Foreign intelligence was always a murky subject. Information from spies and informants couldn’t always be trusted, and Qin had always been highly secretive. The mighty empire took up over half the continent, and had limited communication with the outside. That had been changing, ever so slowly, since the founding of the original Grand Academy, and that change accelerated when Yoshika established relations between the Flowing Purewater sect and Jiaguo.

Most sects did not approve of or acknowledge Jiaguo, and even their allies had to be circumspect in their interactions. Xin Hai, the grandmaster of the Great Spiritual Flowing Purewater sect, had never officially recognized Jiaguo as anything more than a branch of the Awakening Dragon, even as his own wife took up residence within the growing empire and notably did recognize Empress Yoshika.

That placed him in a very difficult place. His sect had already fallen from grace, stripped of its rank as a great sect in all but name. He didn’t regret it, of course—he would move heaven and earth for Xiulan and his son—but it did limit his reach. His sect was Jiaguo’s only point of access to Qin’s political climate, and everyone knew that.

For the last five years, even his closest allies in the south had been cutting him out as a matter of course. Privately, he’d begun to worry that if nothing changed, the sect might collapse entirely, and his people driven out of the ancestral home he’d maintained for over a millennium.

That put him in an extremely difficult position as he looked over the troubling report from his controversial allies abroad.

“Are you sure about this?”

“We can’t be sure of anything right now, but our intelligence suggests the empire is amassing a force somewhere. We hoped you could confirm it for us.”

The voice coming from the little speaking stone was clear and confident. Seong Eunae’s words, coming from Lee Jia’s lips—there was no other way to describe it, and Xin Hai had met both. The rumors were true, then, not that he’d ever suspected otherwise.

“I’m afraid I don’t know anything about it. If the southern sects are planning something, they didn’t see fit to include me.”

“Your scouts haven’t seen any unusual movements?”

Xin Hai sighed. Jiaguo’s lines of communication were the stuff of wonders. The very conversation he was having boggled the mind—such a transmission would have normally required enormous dedicated formations on both ends, specifically attuned to each other. It was a miracle that they’d found a way to contact a regular speaking stone across such an incredible distance, but it seemed that they’d come to take it for granted.

“Our province is quite large, and the neighboring territories are well aware of our alliance, Lady Yoshika. If they are planning to move against you, then they would never do so where I could have a chance of warning you, and news from other provinces is slow to arrive.”

“Tsk, I was afraid of that. What about Shen Yu? We were supposed to have an agreement.”

“As far as I’m aware, he’s continued to advocate for non-interference.”

It was a mess. By annexing Goryeo, Jiaguo had cemented itself as a continental superpower that Qin could not possibly ignore. It was one thing for the Empire to tolerate a few smaller nations out in the frontier, but now the world had been divided cleanly in half.

Xin Hai wouldn’t dream of trying to predict what went on within the mind of the mighty God-Emperor, but his fellow grandmasters? He knew they’d be getting jumpy.

“Alright. Thank you anyway, we’ll be in touch to—”

Yoshika was interrupted by one of Xin Hai’s temple guardians barging into his meeting room and immediately dropping to one knee.

“Grandmaster! Forgive my interruption, but you have visitors. I could not stop them.”

“What? Who? I said I wasn’t to be disturbed.”

“Yes, grandmaster! I apologize for my inadequacy but—”

A feminine voice interrupted as the two most powerful women in the entire empire appeared in the doorway behind him.

“Your orders were superseded, I’m afraid.”

“We cannot be denied by a mere sect master.”

Qin Ling and Qin Xiang strode in as if they owned the place. Xin Hai felt the sweat forming on his brow. How had they intruded without his notice? He couldn’t even sense their auras.

“Your highnesses. My apologies, but you did not announce your visit, or I would have prepared a more welcoming reception.”

He turned to the speaking stone.

“We’ll have to continue this another time, my lady.”

Xin Hai reached to deactivate the speaking stone, but one of the princesses caught his wrist—she was so fast!

“No.”

“It’s actually quite auspicious that Miss Yoshika is privy to this.”

He stepped back and bowed nervously.

“As you say, Your Highnesses.”

The princesses seated themselves without invitation. Their brows furrowed in perfectly matching vexed expressions.

“You’ve been rather naughty, Yoshika.”

A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

“It’s making us look bad.”

“You promised to consider our offer if we advocated for you to Sovereign Shen.”

There was a beat of silence as Xin Hai realized that the princesses weren’t here for him at all. Yoshika’s voice sounded weary as she responded.

“We have considered it quite seriously. Cooperation across our empires is a compelling notion. To unite the continent in peaceful harmony is a dream like no other. Yet we have found that not everybody who shares that dream agrees on what that harmony should look like. We fear that the unity you offer is little more than conquest under another name.

“Besides, it’s not like us to agree to marry someone without at least meeting them first.”

One of the princesses laughed sharply—and only one. The other only scowled more deeply as her sister responded.

“The audacity! Even most consorts have never met our father.”

Yoshika’s voice was level as she answered, but Xin Hai could sense her tension even through the speaking stone.

“Our point exactly. A political union would be...troubling to us, but not entirely out of the question. Yet it would have to be as equals. We must flatly reject any offer of marriage that would place us into a subservient role.”

