Daughter of Heaven

Chapter 15 - The Princess In The Winds

The footsteps echoed in the sparse and cold room. Sunlight barely filtered through the black curtained windows.  Hong Yan Su walked slowly and bowed in front a slumped figure sitting in an onyx chair carved with rolling black clouds. The man in heavy black silk glared at  Hong Yan Su while wheezing heavily. Hong Yan Su only bowed elegantly, "Father. I hope you are well."

The man said nothing but gasped for air as he gathered the strength to talk. Though the old General Hong was still a powerfully built man, the dead Empress Xi Yan Yue had left a hole in his lungs and crippled him before he killed her. Now he sat all day in the magnificent Ducal house the Emperor had gifted him for defending the palace during the siege, directing his anger and bitterness at his oldest son.

"you..fool." He gasped. "You were the one who stopped me from kidnapping...the little chit. Because of you...we have to deal with a Crown Prince."

Hong Yan Su straightened and looked at his father's eyes without flinching. Most men would have cowered at the thunderous rage, "I did not want to make the same mistakes as you."  The elegant Hong Yan Su barely raised his straight black brows as looked down at the once great man.

General Hong's face went pale with anger, there was derision in his eyes as he spat out, "you...dare...."

Hong Yan Su's lip curled into a cruel smile, the derisiveness matching that of his fathers." 10 years ago you tried to take the throne and failed. I let your little plan go as far as to get to the Princess. But I wasn't going to let you ruin my plans"

"You trusted.... the wrong person." The rough voice was getting weaker as General Hong grasped the chair for support.

Hong Yan Su shrugged carelessly, "I miscalculated. I leaked the news to Long Hui because I knew he would defeat your men." Hong Yan Su did not looked bothered by the new complication, his eyes were alight with the challenge. Every thing has become more interesting.

"What...were you planning?" The older man gasped, "If you had followed my plan, you would've been Emperor in a year."

Hong Yan Su said nothing, his mouth a thin line with a hint of a mocking smile. The silent message hung over father and son, both of them knew why he stopped his father from kidnapping Yu Zhu. If Hong Yan Su became Yu Zhu's fiance now and soon the Emperor, General Hong would be the true power. Hong Yan Su was waiting for his father to die.

Suddenly the old man began to laugh, it was more hoarse than the cawing of black crows and more feral than the screams of dying wildebeests. Hong Yan Su waited patiently as the horrible sound died down, there was nothing but boredom on his graceful features.

Finally the man asked him, "Perhaps...you...care for that little idiot. Don't forget...when you become Emperor... that's when she dies too. I... I won't let the daughter of the Empress Bitch Xi Yang Yue live long."

For the first time, there was something other than condescension in Hong Yan Su's eyes, his clenched hands hidden in the wide sleeves of his grey robes. "She is of no consequence. Just a pawn, we need not pay attention to her." Hong Yan Su bowed, "I have to attend to the army, since you are not fit for duty. At least one man in this family should be honorable." There was ice in his eyes as he bowed and strode out of the room. It was only after he had walked out did he unclench his fist. Drops of blood spattered on the cold stone path after his tall figure.

----

The Emperor sat, his head held in his hand as he read reports from the borders, for now at . He stopped and coughed. Once it started it was impossible to stop. He covered his mouth with his hand, trying to stifle the relentless sound. Wetness trickled down his fingers. He stared at the blood inching down his numb fingers and smiled bitterly.