

An assassin’s blade was inches from her throat.

He moved. One strike. The assassin fell.

The Empress Dowager stared at him. Breathing hard.

“You saved me,” she whispered.

“I did,” Shi Xoun said.

And then she told him everything.

The *King* and *Crown Prince Henry* were the real masterminds. The Empress was just their puppet.

They wanted Shi Xoun dead.

“Why?” he asked.

“Because of the *Chi family*,” she said. “Your family. You are the last heir. Direct descendants of dragon blood. The most powerful family in the provinces.”

His father had told him stories. How the Chi family was framed for misconduct and extorting money. How they lost the throne.

Now the new King wanted to erase the last line of dragon blood.

The Empress Dowager looked up at him.

“I was supposed to kill you. With Xun Chan. With the marriage.”

A bitter laugh. “Looks like we both got used.”

Shi Xoun studied her. Enemy. Puppet. Now… something else.

“Then we work together,” he said. “We play along with the King’s plan. And we turn the table on him.”

The Empress Dowager blinked. Then she smiled. A real one this time.

“Tea?”

---

The next morning, she canceled the marriage proposal.

Then she sent for him.

“Silver,” the messenger said. “The Queen summons you to the palace.”

“Get the horse ready,” Shi Xoun said. “We’re going to meet the Queen.”

Silver stared. This was the first time he’d ever seen the General smile at the Queen’s name.

At the palace, Shi Xoun told his men: “Stay at the door. Let no one in.”

“Even His Majesty?” Silver asked.

“Yes.”

“Okay.”

In the back garden, the Empress Dowager waited. She was watching him recite a battle poem in black robes. His voice was low, like drums from the underworld calling for the dead.

Daisy announced him.

“Your Highness, the General is here.”

“Set the table,” the Empress said, smiling. “I’m having tea with the General.”

When he finished, she clapped softly.

“What a poem. Ringing like drums from the underworld, calling for the crops of dead soldiers. I didn’t know you had such talent.”

Shi Xoun bowed. “Your Majesty flatters me. I am only average.”

“You sure know how to talk yourself out of praise,” she said. “Sit. Have tea.”

They talked. About the King. About the trap. About Xun Chan.

By the end of the pot, they had a plan.

Play along.

Pretend to obey.

And strike when the King least expected it.

Enemies of the throne.

Allies in secret.

*End of Chapter 2*