The Last Concubine Read online

  Hüi continued to enjoy the company of his other wives at intervals while still ignoring the existence of Princess Lan’xiu. And he hoped that point was clearly evident to all observers. He would be naïve to ignore the fact that spies were everywhere—even within his court—and bribes or enough beer could persuade a man of utmost loyalty to pass on what seemed to him an innocuous bit of gossip. So Hüi felt he could be certain Wu Min was completely aware that the gift of his sister had been ignored.

  Hüi was determined to allow at least two weeks to pass before he went to the seventh house, although he was curious about Lan’xiu. Her image remained burned into his mind, though he had barely given her a glance at their meeting. He wondered what her voice sounded like and if her skin felt like silk—

  Whenever he found his thoughts drifting to her, Hüi admonished himself and reapplied himself strictly to his responsibilities with determined vigor.

  He heard gossip of her from his other wives when he went to them, although they had as yet not met her. Hüi deduced that not only had Mei Ju been talking of Lan’xiu, but that the other wives must have spent some time watching her from their windows when she was permitted to walk in the square to get some air. Fen and Huan were taken with her beauty and could speak of nothing else. Alute said in her placid way that Lan’xiu wore pretty clothes, and Bai admired her laugh. But then Bai was a bit of a loon. She had also said that Lan’xiu had twin pixies that sat upon her shoulders, one that made her sad and one that made her smile.

  It amused Hüi to think what Ci’an might have to say about Lan’xiu, but considering he refused to see the second concubine, chances were he would never know.

  Just when he had decided the time was auspicious, an uprising to the west called him away from home. After a hard fought but short campaign, the rebellious king’s head adorned a spike at the gate to his city, a new functionary had been installed to rule and left with enough soldiers to motivate him to a proper sense of loyalty to the emperor, and Hüi was able to return home. Hüi had entertained suspicions that Lan’xiu’s brother, Wu Min, might have had a finger in the plot, but the erring king had refused to confess to anything before he lost his head. Perhaps Hüi Wei’s strategy of ignoring the girl was making Wu Min impatient, and he had always been one to hide his moves upon the chessboard of power behind some gullible pawn.

  Of course, Hüi’s first visit upon his return must be to Mei Ju, who clung to him and examined him for injuries whenever he returned from war. Then protocol demanded he visit each wife in turn, to give each the relief of seeing him unharmed.

  Therefore it was a full month after the princess’s arrival before he sent a servant to light the lantern that hung beside the door of the seventh house.

  “Finally you go to sample the beauty of the princess,” Jiang teased him at luncheon. “Perhaps you will remain to devour after the first nibble.”

  “Have you seen her since the audience?” Hüi asked in a dangerous tone.

  “Only in my imagination, where I often go to spend time these days.” Jiang heaved a ridiculous sigh and assumed a dreamy expression. “I should not dare to enter the household without your permission. The last time I went there, it was at your behest to converse with First Wife.”

  “I know,” Hüi apologized. “I did not truly doubt you. This princess is a thorn in my side, and the sooner she is extracted, the better. I wonder how much of an insult Wu Min would take if I sent her back now.”

  “Without going to see her?” Jiang’s face lit up in glee. “I cannot imagine worse. Unless you sent bits of her back in different trunks. But that would be a tragic waste of all that beauty. If I know you, you will find a way to use her and insult her brother.”

  “Everyone keeps saying how beautiful she is,” Hüi said impatiently. “Ci’an is beautiful but dangerous. She would have killed me if she could.”

  “Did she try?” Jiang asked with interest.

  “Yes,” Hüi snapped.

  “Why did you never tell me?”

  “Because you would have killed her, and if you recall, we need her alive so that her father will remain docile.”

  “How did she do it?”

  “She threw a vase at me and then tried to stab me,” Hüi said. “When she found out that I did not approve of her attempts to assassinate my other wives, I told her I would not have her lantern lit again and she flew into a temper.”

  “Did she hit you?”

  “Of course not. I stood still. Women can’t hit what they aim at. And she didn’t have much of an arm for stabbing, either.” Hüi’s lips curled in satisfaction. “I’m afraid the physician was necessary when I got through with her.”

