I've Decided To Be This Tyrant's Dark Moonlight - Chapter 9

It was spring, and a hundred flowers were blooming in succession, painting the Imperial Garden in a riot of color.

The bright sun was like a golden fireball burning in the azure sky.

Yun Shao walked expressionlessly past the flowers when she suddenly heard a series of crisp chirps. She tilted her head and saw a small sparrow perched on a branch of a budding sapling. The little sparrow also tilted its head, its black, pea-sized eyes staring at her for a long time.

“Chirp chirp?” The sparrow’s voice was soft and downy.

Yun Shao couldn’t help but show a very faint smile.

But then, the dream’s mood changed abruptly.

A strange sound came from behind, “De’er, de’er.”

A eunuch reported in a high-pitched voice, “Your Majesty, Consort Li is here to see you.”

Consort Li?

Yun Shao frowned. The imperial harem had one Empress and three Consorts. When did a Consort Li appear?

Then she saw a small white horse galloping towards her from amidst the rustling pear blossoms. Its hooves trampled on the precious flowers of the Imperial Garden, prancing happily with a “da-da, da-da.”

The little white horse was covered in cloud brocade silk, its head crookedly adorned with a golden crown headdress, and its cheeks were smeared with vivid rouge—

It didn’t look like a ghost, but it was even more terrifying than one.

Yun Shao’s face turned pale. She opened her mouth, but the words “save the Emperor” were stuck in her throat, unable to be uttered. She almost wanted to flee this place immediately, but her legs were like lead, unable to move a single step.

Fu Shou laughed joyfully, “Consort Li cares deeply for Your Majesty. She even made you some green grass soup.”

That bowl of green, oily soup was in a porcelain bowl with an enamel-painted bamboo and orchid design, bubbling and gurgling.

Yun Shao’s eyes widened: How dare this bastard present me with such a thing? Is he trying to poison me?

But in the dream, she still couldn’t say a single word.

The terrifying “soup” came closer and closer.

Suddenly, Fu Shou cried out in a panic, “Your Majesty, something’s wrong! Consort Lei is here too!”

Yun Shao hadn’t even recovered from the bizarre soup when she suddenly realized something was amiss.

Consort Lei? Where did a Consort Lei come from?

She stiffly twisted her neck. Sure enough, a large black horse, bedecked in red and green, came galloping from another direction with a “de’er, de’er.” As it ran, it let out a soulful call, “Huo! Huo!”

Fu Shou: “The two favored consorts are competing for attention. Your Majesty should be careful.”

Yun Shao clenched her sleeves, about to scold him for his impertinence.

This bastard! Is that something a person says? Even if the favored consorts are competing, why should I be careful?

Besides, she usually only saw the harem as a tool to balance the court. As long as the concubines didn’t dance in front of her, she was quite lenient with these young women who were sent to the deep palace for their families’ benefit.

But the ones opposite her weren’t women. They were two horses vying for her affection.

Yun Shao didn’t know how she came to the conclusion that they were “vying for her affection,” but she saw the two horses neighing at each other, a truly horrific sight.

In the end, the black horse won the competition, kicking away the little pear blossom horse with a back hoof. The little pear blossom horse gave Yun Shao a resentful look, leaving her with a heartbroken back. The da-da sound of its hooves echoed through the deep palace; it was not a returning horse, but a transient visitor.

Yun Shao turned her head again and was met with the heroic, otherworldly dark horse face of Lei Ting.

As the black horse drew closer, Yun Shao was shocked. She struggled desperately, silently screaming: Save the Emperor!

Even if it was with a horse… she would rather it be a horse-beauty like the little pear blossom, not Lei Ting, this horse-macho.

What was even more frightening was that in the dream, not only did she not retreat, but she also felt that the horse’s face opposite her was very…

…cute, and she wanted to…

…like a case of “love at first sight.”