The princesses both blinked in confusion, one of them even glancing at Xin Hai as if expecting him to provide an explanation, but he had none. Yoshika was an ally, but he didn’t know her any more than he knew the God-Emperor.

Finally, one of the twins turned her attention back to the speaking stone.

“But you’re women. What other form of marriage would there be for you?”

Xin Hai forced himself not to react. His face remained placid no matter how desperately it tried to cringe, but he couldn’t hide his feelings from the twin princesses. The more surly one met his eyes with a frown.

“You disagree, Xin Hai? Is there credence to the rumors that Lin Xiulan took you as her wife?”

He hated to be put on the spot about his relationship, but Xin Hai held his head high. He would not shrink away from his beliefs.

“Xiulan is my wife, and I am her husband. We are partners in all things, and neither of us serves the other. On that matter, I agree with Lady Yoshika.”

“And you believe that the God-Emperor should debase himself in such a fashion as well?”

The voice that responded from the speaking stone was not Yoshika. Another young lady—one who Xin Hai might have liked to call daughter in law, despite all the complications such an arrangement might have brought—spoke in a surprisingly bitter tone.

“That you would consider it to be a debasement is precisely why Empress Yoshika and I must respectfully decline your offer. You cannot offer unity in one breath, then deny our very existence in the next. As long as you hold such a narrow view of marriage, there is little we have to discuss.”

The princesses crossed their arms and frowned.

“Yan Yue, we are only making this offer because we do not wish to see your potential wasted. Why must you fight us so?”

“I’ll answer your question with another—how can you expect Yoshika to accept your offer when you deny her very existence? Lee Jia and An Eui are married, and their union is a core element of Empress Yoshika’s identity. If you deny them, you deny her, and thus any promise you make rings hollow.”

Xin Hai winced. Traditionalists like the twin princesses were the worst people to confront about matters like same-sex relationships. They were unlikely to yield, but perhaps that was the point. A way to turn their refusal back on the princesses.

Qin Ling—or was it Xiang? Pursed her lips and tapped a finger impatiently on her knee.

“Dual cultivators introduce many complications. You made your case before our brother years ago, and he chose to recognize Yoshika as a single being. Now you want us to acknowledge Lee Jia and An Eui as a married couple? Even ignoring the matter of gender, one might as well marry their right hand to their left.”

“Then you do not understand Yoshika at all.”

The princess huffed.

“This is asinine! We came here to do you a favor, not to be mocked and insulted. I cannot say more, but I warn you—this may be your last opportunity. Accept or refuse our offer as you see fit, but you are in no position to make demands.”

“I make them anyway. Acknowledge Lee Jia and An Eui, grant Yoshika an audience with the God-Emperor, and then maybe we can consider taking you up on your offer.”

The tension in the room was enough even to make Xin Hai sweat as the furious domains of the princesses threatened to overwhelm his own. Still, he was no fool, and while he had little taste for it, he knew Qin politics. That warning was no idle threat. If Yoshika refused, it would be war.

He channeled his power into a small jade artifact he kept with him at all times, snapping it cleanly in two. A simple signal for his sworn brother, Guan Yu, known only to the two of them. One of the princesses gave him a contemptuous glance, obviously sensing his action, but promptly went back to ignoring him in his own home.

“There is a limit to the level of audacity we can tolerate Yan Yue, and I believe you have exceeded that threshold. Fine then! We wash our hands of it.”

Her sister sighed and shook her head.

“It’s regrettable. Our nephew will surely be disappointed, but this is the path you have chosen. Then, in honor of the beautiful, naive dream you treated us to, we will leave you with a parting gift.”

“We recognize you, little empress. With Grandmaster Xin Hai as our witness, we acknowledge you. Your sovereignty, your union, your marriage, Queen of the Frontier—our enemy.”

“Survive, then, to claim your audience. Or don’t. It is no longer our decision to make, but his. I pray that he shows you mercy, should you live long enough to spur him into action. Good luck, Empress Yoshika—and goodbye.”

What a cruel gift, to grant them acknowledgement in the same breath that promised their destruction.

With a wave of her hand, one of the twins severed the connection to Jiaguo’s speaking stone. The two turned to leave, still ignoring Xin Hai until he awkwardly cleared his throat.

“Beg pardon, Your Highnesses, but what does this mean, exactly?”

One continued to ignore him, but the other turned to him with a sad smile.

“It means, Grandmaster, that for the first time in our long history, the empire is at war. I will refrain from making any comments on what that means for you, specifically. I expect that you’ll have your hands full enough fending off accusations without us inadvertently passing premature judgment.”

He swallowed nervously and bowed.

“I...thank you for your impartiality.”

The princess that had been ignoring him paused in the doorway and glanced back.

“Impartiality? How little you understand, young man.”

At over a thousand years old, there were few in existence who could call Xin Hai ‘young man’ but coming from the princesses, he felt the weight of their years crushing him.

“Despite what your wife may think of us, we bear you and yours no ill will.”

“We have always tried to advocate for peace, and to provide a haven for those who do not fit within the delicate balance of our empire. Indeed, we commend you and Lin Xiulan for what you have created here—even as the rest of the empire condemns you.”

“Our lack of prejudice is not a matter of impartiality, Grandmaster Xin. Your position is far beyond that.”

The two princesses locked eyes with Xin Hai, speaking in perfect unison.

“We’ve given you our favor.”