The Last Dahlia

030

"The king of Feng arrived in the capital yesterday," the steward reported. "We've arranged for him to be staying at the east wing, where the crown prince is at. The prime minister of Dahai and their second prince have also arrived, and are being hosted by Prime Minister Jing. Prince Baixun of Gi and the crown princess should be arriving only tomorrow. They've sent word that they will be late due to bad weather, but that they'll definitely be here in time for the banquet."

"Good, thank you," Yuehwa replied.

She was sitting alone in her room in front of the mirror, staring at her own reflection and wondering who exactly was staring back. There was an icy coldness in her gaze that she did not recognise—like a sharp blade, eager to cut down anyone who dared come near. Reaching up, she took out the hairpin that had been holding her hair up, and all at once her long, black hair came tumbling down her shoulders like a raging waterfall.

It would not be long now till the rest of the world met Lee Yue, princess of Hwa. Soon, they would realise what a mistake it was to stretch their greedy, treacherous hands into her home, and steal away one of the most precious people in her life.

She picked up an invitation card from her dressing table and handed it to the steward.

"Deliver this to the Tianzi room at the Jiangxi Inn," she said.

The steward looked bewildered.

"But Your Highness, the guest list for the banquet has already been confirmed by the Ministry of Protocols."

"Tell the minister that he is to add an extra table on my left."

"On your left?" the steward spluttered. The position to the left of the regent was second only to the queen, who would be on Yuehwa's right. In the absence of any other senior members of the Hwa royal family, the place should have gone to the most esteemed of their foreign guests, which would have been the king of Feng.

Yuehwa nodded. "Tell the Minister of Protocols not to worry himself about it. Everything will become clear in due course," she said.

"Yes, Your Highness." Clutching the extra invitation in his hands, the chief steward bowed and quickly left the room to carry out his latest instruction.

Sighing, Yuehwa closed her eyes, willing the turbulence in her heart to still itself.

A part of her wanted to rush out and stop the steward, to retract the decision that she had spent countless sleepless nights contemplating. She drummed her fingers on the table top in a steady, methodical manner, hoping that its rhythm would help to steady her mind.

#

As expected, Shoya appeared in her chambers that very night. This time, she intentionally made it easy for him—and even left two windows open.

"You don't have to do this," Shoya said.

"Of course not."

He was right. She didn't. She was now the regent of Hwa, and like it or not that position came with considerable power. None of the other kingdoms, Baixun included, would dare to openly make a move on Hwa even if she didn't strike an alliance with anyone. She could just as easily have pretended that Shoya didn't exist and proceeded to broker a different deal with the king of Feng and find a different way to fish out her brother's murderer, one that didn't involve bartering away her own happiness.

She didn't have to do it, but she was going to do it anyway.

"Then why?"

"Because if I'm going to be a pawn in your game, then I might as well get something out of it too. Fair's fair, isn't it?"