Chapter 35 Summary and Analysis: Always Prepared

⚠️ Spoiler Warning: This guide contains detailed spoilers for the entire novel. Proceed only if you've finished reading or are comfortable knowing the plot.

Summary

The chapter opens with Taiping and the empress hiding in a tunnel, where Taiping is furious at her brother Zhi'er for his role in the scheme surrounding Auntie Wei's pregnancy. Taiping insists she had no idea what Zhi'er was planning, and the empress confirms that the plot was entirely his and the others'. Taiping threatens to confront her brother, but the empress warns her against it, noting that Zhi'er enjoys the emperor's favor. Taiping, who now dresses in plain cloth as a public show of solidarity with common workers, jokes about Qin Zheng's announcement voice, briefly lifting the empress's gloom.

The empress recalls her earlier confrontation with Qin Zheng in the throne room. When she demanded he intervene in Auntie Wei's pregnancy, he refused, arguing that Auntie Wei is a proud mother who wants the child and cannot be forced. The empress reflects that her dream-realm encounter with Qin Zheng changed nothing between them—his desire for her does not translate into respect, and men like him treat intimacy as conquest rather than connection. Still, she does not regret what happened, because it gave her information she would not otherwise have obtained.

She wrestles with Qin Zheng's argument, recognizing its hypocrisy but also its uncomfortable logic: she would not forgive a man who demanded a woman abort his child, so she cannot demand the same of Auntie Wei. Her best hope is that Auntie Wei might miscarry, as Qin Zheng's concubines did centuries ago, but she fears that if that happens, she herself will be pressured to bear a child. The gods seem convinced that a child would be a vulnerability they could exploit in Qin Zheng.

The empress then reflects on Yizhi's betrayal. She admits she might have gone along with the plan willingly if it had been discussed with her, since she is not unreasonable about dealing with the gods or playing a part to pacify reactionaries. But the conspirators did not want to deal with her objections. She concludes that Yizhi acted to prove his loyalty to Qin Zheng, to demonstrate that he no longer had feelings for her. Recalling how Qin Zheng's face darkened whenever their past relationship was mentioned, she decides to respect the line Yizhi has drawn and wants nothing more to do with him.

Taiping grimaces and offers her own philosophy: she is always prepared to be disappointed by a man. The empress muses on how being male shaped the opportunities of every man in her life—Yizhi's freedom to travel alone, Shimin's recruitment as a pilot, Qin Zheng's place in history versus General Mi's erasure. Taiping then mentions that if the empress were not the empress, she could introduce her to willing ladies and take her to the clubs.

When the empress asks what clubs are, Taiping describes places like Club Lily, where she first met Wan'er. These are gathering spots for people who do not conform—women who prefer women, men who prefer men, those who like either or neither, and those who wish to shed the gender imposed on them at birth. The empress recalls that Yizhi once mentioned such places during their forest meetings, though she knew too little about city life to understand them then. Now she can imagine the lights, the music, and the outcasts dancing freely.

Taiping explains that the Sages tried to snuff out these clubs but never succeeded—when one location is raided, another opens elsewhere. The clubs are closed for now because the revolution has everyone on edge, but they will return. She offers to take the empress to one in disguise once things settle. The empress accepts eagerly, saying she would love nothing more.

Key Events

The empress confronts Qin Zheng about Auntie Wei's pregnancy, and he refuses to intervene, citing Auntie Wei's own wishes.
The empress decides she cannot force Auntie Wei to abort, recognizing the hypocrisy in doing so.
She hopes for a miscarriage but fears she will then be pressured to bear a child herself.
The empress cuts ties with Yizhi, concluding his betrayal was an attempt to prove his loyalty to Qin Zheng.
Taiping reveals the existence of underground clubs for gender and sexual minorities, including Club Lily, where she met Wan'er.
Taiping promises to take the empress to a club in disguise after the revolution, and the empress eagerly agrees.

