The Moon Shines on Us Both

Upcoming novels: Snow Burdened by Cang Mountain and A Guilty Conscience. Please add them to your collection!

The whole novel is undergoing major revisions. On days without updates, I'm revising the text.

A patient, precocious young emperor x a brilliant, scheming girl bent on revenge

Zhao Xu remembered the first time he met Liu Wanyue. It was the summer of the fifth year of Yuanfeng.

The rain had just stopped, and the sky had cleared. A little girl in a red top and green skirt stood beneath a tree, smiling at him, as bright as a crabapple blossom. They hit it off at once. The granddaughter of a renowned minister and the son of the emperor made a perfect match. Sadly, fate only granted them a few months of friendship.

His father had said that when Zhao Xu grew up, he would bring her into the palace to be his wife. But before Zhao Xu had the chance to grow up, his father passed away, and he was pushed onto the throne against his will. He became emperor, but never the ruler of the realm.

He watched helplessly as his grandmother destroyed all the work his father had devoted his life to, and as his father's achievements were rewritten. He could do nothing. Even the closest family meant nothing in the face of power, just as his grandmother hoped he would never grow up, while he hoped she would hurry to her grave.

That year, he saw her again among the palace attendants. She had changed her name and identity, and wore the pale blue-green clothes of an ordinary servant. She knelt obediently before him, her expression indifferent, as cool and clear as the moon.

From the age of twelve or thirteen, the two words Liu Wanyue heard palace attendants say about her most often, openly or behind her back, were "seductress."

Among all the imperial attendants, she was undoubtedly the most outstanding. She was beautiful, could sing and dance, was clever and quick-witted, and knew how to get along with people. Yet she couldn't read. With her lowly birth and her beauty but no talent, she was practically born to be a seductress.

Sometimes she wished she really were the empty-headed woman they described, thinking only of seducing the emperor. At least then, her life would be much easier.

But that simply wasn't who she was. She had read many books, traveled many roads, seen the vast world and the treachery of human hearts. Once, all she wanted was to roam freely beneath the heavens. In the end, for the sake of revenge, she could only confine her entire life within the palace walls.

It seemed fate had cut her life in two. Before the age of ten, she was a young lady of a noble family, fearless in all things, sharp-edged, and carefree in her youth. After ten, her closest family died with hatred in their hearts, her family fell into ruin, and she changed her name and identity. Within the palace, she concealed her abilities and bided her time, enduring every sorrow life could bring.

The palace attendants all thought it was enough to be a favored consort. But Liu Wanyue was different. If she was going to fight for something, she would fight for the position of empress, for Zhao Xu's complete love, and for the highest power in the land.

Whatever she wanted, she would hold on to with all her might.

Reading guide: 1. The heroine's background is entirely fictional and has no connection to real history. Any resemblance is coincidental.

2. This is only a romance novel, not a historical record. Do not mistake the fictional story for real history. To keep the plot cohesive and dramatic, much of it is invented, with many fictional elements and an entirely imaginary setting. Please don't nitpick the history.

3. Friendly comments and suggestions are welcome. Arguments and insults in the comments will be deleted.

That's all. Peace and love.

Upcoming novel: Snow Burdened by Cang Mountain

Once upon a time, there was a mountain. On the mountain was a temple, and in the temple was a little monk.

Huiran had been abandoned at the foot of the mountain as a child. An old monk from the temple found him and raised him on the mountain. The morning bells and evening drums molded him into a solemn, unworldly young monk, free of desire.

One day, Huiran went down the mountain to chop wood. On his way back, he stopped at a Taoist temple halfway up the mountain to ask for water. To his surprise, he ran into a young woman, or rather, a Taoist nun. She held a bouquet of brightly colored flowers, and the petals scattered over Huiran's spotless monk's robe.

Huiran hurriedly lowered his head. "I'm sorry."

But the girl raised her lovely, radiant face, blocked his path, and stared at him. "Little master, has anyone ever told you how handsome you are?"

Huiran blushed. His master had said that if his heart was firm in Zen, he should remain unmoved no matter how offensive others' words were. Clearly, his own heart was not firm enough.

How could he have known that this day would mark the beginning of his faith's collapse?

She said her name was Huan Ying. How strange. Why did her name sound so colorful?

The Taoist nun had no devotion to the Way, yet she tempted the little monk into losing his faith in Buddha. The little monk, who had believed all four elements to be empty, learned love, hate, anger, and obsession. They agreed to run down the mountain together that night and become an ordinary married couple.

Huiran waited eagerly at the foot of the mountain all night. Huan Ying never came. Instead, the old monk arrived.

The old monk dragged him back to the temple and gave him two choices: repent before the Buddha and never descend the mountain again, or take fifty blows, roll down the mountain, and never again enter the monastery.

Huiran said he wanted to leave the monastic life.

When he dragged his wounded body to the foot of the mountain, the Hedong Pei clan was sending off a bride. He watched helplessly as Huan Ying, dressed in wedding clothes and holding a round fan, passed him by to marry someone else. She urged him to let go of the past, though she herself had already understood that their love had ended.

Huiran entered the secular world and found his family. The little monk who had abandoned his religious name became the eldest son of the Xie clan of Chen Commandery, Xie Yunfeng.

He set down his prayer beads and scriptures, and picked up weapons and military strategy.

In this troubled age, Buddha could not save the countless people of the world, but those who stood on high with weapons in hand could. He wanted to become one of those who saved others.

On the day the city fell, Xie Yunfeng saw Huan Ying again in a Buddhist shrine in the enemy capital. He was a general, and she was a prisoner of war. He took up his sword, and she began reciting scriptures.

He lifted her chin with his bloodstained sword and said coldly, "You are impure of heart and unworthy of Buddhism. Staying here would only profane the gods."

Huan Ying lowered her eyes. "Then where does General Xie think I should go?"

"To my residence."

"Don't forget, General Xie. I'm already another man's wife."

"I've already killed him. By my count, you're a new widow now."

Theme: Establish the heart of the world and the lives of its people