[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
.Ting may not know who stole her message.Until the emperor arrests her, it's too dangerous to reveal my injury.A doctor could lead her right to us.""We must hope Xeng reaches the emperor soon," the old maidservant said.She unfastened the bandage and changed the dressing.As Qwo finished, two sets of small feet sounded in the stone courtyard outside."The children!" Wu gasped, pushing her maidservant away."Don't let them see me like this!"Qwo threw the cover over Wu, then stepped to intercept Ji and Yo.She could not move quickly enough.A wall panel slid aside, then Ji burst into the room, his sister in tow."Mother!" he cried, pointing a slender finger toward the front of the house."The emperor's wife is coming!"Wu and Qwo looked at each other, confused and alarmed."The Shining Empress?" Wu asked."Are you certain?"Ji nodded."She has a whole bunch of soldiers!""How do you know it's the empress and not a consort, child?" asked Qwo, fixing her eyes on the boy."Because I saw her before," Ji responded, scowling at being doubted."In the emperor's house—""You've never been in the Forbidden Halls," Wu objected."Yes we have!" Yo interrupted, stamping a foot."You remember.I went to sleep!""We weren't in the Forbidden Halls," Wu explained."We were in the Hall of—" She stopped in midsentence, realizing Ji and Yo were mistaken about more than the building they had been in.Aside from Wu, the only woman in the Hall of Supreme Harmony that night had been Ting Mei Wan."Qwo," she gasped, "they're talking about Ting!"The old woman's face blanched."What are we going to do?"Wu threw her covers aside and tried to rise, but the effort hurt too much.Fleeing was out of the question.It would be a marvel if she made it out of the room."Meet them at the gate and then stall," Wu instructed her servant."Stall," Qwo repeated, half dazed."I'll try." She scurried toward the front of the house.Wu turned to Ji and Yo.They were both staring at her bandage with big, frightened eyes.A lump formed in Wu's chest and she almost began to cry.She was more frightened than she had ever been, but only for her children."Come here, little ones," Wu said, holding out her arms.They obeyed, their eyes still fixed on their mother's wound.Tears came to both their eyes, and they began to sob."Shhh," Wu urged, embracing them closely.She could barely restrain her own tears."Mother has been hurt, but you must be brave.Some bad people are coming.""What should we do?" asked Ji, choking back his sobs and wiping his eyes.Wu wished that she had an answer.She might be able to move long enough to help Ji and Yo climb over the exterior wall.Even if they escaped, though, the little ones would be lost and alone in the immensity of the summer palace.Her only choice was to hide her children and hope Xeng returned with help soon.Releasing her son and daughter, Wu said, "Do you know a good place to hide?""Under the floor!" Yo said, pointing a stubby finger toward the center of the room."When I hid there, Ji couldn't find me.""You were cheating!" Ji objected, furrowing his smooth brow."That doesn't matter now," Wu said, laying a gentle hand on her son's shoulder."These people will search for you much harder than you look when you play games.Are you sure this is a good place to hide?"They glanced at each other uncertainly.Finally, Ji said, "It's very dark and small.""Good.You must go there quickly.Don't come out until Xeng, Qwo, or I tell you it's safe."Wu kissed each of her children, then sent them away.They had barely left the hall before Qwo's voice echoed across the courtyard."I insist, Minister Ting.Lady Wu is ill.She is not receiving visitors.""All the more reason I must see her," Ting replied tersely."Now stand aside.""I refuse," Qwo replied."Guards!" Ting roared.The sound of a short scuffle followed, then twenty boots clattered across the stone courtyard.Wu adjusted her cover so that it concealed her bloody bandage, then prepared to receive Ting.She did not wait long.Within moments, a soldier grabbed a wall panel and thrust it roughly aside.Two green-armored guards stepped into the sleeping room, their weapons held at the ready.Ting came next, followed by an angry Qwo."What is the meaning of this?" Wu demanded, scowling at the mandarin."Can't you see that I'm ill?""Please forgive this intrusion," Ting said curtly, obviously unconcerned with whether Wu forgave it or not.The minister turned to a guard."Uncover her."The soldier frowned at being asked to invade a noblewoman's privacy.Nevertheless, he did as ordered.Ting pointed at the freshly changed bandage, which was already spotted with new blood."So you were the one," she said."How disappointing.""What do mean?" Wu demanded."Last night, a spy broke into my house and stole an important state document," Ting said, stepping toward the bed."This spy killed a guard on the way out, but not before being wounded.As we can see, you are wounded.""This?" Wu asked, indicating her bandage."Qwo and I were cutting some silk.Her knife slipped.""Not likely," Ting replied."Save me the trouble of searching your house.Return the document and no harm will come to you or your family."Even if the ebony tube had been in her possession, Wu would not have returned it.She had already seen that Ting was an accomplished liar, and the minister could not afford to spare the life of anyone who knew the truth about her.In response to Ting's demand, Wu simply shrugged her shoulders."What document?" she asked.She had decided to feign innocence, but not because she hoped to fool Ting.If Ting's guards were not part of the mandarin's plot, and Wu suspected that they were not, Ting would have to go through the pretense of firmly establishing Wu's guilt before causing the noblewoman any harm.That would take time, and the longer Wu could stall, the better the chance that Xeng would return with help.Xeng was not having much success, however.He stood at the gateway to the Square of Heavenly Delight, in the center of which rose the Hall of Supreme Harmony.His medallion remained activated and he was still perfectly camouflaged.Unfortunately, the pendant's magic only worked for a certain amount of time and it would soon fade.He would not be able to reactivate it for at least a day.The emperor's guards stood shoulder-to-shoulder around the Hall of Supreme Harmony, their weapons drawn.The great square surrounding the tower was filled with the green-armored guards of the Ministry of State Security.Xeng did not doubt that Ting had arranged the tight security measures, probably by claiming to have discovered a plot against the Divine One's life.Still, considering the evidence he carried in the ebony tube, Xeng thought he would attain an audience—providing he could reach the chamberlain.To do that, however, the steward had to slip past Ting's guards.Xeng had no doubt their orders were to detain or kill anyone attempting to see the Son of Heaven.Still, he had to try, for Wu's life clearly depended upon his success.There had been a time when the steward would not have cared about Wu's safety.At the age of fifteen, a friend had remarked on his uncanny resemblance to Tzu Hsuang, and Xeng had finally realized why the lord took so much interest in his well-being.Instead of being thankful for Hsuang's attention and love, though, Xeng had grown resentful and bitter because his true lineage would never be acknowledged.Nevertheless, Wu had treated him with nothing but respect and kindness, tolerating his snide remarks with an easy-going grace that only infuriated him further.Xeng had remained hostile for nearly five years, until his own mother finally grew so tired of his attitude that she asked him to leave the Hsuang castle.It had been Wu, the object of so much of his enmity, who had interceded on his behalf and asked Qwo to reconsider.Though Wu had not said as much, it had been clear that she realized their relationship and did not want to see harm come to her half-brother.After that, Xeng's attitude had reversed itself [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]