I've Decided To Be This Tyrant's Dark Moonlight - Chapter 68

As soon as Gong Beinu walked into the Cining Palace, she saw the Prince of Luling kneeling at the palace entrance, babbling explanations about something.

Seeing Gong Beinu and her sister approach, he rejoiced: “Consort Shu, Zhaorong, please help me explain to the Empress Dowager… I… cough cough, my throat is about to give out!”

From so far away, he had to shout at the top of his lungs, making sure his words weren’t misunderstood by the Empress Dowager.

The Prince of Luling sighed deeply—life was truly hard.

Gong Beinu stepped closer, suddenly recoiling, covering her nose and jumping aside. “Your Highness… did you fall into a cesspit?”

Consort Shu silently backed away too, keeping as much distance as possible from the prince.

Prince of Luling: …

No, it was just that he had followed the night-pot carriage for a while and had been overwhelmed by the smell.

The Empress Dowager beckoned Gong Beinu over and whispered a few words. Gong Beinu immediately covered her nose again and shouted from a distance, “Your Highness, the Empress Dowager says you must go bathe!”

Blushing with embarrassment, the Prince of Luling endured the humiliation and left.

Gong Beinu turned and opened all the windows of the palace. A breeze came through, finally dispersing the nauseating stench. She picked up the incense burner from the table and placed it beside the Empress Dowager’s bed, muttering in confusion, “How did the prince end up in such a state?”

The Empress Dowager massaged her brow, feeling a headache coming on.

In her memory, the Prince of Luling had always been a boy sculpted from jade and snow. How had he, in the blink of an eye, become so foolish and stinking?

She sighed. If only she hadn’t allowed him to leave Shengjing, if she had still been supervising him, he wouldn’t have ended up like this. It was all the Emperor’s fault for suddenly appearing and taking the throne that belonged to Jue’er.

Consort Shu moved the incense burner slightly and said gently, “Maybe something happened last night. When I came in, the palace maids said the prince returned late at night from the direction of the Anle Hall.”

“Anle Hall?” Gong Beinu’s eyes widened. “Duan Wei Ying and Xiao Qianxue?”

The Empress Dowager’s gaze darkened at the two names. She caressed the jade beads on her wrist and sneered, “Duan Wei Ying and Xiao Qianxue… impressive, truly impressive.”

Every year they made it their goal at the autumn palace banquet to irritate her, striving to provide her with “supreme service from both the realms of Yin and Yang.” Truly impressive, truly considerate.

She was almost infuriated to the point of foolishness.

Consort Shu sighed. “The Emperor clearly dotes on them too much.”

Gong Beinu quickly agreed, nodding. “Yes, yes! Sister is right. Last time, Auntie fainted from their antics. The Emperor punished her with three months’ confinement in the Cold Palace. This time, it’s only three days, and that’s because Duan Wei Ying negotiated. Auntie had no standing at all!”

The Empress Dowager, who had fainted last night, hadn’t heard the whole negotiation and paused for a moment. Then she tilted her head and asked, “Negotiated? She even asked the Emperor to spare her from the Cold Palace? Hmph… the demon concubine!”

Gong Beinu blinked honestly and shook her head. “No, it’s not like that. The Emperor didn’t want her to go, but she insisted. These three days were still at her own request.”

Empress Dowager: …

Consort Shu coughed twice to hide her embarrassment and said, “Others fear the Cold Palace like a tiger, but she likes it. She’s definitely extraordinary. That’s what makes her a demon concubine.”

Gong Beinu agreed, “Exactly. Demon concubine!”

Consort Shu: “Yes, demon concubine!”

Empress Dowager: “….” She rubbed her brow and sighed. “The demon concubine has bewitched the Emperor, leading him to act against propriety. Think about it—his reforms began only after Duan Wei Ying and the others entered the palace.”

Consort Shu dismissed the maids and spoke softly, “Auntie, we, the other consorts, shouldn’t interfere with the previous reign. But,” she paused, lowering her head to sip her tea, “there’s an old saying among the people: ‘When a nation is about to fall, there must be a demon.’”

The Empress Dowager reclined on the Consort’s bed, raising her chin to indicate she should continue.

Consort Shu continued, recounting the strange events they encountered at the Summer Resort: “Buddha incarnations, True Immortals descending… clearly, it’s because they couldn’t deal with the demon, so they made up nonsense. If she weren’t a demon, how do we explain all the strange things that happened this past year?”

The Empress Dowager nodded.

Gong Beinu clutched her handkerchief, wanting to say something, but seeing her aunt and sister’s expressions, she chose to remain silent and quietly started nibbling on an apple.

Consort Shu sat upright and said seriously, “The Emperor never used to favor anyone or devote attention to the harem. But ever since these two entered, he often summoned them to the bedchamber, sometimes even personally visiting Yulu Hall.”

Gong Beinu: munch munch

The Empress Dowager nodded, recalling Dong’e’s letter. “Yes, his favoritism is excessive, focusing on one person alone. Even Consort Xianfei felt unhappy.”

Gong Beinu: munch munch

Consort Shu was startled and glanced at the Empress Dowager. “Even Consort Xianfei, who is usually kind and uninvolved…?”

It seemed that the Emperor’s exclusive favor of the demon concubine had already caused discontent in the palace. With over three thousand women, it was only natural that the others would be uncomfortable if one was singled out.

