Shaosheng, First Year — Autumn.
The urgent dispatch from the frontier arrived in the middle of the night.
I woke to hurried footsteps.
When I opened my eyes, candlelight flickered beyond the bed curtains.
Zhao Xu was already sitting up.
His back was straight, rigid.
The blanket had slipped to his waist.
"Your Majesty—" the chief eunuch's voice came from outside, low but unable to hide the panic. "Eight-hundred-li urgent report from the western border."
"Enter."
The doors opened.
Light flooded in.
The chief eunuch knelt, holding up a document sealed with three feathers—
the highest level of urgency.
Zhao Xu took it and broke the seal.
I couldn't see his expression.
Only his back—
tightening,
like a bow slowly drawn.
"Western Xia has assembled thirty thousand cavalry and crossed the border."
His voice was calm.
Too calm.
"The enemy has breached two forts. The defending generals are dead. The messenger says—if reinforcements do not arrive soon, Huanzhou will fall."
My heart sank.
Thirty thousand cavalry.
The frontier was in crisis.
Zhao Xu was silent for a moment.
Then he rose.
"Dress me. Summon the Privy Council and the Three Commands. Council in Chui Gong Hall."
The eunuch withdrew quickly.
I sat up and looked at him.
His figure stood in the candlelight—
tall,
and alone.
"Zhao Xu."
He turned.
His face was half-lit, half-shadowed.
His eyes were bright—
not warm,
but sharp.
Like the edge of a blade.
"Go back to sleep," he said softly. "I'll return soon."
"I can't sleep."
He looked at me, then gave in.
Walking over, he touched my hair lightly.
His fingers were cool.
"You don't need to worry about the frontier."
"You worry, I worry," I said. "Besides—I'm the Empress who listens behind the curtain now. This is my duty too."
He paused.
Then lowered his forehead to mine.
"Then come with me."
Chui Gong Hall blazed with candlelight.
I sat behind the beaded curtain as ministers filed in.
Purple robes. Red robes.
Grave faces.
Zhao Xu sat upon the throne.
The jade beads of his crown obscured his eyes.
But I knew exactly who he was watching—
Han Zhongyan.
"Your Majesty," Han Zhongyan said, "the enemy outnumbers us ten to one. I advise negotiation. Cede Lugao Fort and Wubao Fort. Buy time."
"Negotiate?" Zhao Xu's voice was cold. "If we give them two forts, they'll stop?"
"…It will buy time."
"For what? So they can return and take two more?"
Silence.
"Your Majesty," Zheng Yong spoke next, "the treasury is strained. Troops are insufficient. We must prioritize stability—"
"Stability?" Zhao Xu cut in. "I've heard that word for nine years. Stable enough to lose fort after fort? Stable enough for them to raid, leave, and return again?"
No answer.
Zhao Xu stood.
The jade beads clattered softly.
"Five armies. Reinforce Huanzhou."
"Your Majesty!" Han protested. "Mobilization will take at least half a month. What will three thousand soldiers do against thirty thousand cavalry?"
Zhao Xu paused.
Then his gaze shifted—
just for a moment—
toward me.
"I have a way."
After court, he came behind the curtain and sat beside me, removing his crown, rubbing his brow.
He looked exhausted.
"That look you gave me earlier," I said. "What did it mean?"
"You know," he said. "You're from a thousand years ahead. You must know things we don't."
I froze.
He had always known—
but never asked like this.
"You finally asked."
"I've always wanted to." He hesitated. "I didn't want you to feel… used."
My heart softened.
"And besides," he added quietly, "three thousand lives matter more than my pride."
I took his hand.
"I have an idea. But I need to check something first."
"Where?"
"The Arsenal."
The next morning, I spoke in court.
"I request to inspect the Arsenal."
Silence.
Eyes turned.
Surprised. Skeptical.
Zhao Xu glanced at me—
then smiled faintly.
"Approved."
At the Arsenal, I examined fire bombs.
Range: three steps.
Fire arrows:
Range: one hundred twenty paces.
Inaccurate.
Primitive.
I turned to Director Shen.
"Have you ever thought about putting gunpowder into a tube… and using the explosion to fire a projectile?"
He froze.
"Like a firecracker," I explained. "But stronger. Seal one end. Load a projectile. Let the explosion propel it."
His eyes widened.
"A… fire lance?"
My heart skipped.
They were close.
So close.
"Use metal," I said. "Test. Fail. Adjust. Repeat."
He hesitated.
Then nodded.
"I will try."
That night, Zhao Xu listened.
Calm.
Trusting.
"You don't even question it?" I asked.
"You're from the future," he said simply.
I laughed.
"Will it work?"
"We try."
He gave the order.
"Spare no cost. One month."
A month later—
the first fire lance arrived.
Rough.
Heavy.
Dangerous.
At the training ground—
they tested it.
A roar.
Smoke.
Impact.
Iron pierced.
Leather torn.
Wood shattered.
Silence.
Zhao Xu stepped forward.
Touched the damage.
Looked at the embedded projectile.
Hope.
"A-Heng," he said softly, "what is this called?"
"Fire lance."
He repeated it.
Then looked at me.
"In your time… is this how wars are fought?"
I shook my head.
"Far more powerful."
He frowned.
"Then why not build that?"
"Because we take steps. This is the first."
"How many steps?"
"A hundred years. Maybe more."
He was silent.
Then—
"I'll take the first step."
He took my hand.
"The frontier won't fall."
His voice was quiet.
Certain.
That night, I wrote:
The fire lance is complete.
He said the frontier won't fall.
I believe him.
Outside, the moon was full.
He never feared who I was.
Never questioned.
He only said—
"Then teach me."
And I will.
Slowly.
Over time.
[End of Chapter 44]