Character Development

The Empress: This chapter shows her grappling with a moral dilemma that has no clean answer. She recognizes the hypocrisy in Qin Zheng's argument but cannot refute it, and she is forced to confront her own limits—she cannot force Auntie Wei, and she cannot escape the pressure on her own body. Her decision to cut ties with Yizhi marks a firm emotional boundary, a shift from hoping for reconciliation to accepting a painful reality. Her eager acceptance of Taiping's offer to visit the clubs reveals a growing openness to a world she barely knew existed, a quiet hunger for connection outside the constraints of her role.

Taiping: She emerges as a loyal and pragmatic ally, protective of the empress and unafraid to voice her cynicism about men. Her description of the clubs and her offer to take the empress there show her as a bridge to a subculture that offers freedom and solidarity. Her line about always being prepared to be disappointed by a man captures her worldview—hardened but not bitter.

Qin Zheng: Though he appears only in the empress's recollection, his refusal to intervene in Auntie Wei's pregnancy and his view of intimacy as conquest reinforce his characterization as someone who sees people as instruments. His argument, however hypocritical, is also strategically unassailable, and the empress is left without leverage.

Themes, Symbols, or Motifs

Reproductive coercion and bodily autonomy: The chapter centers on the question of who controls a woman's body. The empress cannot force Auntie Wei to abort, but she also fears being forced to bear a child herself. The gods' belief that a child would be a vulnerability adds a layer of cosmic manipulation to an already fraught situation.

Hypocrisy in moral arguments: Qin Zheng's refusal to force Auntie Wei is framed as respect for her wishes, yet the empress recognizes it as a convenient moral stance that leaves her powerless. The chapter forces her to confront the uncomfortable symmetry: she cannot demand of Auntie Wei what she would not accept from a man.

Male privilege and gender power dynamics: The empress's reflection on the men in her life—Yizhi, Shimin, Qin Zheng, General Mi—highlights how being male determined their opportunities and their place in history. Taiping's comment about men getting away with awful behavior because they are rarely discouraged reinforces this theme.

Queer safe spaces and resistance through subculture: The clubs represent a form of resistance that the Sages could never fully stamp out. They are spaces of solidarity for those who do not fit society's molds, and their persistence is a quiet victory against oppression. The empress's longing to visit one signals her desire for a life beyond the palace's constraints.

Always prepared for disappointment: Taiping's motto reflects a survival strategy in a world where men hold power and often abuse it. It is a form of emotional armor, a way of protecting oneself from betrayal.

Why This Chapter Matters

This chapter is a turning point in the empress's emotional and political trajectory. It closes the door on Yizhi, solidifying the betrayal as a permanent rupture rather than a temporary wound. It also deepens the moral complexity of the Auntie Wei situation, showing that the empress is not simply a victim but a person who must make impossible choices. The introduction of the underground clubs opens a new avenue of possibility—both for the empress's personal life and for the novel's exploration of identity and resistance. The promise of a future visit in disguise plants a seed for what may come after the revolution, suggesting that the empress's story is not only about power but also about the search for belonging.

Study Questions and Answers

1. Why does the empress feel unable to force Auntie Wei to abort the pregnancy, and what does this reveal about her moral position?

The empress recognizes that she would not forgive a man for demanding a woman abort his child, so she cannot demand the same of Auntie Wei. This reveals that she holds herself to the same standard she would apply to others, even when it works against her interests. It also shows that her moral compass is intact even under immense pressure, though it leaves her with no good options.

2. How does the chapter use the underground clubs to explore themes of identity and resistance?

The clubs are spaces where people who do not conform to gender and sexuality norms can gather freely. Taiping's description emphasizes their persistence despite the Sages' attempts to eradicate them—when one is raided, another appears. This makes the clubs a symbol of resilience and a form of resistance through subculture, offering solidarity and belonging to those society tries to erase.

3. What does the empress's reflection on the men in her life reveal about gender and power in the novel's world?

The empress observes that each man's opportunities were shaped by his gender: Yizhi could travel alone, Shimin could become a pilot, Qin Zheng could claim a place in history while General Mi was erased. This reveals that male privilege is structural, not individual—it determines who gets to act, who gets remembered, and who gets power. It also underscores the empress's own constraints as a woman in a world that limits her at every turn.