froze to the bone, the wind slicing right through that fancy fur coat like it wasn't there at all. Li Xuan could feel his nose running like a leaky faucet, the cold air turning his snot into ice crystals. He sucked it back in, hunching his shoulders tighter, trying to burrow into the貂皮大衣 like it was a warm cocoon. Useless. It still didn't stop the chill from creeping into his bones.

He was standing outside the Qianqing Palace, the massive, imposing gates looming like the jaws of a dragon ready to swallow him whole. And inside? The man who would decide his fate, the Great Khan, the Son of Heaven –康熙. The name alone sent shivers down his spine, even through the freezing wind.

He'd been given this brand-spanking-new, top-of-the-line dragon robe just for this occasion. Can't exactly show up for a potential execution in jeans, right? But new and fancy as it was, it couldn't hide the raw panic churning in his gut. What if he stumbled? What if he said the wrong thing? What if he drooled? Every potential mistake felt like a death sentence.