“Ah!” Yun Shao sat up abruptly, clutching her chest. Her long hair fell from her pale cheeks, draping over her thin back, cascading onto the bed like water. She was drenched in a cold sweat, her eyes wide and vacant, taking a long time to come to her senses.

Fu Shou heard the sound and asked anxiously, “Your Majesty, did you have another nightmare?”

Six years ago, when the Emperor first lost her childhood sweetheart, she had a long period of sleepless nights filled with nightmares. Fu Shou, who was serving by her side, watched the young Emperor curl up on the wide imperial bed, her body slowly tensing, biting her hand, her eyes red as she stared at the flickering lamplight.

She was so pitiful.

At that time, there were spies of the Empress Dowager everywhere in the palace. The young Emperor, thinking of her deceased loved one in the middle of the night, didn’t even dare to make a single sobbing sound.

—But that was a long time ago.

Fu Shou thought, the Emperor hadn’t had a nightmare in a long time. Could tonight’s nightmare be because she saw that familiar face?

Yun Shao, wearing only a single garment, looked haggard. She didn’t understand why she would have such a strange dream.

Did she really love horses that much?

The night was as cool as water, and moonlight shone on the palace steps. She stared blankly at the row after row of upturned eaves outside the palace gate for a long time. Only after Fu Shou’s questioning did she shake her head, return to her sleeping quarters, and pick up a memorial to review, trying to numb herself with state affairs and forget that terrible nightmare.

Yun Shao would rather review memorials late at night than sleep, so when she held court, she looked haggard and pale, with dark circles under her eyes. But such weariness did not detract from her beauty; instead, it added a touch of delicate elegance.

After court, Fu Shou, feeling sorry for the young Emperor, advised her to rest.

Yun Shao walked into the palace hall and heard a horse’s neighing again. Her vision went black, and she held onto the palace gate, her face completely drained of color.

Fu Shou: “Your Majesty, did you forget? After you brought the white horse back that day, you had it housed in the Golden Dragon Hall.”

Yun Shao gritted her teeth and said, “Send it back, now!”

She never wanted to see those two horses again in her life.

When Xiao Qianxue returned from the Imperial Garden, she saw two horses in the small courtyard. She blinked, almost thinking she was dreaming: “Yingying, am I dreaming?”

Wei Ying pinched her cheek: “Does it hurt?”

“It hurts.”

Wei Ying spread her hands: “See? If it hurts, it’s not a dream.”

Xiao Qianxue looked at the little pear blossom horse with delight. Ignoring the fact that she was wearing a long goose-yellow dress, she ran over and gave the little pear blossom a passionate hug.

The little pear blossom horse: “Hui! Hui! Hui!”

Xiao Qianxue cupped its face: “Little Pear Blossom, you’ve lost weight. Did the Emperor not treat you well?”

“Hui!”

Wei Ying covered her mouth, the corners of her lips slightly upturned, and asked the Harem-Struggle System, “Actually, isn’t the little pear blossom the one with the heroine’s script?”

Harem-Struggle System: You’re saying that? Don’t you feel guilty?

Besides the little pear blossom horse, the Emperor also sent them Lei Ting. The black horse stood quietly under a parasol tree. The fragmented sunlight sprinkled on its dark fur. It shook its head, its long mane loosely spread out, dyed a pale gold by the autumn sun.

Wei Ying blurted out a compliment: “What a fine horse!”

Then she felt the looks of the two people around her instantly turn strange.

Xiao Qianxue laughed awkwardly: “Yingying, you like horses too, hahaha. If we ever get a chance to leave the palace, I’ll take you to my home to choose a beautiful little foal!”

Wei Ying pursed her lips, feeling that the heroine seemed to have misunderstood something, but she couldn’t explain.

After all, it was indeed a very beautiful horse.

Little Eunuch Zhang coughed twice, “Alright now, His Majesty sympathizes with your condition and has ordered two bowls of almond milk to be sent over. Hurry and thank him.”

