The night sky stretched endlessly above them as the black cloud shuttle cut through the darkness.
Flying through the heavens without conventional navigation points would have been impossible for most people.
The disorientation alone would have rendered any ordinary traveler helpless. But Luo He navigated the vast darkness with absolute certainty.
As though invisible markers guided his path. Within the hour, the shuttle descended toward the Wu capital.
Instead of landing at the formal gates where protocol demanded ceremony and announcement, Luo He guided the shuttle directly into the inner palace.
The Western wing guest quarters materialized below them, elegant pavilions reserved for visiting dignitaries and important guests.
The shuttle descended with practiced grace, landing near one of the largest structures adorned with the flag of Yue. Deep blue silk bearing the symbol of the Yue royal house.
The moment the shuttle touched ground, Luo He emerged with deliberate casualness like he had not violated nearly all palace protocol.
His expression carried that particular quality of shameless indifference that characterized all his actions and life choices.
Jin Mulan and Ning Jia followed, their presence itself a statement. A eunuch appeared almost immediately, his face registering confusion and then alarm at the sight of the shuttle.
"Who dares land in the inner palace without authorization?" The eunuch demanded, his voice shrill with the authority of someone accustomed to minor power.
"This is a restricted area! You must..."
"Summon the Emperor of Yue," Luo He said simply.
His tone conversational and entirely indifferent to the eunuch's outrage. "Tell him 'He' has arrived."
The eunuch's face went dark form arrogance. He knew on such powerful person going by that name. Specially as a newly appointed eunuch he was oblivious to Luo He's presanance.
"I cannot simply summon the emperor on the word of a informal lowlife." The eunuch began with absolute confidence, but his words died as Jin Mulan stepped forward.
She moved with fluid grace, her elegant beauty apparent in every line of her body. But there was something else in her appearance now, something that suppressed her usual refined demeanor.
Her eyes had gone cold. A murderous aura radiated from her, the kind of presence that suggested she was perfectly capable of ending lives without a moments hesitation.
She caught the eunuch's wrist in a grip that made him cry out. Her fingers tightened with deliberate control, stopping just short of breaking bone but making the threat unmistakable.
"Didn't you hear what my husband said?" She said quietly, her voice carrying no emotion whatsoever. "Or would you prefer lose your hand."
The eunuch whimpered, his face going white. Before he could respond guard's came closing in their weapons drawn. Then Ning Jia emerged.
Moving with no particular hurry, she took her time descending to Luo He's side, her posture perfect, her bearing regal.
The moment she appeared, guards who had been rushing toward them from the palace corridors stopped dead in their tracks.
They recognized her immediately. The Third Princess of Yue. One of the most powerful women in the empire. A member of the imperial family.
Her presence here, with these people, changed everything. The guards immediately knelt, their weapons lowered, their entire demeanor shifting from aggression to deference.
"Princess," they said, bowing deeply.
Ning Jia nodded dismissively, and with that single gesture, she had established complete authority over the situation.
She glanced at the eunuch still held in Jin Mulan's grip. "Summon the emperor immediately." She commanded, her voice carrying the weight of imperial authority.
"Tell him the Third Princess requires an audience. Now." The eunuch scrambled to comply, his hand released, his entire body trembling as he hurried toward the inner chambers.
The emperor of Yue received them in his private study. A chamber adorned with silk tapestries and ancient scrolls. The room smelled of incense and aged wine.
Guards lined the walls, but Ning Jia's presence had already neutralized any threat they might pose. When Luo He entered, he approached with deliberate casualness.
He bowed, a gesture of far too little respect than actually ought to be delivered. Which was also rendered entirely hollow by his expression and demeanor.
His bow was perfect in form, but absolute mockery in intent. "Emperor." He said, his tone carrying amusement at some private joke.
"I hope you have been well. I assume your time here has been... sufficiently unpleasant? More than two extra weeks beyond the scheduled wedding date."
"All due to the Youngest Princess falling gravely ill, I'm told. Quite unfortunate timing." He straightened, and his smile was shameless.
The smile of someone who knew exactly why the wedding had been postponed and found genuine entertainment in the situation.
The emperor of Yue's expression hardened. He studied Luo He with the intensity of someone trying to calculate multiple layers of strategic meaning.
"You arrive at an unusual hour," the emperor said carefully. "And uninvited,
I might add." He said seriously. "I come right on time," Luo He replied, his tone suggesting this was obvious.
The chamber door opened, and Ning Jia entered with Jin Mulan behind her. The emperor's eyes widened slightly as he registered his daughter's presence.
And more importantly, the clear dynamic between her and Luo He. "Jia," the emperor said, his tone shifting to something more stern.
"What are you doing here?" He said firmly and authoritatively. "Father," Ning Jia said, her voice carrying the formality of court but also something deeper.
"I have something to say to you." She said. The emperor's face darkened immediately. He rose from his seat, his entire body going rigid with sudden understanding and fury.
"Is this anything to do with you sleeping with this scoundrel?" He demanded, his voice cold and cutting. "Because if you think I will accept such an arrangement."
Luo He laughed. It was a genuine laugh, completely shameless, carrying no concern whatsoever for the emperor's anger whatsoever.
The sound seemed to fill the chamber, utterly indifferent to propriety or seviarity of consequence. The emperor's words died as he registered Luo He's response.
Confusion flickered across his features as he tried to understand what could possibly be amusing about this situation.
"No worries, emperor of Yue," Luo He said, his tone shifting into something more serious but still carrying that quality of absolute indifference.
"This is larger than me and my women. This is about your empire. This is about the security of your emperor's title."
He walked to the chamber door and locked it with a deliberate motion. The sound of the lock engaging seemed to echo through the room.
The emperor's guards began to move, but Luo He's gaze caught them, and they froze. They understood, in that moment, that moving further would be fatal.
"Leave," Luo He commanded simply.
The guards filed out without question, their training and instincts overriding their loyalty to the emperor. Only two figures remained.
Shu Kang, the Transcendent-level guard captain of the emperors personal guard, and the emperor's most trusted left hand man.
And eunuch Long, the emperor's personal eunuch and the most trusted right hand man at his side.
Both are of enormous authority and surprising capability. Equally trusted by the emperor. These two would stay. These two were essential to what was about to occur.
Luo He turned back to face the emperor, and his expression had shifted into something completely focused. The mockery had receded.
The shamelessness remained, but it had been replaced by absolute seriousness.
"Sit, your majusty." He said, and it was not a request he can't refuse.
"What your daughter and I have come to discuss will determine the future of your reign." He said confidently.
The emperor slowly returned to his seat, his mind already calculating what threat could be serious enough to warrant this intrusion, this dramatic entrance, this display of power.
Ning Jia stepped forward, her posture perfect, her bearing regal. Jin Mulan moved to stand slightly behind and to the side of Luo He.
Her murderous aura having receded but not disappeared. Simply controlled now, held in reserve.
"There is a conspiracy," Luo He began, his voice quiet but carrying absolute certainty, "that reaches into the highest levels of your court."
"And it is designed to remove you from power." The emperor's hands gripped the arms of his throne.
"Your daughter came to me with solid evidence." Luo He continued. "Information that we alone possessed. Information that we risked everything to share with you." He said convincingly.
"And we have come to ensure that you understand the magnitude of what is happening around you." He paused.
Letting the weight of his words settle.
"So," he said, his shameless smile returning briefly. "Shall we begin?"