Chapter 225: A second chance?

Han Shuying noticed it as she walked toward the Empress’s private chambers, though she could not have explained exactly what had changed.

The corridors were still filled with servants and guards, the same polished floors reflected the same pale morning light, and the palace bells still rang at their appointed hours, yet there was a tension beneath everything that made even ordinary footsteps seem suspicious.

All that had occupied her thoughts was her father, and she hated it.

General Han Zheng had left for the western mission furious. She could still remember the look in his eyes when he had thrown the knife. She could still remember his words.

I don’t want your pity.

Han Shuying had told herself that she was finished caring about what he thought of her. She had repeated it to herself all through the day.

And yet, she had come to the Empress. This had to be genuine madness on her part. Why couldn’t she just let the old man die?

She reached the doors of Empress Lihua’s study and was about to announce herself when she heard voices from inside.

Han Shuying stopped. The doors were not completely closed. She recognized the Empress’s voice first.

"The western commanders have received their instructions?"

A softer voice replied. "Yes, Your Majesty."

"And the documents?"

"They will be delivered when General Han Zheng reaches the second military station."

Empress Lihua was silent for a moment. "Good. Once he signs them, his authority over the western troops will be suspended."

Han Shuying’s eyes narrowed. She stepped closer.

The official continued quietly, "The accusation will be that he exceeded his authority while attempting to secure the weapons shipment. The evidence will be enough to justify an investigation."

"And if he refuses to surrender command?"

"Then the western commanders will be instructed to disregard his orders."

Han Shuying’s stomach tightened.

Empress Lihua spoke again. "He has spent too many years believing the imperial army belongs to him. It’s time to remind him where he truly belongs."

There was no anger in her voice, which was exactly what frightened Han Shuying. She could never tell what the older woman was thinking.

She even sounded almost amused. "Even if he returns to the Capital by some divine miracle, he will only discover that he no longer commands the army."

The official hesitated. "And General Han Zheng’s position?"

Han Shuying could almost feel her shrug as she answered— "That depends on how useful he decides to be afterward."

Han Shuying slowly stepped away from the doorway. Her heart was beating hard.

The Empress was not trying to kill him. She was doing something far more calculated. She was dismantling him.

His military authority, his influence, his position in court — everything that made Han Zheng powerful could disappear while he was still alive.

Han Shuying looked toward the corridor leading back toward the outer palace.

She should warn him. She knew that. He was riding directly into a trap.

If he arrived at the second military station without knowing what awaited him, he would sign documents believing they were routine orders and unknowingly surrender the very authority he had spent years building.

She could prevent it.

All she had to do was find a messenger. But then she remembered the knife and the sudden flash of steel...The sound it had made when it struck the pillar beside her head.

She remembered standing before him, trying to explain that she did not pity him. She remembered telling him that she hated what he had done to her.

And she remembered the way he had looked at her afterward. As though her concern were an insult. As though being loved by his daughter was somehow beneath him.

Han Shuying closed her eyes. Now she had the chance to save him, and the irony almost made her laugh.

The girl he had spent years treating as worthless was the only person who knew the trap waiting for him.

Han Shuying opened her eyes. She turned toward the Empress’s doors. Then she pushed them open.

The official inside immediately stepped back. Empress Lihua remained seated behind her desk, perfectly composed. Her eyes met Han Shuying’s with controlled intensity.

For several seconds, neither woman spoke.

Then Empress Lihua dismissed the official with a small gesture. "Leave us."

The man bowed and hurried from the room.

Han Shuying remained standing. "You heard our conversation." It was not a question or an accusation.

Han Shuying knew better than to lie, so she nodded. "You intend to strip my father of his command."

Han Lihua leaned back. "Your father has accumulated too much influence. And I thought you’d be filled with joy at that."

Han Shuying gulped. "He is your general."

"He is a general." The Empress’s distinction was deliberate. "Not the emperor."

