surprise, he withdrew from her still long and hard with his desire. She glared up at him with venomous hatred as he pushed me forward and buried himself in me.
He spoke in a low-pitched voice meant to carry—he wanted her to hear what he said, even though his tone spoke of conspiratorial confidence. “After Lei suffered five miscarriages in a row and nearly died with the last pregnancy, my physician recommended she not carry a child again. Since she’s already given me a son, I haven’t wasted my royal seed in her in almost ten years.”
He shuddered, giving me what he’d denied his Empress. “Another pregnancy would more than likely bring her death.” He stretched out between us. He drew me into his side and reached for her, but she averted her face and kept her body wooden. “We can’t have that,” he laughed softly, “can we.”
And there, in the shared embrace with my beloved, I knew exactly how to accomplish my goal without risking his throne. If I lived long enough.
Chapter Seven
When my joyous news became known in the palace, I was prepared for repercussions. Each woman’s monthly flow was recorded in addition to every single visit she made to her lord’s bed. By the way the chief eunuch’s jaw quivered, he understood perfectly. The only thing I could not be sure was whom he would tell first, the Emperor or his Empress.
His life very likely depended on this one bit of news and how he chose to share it.
I waited in my chambers, letting myself daydream about the Emperor’s reaction to my news. Would he be pleased to have yet another woman bearing a child of his blood? Especially a woman uncomfortably bound to his own firstborn son. Ping would despise me even more. He would be so thoroughly humiliated by the news that I feared he might do something reckless. I didn’t want him dead; I merely wanted free of him.
That is, until he burst into my room. “Strip her!”
Servants eager to curry the next Emperor’s favor rushed to do his will, dragging me from my chair and jerking at my clothing. My outer gown tore. My hair blinded me, but I managed to see my nurse creeping out the door. She would go for help.
They left my breasts bound, at least, and the thin underskirt shielded the worst of my nudity. Forcing myself to remain calm, I lifted my chin and faced my husband. “Exactly what am I accused of, Your Highness?”
“Adultery.” He spat the word, his face ugly with hatred. “You’re pregnant, and as I haven’t bedded you in months, your spawn is another man’s child. For that crime, you will be beaten, branded on the face and expelled from the palace. If your bastard survives your punishment, you will find it very difficult to lure some other man into fostering you and accepting a child not his, for I shall surely not!”
A beating I could easily endure. I could only hope the Emperor stopped this farce before the branding began. I kept my composure and didn’t whine or plead for mercy. It must have irritated Ping, because red spots glared on his cheeks. With a sharp gesture, he commanded the guards to take my arms.
They dragged me down the hallways, twisting and turning toward the side exit reserved for convicts and the most despised criminals. This courtyard was often stained with blood and witnessed the screams of the guilty. I wasn’t too concerned until a heavily muscled man stepped forward with a long, wicked whip in his hands.
Such a whip would leave scars that I would bear the rest of my life.
Ping drew himself up proudly. “Tell me who the father of your bastard is and I’ll only order ten lashes.”
What could I do? Surely he had to suspect something odd after seeing his father drag me across his lap and spank me. Was he truly so dense as to not understand? Didn’t he pay attention whatsoever to the clues about him? The gossip? I couldn’t imagine living among so many powerful, position-conscious people without any comprehension of those deadly waters through which I
He spoke in a low-pitched voice meant to carry—he wanted her to hear what he said, even though his tone spoke of conspiratorial confidence. “After Lei suffered five miscarriages in a row and nearly died with the last pregnancy, my physician recommended she not carry a child again. Since she’s already given me a son, I haven’t wasted my royal seed in her in almost ten years.”
He shuddered, giving me what he’d denied his Empress. “Another pregnancy would more than likely bring her death.” He stretched out between us. He drew me into his side and reached for her, but she averted her face and kept her body wooden. “We can’t have that,” he laughed softly, “can we.”
And there, in the shared embrace with my beloved, I knew exactly how to accomplish my goal without risking his throne. If I lived long enough.
Chapter Seven
When my joyous news became known in the palace, I was prepared for repercussions. Each woman’s monthly flow was recorded in addition to every single visit she made to her lord’s bed. By the way the chief eunuch’s jaw quivered, he understood perfectly. The only thing I could not be sure was whom he would tell first, the Emperor or his Empress.
His life very likely depended on this one bit of news and how he chose to share it.
I waited in my chambers, letting myself daydream about the Emperor’s reaction to my news. Would he be pleased to have yet another woman bearing a child of his blood? Especially a woman uncomfortably bound to his own firstborn son. Ping would despise me even more. He would be so thoroughly humiliated by the news that I feared he might do something reckless. I didn’t want him dead; I merely wanted free of him.
That is, until he burst into my room. “Strip her!”
Servants eager to curry the next Emperor’s favor rushed to do his will, dragging me from my chair and jerking at my clothing. My outer gown tore. My hair blinded me, but I managed to see my nurse creeping out the door. She would go for help.
They left my breasts bound, at least, and the thin underskirt shielded the worst of my nudity. Forcing myself to remain calm, I lifted my chin and faced my husband. “Exactly what am I accused of, Your Highness?”
“Adultery.” He spat the word, his face ugly with hatred. “You’re pregnant, and as I haven’t bedded you in months, your spawn is another man’s child. For that crime, you will be beaten, branded on the face and expelled from the palace. If your bastard survives your punishment, you will find it very difficult to lure some other man into fostering you and accepting a child not his, for I shall surely not!”
A beating I could easily endure. I could only hope the Emperor stopped this farce before the branding began. I kept my composure and didn’t whine or plead for mercy. It must have irritated Ping, because red spots glared on his cheeks. With a sharp gesture, he commanded the guards to take my arms.
They dragged me down the hallways, twisting and turning toward the side exit reserved for convicts and the most despised criminals. This courtyard was often stained with blood and witnessed the screams of the guilty. I wasn’t too concerned until a heavily muscled man stepped forward with a long, wicked whip in his hands.
Such a whip would leave scars that I would bear the rest of my life.
Ping drew himself up proudly. “Tell me who the father of your bastard is and I’ll only order ten lashes.”
What could I do? Surely he had to suspect something odd after seeing his father drag me across his lap and spank me. Was he truly so dense as to not understand? Didn’t he pay attention whatsoever to the clues about him? The gossip? I couldn’t imagine living among so many powerful, position-conscious people without any comprehension of those deadly waters through which I
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