The Moon Falls into the Galaxy - Chapter 1

February had arrived, and the spirit of spring was gradually deepening.

Shi Shi sat within a tall, spacious carriage. The curtains were half-open, allowing a spring breeze still carrying a slight, sharp chill to brush gently against her face. Her eyelashes fluttered like flower branches caught in a cold gust, trembling minutely.

Looking at her snow-pale, exquisite face, no one would ever guess that this fragile young woman was the legitimate eldest daughter of the powerful court official, Xie Guanyun. In the entire capital, few girls possessed a status more noble than hers.

For the past few days, Shi Shi had been plagued by nightmares, which gradually brought on a lingering headache. In her dreams, she always seemed to be imprisoned within a deep, dark palace chamber, never seeing the light of day. As the nightmares neared their end, a pair of ice-cold hands would often seize her throat, forcing her to swallow bitter, poisoned wine.

That bone-deep terror caused her to wake in fits of palpitations. She would gasp for air while drinking ginseng tea, only to vomit it all back up shortly after. Upon learning of this, her stepmother immediately summoned an imperial physician, but even after several doses of medicine, there was no improvement.

Shi Shi raised her hand to let the heavy curtain fall and gently massaged the acupoints at her temples.

Today, she had intended to travel with her younger half-sister, but something had gone wrong. After waiting for a long time, a maid finally came to tell her that the Second Miss had already departed. Though she felt a sense of disappointment in her heart, she merely furrowed her brows. Her sister was not a capricious person; there must have been a reason for her sudden departure. She would simply ask for clarification once they reached Baiyun Temple.

Pushing aside the heaviness in her chest, she began to imagine how pleasant the afternoon’s excursion would be. The person who had invited them today was none other than Shi Shi’s fiancé, Xue Yun.

This marriage had not yet been formally finalized, but the Xie and Xue families were old friends; she had been betrothed to Xue Yun since she was a small child. She had recently reached her fifteenth year the age of hair-pinning  and it was expected that once her father, the Duke of Wei, returned to court, the two families would officially begin the marriage negotiations.

Xue Yun was humble, gentle, and handsome. He treated women with great courtesy and was a matchless gentleman. She did not yet understand the meaning of love, but years of companionship and his attentive care had fostered a sense of dependence. Moreover, his family liked her very much. She had no reason not to like him; after all, marrying the Third Young Master Xue was a dream many girls in the world could only wish for.

Shi Shi traced the patterns on the curtain and closed her almond-shaped eyes. The dark, enclosed carriage brought on a wave of sleepiness, and before long, she sank back into a heavy nightmare.

For some reason, her dream became exceptionally clear this time.

She was walking through the long corridors of Baiyun Temple. As she rounded a corner, drooping willow branches brushed lightly against her shoulder. Every nightmare began this way dull and uninteresting. However, just as she familiarly reached out to lift a fresh, tender green branch, she suddenly saw clearly who the lovers embracing in the distance were.

It was her younger sister, Xie Qingshu, and her fiancé, Xue Yun.

The two were locked in a passionate embrace. Xue Yun carefully pinned a flower into her sister’s hair. As he lowered his head, she playfully kissed his cheek. The Third Young Master Xue—usually famed for his strict adherence to propriety—actually picked her up directly and kissed her lips.

His sister laughed coquettishly. “You rogue! Are you this bold in front of my sister as well?”

Xue Yun replied tenderly, “Only with you, Shu-niang.”

“In my heart, there has never been anyone but you,” he said, his words nearly fervent as he bared his soul. Xue Yun kissed her again, his eyes shimmering with a light that Shi Shi did not recognize.

The arm Shi Shi had used to lift the willow branch went stiff. Her entire body turned cold, as if she had suddenly plunged into an icy pond. He never smiled so brightly in front of her, nor did he ever show a trace of such romantic flair. Was it simply because… he didn’t like her?

Shi Shi panted for breath, her almond eyes wide. Her inner garment was soaked with cold sweat. Despite the high, bright sun outside, she felt deathly cold. She should be angry; she should step forward and demand answers. But in that moment, Shi Shi only wanted to escape.

She raised her hand to rub her eyes, frantically trying to turn around, only to be stopped by someone the instant she turned. That person whispered in her ear: “I didn’t lie to you, Miss Shi Shi.”

Her wrist was pinned by a pair of large, ice-cold hands. Her entire body was pulled into a man’s embrace, held as easily as a frail bird in a palm. He kneaded her wrist bone with movements that were frivolous, bold, and thick with desire.

Ugly, cruel, and morbid he did not seem like a living person at all, but rather a vicious dog. His gaze reminded her only of a greedy stray, salivating, wanting to tear her apart and devour her whole.

