The emperor, who was a young man not even twenty, was trying hard to keep a poker face and not show his boredom. The young girl was his stepmother, who married the deceased emperor six months ago. Unfortunately, the emperor, who was not a young man anymore, suffered a heart attack while preparing for his wedding night. Maybe it was the thought of lying with tender young flesh that excited him, who knows. But the emperor died and that was that.

His bride, a young lady whom the emperor liked very much, was petrified. She had traveled from afar to marry a man who nearly caused the destruction of her kingdom and whose king, her very own father, offered her in marriage to politically cement the two country's new alliance. She was his only daughter and precious to him but he had no choice but to give her away when the emperor demanded it.

The emperor had caught a glimpse of her face one morning when she went to the river to gather some healing herbs. He became infatuated and a.s.sumed that she must be someone important because of the number of guards surrounding her. He sent his spies to investigate and by the end of that day, he found out who she was.

Her dowry was vast tracts of land, including a minor castle facing the sea, and a chest full of jewels generations of her family had owned and collected. Her kingdom was rich, hence the unexpected attack by this rampaging emperor who was said to have been a distant relation to the royal family. And so, to keep the peace and the riches that her family enjoyed, the young princess traveled thousands of miles to be married.

When she arrived at her destination, the emperor immediately announced their nuptials. She was introduced to his son, the crown prince, his extended family, and his concubines, of whom there were plenty. These women, whose ages ranged from sixteen to twenty-nine, looked at the young bride with hostility. The foreign princess was immediately targeted for extermination especially when the emperor named her his empress instead of his favorite consort or the other women who had born him children.

When the emperor died, it was just a matter of time before his new bride followed. She woke up one morning, drank her favorite tea, fell on her bed and expired gently and silently. The crown prince, who had since replaced his father, didn't even investigate the cause of her death. He didn't care but since she was the empress dowager, he prepared a grand wake and funeral more to honor the t.i.tle than the woman who used to bear it.

The emperor frowned. He saw that the expression on the girl's face had changed. A line had appeared on her clear brow, as if she was feeling hurt or displeased about something. He didn't understand what he was seeing. She was dead yet she was displeased?

When her eyes opened and looked directly at him, he freaked out so bad he shrieked and jumped in fright. The girl sat up in her coffin, and that sight so frightened everyone in the room that they ran away screaming, trampling the candles, the flowers, the banners, the offered food in their haste. Even the guards abandoned the emperor, who watched in horror as the risen girl left the coffin and started walking towards him.

"You put me in an open casket ready for burial and didn't even check if I was really dead or not? What the heck? Are you really this stupid?" The girl opened her mouth to speak, looking scornfully at him.

"What?" the emperor asked, not understanding what she was saying. "You're dead. How can you still be alive? Are you a ghost?"

The girl pulled an arm and punched him on his face, hard. He staggered, his face darkening with anger.

"Does that feel ghostly to you, idiot?"

"How dare you punch me?" the young man cried angrily. "I'm the emperor, you stupid girl!"

"And I'm your mother so I outrank you!" the girl snapped. "What the...is this a joke?"

"What joke? What are you talking about?"

"You plan to bury me in my bathrobe?!" the girl asked, staring at the lilac-colored robe she was wearing. She was so outraged that she tugged at the neckline, dislodging the sash around her waist and inadvertently baring her throat and tender cleavage to his shocked gaze.

"What are you doing?" the emperor cried, alarmed. "Stop that. How dare you expose yourself like this? Stop that at once!"

"Stop what?" she looked at him puzzled then when she caught his eyes furtively staring at her chest, she laughed. "You thought I was trying to undress in front of you? What an ego. You're not even my type."

"You...you..." stammered the emperor.

"Little Gu Sheng is surprise at my boldness," the girl continued. "I sound different from before, yes?"

"You're not even the same person," the emperor agreed, eyeing her uncertainly.

"I died and then I came back to life. I cannot be the same person anymore. Death by poisoning does that to you, you know?"

