As light snow flurried down outside, Ye An stilled. A tight numbness gripped at the crown of her head slowly spreading its claws down her body, holding her in place.

A coup. All she had ever known about that word was how it had brought catastrophe on the night when she was born.

It was also the night when her mother had died.

Ye An's heart dropped.

"Governess Hsu." She muttered. "H-how.. Where is she? Is she safe?"

Xiao Yan lowered her head at the question. A frown formed on the smooth skin between her clear brows.

Ye An swallowed, fearing the worst. "Is Governess Hsu safe?" She asked again, careful to enunciate each word.

Still, Xiao Yan didn't answer.

Something snapped in Ye An. She grabbed Xiao Yan's shoulders and asked again. "Where is Governess Hsu? Why won't you answer?"

Xiao Yan's gaze finally flitted towards Ye An, but she still struggled to bring those words out.

Ye An's grip on Xiao Yan tightened. Xiao Yan winced at the pressure.

Ye An let go of Xiao Yan abruptly. "Forgive me."

Xiao Yan shook her head, letting out a sorrowful sigh. She mustered up some courage and said. "The inner court was breached late last night and Governess Hsu tried to stop the intruders."

"No." Ye An abruptly turned her back against Xiao Yan. "No, it can't be."

"Her body was found this morning." Xiao Yan continued, her voice even.

"No." Ye An started to leave as if leaving the space where those words were said would make them untrue.

Xiao Yan held her tongue but thought better of it. "Your Imperial Majesty, I think you should know the whole story." She expressed quietly.

Ye An, still with her back to the group, didn't answer. Xiao Yan naturally took it as permission to continue.

"She was stabbed."

Ye An who was standing as if frozen just a while ago took another step away.

Unlike earlier, words were suddenly gushing out of Xiao Yan much like the rushing waters of a waterfall in early spring. "My source said that there were two stab wounds. One at the hip and another at the chest. The stab on her chest punctured her lungs. The alley where she was attacked was a quiet one and she wasn't sent to the physician in time."

"No. Stop." Ye An's voice cracked.

"Governess Hsu suffocated to deat-"

Before Xiao Yan could finish, Ye An turned around and roared. "I ASK YOU TO STOP! STOP! STOP! STOP! I DON'T WANT TO HEAR IT!"

Ye An breathed heavily after her outburst, her bloodshot eyes shining red like pomegranate seeds. "I think you should leave."

Xiao Yan had enough wit in her to know that this wasn't the time to rebuke Ye An. "Yes, Your Imperial Majesty. I'll be at the infirmary when you're ready to hear the full report of the coup."

Yue Fei who was watching them quietly with Ah Lin bowed at Ye An before she opened the trap door for Xiao Yan and left with her.

When it was just her and Ah Lin, Ye An's knees buckled.

"Your Imperial Majesty!" With his quick reflexes, Ah Lin managed to catch her before her knees touched the ground.

Ye An steadied herself and waved him away weakly.

"I'm sorry for your loss, Your Imperial Majesty." Ah Lin offered his sincere condolences with a small frown.

"..." Ye An's silence answered as she dragged her feet to the side of the room and held on to a wall for support.

"I know it might not be the right time and I hope that you won't think that I'm crossing the line. But maybe you should listen to what else Xiao Yan has to say. It could help you identify the people who are responsible for the coup and.." Ah Lin lowered his eyes. "Governess Hsu."

Ye An bit the inside of her lips until she could taste the rust in her blood. She knew Ah Lin was right. But she didn't think she had it in her to continue listening to Xiao Yan without losing her composure.

Suddenly, a soldier who was closely watching the development of the Northern camp burst through the open walkway. "Captain Zhang! There's a steady movement by the Northerners and the number of their forces has increased!"

Ah Lin immediately rushed out to see what was happening. Ye An followed closely behind.

A large group of crows was the first that entered their vision when they stepped out of the commander's post. All of them ducked immediately, narrowly escaping the onslaught of the birds that were flying at them at high speed before swooping upwards in unison forming a dark wall that added to the height of the stone wall that they were currently standing on. 

It was already dim outside with the snow clouds but the birds curtained away what remaining sunlight that was available with the denseness of their group. It was an impressive sight if not for the weird timing. It was already deep winter in the North. For that reason alone, all of the birds should have already migrated to warmer lands. It was rare to see such a dense population of crows here this time of the year.

Before Ye An could delve deeper into the unusual scenario, the birds that were at the forefront of the group and were currently over their heads exploded, spewing guts and blood all over the wall. The black wall of dark feathers became a crimson shower in an instant.

