After waiting unsuccessfully for another opportunity to present itself, she wondered whether she could direct the little thrush.
Please. Can you fly to the windows?
The thrush trembled, and Bingmei felt herself become one with it. Suddenly, she could understand its feelings. It had hidden under a cracked shingle on the palace roof because it was frightened of all the noises inside the palace and in the courtyard.
Please, Bingmei pleaded. You won’t be hurt. Fly to the window.
She felt the thrush tremble again. It understood her instructions, she thought, but it was still afraid. Tiny birds lived in constant fear. They had to lower to the ground to get their food, but doing so exposed them to predators. This little bird’s fear went beyond that. Bingmei coaxed it, guiding it with her thoughts. After she made several attempts to reassure the thrush, the little bird finally exploded out of the tiles in a fluff of wings and soared to one of the open windows.
The window was lined with wooden slats with little iron rings attached to the ends so they could be closed with poles. But they were open, and so the thrush settled on the ledge beneath them and folded its wings meekly against its body. She could feel its little heart beating rapidly, but it was an upper window, and the hall below was far enough beneath them that nothing could reach the bird. It began to calm as it quietly nestled in place.
Bingmei heard the voices coming from the room below. Now that she was there, she could see King Zhumu sitting on his throne, leaning forward and scrutinizing the other men assembled before him. None of them looked like the courtiers that had filled his throne room on her last visit to Sihui. One of the chairs was vacant, for General Tzu stood before him. They were in the middle of a conversation, and it took Bingmei some time to catch on.
“We will continue to be outnumbered in any event,” the general said. “Not only has the dragon conquered seven other kingdoms, he has the combined might of the Qiangdao.”
“But he slaughtered the army of Sajinau,” said a bald man Bingmei didn’t recognize. He had a long drooping beard and fancy robes.
“King Mingzhi,” said General Tzu, and Bingmei placed him as the king of Tuqiao, “he did destroy the army. But he hasn’t repeated that with the other kingdoms he’s conquered. He’s executed rivals, but it’s to his benefit to keep the warriors obedient. Even if we had all united under King Shulian prior to the dragon’s rise to power, defeating the Qiangdao would have been difficult. Surely you don’t disagree?”
“I don’t, General,” said Mingzhi. He rubbed his mouth. “But why would attacking Fusang now do us any good? Doing so would plunge us into the middle of the dragon’s empire. We’d be surrounded and destroyed. I didn’t come here to die. I came to keep my own kingdom safe.”
“Agreed!” said another man.
Someone in the back chuffed and shook his head, and Bingmei recognized Budai, the former king of Wangfujing. “Be grateful your kingdom is still your own. Mine was robbed by trickery and deceit, but I still have a cache of meiwood weapons we can use. It would take a few ships to fetch them. I would be willing to lend them to the fight . . . for a price. But you run the risk of attracting the killing fog. You cannot count on luck helping you this time.”
Zhumu scowled. “You are always asking to be paid, Budai. Your selfishness knows no bounds.”
Bingmei had to agree, but she wasn’t surprised to see Budai flush with anger. “Your daughter Cuifen was robbed from you. Do you not seek her safe return? We’ve heard nothing, nothing, from the ensign we sent to rescue her and rescue Bingmei. It is likely they are all dead and your daughter is now a concubine of the dragon. Would you not like to win her back?”
“I would,” said Zhumu. “And I am willing to heed the general’s advice and attack Fusang with all my remaining strength to do so.”
“Even if you fail?” asked another man, whom Bingmei assumed was also a king.
“But we didn’t fail last time,” said General Tzu. “Echion struck Sihui with a powerful blow. A blow meant to crush us. To leave us crippled. But we prevailed because of our united strength. We found the sigil of protection once, and although Echion has undoubtedly changed it, we will find it again. If you had not joined your strength to ours, we would have failed. If there is even the smallest possibility of success now, we must seize it. Echion will only grow more powerful. The changing of the season is coming. That gives us defense. He’s bonded to the dragon somehow, and I don’t know of any reptile that thrives during the winter.”
Some of the men grunted in agreement, and they all began speaking at once, which made it impossible to hear any of them. Bingmei listened helplessly to their talk. She wished she could give voice to what she’d overheard Echion and Xisi say. She also wished she could tell Zhumu that his daughter had already escaped Fusang. Although she did not know what had become of Cuifen, the princess had left with Liekou, a warrior who had defected from Echion’s ensign. She hoped they were both safe.
But she didn’t know how to do any of that. Indeed, it was a struggle to convince the thrush to stay. The bird began to panic at the raised voices, and