After they thanked the Emperor, Little Eunuch Zhang haughtily snorted and turned to leave. Before he left, he gave Wei Ying a few extra glances.

The milky white almond milk was served in enamel-painted porcelain bowls, like a precious elixir.

Xiao Qianxue took a sip, smiled, and said, “It’s delicious, Yingying, you should drink some too.”

Wei Ying held the bowl and silently asked the system: System, will it be poisoned by someone?

Harem-Struggle System: …Host, you don’t need to be so vigilant!

Wei Ying: Occupational habit, sorry.

She took a sip of the almond milk.

The almond milk was still warm, white as milk, with a delicate and sweet taste. After drinking it, a warmth rose in her stomach, dispelling the cold around her.

Wei Ying put down the empty bowl, her gaze suddenly falling on the black horse. As if she had thought of something, she smiled softly: “Thunder and rain are all gifts from heaven. Is the dog Emperor hinting at something?”

The little pear blossom and Lei Ting couldn’t actually live with them in the Chuxiu Courtyard. Before long, a group of eunuchs came to lead the two horses away, saying that they would be boarded at the Imperial Horse Office but their ownership still belonged to them. If they wanted to see them, they could go there anytime.

In the middle of the night, Wei Ying took over the task of sprinkling cinnabar for Xiao Qianxue and hastily sprinkled a circle of it in the courtyard. She returned to the room and found that the heroine was already asleep, her closed eyelashes like a fan.

Wei Ying sat by the bed, resting her chin on her hand, staring at the oil lamp on the table, lost in thought.

Harem-Struggle System: “Host, what are you thinking about!”

The warm yellow lamplight shone on the girl’s face. Those eyes, which were always a little misty, were illuminated by the flickering flame, revealing a trace of emotionlessness.

Now, whenever Wei Ying fell silent, the system would panic. It worried, Could the host be up to some new shenanigans again?

Wei Ying silently stood up, went to fetch a basin of hot water, and carefully and seriously washed her hands. She then went to the courtyard and stood in the very center. The moonlight was like water, and she stood under the cold, bright moon. Her pale cheeks took on a faint flush of color, and a strange light appeared in her eyes.

The Harem-Struggle System was getting more and more panicked.

Wei Ying gently called out, “System, are you there?”

The Harem-Struggle System’s voice trembled with nervousness: “I-I’m here. What do you want to do?”

Wei Ying clenched and unclenched her hands, rubbed her sleeves, her eyes sparkling, her voice unable to suppress her excitement: “I want to do a ten-draw!”

Harem-Struggle System: ???

Wei Ying: “Hurry, hurry! I specifically checked the lunar calendar. This is the best time for a draw. If we miss it, it’s gone!”

After a series of actions, she, as usual, chose ten golden boxes. As she was about to open them, she suddenly asked, “System, do we have a guaranteed draw for a ten-draw?”

Harem-Struggle System: “No, we don’t.”

Wei Ying: Bah, not even a guaranteed draw. Your Harem-Struggle Team is too stingy.

Harem-Struggle System: That’s because no one is as unlucky as you.

With the ten-draw, she only got four green cards, and the rest were duplicate gray cards. Wei Ying stared at the familiar string of “fluttering heart,” “love at first sight,” and “love at first sight,” feeling like she was about to have a heart attack.

Among the four green cards, only one, “Max-level Boss,” was a new card. The others were the “Dream Lover” and “Playing Ghost” cards that had appeared before.

Wei Ying: “Isn’t there a card that can make people luckier?”

Harem-Struggle System: “You can’t change your luck with metaphysics, and money can’t save you. Host, you have to accept your fate.”

Wei Ying, who was on the verge of a heart attack from the card draw, didn’t want to sleep. She tied a thick cape around herself, held a lantern, and pushed open the door to the small courtyard. The cold night wind blew on her face. She clutched her chest, coughed softly twice, and accidentally stepped on some cinnabar. The deep red footprints were left on the ground as she wandered through the palace.

