Marrying into the Eastern Palace

[Blurb written on February 19, 2022, and archived as a Weibo screenshot. Thank you, dear readers, for supporting the original.] After an outrageous incident at the Spring Banquet, Jiang Ying unexpectedly became the Crown Prince's principal consort. By day, the Crown Prince was gentle by nature, treating her with courtesy and tenderness. He would draw her eyebrows and arrange her hair, and cross half the city through wind and rain to bring her a warm osmanthus cake. But every evening, the Crown Prince would leave without a word, returning to their chambers only at dawn. Until one night, Jiang Ying accidentally entered the ancestral shrine in the Eastern Palace. Deep within a hidden chamber, the Crown Prince knelt before the Buddha, bound in iron chains. He raised his head in the darkness. His phoenix eyes were deep and shadowed, his voice low and hoarse, both bewitching and seductive. “Come here, my Crown Princess.” That night, the same outrage from the Spring Banquet happened again. Under cover of darkness, Jiang Ying met another Rong Yin, violent and unrestrained, like a demon from the depths of hell. * For nineteen years, Crown Prince Rong Yin had kept a secret all to himself. A beast lay dormant inside him. Every night, he watched himself tear Jiang Ying's outer robe to shreds with his own hands. His fingers closed around her throat, his gaze dark. “Jiang Ying, if you dare take even one step outside the Eastern Palace, I'll snap your neck.” By day, he tried to make amends. He dressed her in fine clothes, gently fastened the sash around her waist, and whispered her childhood name in her ear. “Banban, stay away from him. If he loses control, he'll kill you.” * Jiang Ying toward the daytime Rong Yin: admiration, reverence, and affection. The nighttime Rong Yin toward Jiang Ying: humiliation, coercion, and deceit. More than once, he leaned close to her ear and laughed as he tricked her: “The one who met you at the Spring Banquet was me.” “The one who saved you at the Jiang residence was me, too.” “Jiang Ying, if you want to repay a debt of gratitude, you should repay me!” Reading Guide: 1. Both leads' first love, happy ending. The setting is entirely fictional, so please don't nitpick historical accuracy. 2. The male lead has a split personality, switching at dusk. 3. Blurb written on February 19, 2022. Inspired by the story of the warming knight and the witch. (This is only a source of inspiration, with no real-life model.) ·The author keeps an upside-down schedule and usually updates after midnight· [Upcoming Novel] Moonlight on Frosted Branches: A story of unrequited love and taking someone by force Jiang Wanyue was born into a distinguished family, blessed with exquisite beauty. Her life should have been peaceful and smooth sailing, until the winter of the year she turned fifteen, when she met Xie Shuangting, who was being bullied by a spoiled young noble. He was covered in blood, his leg bones brutally broken by someone seeking revenge. He was on the verge of freezing to death in the snowy night. Jiang Wanyue rescued him and hid him in a private residence. She brought him winter clothes, found a doctor, and cared for him until his leg healed. When she learned Xie Shuangting was going to the capital, Jiang Wanyue smiled and wished him well. “May you succeed in the imperial examinations and claim top honors.” After that, she left with her family and forgot all about it. When they met again, the boy from the shabby alley had become the Ninth Prince, a son of the imperial house who had been living outside the palace. Wearing an ink-jade crown and a purple-gold robe, he stood tall before her. Xie Shuangting's way of repaying her kindness was to offer her the position of his principal consort. Jiang Wanyue shook her head and refused. “My father arranged a marriage for me several months ago.” As she turned away, she failed to see the dark, frenzied look on Xie Shuangting's face. * An imperial decree arrived, and the future wife of the newly appointed top scholar became the Ninth Prince's principal consort. On their wedding night, Xie Shuangting bent his head and kissed the tear stains from her wedding dress. His long, cold fingers caressed her face. His voice was tender, his eyes dark. “Jiaojiao, you shouldn't have saved me back then.” He shouldn't have been allowed to glimpse the bright moon from his shadowy gutter, only to long for it ever since. * Xie Shuangting believed that as long as he held on tightly, the moon would shine on him alone for the rest of her life. Until the full moon shone bright one night. Wearing the plain white silk dress she'd had on when they first met, Jiang Wanyue resolutely leaped from the painted pleasure boat before his eyes and fell into the rushing river. He searched the cold river all night, but found only a torn piece of her clothing. Only then did he understand what it meant for grief to pierce his heart and bones. “The day you looked down upon me, all heaven and earth turned white, like moonlight on frosted branches.” [Upcoming Novel] Firefly Lamps on a Spring Night: The noble daughter of the Chancellor's family x the young general guarding the border She saw the young general from her dreams outside Jiayun Pass. Riding a warhorse, carrying a long spear. Majestic and imposing, proud and unyielding. Theme: Be strong and brave. Don't let adversity drag you down.