  “Well, you will not experience that with Princess Lan’xiu,” Jiang said.

  “How do you know if you haven’t seen her?” Hüi asked curiously.

  “Ever since Ci’an’s little tantrum with Mei Ju, I have kept tabs on what happens in the household,” Jiang said. “I have a responsibility to First Wife and your children.”

  “And I thank you for that,” Hüi said.

  “And you must let me know how it goes when you exercise your latest mount,” Jiang continued without acknowledging the thanks he deemed unnecessary.

  “It is unseemly to speak of the princess as if she were a horse,” Hüi said, getting a little hot under the collar.

  “I meant your horse,” Jiang said with innocent surprise. “That new yearling that was brought up from the farms last week. She’s a beauty.”

  “You meant nothing of the sort,” Hüi snapped. Then he wondered why he was so on edge. It could have nothing to do with a new concubine. Women were all the same, barring a few details of coloring and suchlike, and he had been through new acquisitions before. There was no possible reason for him to be anxious. That was for the women. It was their job to please him, not the other way around.

  “Sadly, you have caught me out,” Jiang agreed. “But what is a ribald joke or two on the eve of claiming the most beautiful wife you have ever managed to acquire?”

  Hüi’s lips relaxed into a grin and he sniggered. “I must admit, I am a bit curious to find out what she has been thinking all this time. Perhaps she has been relieved to be left alone.”

  “Do you think she will tell you?”

  “No, she seems to be a quiet girl. Even Mei Ju cannot draw her out, and apparently she likes Mei Ju and holds her in respect.”

  “As she should.” Jiang nodded approvingly and then leaned over to brush his fingertips over Hüi’s cheek lightly. “You need to shave. You don’t want to scratch the poor girl to death. She won’t be able to be seen in public for days if you go to her like that.”

  Hüi rubbed a hand over his whiskers, which were heavy for a man of his land. He had always secretly enjoyed that he could grow a beard where most could not. “I suppose it would be a minimum of courtesy to her.”

  “Go clean up, for the gods’ blessings,” Jiang ordered. “And then I want to hear every detail.” He rubbed his hands lasciviously. “The most beautiful girl I have ever seen.”

  Hüi found himself on the edge of losing his temper again but said nothing. He stood up and retired to his chambers to shave. And perhaps he might change to a more attractive robe. He wondered if Lan’xiu might have liked his hair better in a braid, but he kept it short for battle, to give his enemies no handle to grab onto. If long, it tumbled to his shoulders in unruly waves, and he rather thought it made him look fierce and imposing like a lion.

  Again, he had to call himself to order. He was getting hard simply by thinking of her. The one glance of her stunning beauty had started to haunt him, and the flame of desire curled into his belly, sparking his manhood as none of his other wives ever had. During the recent campaign, he had pleasured himself until he was sore, dreaming of her beauty.

  There was something so alluring and fascinating about her that it went beyond mere beauty. He wanted to gaze into her eyes and see his passion reflected back at him. Hüi became startled when he real
ized he wanted her love, and he didn’t know her yet or even love her himself.

  There was something special about this girl, and Hüi wondered if perhaps she was a witch who had put a spell on him during the brief moments they were in the same room. He feared the powerful attraction he felt to her, but he reveled in it.

  It made him feel like a man. A man of conquest.

  She was his now, and he would possess her, claim her, and master her so that she would bend to his will.

  In this mood, it was all he could do to wait until after dark. It was unseemly for the master and lord to display any eagerness for the company of a mere woman, and a concubine at that. He knew all eyes would be upon him when he went to her house, and he had to force himself to saunter when he longed to race there, knock down the door, and sweep her into his arms.

  He rapped upon the door three times and waited until it was opened to him by a young maid who bowed deeply, backing away to allow him entry.

  “Thank you,” Hüi said courteously. It did not do to neglect these simple acts of courtesy, and it won him the loyalty of most of his dependents.

  The woman bowed again but remained silent.

