I've Decided To Be This Tyrant's Dark Moonlight - Chapter 109

Wei Ying looked toward the Emperor. Yun Shao was clearly flustered, unconsciously clutching at her sleeves, her dark eyes lowered, long lashes hiding the emotions beneath them.

“Your Majesty, are you preparing to go over there?”

Yun Shao asked: “Yingying is already here?”

Wei Ying’s eyes curved, and she smiled at her.

Yun Shao, flustered beyond measure, twisted her fingers together. The knuckles turned pale from the force. “Yingying…”

Wei Ying leaned in a little closer. “The Northern Jue prince consort? When did Your Majesty get so close with him? I’m afraid this is a trap. Yet you still plan to go, don’t you?”

Yun Shao slumped back weakly, brows lowered. She didn’t know what she should say. The more gently and tenderly Wei Ying treated her, the more anxious and afraid she felt. All of this was stolen—stolen from someone else. And now, the rightful owner had come back to take her Yingying away.

Yun Shao’s hands tightened around the memorial in her grasp, crushing the paper without even realizing it. After a long pause, she finally raised her dark eyes. “I will go, Yingying.”

She had told one lie, so she had to patch it with countless more.

Even knowing it was a trap, she had no choice but to walk into it. From the moment she made that decision six years ago, from the moment she saw Wei Ying again six years later, there had been no turning back.

And yet—she regretted.

Wei Ying thought for a moment, then laughed. “Great! Then I’ll come along too. That means we’ll have to work overtime!”

The Emperor even picked her consorts by imperial selection. Truly delightful.

Yun Shao immediately objected: “No, you can’t go!”

Wei Ying: “Why can’t I?!” She suddenly thought of something, her smile widening. “Your Majesty must be worried. But remember how well we did at the autumn hunt last time? Even the Noble Consort couldn’t beat me. Beating those Northern Jue soldiers would be nothing but child’s play.”

Yun Shao’s hands went cold. In her heart she thought: No matter what, I cannot let Yingying go. I cannot let her meet that person…

From that day onward, Wei Ying tried several times to bring up the matter again, asking to accompany the Emperor on campaign. But Yun Shao always found excuses, either cutting her off with a cold face or playing pitiful, claiming a headache.

The Emperor’s desire to personally lead the army to war shocked the entire court. Pei Jian led the opposition, and this time, both old and new ministers finally united, kneeling on the floor and shouting, “Your Majesty, please reconsider!”

But the Emperor was always stubborn and obsessive. After a few storms of fury, the ministers realized this wasn’t a fleeting whim—it was firm resolve. By now, with the palace faction cleansed, the Emperor’s word was law. No one could oppose the decisions she made.

So the ministers could only sigh while making careful preparations, hoping to guard her from blades and arrows. Northern Jue was cunning and treacherous—they couldn’t let their sovereign be harmed.

At last, the Emperor set out with the elite guards of Xiangwei and Jingrang, departing from Shengjing in grand procession. Pei Jian accompanied as escort, while Yue Qinghui and Chancellor Cui remained behind to oversee the government.

Yun Shao rode with lowered brows, both hands clutching the reins. The bright autumn sun washed over her pale skin, making it even paler still. Before leaving, she had locked Wei Ying inside the Jade Dew Hall, leaving Consort Xian and Eunuch Fushou to look after her.

Perhaps Yingying would be angry…

Yun Shao clenched her palms in unease, then slowly relaxed, tugging her lips into a self-mocking smile.

No matter what, she would never let Yingying meet that person—unless she herself was dead. As long as she still lived, she would never let Yingying fly away from her hands. But if she died on the northern battlefield, if her soul returned to the earth, then she would be freed—and Yingying would also be freed.

Yun Shao closed her eyes. When she opened them again, her gaze was resolute, free of hesitation.

This love of hers was nothing but a desperate gamble. She had already wagered everything she had. There was no way back.

