"Commander Bai works for ," the prince said after a lengthy pause. "He will give her to on my request."
"He might," said Lord i carefully, "but you shouldn’t ask it of him; he has an Imperial order. Also, highness, my wife and I have long been troubled by the idea of ili entering the palace harem. We’ve already seen what a dangerous place it is for her, swimming with sharks well beyond her political capabilities. We raised her in the inner courtyards," Lord i shrugged. "She never developed those skills. She never needed them."
"Highness, you’ll be obliged to build out your harem to secure alliances and produce sufficient heirs. It’s not a life her mother or I want for her. If you truly care for ili, your highness, you’ll eventually co to the sa conclusion. She deserves a husband who loves her and her alone, and a life filled with family and happiness, not a life of competition, back-biting, danger and confinent."
Yicai’s face was a mask of pain now, as he felt the woman he loved slipping away from him.
Had he been living in a dreamland where having her was his fantasy? Had it all been his own foolish daydreams?
He wanted her enough to take her against her will. He was confident he could make her fall in love with him. But while he had thought he would have her under any circumstances, he had misjudged his Father’s ambitions in the North and missed his brother’s scheming. Two big errors that had now converged to create this stumbling block of a marriage order.
The stark reality of what might happen suddenly hit ho, and Yicai was swamped by an overwhelming wave of grief.
He refused to give up without a fight!
"I understand your concerns, Lord i, but I cannot agree with them. I would protect ili from all of that. What’s the point in being the Emperor if I can’t at least protect my own Empress? I must speak with Bai Li," his voice was strained.
Though his emotions were clouding his judgnt, he understood clearly, that Bai Li was the only chance he had of hanging onto her.
"Lord i, leave to discuss this situation with Commander Bai."
"B...but highness, your Fa..."
"Bring Commander Bai," the Crown Prince interrupted Lord i with his order, and his Chief Eunuch nodded and rushed out to find Bai Li.
"Commander Bai!" Shi Lei announced a minute later.
Lord i shook his head imperceptibly at Bai Li as he exited the throne room, mouthing the words ’he’s not happy’.
Bai Li turned his eyes ahead, not wanting to further anger the prince.
He kowtowed deeply. "Your highness."
"Commander Bai," the prince spoke formally. "Thank you for the tily support yesterday. I shudder to think what might have happened if you were even a day later returning to the capital."
"I was only doing my duty, your highness. Thankfully the Emperor’s ssage arrived when it did."
He politely refrained from ntioning by whose hand the ssage had reached him, though he knew that the Crown Prince was aware that it was ili’s doing.
"I understand you have the ssage from my Father naming as heir?"
"I do, your highness."
Bai Li pulled the ssage from his sleeve and handed it to Shi Lei, who reverentially carried the scrap of paper to his master.
Yicai smoothed open the precious words. He read them rapidly, hearing his Father in the scant lines.
"Put this in a safe place," he ordered his Chief Eunuch, who hurried over and took the paper, smoothing it officiously as he carried it to a waiting servant.
"Leave us," the Crown Prince gestured at Shi Lei, and the man quickly cleared the room of servants, though the missing walls ant that there could be no guarantee they wouldn’t be overheard.
"Bai Li," said the Crown Prince, less formally, but with no less authority. "After I’m officially enthroned tomorrow, I intend to marry i ili."
"But your highness, I have..."
"I know, I know," the prince forestalled him. "Lord i told you bear a marriage grant from my Father. I suppose he promised you that if you beat Arughtai?"
"He did, highness. We had agreed that was to be my reward."
"Well, unfortunately for you, my Father was killed right after he wrote that grant, and before you had a chance to marry i ili. And I don’t intend to honour it. She’s the woman I love, Bai Li, and I need her. She’ll make a better Emperor. We already saw how much she supported my Father."
"Crown Prince, this marriage grant was given by your Emperor Father on his death day. It counts as a dying wish, which you have a filial obligation to fulfil."
"As the new Emperor, I don’t plan to continue with all of my Father’s wishes and orders. I’m my own man, Bai Li. This is the start of a new rule and a new era. I’m not asking your permission, you know. I’m just doing you the courtesy of telling you."
Bai Li’s eyes flew open wide, and he clenched his hands into fists as he struggled to keep his cool. "This is not the act of a benevolent ruler, your highness. How can you start your reign by stealing another man’s rightful wife?" he growled.
"She’s not your wife yet, Bai Li, so I’m not stealing anyone’s wife," the prince said witheringly. "You’re just feeling aggrieved because you thought I would honour the grant my Father made. If he were still alive, I would have protested and worked to overturn it."
"You wouldn’t have been successful. Your Father cared for i ili you know. Part of this marriage grant was my reward, but the rest was ili’s doing. Do you know she requested it from your Father? He knew she has in her heart and he wanted her to be happy. Are you comfortable marrying a woman who loves another man?" Bai Li’s voice was raised now.
The prince’s face reddened, and his lips thinned. "You’re dismissed Commander. Go ho and cool down. You’re exhausted from your campaign and putting down the Rebellion. You’re not thinking clearly. Get out of here before you say sothing you’ll regret."
"I’ll regret it if I leave without saying these things, and my head couldn’t be clearer than on this topic. She doesn’t love y..."
"I said you’re dismissed, Commander Bai!" the prince interrupted him loudly. "Guards!" he called, and four n ca running into the throne room. "Your Commander here is dismissed. He needs so assistance understanding my order."
The n looked nervously at their leader. "C..mander. C...co with us, Sir," stuttered the most senior among them.
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