  Hüi’s attention was drawn by the eunuch who came down the stairs before bowing deeply. In his light voice, the eunuch said, “General Qiang, my mistress awaits you in the bedchamber.”

  “Thank you,” Hüi said. “You may go.”

  The maid hurried to the back of the house without comment, but the eunuch looked miserable as he withdrew more slowly. If this had been any other situation, Hüi might have wondered about that, but all his attention was fixed on the girl awaiting him upstairs.

  With each step his tension grew. Every step closer to her made him more nervous than facing a horde of barbarians sweeping in from the north, although why, he could not tell. He was in the position of power here. If she did not like him, it would make no difference. He would possess her against her will as often as he pleased. He owned her.

  The upper hall was darkened, and only one door stood open. A warm glow emanated from within, and Hüi went toward it.

  He gasped soundlessly when he caught sight of the girl. She stood with her eyes downcast, her hands hidden within the sleeves of her hanfu, fear etched in every line of her body. However, there was something courageous about the way she waited for him when clearly she was terrified, and that roused a little feeling of tenderness within that surprised him. He’d expected passion, and she did indeed arouse within him an almost frighteningly violent wish to rend her clothing and throw her upon the bed and ravish her, but there was something more complex than mere sexual attraction in his reaction to her.

  It was as if his heart were soaring with happiness that he had finally found the mate to his soul and would ever be as one with her. Nothing like the calm content he felt with Mei Ju. This emotion was new and powerful and unsettling. But his happiness struck a stark contrast to the girl’s misery, and it compelled him to try to comfort her. He closed the door behind him.

  “Princess Zhen Lan’xiu,” he said.

  “My Lord Qiang Hüi Wei,” she responded properly, although her voice trembled.

  He could see her entire body shaking, but the sound of her voice was like music to his ears. Unlike the shrill tones of most of his wives, Lan’xiu’s voice was low and melodic, and she spoke his name softly.

  Her lashes swept her cheeks like the wings of a butterfly, and he wished to look into her hidden eyes. “Look at me,” he commanded.

  Startled, she looked up, and he felt his soul fly out of his body to meet hers when their eyes met. She seemed to feel it as well, because a small wrinkle appeared between her brows, as if she was perplexed by some new emotion that she did not expect. “My Lord?”

  “You belong to me. Do you admit that you belong to me?” he demanded.

  “I belong to you,” she agreed softly. The corners of her mouth turned down, and her eyes filled with a curious mixture of sadness and longing although a fire burned deep within them.

  Hüi could have sworn she wanted nothing more than what he did, to join their bodies together and experience the rapture of their melding. Doubt and fear showed in her eyes while her beautiful face remained impassive.

  “I have never seen so exquisite a creature,” he murmured. He drew nearer and put his hand on her cheek.

  Lan’xiu closed her eyes and rubbed her cheek against his hand like a kitten, still trembling.

  “I will not hurt you,” Hüi said, looking down at her.

  She didn’t answer but raised one hand to touch his. Contrary to the soft touch he expected, the roughness of a hardened palm rasped against his skin, a callus that ought not be found on any woman’s hand. He stared at the sword callus on his own, making a connection that seemed impossible. His eyes narrowed with suspicion as he searched the beautiful face. It couldn’t be possible that a woman….

  Instantly he sprang away from her, gripping her wrist hard enough to elicit a cry of pain from her. “What treachery is this?” he snarled, shaking her hand and pointing at the calluses on her palm.

  “I am party to no treachery, my Lord!” Lan’xiu exclaimed in fear. She tried to draw her hand away from his, but he was too strong for her.

  Hüi pulled her flat against him, imprisoning both hands behind her back in one of his. She did not resist him as he roughly felt her chest. He found no familiar, round softness there. He groped between her legs and found hardness there as well. Disgusted, he flung her from him, staring down at where she fell to the floor. “No treachery you say!” he said with contempt. “You are no woman!”

  Lan’xiu shakily got to his feet and stared at him proudly. “I am no woman, but the treachery was not mine. It was not my wish to sell myself into a slavery I did not want. My brother betrayed me and is using me to betray you.”

  Hüi drew the sword he was never without. “I should kill you here and now.”