The autumn sunlight fell on the purple quinoa fields to either side, and Yun Shao was reminded of that first encounter many years ago.

A young woman stood beneath a flowering tree, her shoulders dusted with pale purple blossoms. The golden sunlight streamed down through the branches like a waterfall, spilling across her figure. She smiled, eyes curved, as she pulled a handful of sweet, fragrant roasted chestnuts from her sleeve.

The mingled scent of chestnuts and sunshine—this scene had stayed in Yun Shao’s memory for many years.

She thought: to fall in love with someone like this, one had to be a gambler. But if it was someone like this, then perhaps… that girl who had grown up soaked in malice and cold prejudice, who should have quietly accepted her fate and perished in the great fire six years ago, dying in her brother’s place in that pitch-dark night—perhaps she might instead crawl back from hell itself.

Because she had encountered light. That was why she had become a monster weighed down with countless crimes. That was why she still wanted to live—under the sun.

——

Night fell, and the army camped. Yun Shao, draped in an outer robe, sat in the command tent poring over secret reports.

Once again, she drew out Pei Que’s urgent report. Her gaze fell upon the four bold words declaring the matter to heaven. Her expression grew steadily heavier.

Pei Jian lifted the curtain and entered. “Your Majesty?”

Yun Shao raised her eyes. “What is it?”

Pei Jian’s heart jolted. The young sovereign sat under the lamplight, her dark eyes as heavy as the midnight sky, shrouded in gloom, as though storm clouds blocked out every glimmer of light.

He found himself missing the Emperor back in the palace—when her eyes still shone, and her lips often carried a smile.

“Your Majesty,” Pei Jian said, handing over another memorial. “Fresh intelligence from the front.”

Yun Shao lowered her gaze and tossed it aside.

Pei Jian spread out the map. “Northern Jue wants to negotiate at Longhe Valley. But, Your Majesty, Longhe Valley is shaped like a gourd. Its neck faces toward them. If we march inside and they seal the mouth, it will become a death trap.”

Yun Shao said nothing.

Pei Jian spoke firmly: “We must absolutely not choose this place. Northern Jue surely harbors malicious intent!”

He spoke with great fervor, ready to hammer the enemy back into the ground until they gave up their crooked schemes once and for all. But after speaking for half the day, all he heard was the Emperor letting out a weary sigh.

Pei Jian turned, only to see her rubbing at her temples, looking tired. “Your Majesty, you’ve overworked yourself. Please rest early,” he urged.

Yun Shao nodded. “Mm. You may withdraw.”

Pei Jian glanced at her in worry. He couldn’t shake the feeling that the Emperor carried a solitary, final resolve, as though she had already made some irreversible decision. Bowing, he took his leave. The vast command tent was left with only one lone figure.

Her black shadow stretched across the white canvas walls, swaying with the lamplight, looming like a ghost.

Yun Shao, still restless, picked up her brush to write a letter back to the palace. She asked about Yingying—was she still angry, was she eating well, sleeping well? The words poured out endlessly, page after page, until she had written more than ten sheets.

When finished, she felt she’d rambled too much, and fearing Yingying would dislike her nagging, she revised and cut it down—until only eight pages remained, which she sent off.

Back in the palace, Consort Xian and Consort Li received the thick, heavy envelope, exchanging looks of dismay.

Li bit her lip and whispered: “Your Ladyship, His Majesty has written to Yingying. How should we explain that she’s already gone missing on the very first day?”

Consort Xian: “…”

Consort Li: “…”

The heavens may rain, and Yingying may run away. Who could possibly stop it?

After a moment’s thought, Consort Xian tossed the letter into the Jade Dew Hall. “When she comes back, let her find it herself.”

Li: “Good idea!”

Consort Xian caught her wrist. “Come. Let’s return to our work.”

Li hung her head in despair. “…Good idea.”

