Li Tai could feel the emotions flaring before Zhou Yu even opened the door. Hua Ling was in a heap on the floor, crying at the feet of Sun Jian. Li couldn't imagine what he had said or done to her, but there was no mistaking the real tears falling down her enemy's face. The rest of the Sun family was also present, their faces grim. Lu Meng was standing next to a table, with several clay jars on top of it. His hard expression softened slightly when Li and her brother, Zhou Tai, entered the room. Li looked from his face to the jars on the table.

"Hey, those are mine!" she exclaimed with surprise, hurrying over to the table. She looked up at Lu Meng. "Where did you find these?"

He pointed a finger angrily at Hua Ling. "In her room. And I have a hunch that she used them as a part of her guise."

Hua looked up. "That's preposterous. Do you think I would fake something like this?" Within seconds, Lu Meng had crossed the room and stood in front of Hua, opposite Sun Jian. Grabbing her chin, rather rudely, he forced her to her feet. He took his thumb and, after wetting it with his tongue, wiped it across a massive bruise on her right cheek. The bruise smeared and left a long streak on Hua's face, while the rest of the dye on Meng's finger.

"Yes, I think you would." With that, he released Hua's chin and walked back over to the table. Li's face went from confusion to shock, Zhou Tai's remained stoic under his mass of dark hair, and the Sun children all wore expressions of surprise. Sun Jian's eyes went wide with a mix of rage and confusion.

"Hua Ling, why in the name of the gods would you attempt this treason!" When he got no response from her, he took a step forward, the ground shaking with his anger. "Answer me!"

Hua collapsed on the ground again, and Li Tai took a step forward. "My lord, may I try?" Sun Jian took a deep breath, trying to calm himself ,and without a word took a few steps back. Li nodded and slowly walked towards the weeping Hua Ling, stopping a few paces away from her. "Hua, why would you do such a thing?"

She looked up from the floor with a look of pure loathing. "What's it to you?" she spat. Li kept her ground.

"I want to know what I did to make you hate me so."

Hua slowly stood, wiping the tears away and smearing her makeup even more. The look in her eyes had changed from fear to hate. "You, of all people, want to know why? Heh. I told you that I deserved more than what I was given. You heard every story that I told about my dreams of escape. When I asked you what you wanted, all you said was that you were happy with what you had. I let that go. But then you, you lousy excuse for a servant, find long lost family in high places and rise above me over night! How can you take what should have been mine!"

Raising a hand, Hua Ling brought it hard across Li's face. Li quickly held up a hand as the sound of weapons being drawn echoed in the room. She turned back to face Hua. "Destiny chose these paths for us, Hua. We have no control over it. Maybe you were born for bigger and better things. We may never know." She backed away slowly until she stood right in front of Lu Meng. "I just want you to know that I don't hate you, Hua, despite what I said during the meal. I pity you. You will never see beyond what your limited sight shows you. That will hurt you more than your jealousy."

The room was silent again, and Li Tai felt Lu Meng put a hand on her shoulder. His touch was comforting. After a moment, Sun Jian stepped forward again. "Well, Hua Ling, I was originally going to sentence you to death." He turned and looked at Li for a moment, then returned his gaze to Hua. "But I think Lady Tai may oppose to that decision. Therefore, I banish you from the Kingdom of Wu. Perhaps you will find your 'destiny' with another alliance. But we of Wu will have no part in it." As soon as he finished, two guards came and took Hua by the arms, turned her around, and marched her out of sight.

The tension in the room began to lift as everyone let out a sigh of relief. Sun Jian walked over to Li and gave her a slight bow. "My lady, I am so sorry that I ever doubted you."

Li smiled. "Please don't bow to me, Lord Sun Jian. I can understand why Hua Ling despised me so. I am just sad that it had to end in this way."

"Well spoken, Lady Tai. Well spoken." Sun Jian nodded and left the room, with his two sons following close behind. Lady Sun got up to leave as well, but stopped and gave Li a hug before hurrying out after them. Finally, Zhou Yu also made his leave, giving Li a wink before shutting the door behind him.

Li Tai turned around to face Lu Meng, giving him a smile. "I owe you everything," she said softly. "If you had not found my jars, I may have been under suspicion for a long time. I thank you."

Lu Meng nodded. "I knew you were innocent. But I also knew that Lord Sun Jian is a man that must see things to believe in them. That's why I wanted so badly to prove your innocence." Li's smile grew as she moved forward and hugged him. Slowly, Lu Meng put his arms around her and embraced her back, not sure if this was real or not. Neither of them noticed as Zhou Tai quietly sat down, watching the whole scenario with a grin.

After a moment, Meng let go. "Li, I...uh...I wanted to ask you something earlier...but...well...I" She smiled again as he stammered, trying to find the right words.

"My brother told me, Meng. And I accept." Before he could say a word, she grabbed the collar of his shirt and pulled him into a tender kiss, shocking even Zhou Tai. Lu Meng faltered a moment before returning it warmly. Zhou Tai let out a whoop of joy as the couple broke apart, grinning from ear to ear. Li was glad for a moment that everyone else had left, for she was blushing redder than her brother's cape.

One Week Later

"So that's the plan then?" Then man who asked had his face hidden in the shadows, his voice dark and icy.

"That's it," another man responded. "I thought you might like it."

The shadow man thought for a moment. "I like the sound of it. But what are your motives? It doesn't sound like you get very much with this bargain."

There was a laugh as Cheng leaned forward. "I'll have my prize from this war, my Lord. Don't worry about a thing. All you have to do is follow our lead, and you're as good as gold."

A pause followed. "Very well," the man said. "Have your men sent over tomorrow, and we can work out the details. I must say though, young man, I'm very impressed with this."

Cheng stood and bowed. "Your words fill me with pride, my Lord. Our envoys will be over after sunrise." With that, he turned and left the room. One of his friends was outside the door waiting for him. Handing him a cloak, he followed Cheng outside where their horses were waiting. He waited until they had left the camp sight before speaking.

"So, did he like the plan, Cheng?"

"He loved it, Mao," he responded. "And if everything goes according to the plan, Wu will fall, Zhou Tai will finally die, and I will walk away with the spoils of war."

"Speaking of which, I received some news while you were planning. It seems that Li Tai is finally engaged to a Wu officer, like you wanted."

Cheng thought a moment. "Who's the lucky man?" he asked.

"Lu Meng"

"Ahh, I had hoped it would be him. Now I cannot wait to sever his head from his body with my own sword."

Mao grinned in the darkness. "You can only have Li Tai if you share her with us, like you promised."

"Of course. I always keep my promises to my dearest friends, Mao. But I still get her first."

"Deal." The two friends laughed as they headed deeper into the darkness. Back at the castle, the shadow man rose from his throne and headed towards his own bed chambers. He was met by another as he wandered down the hall.

"I trust everything went well, my Lord?" The man moved his feather fan at his side, beckoning his master down another corridor.

"Yes, and I must say, I'm impressed with the boy's courage, coming with only one other man. We must hammer out a few details and flaws, but I think he had finally given us the opportunity to crush Wu."

The other man grinned. "Will you try and get him to join us?"

"Perhaps. I must test the boy though. I don't know what his motives are, and that is the only thing that worries me. But he seemed generally helpful. I think we can do much with him."

And in the growing darkness, Cao Cao and Sima Yi walked through the palace, their hopes of reuniting China under Wei now coming closer and closer.