Han Shuying’s expression hardened. "You sent him into a trap."

Empress Lihua shook her head. "I sent him on a mission. Your father has spent years building a military power base that rivals the authority of the throne. Do you truly believe I should allow that to continue? And he’s becoming hard to contain."

Han Shuying said nothing.

Empress Lihua studied her. This was the most emotion she has seen on Han Shuying’s face. "You came here because you were going to warn him."

Han Shuying’s eyes flickered. "Did you?"

"No."

"Why not?"

Han Shuying looked toward the window.

For a moment, she saw herself as a child again, standing in her father’s training yard while he corrected her stance.

Again.

Again.

Again.

Never good enough.

Never strong enough.

Never the son he wanted.

She remembered the day she had cut her hair.

The first time she had put on men’s clothes.

The first time she had realized that if she could not be his daughter, perhaps she could become the son he had always wanted. She remembered how proud she had been when she finally defeated one of his senior officers.

And she remembered him looking at her without smiling.

You are still not a son.

Han Shuying’s hands slowly tightened. "Because he doesn’t want my help." It was a painful admission.

Empress Lihua watched her carefully. "He told you that?"

"He threw a knife at me."

The Empress’s expression shifted slightly.

Han Shuying continued. "He said he didn’t want my pity."

"And you believed him?"

"No." Her answer came quickly. "I know him well enough to understand that he said it because he couldn’t stand the idea that his daughter was the one trying to save him."

Empress Lihua was silent.

Han Shuying looked directly at her. "But I also know that I spent too many years trying to save someone who never thought I was worth keeping."

Empress Lihua’s gaze softened almost imperceptibly. "Then you will not warn him?"

Han Shuying looked down.

The answer should have been difficult, but it wasn’t. "No." The word was quiet. But it carried the weight of years.

Empress Lihua rose from her chair and walked toward the window. "You understand what will happen?"

"He will lose command."

"Perhaps more." She stood behind Han Shuying and held her shoulders. "He could possibly not be making it back alive."

Han Shuying swallowed hard.

"I’m not just doing this for myself." Empress Lihua ran her fingers down Han Shuying’s back. "I’m doing this for you too. He can’t hurt you anymore if he’s not alive."

With a slow motion she turned Han Shuying to face her. "I promise not to let you feel his absence. I’ll be everything you’ve ever wanted. A family...a lover..."

There was a crazed expression in Empress Lihua’s eyes that she’d never seen before. But it was gone in the blink of an eye.

"Are you willing to watch that happen?"

Han Shuying’s eyes burned. "I don’t know." She took a breath. "I don’t know if I’m willing." It was the most truth she’d ever told others and herself. "But I’m tired of being the person who has to care more than everyone else."

The Empress said nothing.

Shuying’s voice became quiet. "So maybe this is the first time I stop trying to protect him from the consequences of his own choices."

Empress Lihua studied her for a long moment. "It sounds like you’ve finally accepted that love does not require obedience."

Han Shuying looked at her. "Maybe."

The Empress returned to her desk. "Then you will say nothing to him. It’s not like he’ll listen to someone he considers to be beneath him."

"No."

"And if he loses everything?"

Han Shuying’s eyes lowered. "I’ll let him."

The words hurt more than she expected. She had imagined that choosing herself would feel liberating.

Instead... It felt like grief.

Because somewhere beneath the anger, beneath the resentment and years of disappointment, there was still a little girl who wanted her father to turn around and say that she had done well.

That little girl had not disappeared. She was simply tired.

Empress Lihua picked up a document from her desk. "Be in your chamber by midnight. I have something of great importance to discuss with you."

Han Shuying left after a simple nod. She continued down the corridors, refusing to look back.

For once, she would not chase after her father. She would not run toward him with another warning. She would not beg him to listen.

Because there was one thing Shuying finally understood. She had spent her entire life trying to earn the love of a man who had made her believe she had to become someone else to deserve it.