  “You will do as you deem best, my Lord,” Lan’xiu said. He folded his hands, bowed his head, and waited.

  Hüi raised the sword and advanced upon the beautiful girl—boy—and grasped his hair, pulling his head back to expose the long, slender throat. He rested the sharp edge of the blade against Lan’xiu’s skin, causing a line of crimson drops to form, but the boy uttered no sound of protest. He merely waited, watching Hüi with his liquid eyes.

  Something in his expression caused Hüi to release Lan’xiu’s hair, noting the softness against his palm like a caress as it tumbled free from the clasp to fall in a cloud around the boy’s face. He pushed the boy away. “Sit there!” he ordered, pointing at a chair. He began to pace, keeping a close eye on the boy as he obediently went to the chair and sat.

  “I can kill you now or five minutes from now. I don’t suppose it will make much difference,” Hüi muttered. The battle raging within almost immobilized him. Clearly, Wu Min had sent a boy in the guise of a woman to make a fool of him, but that mattered little. What bothered him more was his reaction to the boy. Even more so than when he thought him a woman, he urgently desired to tear the boy’s clothing from his body and carry out his previous plan of ravishment, and he could not understand what dark forces drove him.

  “Who—what are you?” he demanded finally.

  “My name is Lan’xiu,” the boy said.

  At last Hüi understood the intriguing timbre of the girl’s—boy’s voice. “Beautiful orchid,” he said scornfully. “A female’s name.”

  “That is the name given to me by my mother,” Lan’xiu insisted. “My brother, Wu Min, was already seventeen when I was born. She knew if he found out I was male, he would have dashed my brains out with a rock and left my body on the mountain for wild beasts. He was intent upon my father’s throne and could brook no competition.”

  “But you were the younger son. There was no danger to him,” Hüi said. “What woman would shame her son by forcing him into skirts, even to save his life? That is what puzzles me.”

  “She did not force me,” Lan’xiu
said quietly. He stroked the silk of his cheongsam with one finger. “I like dressing like this.”

  “You are trying to fool me. You wish to be a woman,” Hüi spat.

  “I do not wish to be a woman,” Lan’xiu exclaimed in a frustrated voice. “You do not understand. I like dressing this way. I feel pretty like this.”

  “Well, you’re certainly pretty,” Hüi said sarcastically. “Pretty enough to fool anyone into thinking you a woman. So your brother believes that you are a girl and sends you to occupy my attention while he plans some assault against me.”

  Lan’xiu started to shake again. “He found out that I am not a girl. He was enraged at being so deceived and killed my mother. He planned to kill me also, until he thought of this scheme.”

  “I do not wonder that he was outraged,” Hüi shouted. “I share his sentiment and I do not take kindly to those who mistake me for a fool!”

  The door opened, and the eunuch stood upon the threshold, looking worried.

  “Ning! You may go! Shut the door behind you and go downstairs!”

  Hüi started at Lan’xiu’s sharp tone of command. Although the eunuch hesitated for a moment, his eyes fixed upon the line of blood on Lan’xiu’s throat, he obeyed the order. “Yes, my Lady.” Still eyeing the general belligerently, he backed slowly from the room and shut the door.

  “Born to command, eh?”

  “Ning has been with me since I was a child and he would prefer that I didn’t die,” Lan’xiu said wryly. “And he prefers not to die either. But we have accepted our fate.” He folded his hands in his lap, the picture of resignation.

  Hüi continued to pace. “I should kill you here and now to avenge this insult. I can have it put about that I found you had betrayed me before I claimed you.”

  “That would play into my brother’s hands,” Lan’xiu said. In a calm voice, he explained, “I have had much time to consider this. If you slay me for betraying you, you hold yourself up to ridicule as a cuckold. If you cast me from your door in disgust, my brother will take care to spread the news that I am male and that he was able to fool you into taking me as a concubine. If you kill me, the stain of guilt is upon your hands rather than his and he is provided with all the excuse he needs to launch an attack to avenge my death. Once he disposes of you, he will carve a path to the sea. He believes that you are the only thing that stands in the way of his seizing all of China.”