While the Emperor fretted along the road, writing letter after anxious letter, Wei Ying had already ridden her little white pear-blossom horse, galloping full speed to Yunzhou. First, she brought Xiao Qianxue’s letter to her father, who served as an official there. Learning that Wei Ying was his daughter’s friend, Old Xiao warmly welcomed her, and without further ado brought her along with the whole family to a restaurant feast.

Madam Xiao beamed as she picked dishes into Wei Ying’s bowl. “Qianxue has been at the military camp these past days. By my calculation, she should be back soon. I’ve already sent Third Brother to fetch her. Please, have more, honored guest.”

Wei Ying smiled and nodded. “Thank you for your hospitality.”

When she looked back down, she realized her bowl had somehow already been piled high with dishes, so full she could hardly fit her chopsticks in.

Madam Xiao added another piece of stir-fried pork. “Eat, please eat!”

Old Xiao chimed in: “Yes, yes, honored guest, eat!”

Wei Ying laughed awkwardly to herself. Yunzhou’s folk were truly honest and enthusiastic. Qianxue hadn’t lied to her!

Not long after, Xiao Qianxue returned from the camp, dusty and travel-worn. She was thinner and darker, but brimming with vigor. When she caught sight of Wei Ying, she froze at the doorway, her pretty eyes going wide with disbelief. Then she broke into a radiant smile, rushing forward to embrace her. “Yingying!”

Wei Ying: “Qianxue!”

Xiao Qianxue: “Dearest sister!”

Wei Ying: “Dearest sister!”

Xiao Qianxue: “I’ve missed you to death! Heheheheheh!”

Wei Ying: “Heheheheheheheh!”

Xiao Qianxue: “Quack-quack-quack-quack!”

Wei Ying: …

What kind of new laugh was this?

But a moment later, she too was laughing, quacking along with her, as the two of them spun around in each other’s arms.

Madam and Old Xiao stared at the pair, their expressions cracking, even starting to look a little frightened.

Xiao Qianxue: “Yingying, how did you get out? Does the Emperor know?”

Wei Ying smiled. “Of course not. I snuck out without telling her.”

Xiao Qianxue’s eyes widened. “That’s deceiving the sovereign!” But when she thought about it, since it was Yingying, she waved it off. “So what if you did? Deceive away! Now let me eat something, I’m starving!”

Old Xiao blew his beard and glared. “Qianxue! What are you saying? Such words are treason! Do you want to be executed?”

Xiao Qianxue: “Oh, come on, Father. Don’t take everything so seriously. Just let me talk.”

The father, always the lowest-ranked at home, looked at her gloomily and jabbed his wife with an elbow.

Madam Xiao coughed. “Enough. Give your father some respect. Still, since it’s only us at home, it’s fine. We’ll leave you two to yourselves. Remember to treat our guest well.”

Xiao Qianxue waved them off. “Go on, don’t worry about us.”

And so Madam and Old Xiao bid farewell to Wei Ying. She rose to escort them out, but Xiao Qianxue dragged her back.

Qianxue grinned. “Yingying, you’re our guest. My parents are good people. Don’t bother with those stiff courtesies. So, why did you come here? Heehee, did you miss me?”

Wei Ying smiled. “Of course. It’s been half a year already. Haven’t you thought of me?”

Xiao Qianxue: “Eheheh, of course I have! I even wrote to you. I like Yingying best!”

Wei Ying propped her chin in her hand, lips curling upward as she gazed at her long-missed friend. “You really like me best?”

Xiao Qianxue, guilty, scratched her cheek and laughed like a duck: “Quack-quack-quack-quack.”

Madam and Old Xiao, walking away, heard the chorus of chickens and ducks behind them. It was like returning to the farmyard. Their steps faltered in unison.

After a long silence, Old Xiao pressed a hand to his chest and leaned closer to his wife. “The imperial palace… is truly a terrifying place.”

Madam Xiao clutched his hand tight. “Utterly terrifying.”

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