Harem-Struggle System: “Host, aren’t you going back to sleep?”

Wei Ying shook her head: “I have to prepare for tomorrow’s selection.”

The final round of the selection was to assess the maidens’ talents. Since the Emperor had left the matter of the selection alone, this round was handled by the consorts and female officials. The so-called “talent” was very metaphysical; what was considered talented and what wasn’t was entirely up to a single word from a female official. So, in the past, many maidens had tried to curry favor with the female officials.

Wei Ying and Xiao Qianxue had never done so.

Xiao Qianxue didn’t need to, because as the heroine, she didn’t have to worry about whether she would be selected. Wei Ying’s reason was even simpler. She had offended Gong Beinu, so she didn’t even need to consider bribing the female officials.

The person in charge of the selection was Consort Shu, and with just a word from Gong Beinu, Wei Ying could be eliminated.

The usual plot goes like this: the female rivals and villains fight, the heroine is always safe, and the cannon fodder gets caught in the crossfire.

She thought, she must be that brother caught in the crossfire.

She had originally wanted to do a ten-draw and save up a few more cards before the selection, but the result… the result was heartbreaking.

Wei Ying thought of this and sighed heavily again.

The Harem-Struggle System didn’t believe her: “Prepare? Is the host preparing to play a female ghost?”

Other maidens only prepared by playing the zither, reading, or doing embroidery, painting, or composing poetry. But she was wandering around the deep palace in the middle of the night. Was she trying to be a ghost?

If the final round of the selection was to choose the most prankster-like maiden, her host would definitely be selected. But as for talent, it really didn’t know what talent its host had.

The Harem-Struggle System comforted Wei Ying: “It’s okay. Even if you don’t get selected, you can still become a palace maid and stay in the palace.”

This was also an option that many task-takers had chosen in the past. After all, the identities the system chose for them weren’t particularly high-ranking, and it wasn’t easy to get into the palace through the proper selection process.

Becoming a palace maid, taking advantage of the gaps between the consorts’ power struggles to get close to the Emperor a few times, was also a good method.

“The Western Palace Empress Dowager of this dynasty, the Emperor’s biological mother, was also an ordinary palace maid before, which is why she was able to safely give birth to the Dragon Son…” The Harem-Struggle System said, revealing palace secrets while quietly leading Wei Ying towards that remote palace courtyard.

Creating various opportunities for the host to bump into the Emperor. I’m such a qualified system, heh heh!

Wei Ying couldn’t see very clearly. She pushed open the courtyard door and heard a familiar voice. She frowned slightly.

“Why are you here again?”

Wei Ying: “What a coincidence.”

Yun Shao stared at this maiden, unable to help but frown. She asked with a straight face, “Didn’t I tell you not to come here again?”

With such a weak body, and still so determined to wander around in the middle of the night, what kind of spirit is this? Can’t she just stay in her room and rest quietly?

Wei Ying thought to herself, I got lost, didn’t I?

But she absolutely couldn’t tell the truth. She just bent her eyes and chuckled softly, “I haven’t thanked the ghost girl yet from last time.”

Unfortunately, the ghost girl was always proud and said things she didn’t mean. She coldly snorted, “Thank me for what? I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Wei Ying smiled even more happily. When she was happy, she couldn’t help but cough, a heart-wrenching cough, with a few drops of crimson on her lips.

Yun Shao turned her eyes away, clenching her hands.

The scene of a beautiful woman spitting blood reminded her of the past, especially here, especially…

She closed her eyes, her eyelashes trembling slightly.

Wei Ying leaned in, asking playfully, “Why aren’t you asleep yet? Are you waiting for me here?”

Yun Shao turned her head away from her: “No. It’s so late… what are you doing out?”

Wei Ying: “I couldn’t sleep.”

Yun Shao: “I couldn’t sleep either.”

Wei Ying asked curiously, “Why couldn’t you sleep?”

Yun Shao sighed heavily.

Wei Ying also sighed heavily

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