"Poison?" the emperor asked, thunderstruck.

"The cause of my death. Of course, you wouldn't know since you don't care."

"I..." the emperor looked embarra.s.sed.

"I don't blame you, don't worry. You're just a little a.s.shole worried about your own little neck, after all."

"You don't have to be as blunt as that," the emperor said peevishly. "And you're not my mother."

"You're right. I'm not your mother but I am the empress dowager so it's the same. I still outrank you."

The emperor unwillingly laughed.

"Come, come. Let us go back to the palace and eat. I'm very hungry after sleeping in my coffin for days. And I need a bath, too."

"But how are we going to explain your coming back to life like this? Don't you think people will be curious to know?"

"What is there to explain? I died, which I did. And then I lived again, which I am now. Isn't that rather self-explanatory?"

"But what really happened? You were dead. I saw it myself. So, how did you come back?"

"I think I fell into a long sleep," the girl said, frowning. "Then I just woke up. There's nothing mysterious about it. I just woke up."

The emperor looked at her for a long time. She was tall for a girl and had the kind of face that will grow more beautiful as she got older. She looked like a white rose, with her creamy perfect skin and long slender neck. But it was her eyes that surprised him the most. They brimmed with a sparkling intelligence and sharpness unusual for a girl, especially her age. She used to be a lively girl who could make his father laugh. But now, she seemed to have matured into a full grown woman capable of standing her own ground, even if the person she was faced with was her powerful stepson, the emperor.

"Let's go," he said, taking her arm. "You do smell kind of mothball-y."

She laughed and let him lead her outside.

The news that the empress dowager was alive and not dead as many thought she was, practically shook the entire palace with a quiver of fear. This feeling intensified when the newly-crowned emperor moved his stepmother from a palace she occupied some distance away to a palace adjacent to his, which was kind of scandalous since the empress dowager was not yet sixteen and the emperor, only a year younger.

The emperor waved any objections, decreeing that his mother needed his constant care. She recently had just died because he was unfilial. Now that she was brought back to life again, he intended to share a little bit of his time with her. His father the emperor would have expected it of him.

Of course, there were many reasons why two people of the same age but with different personalities would chose to bond together. Many would state the obvious but none would guess that these two people were actually attempting to uncover a plot intended to overthrow the current regime and rob the prince of his kingdom.

The girl was correct when she accused the emperor of being too worried about his neck because it was actually the case. The emperor was very young so he was not sure if he could survive the scheming in the palace, which he didn't have a strong stomach for. Not to mention the several attempts on his life, which he survived not by skill but by sheer d.a.m.n luck. He trusted no one, not his so-called advisers, his servants, his army, even members of his own family, each of whom will not hesitate to murder him, especially if there's a profit to be made at his death.

The young emperor was not popular in court because of his background. His mother was a maid his father impregnated by accident. The stupid emperor thought he was s.c.r.e.w.i.n.g his pretty concubine because he was drunk as a skunk during the act. When the maid gave birth to a son, the emperor sobered up and took responsibility for him and his mother. He even named the boy his crown prince, which angered everyone, including his pregnant consort.

The boy grew up bullied and taunted. His father tried to s.h.i.+eld him but gave up when he realized his son by nature was a gentle, timid boy more suited for scholarly pursuits than running an empire. He didn't change his mind about the succession though. His eldest son remained the crown prince. The only thing he told him was "I wish you would finally realize this is worth it and fight for it with all you've got."

The young emperor finally realized the worth of the enormous inheritance his father left him when he died and the attempts on his life intensified. He knew that his uncles were in on the plot, aided by the prime minister, whose eldest daughter was a consort in the harem. His generals he wasn't sure about. They seemed to like him, the general in charge of them seemed to care for him but he wasn't really sure. He was only fifteen after all. What did he really know about governance and the running of a kingdom?

"You're an idiot," said the girl scarfing down an entire fish with her chopsticks. "You don't run a country by yourself. You run it with people you trust."