Consort Shu thought of this and couldn’t help but smile, lowering her head. “It’s time for the Empress to advise the Emperor. In a harem of three thousand beauties, how can one be favored alone? It should be evenly distributed. Before, everything in the harem was harmonious. But since they arrived… sigh.”

Gong Beinu: munch munch

Consort Shu and the Empress Dowager blocked out the noise. “I heard the Emperor even locked the Western Empress Dowager in the Buddha Hall recently.”

Gong Beinu stopped munching and raised her head, sensing a big scandal.

The Empress Dowager snorted coldly. “The Emperor is ruthless. If he treats his own mother this way, how much more so us? It’s just a pity… in the twenty-third year of the Qingyuan reign…” She paused and didn’t continue, only adding, “Demonic forces threaten the state. We must think of other ways, so they don’t destroy the empire our ancestors built.”

Gong Beinu blinked in confusion, sensing the atmosphere was off, but not understanding, she went back to munching her apple.

Munch munch.

—

Xiao Qianxue had always been fascinated by the invisible wings behind Wei Ying. In the morning, she rushed into Wei Ying’s room and lifted her blanket, trying to find the invisible wings.

Wei Ying, half-asleep, instinctively covered herself with the blanket when she heard the movement. When she realized it, the Emperor, who had been sleeping beside her, had already left. The bedding beside her was cold.

Xiao Qianxue climbed onto the bed. “Yingying, come over! Let me see if you have wings on your back!”

Wei Ying rubbed her eyes. “I said only clever people can see them. You can’t see them.”

Xiao Qianxue: “I think I’ve gotten smarter! I did calculations all night yesterday!”

Wei Ying: …doesn’t look very smart.

Xiao Qianxue, dark circles under her eyes, smiled. “Really, let me see!”

Wei Ying leaned over, resting her head on the pillow, turning sideways to let her look.

Xiao Qianxue spread her legs and bent forward to examine her wings carefully.

Wei Ying: “See? You can’t see them.”

Xiao Qianxue pouted but still didn’t believe her and tugged at her clothes. “Take your clothes off! You’re hiding your wings in your clothes, right?”

As they tussled, the wooden door suddenly opened. Gong Beinu rushed in, then froze.

On the bed, Xiao Qianxue and Wei Ying both turned around, still in a compromising position. Gong Beinu’s shocked eyes widened.

Gong Beinu’s face flushed. “You… you…”

These two girls!

She worried that discovering such a big secret might put her in danger.

Wei Ying pushed Xiao Qianxue off herself, got out of bed naturally, and draped a plain blue dress over herself. She smiled. “Zhaorong, what brings you to us?”

Gong Beinu trembled and took a step back. “What… what were you doing just now?”

Xiao Qianxue: “Of course, we were—”

She suddenly stopped, glanced at Wei Ying, and decided not to reveal her secret of being a little fairy. She would protect Wei Ying’s secret.

Gong Beinu: “Doing what?”

Xiao Qianxue smiled and spread her hands. “Looking for the hairpin Yingying dropped. Zhaorong, it’s so early. Why are you at Anle Hall?”

Gong Beinu snorted. “Anle Hall isn’t yours!”

“Really? Are you trying to claim the Cold Palace too?”

Gong Beinu: “Hmph, Anle Hall belongs to everyone.”

Following her, Ma’am Shi Pei wiped her forehead, feeling a little honored for Anle Hall. In all her years in the Cold Palace, she had never seen anyone compete for it.

Gong Beinu took out a box and threw it to Wei Ying. Wei Ying caught it, opened it, and couldn’t help but laugh.

Inside was a box full of Eastern pearls.

“It’s just a box of Eastern pearls. I said I could pay for it,” the Miss Gong said angrily, having selected the best-quality pearls. “So what if it spilled? Why the fuss?”

Wei Ying laughed and put the box away. “So, Zhaorong, this counts as a gift from you?”

Gong Beinu, meeting her smile, froze for a moment, then gritted her teeth. “If it’s yours, it’s yours!”

Wei Ying: “Then I’ll take good care of it.”

She bent down and carefully placed the box of pearls in her drawer with her jewelry. After making sure it was safe, she glanced at Gong Beinu. “If anyone spills this box, I’ll be upset.”

Gong Beinu scoffed, “Getting upset over pearls? Such a petty, low-class girl.”

After all, in the Gong household, she would grind pearls into powder for skincare. Spilling a whole box wouldn’t have angered anyone.

Only this demon concubine…

Wei Ying walked over. “No, I’m not upset because they’re valuable.”

“Not valuable anyway,” Gong Beinu muttered. “Then why are you upset?”

Wei Ying blinked at her. “Maybe… because I care about you.”

Gong Beinu: !!!

Her ears rang, and her mind went blank.

All her life, the Miss Gong had never received such words. When she gave gifts, people either thanked her politely or threw the gifts on the ground in shame.

Her little face turned red, clutching her chest, she asked in a daze, “Why does it matter if I gave it to you, and you get upset if it spills?”

Wei Ying pondered for a moment, then lightly tapped her on the head. “Maybe because I care about you.”

Gong Beinu: ah! She couldn’t help thinking… truly, she is a demon concubine!

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