Thoom!

  King Fu Jianlong's right foot smmed down on the packed dirt surface of the training ground, sending a cloud of dust high into the air. He followed up with a series of refined movements that caused all of his body's dense muscles to flex and strain.

  Four hours of intense martial arts training were part of the king's daily routine, and that hardworking nature and extreme diligence had allowed him to become one of the Fu Kingdom's strongest martial artists at the young age of forty-seven.

  "How are Qing'er and my son doing?" he asked the bck-cd woman kneeling nearby without pausing his training.

  "Fu Qingyu has already made a full recovery, Your Majesty. Unfortunately, the prince has shown no signs of improvement so far."

  "Hmm."

  A quick series of punches tore through the air, sending out sharp bdes of wind that cut scratches into the distant stone walls.

  "And her attitude toward me, has it changed?"

  The guard was silent for a moment, but hurriedly began speaking after the king loudly cleared his throat with a roar like thunder.

  "It has not, Your Majesty," the woman admitted. "Your former concubine has made her preferences clear."

  She coughed lightly before continuing, "Extremely clear, sire."

  Thoom!

  Thoom!

  Thoom!

  Fu Jianlong's routine briefly increased in ferocity, filling the air with massive clouds of dust. Once the dust cleared, he could be seen standing still with his eyes closed, his face raised toward the heavens.

  The king sighed loudly.

  "I still can't remove her from my heart. Why did someone like Qing'er ever agree to marry me in the first pce?" the king mented.

  "Your Majesty, from Fu Qingyu's conversations with her maidservants and the nightly stories she tells your son, it seems that she was under the impression that she and her parents would be killed if she refused."

  "What?" the king shouted in surprise, his eyes wide. "I've ruled with the utmost benevolence ever since taking the throne. In fact, you'd have to go back more than five hundred to find a king of the Fu Kingdom who ruled as a tyrant!"

  "I'm well aware, your majesty, but the common people still pass down the old tales," the guard informed him.

  "How did I not know of this?" the king asked in confusion. He stared off into the distance, deep in thought.

  The guard remained silent.

  "I've truly sinned," he eventually spoke, his voice filled with shame.

  "Keep watching over Qing'er and little Anwen. Make sure no harm ever comes to them."

  "Yes, your majesty. I will protect them with my life," the guard replied, pcing her right hand over her heart.

  The king waved a hand in dismissal, and the guard quickly vanished into the shadows. The king then walked out of the training room and pulled on his golden dragon robe.

  "Inform my advisors to meet me in the audience chamber in the morning," the king spoke to a eunuch standing nearby.

  "Yes, your majesty!" the eunuch replied before hurriedly running off.

  "Things need to change," the king spoke quietly as he headed off for his nightly visit to the royal harem.