"But I don't know who to trust."

The girl continued eating, not minding him in the least.

"I trust you," the emperor said softly after a while. "You call me names and are generally mean to me still, I trust you."

"Of course I'm mean to you since you're a p.r.i.c.k," the girl pointed out. "You didn't even care if I lived or died."

"But they said...."

"Seriously, you know those people are b.a.s.t.a.r.ds yet you...," the girl took a deep breath. "Anyway, it's not your fault. You're an ignorant child, after all."

The emperor was tempted to point out that she was merely a year older than him but he shut his trap when she threw him a glance.

"Do you remember anything that happened to you?" he asked instead.

"Of course I remember."

"So, who poisoned you?"

"One of the eunuchs. I think he works for the prime minister."

"Are you certain?" the emperor was stunned yet grim-faced.

"Yes, I'm certain. My personal maid, the one I brought with me from home, became suddenly ill and the head eunuch sent me this young boy who was recently let go from somebody's house. He told me the boy was kind of an idiot but since it was only temporary I agreed. The boy did the same things my servant did, even leaving me tea at night. I woke up as I usually did and drank the tea. The next thing I know, I fell back on the bed and died.

"But for some reason, my soul was still aware. As soon as it knew what was happening, it followed the boy and heard the conversation between him and the head eunuch. That s.l.u.t in the harem, the prime minister's daughter, is involved in it, too. So is the prime minister and your uncle and brother."

"What about the army and General Chen Fang?"

"I don't know because my soul came back to my body and I woke up."

"I still can't wrap my head around the fact that you're still alive."

"There's a trick to it," the girl said.

"What?"

"Natural immunization."

"What do you mean?"

"I was born with a natural ability to repeal all kinds of poison. Maybe something to do with the fact that when I was born, a king cobra slithered to my bedside and bit my hand. See? I still have the scar."

It was barely discernible but if one looks closely, there were two puncture holes on the inside of her wrist as if someone or something tried to bore holes on the soft skin. The hand looked weak but he could still feel its impact on his face when she punched him.

"You were bitten by a snake yet you didn't die?"

"I was sick for a while then I got better."

"That story sounds like a tall story," the young emperor scoffed.

"It's true though," the girl shrugged. "Anyway, do me a favor?"

"What?"

"Give me total control of the harem."

"Why would I do that?"

"Because I want to avenge my death."

"But you didn't die...." the emperor stopped.

"You want to strike back at your enemies, you start with the harem."

"The prime minister's daughter?"

"Yes."

"It might be dangerous."

The smile that stretched the girl's lips frightened the emperor.

"What are you going to do?"

"Just make the announcement. After I clear all these up, you'll owe me," she said, staring intently at the emperor.

"What do you want?"

"I want to go on a trip."

"Trip? Where?"

"I'll tell you later. Do we have a deal?"

The emperor didn't answer. He was studying her as if it was the first time he had ever seen her. There was a bleak and lonely look in his eyes she didn't understand.

"You're planning on going back to your own country, aren't you?"

"What if I am? Your father is dead. There's nothing else keeping me here."

The emperor was silent.

"What about me?" he asked. "Are you just going to leave me here without a care?"

The girl surprised him by gripping his shoulders tightly as she looked deeply into his eyes.

"Gu Sheng, you are the emperor, the leader of your people. Like it or not, this is the legacy your father left you and you have a responsibility towards it. I will help you in anyway I can but you have to let me leave afterwards. I don't belong here. I am a stranger in this land. I have to go back. Do you understand?"

The emperor blinked his eyes and turned away, his back to her. The girl waited, watching the broad young back as he tried to regain control.

"Okay, you have my word. I will let you leave," he mumbled still with his back to her.

"Thank you."

"An Ning?" he asked, finally turning around and meeting her eyes.

"Hmnn?"

"How will you go about cleaning the stables?"

An Ning's lips twisted in a cruel smile, which made the young emperor s.h.i.+ver.

"Just watch me. And learn, little Gu Sheng."