The morning assembly had already concluded when the guard's announcement reached the hall.
An envoy from Hua. Requesting an audience with the Khan.
Xiao Zhi felt a sudden pull of tension in her chest. Beside her, Ruhan received the message with his usual unreadable calm, signaling for the visitor to be admitted. She straightened her posture, smoothing her robes as the heavy doors swung open.
Shen Han walked in.
He moved with the controlled composure of a general, but Xiao Zhi's eyes immediately went to his traveling cloak. It was thick with road dust. He hadn't stopped to wash or change, a detail that screamed of urgency. Most striking of all, he was alone. No escort, no soldiers, just a man who had ridden hard to reach a destination.
He walked the length of the hall with his head high. Reaching the platform, he stopped and gave a deep bow, as a formal salute of a foreign dignitary acknowledging a sovereign.
