[The Yao Capital • Palace of Eternal Joy]
The first light of dawn was faint, and the Capital had yet to wake, but incense was already burning in the Palace of Eternal Joy. Outside the glass windows, pine shadows swayed. A figure sat behind an agarwood desk, clad in pale purple royal robes with gold-embroidered peonies at the collar—elegant, yet radiating a chilling aura.
She was the eldest Princess of the Yao Realm—Si Yirou.
On her desk sat a cup of untouched tea, its steam curling in the air. Her features were exquisite, her expression calm, yet deep in her eyes stirred a storm that had never truly settled.
Soft footsteps sounded outside. A maid in dark attire hurried in, kneeling low. "Princess... the girl has been taken by the Third Prince."
Yirou's fingers, steady as stone, paused at the rim of her teacup.
"Gu Xingyu?" she murmured. Her voice was light, but it caused the temperature in the hall to plummet.
"Yes. According to our scouts, she vanished during an ambush on the forest road. She is now in the Third Prince's hands."
A long silence followed. Si Yirou rose and walked to the window, lightly touching the silk curtains. "...So, even he has made his move on her," she whispered, her tone unreadable.
She was pleased that the rising Saintess, protected by the Five Yao, had finally fallen. Yet she was troubled—if Si Moheng and the girl truly collaborated, it would pose a fatal threat to her own plans.
"The Five Yao will pursue her," she said, as if answering herself. She closed her eyes, recalling the images she had seen in the Water Mirror—that girl's gentle yet resolute eyes, her refusal to bow to power, and the way others naturally followed her.
"Will she be persuaded? Or... will she persuade him?"
The wind brushed past her ears. Si Yirou suddenly smiled—a smile like a cold plum blossom blooming in frost, beautiful but sharp. "Regardless... she is far too dangerous."
She turned to her maid. "Send word to Liu Yan. Order the Hidden Guards to mobilize around Si Moheng's camp. If Gu Xingyu finds even a sliver of a chance to escape, intercept her and bring her to me."
"Princess... do you intend to interfere with the Third Prince's operation?"
"If I don't interfere, no one will know where he places that chess piece," Yirou nodded, her gaze turning cold as ice. "I will not allow this game to conclude without me making a move."
She returned to her desk and spread a scroll of white silk. With a vermilion brush, she wrote a single word, her strokes powerful and bone-chilling: MANDATE.
[The Yao Capital • Yunhua Palace]
The palace lamps were still lit, and the jade steps were silent.
Empress Mu Yao sat alone on her couch, slowly turning a white jade ring on her finger. To the world, she was the elegant and cold Empress, but her brow carried a weight that could no longer be hidden. Every night she waited—waited for the man high above, whose heart she could never enter. Even when she feigned illness, he would only send the royal physicians to treat her.
She had once naively believed that if she were perfect enough, she could replace the shadow of that woman. But now, she finally understood. There are positions one can occupy for a lifetime without ever truly owning them.
"If it weren't for the name Mu, I would never have entered these palace walls..." She looked at the night sky, her eyes vacant. Years ago, Mu Yunzhao had descended from the Radiance Terrace, her white robes like snow, and both princes had lost their hearts to her.
And she—Mu Yao—was merely the cousin of that peerless Saintess. A substitute. A pawn chosen to appease the court.
Si Chengjing had married her, but he had never given her a shred of warmth. Even after she bore him a son and a daughter, he never smiled for her.
"The Crown Prince seeks an audience," a servant announced.
"Let him in."
Si Moyan entered, his poise impeccable in his dark teal court robes. "Mother, good evening."
The Empress gestured for him to sit. "You've been busy lately. Why come at this hour?"
"I was worried about you, Mother," Moyan sat, his eyes flickering toward the white jade ring before looking away.
"You're here about Gu Xingyu," Mu Yao said plainly.
"Yes," Moyan paused. "The news of the Third Brother's kidnapping has spread through the palace. If not handled quickly, it may tarnish the Yao Realm's name of righteousness."
Mu Yao gave a cold laugh. "Righteousness? Has your father ever truly upheld it?"
Moyan frowned slightly. "I only know that Gu Xingyu carries the Yao-Seal. If she truly is the Chosen of Fate..."
"Her?" Mu Yao sneered. "A nameless girl. If not for that pocket watch, why would the Five Yao bow to her? If she is truly the Saintess... then what are you? What is your father?"
Moyan was silent for a long time. "Mother, the past is long gone..."
"No one has forgotten!" Mu Yao cut him off, her eyes flashing. "Your father's heart was never with me, and it isn't with you. Do you think you can win the throne through loyalty? The moment a new Saintess appeared, he never intended for you to truly ascend."
"I only wish for the stability of the Yao Realm," Moyan whispered, lowering his gaze.
"Stability?" Mu Yao's voice dropped to a murmur. "Are you willing to let that woman take the throne of Fate and let you lose everything?"
Moyan hesitated. "What do you wish to do, Mother?"
"Yirou has already made her move. If you won't act... I will pave the way for her."
Moyan stared at the Empress. "Mother, Yirou is not reckless. If she acts, she leaves no room for retreat."
"As it should be," Mu Yao replied, her heart sealed in ice. "Yirou has waited for the Saintess's position for years. She should not have to yield it to anyone else."
Moyan stood to leave. "Mother, if one day I walk a different path from her... who will you choose?"
The Empress trembled, looking at the face that was almost identical to Si Chengjing's. This was the son she had raised, her only support in a life without love.
"You are both my children," she finally whispered. "I only want you both to survive to the end."
Moyan nodded and left without another word.
Silence returned to the hall.
Mu Yao touched the white jade ring one last time. "I learned everything from her. I practiced the angle of her smile in the mirror." Her voice cracked. "I thought if I wore this, I could shine like her... and finally be seen by him."
The ring felt cold. The object that held all her hope had become the shackle of her soul.
"Can I truly... never replace her?" she asked the empty room, tears shimmering in her eyes. "It's all over now... a new Saintess, a new Yao Realm. My lifelong obsession... it's all over."
In the silence, she finally took off the ring and placed it in her palm, like waking from a very long dream.