Through the downpour of the bloody bits and carcasses, Ye An's eyes zeroed in on one of the birds and saw that what must be explosives were tied on the feet of the bird. Right after she made this observation, the exact bird exploded.

Each and every one of the birds exploded over the walls. The bloody remains rained down on all of them, limiting their vision.

When their sight of the Northern camp was cleared, Ye An and Ah Lin stepped towards the very edge of the wall for a better view. Ye An flicked off the blood over her lashes in one clean move and squinted at the Northern camp.

At first, Ye An couldn't make sense of what she was seeing. The white of the snow that extended from the wall towards the Northern camp suddenly ended with what seemed to be different shades of rocks and stones. Upon closer inspection, Ye An realized that they were men in grey-colored fur-lined clothes. There were so many of them that they covered the fresh snow from where the bald trees of the forest started on either side.

Ye An's eyes widened when she saw what followed behind the throng of men. "Are those- Are those wolves?"

Grey wolves that were larger than any animal Ye An had ever witnessed prowled menacingly behind the Northerners with more Northerners riding on their backs.

Even from this distance, Ye An could hear the whooping cry for war of the Northern warriors. She shuddered. "Let's tackle one matter at a time, Captain Zhang. It seems like we have a problem that needs our immediate attention."

Ah Lin nodded in agreement before calling out at the top of his voice. "Raise the alarms! All men to the front line! Archers, standby! Cavalries and men on the ground, be prepared to defend the gate! Guards! Open the gates for our men! Quick! Before the Northerners are here!"

The heavy gates groaned as they were opened. Ye An could hear the vigorous clopping of hoofs as the cavalries rode out on horseback. The muffled sounds of the ground soldiers' boots hitting the snow-laden ground could even be felt in the slight tremors of the wall where Ye An stood.

The Northerners had used the group of exploding birds as a distraction. During the time when they were occupied by the bloody rain, the Northerners were already halfway towards the wall. And so it took no time before the clashing of weapons could be heard. The screeching sounds of steel on steel were accompanied by the cries that were made by the men with each swing of their weapon. Horses' neighs and yelps were also heard intermittently.

Ye An turned to Ah Lin. "I need to be down there."

"Your Imperial Majesty." Ah Lin said exasperatedly.

"I will not hear any objection. By you or anyone else."

Ah Lin sighed. On one hand, he had promised Xi Chen to protect Ye An with all he had. On the other, he knew that Ye An wasn't one to be stopped and he knew that even if Xi Chen was here right this moment, he wouldn't be able to stop her as well. "Then at least let's switch you out of those clothes."

Remembering the events from yesterday, it seemed as if she was targeted due to the dragon emblems on her clothing. Ye An agreed without any hesitation even though she would be breaking the imperial code of conduct. "Of course."

"You'll probably find something of your size in the changing closet." Ah Lin said as he pushed an open rack of firewood that was positioned in front of a small door. The door opened into a small walk-in closet.

Ye An stepped in. Before she could close the rickety door, Ah Lin already spoke. "Just pick whatever you need. I'll head down to grab some horses for us."

"Alright." Ye An answered as she closed the door.

After quickly dressing in the plainest armor she could find, Ye An descended the wall.

Ah Lin was already waiting for her when she cleared the stairs.

Ye An nodded her thanks and grabbed the reins of her horse before climbing over it.

"Captain Zhang, I think we should split up. People would be more suspicious if I were to travel with the person who has the highest position here." Ye An nodded at the bright red armband that was currently tied over Ah Lin's left bicep.

"But-"

"No buts. I would be in more danger if I'm by your side with that band on you."

Ah Lin couldn't argue Ye An's point. So, he sighed. "Please stay alive, Your Imperial Majesty. Xi Chen will kill me in my sleep if you don't."

Despite the heaviness in her heart, Ye An smirked. "Of course."

She squeezed the body of her horse before galloping off towards the open gate, leaving Ah Lin muttering to himself. "Wait. Of course what? Of course you'll come back alive or of course Xi Chen will kill me? Your Imperial Majesty!"

Ye An merely waved at him without turning back. The small smile on her face fading as the distance between her and the wall grew.

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Writer's note: Ugh, I love Ah Lin. He's such a breath of fresh air. He's like the lemon in soda water, a bright yellow flower in a bush of endless green shrubs, the Naruto in a group of dark-clad NPCs~ BUT, I also miss Xi Chen when I was writing the scene at the wall. *sigh Anyone here misses Xi Chen as much as I do?