Shi Shi’s weak cry for help was choked in her throat. Her toes left the ground as she lost control and fell into his arms.

“You…” She struggled constantly, her thin back trembling like a delicate flower bud.

“What is so good about Xue Yun?” he sneered. “Nothing more than a man fishing for fame.”

He kneaded her fingertips as flippantly as if she were a courtesan, mockingly saying, “Besides, has Shi Shi ever considered this: you want to marry him, but does he want to marry you?”

Shi Shi jerked her hand away as if burned. her chest heaved violently as she took a defensive stance like a frightened animal, but her struggle was too weak and was instantly suppressed.

“Don’t be afraid, Shi Shi.” His words seemed full of affection. “He doesn’t want you, but I do.”

Had these words not come from the mouth of a frivolous and shallow man, perhaps they would have been more convincing. She felt intensely disgusted and only wanted to throw him off as quickly as possible. Terror made Shi Shi forget that she was in a dream, and once she saw the man’s face clearly, her expression turned utterly deathly pale.

She was familiar with this face. At countless palace banquets, he was the one standing beside the Crown Prince. Whenever the Emperor reprimanded the Crown Prince before the court, he was the one who would prostrate himself regardless of everything to plead for his father.

But Shi Shi remembered him not for those reasons. She remembered him because at the end of every nightmare, it was his cold hands that strangled her neck.

It was him the only son of the current Crown Prince, the Imperial Great-Grandson, Li Yue.

“Your Highness, the Imperial Great-Grandson,” she said slowly.

Shi Shi looked up, her eyes and face damp with tears. In the narrow corridor, she had nowhere to run just as she would later be imprisoned in the golden palace for countless days and nights.

In the next instant, her dream changed again. Her clothes were in disarray as she knelt upon a bed, her face flushed as she brushed against the chest of the person before her.

“It’s so uncomfortable…” She bit her lip lightly, yet words lacking decorum still escaped her.

A rich, eerie fragrance pushed her into his embrace. But this person was no savior; he was a villain who would lead her into the abyss. Li Yue laughed softly and grabbed her hand, his eyes filled with a greedy, lustful light: “Shi Shi, you are mine now.”

Shi Shi looked at him blankly, his reflection vivid in her clear, almond eyes. Li Yue’s gaze darkened as he moved to touch her slender waist. As her expensive, complex dress was torn, a large expanse of soft, white skin was exposed, as smooth and delicate as fine mutton-fat jade.

The cold caused her to snap out of her dazed state for a moment. She struck Li Yue’s hand away heavily: “No… Don’t”

He clicked his tongue and placed the incense by the table. The thick aroma caused Shi Shi to lose her reason entirely. When the crowd came looking for the Imperial Great-Grandson, the sight they met was her lying in Li Yue’s arms.

Li Yue frowned as if trying to push her away, but she clung to him like a fox-spirit from a folk tale, showing not a shred of the modesty or dignity expected of a noble lady. He still maintained the air of a gentleman by draping his outer robe over her to cover her burning body.

The palace doors opened, and the scent in the room thinned.

“Shi Shi, why are you here? Didn’t you say you were going to the Water Pavilion to rest? Why did you run to His Highness’s bedchamber?”

Countless eyes stared at her. Shi Shi snapped awake instantly, looking at them with embarrassment and confusion, nearly drowned by the direct rebukes. She drifted in a deep sea of terror, with not even a piece of driftwood to grasp.

Xue Yun’s face was livid. He pushed through the crowd and, without a word, took off his outer robe to wrap around her and pick her up. The noisy, piercing sounds vanished from her ears. Shi Shi was covered in tears, clutching his sleeve and refusing to let go.

But her reputation was gone. Coupled with the fact that her father had not yet returned, Shi Shi ultimately married into the Eastern Palace as the concubine of the Imperial Great-Grandson, Li Yue.

Even if her father had returned, it wouldn’t have mattered. The Duke of Wei never cared for his children; he lived only for power. As long as the Xie family’s interests were not harmed, nothing else mattered.

She stepped into that palace like a lamb led to the slaughter, not leaving again until her death.

Before entering the palace, she was permitted to see Xue Yun one last time. He knelt on one knee, begging for her forgiveness: “It’s all my fault, Shi Shi.”

She didn’t understand what he was saying and foolishly wished him and her sister a happy marriage for a hundred years.

It was only on her wedding night, when Li Yue pinched her chin, that she finally learned the truth.

His voice was cold. “Shi Shi, do you know? The one who sent you to my bed was no one else but the fiancé you have been pinning your heart on the Third Young Master Xue, Xue Yun.”