The Mummy Tomb of the Dragon Emperor Read Free Page A

magic had been involved other than the chemistry that can pass between a man and woman in one electric moment.
    “My emperor seeks to extend his life,” Ming Guo said, “beyond that of the normal confines of human existence.”
    Zi Yuan raised an eyebrow as she watched her work. “That is beyond my powers,” she admitted. “That would have been beyond even my father’s powers.”
    Ming Guo bowed. “I regret to hear this.” Then his eyes raised to hers. “I would have enjoyed the journey back to Qin province with you as my travelling companion.”
    Again she smiled and something pleasantly wicked came into it. “Well . . . perhaps I could help your emperor . . .”
    And two months later, in the throne room of the fortresslike palace, Ming Guo presented Zi Yuan to Er Shi Huangdi.
    “Wizards are men,” the Emperor said as he lifted her chin with his finger, clearly struck by her radiance, “but you are not a man. And yet . . . I am not disappointed.”
    “Thank you, my lord.”
    “Has my trusted general shared with you my problem? My ambitions outdistance a normal life span. Can you be of help?”
    Standing before him with head lowered, she said, “I do not possess the answer you seek, my lord.”
    His forehead tightened. “Then you have disappointed me, after all.”
    Her eyes met his. “I do know where an answer might be found.”
    “Good. Good. Then I bid you find it.”
    She bowed again. “Yes, my lord.”
    As she exited, escorted by eunuch guards, the Emperor gestured for Ming Guo to lean near.
    “No man is to touch her,” the Emperor said. “She is mine.”
    Ming Guo responded with a nod that was also a bow. The Emperor could not know that his trusted general had long since disobeyed that order.
    Still, the Emperor may have had his doubts. Over the months to come, Ming Guo and Zi Yuan were not aware that the Emperor’s head minister traveled discreetly behind them. They were blissfully ignorant of Li Zhou’s presence as they rode away from the capital city across a sea of golden sand dunes. They remained unmindful of this shadow even as they approached the Monastery of Turfan on the Silk Road, kicking up clouds of dust as their horses raced toward the gates of the enormous minaret, an architectural wonder that mingled Chinese and Islamic traditions.
    The lovely, enigmatic Zi Yuan spent her days searching the library for ancient texts, often seated at the circular desk in the midst of the colossal library chamber, poring over scrolls unearthed from long-forgotten boxes and bins.
    Hour upon fruitless hour, the wizard’s daughter worked, until finally—at the bottom of yet another documents container—she came upon a dusty puzzle box. This she recognized as a kind of key, and she was able to quickly flower it open, its petals indeed comprising a shape that she felt would fit a slot on a large lacquer tube she had examined days before. Though that tube had been replete with arcane warnings, she stepped unhesitatingly to the shelf and inserted and turned the oversized key, setting forth a chain reaction of unlocking mechanisms.
    Startled momentarily, she quickly opened the tube to withdraw a bizarre timeworn object that appeared to be a sort of scroll, fashioned from human bones no less, and onto which Chinese letters had been etched. These she recognized at once as the fabled Oracle Bones, a collection of medical and mystical knowledge from the mists of antiquity.
    In her bedchamber at the monastery, Zi Yuan shared this discovery with Ming Guo, as they lay naked in each other’s arms . . .
    Unfortunately, another discovery was made by the Emperor’s man, Li Zhou, who had been watching the lovers through a peephole, confirming long-held suspicions. Ming Guo and Zi Yuan had thought they could keep their passion a secret, but they should have known: an Emperor like Er Shi Huangdi has eyes everywhere.
    Fate did grant the couple one favor: while in his lover’s embrace in the darkened bedchamber, Ming