He twisted, and Liang Jian's sword was ripped from his grasp, flying end over end to embed itself in the dirt twenty paces away.
Liang Jian backpedaled, his mind racing. Unarmed against this monster. I'm going to die.
"Why did you have to kill Princess Liling?" The words burst out, desperate to buy time while he figured out a strategy. "She was innocent! She had nothing to do with—"
Khagan Temur paused, his weapons lowering slightly. "Princess Liling?"
"Don't play stupid. The Qin Kingdom princess. You murdered her during the raid!"
Confusion flickered across the chieftain's scarred face. "We didn't kill any princess."
"You're lying."
"I don't lie about kills." Khagan Temur's voice was almost offended. "Every death by Xiongnu hands is claimed with honor. We took the foreign physician. We killed guards. But no princess. I don't even know what you're—"
Realization crashed over Liang Jian like ice water.
The Empress Dowager.
