The Moon Still Whole

A woman disguised as a man, a young general x a woman official from a humble family, happy ending

*

In the winter of the fourteenth year of Tongzai, Song You'an was studying as usual.

The cold pierced to the bone, yet somehow stirred in her a desire to seek plum blossoms in the snow. Taking an umbrella, she headed alone toward the western part of the city.

Snow that would not melt covered her brows and eyes. The hand holding the umbrella was blue and purple from the cold. As Song You'an reached the outskirts of the capital, a solitary grave suddenly came into view.

The lonely grave lay desolate amid the windswept snow of the wilderness. At some point, someone had planted beside it a bamboo pole with a red tassel tied to it. The pole shivered in the howling wind.

It looked unbearably bleak.

Song You'an paused.

Who... would be buried here?

The night was deep, the frost bitter, the dew heavy.

Song You'an wagered everything she had, her short life and her humble station,

for nothing more than the chance to stand upright and clear.

"The following year, I placed first in the second rank of the imperial examination," Song You'an said, covered in frost and snow, one foot caked in mud, her official robe immaculate. Each word carried the weight of a thousand catties. "Even then, I swore I would clear her name and avenge her unjust fate."

*

"I saw all the wilderness and splendor of the northern frontier: blue skies, emerald clouds, and herds of cattle and sheep. My forebears fought on horseback, and they taught me to keep an honest heart. I thought I would spend the rest of my life alone."

"I had seen her before," the remnant soul said with a soft laugh, letting the hairpin pierce her palm. "But I was afraid she'd cry, so it's better not to tell her. My fate was decided long ago. There's no need to bring someone else into it..."

"And give her more sorrow."

The northern frontier is harsh, with bitter winds and sandstorms. I can't let you make the journey home alone.

Let's return south together.

1v1, happy ending

I am not alone on my path

"I've had my eye on Senior Sister for a long time"

Lu Hengling could not explain how she felt about Xu Rongqing.

By seniority, they belonged to the same lineage.

By talent, they were evenly matched.

But as for their feelings, setting aside their relationship as fellow disciples, Lu Hengling truly could not say what she liked about her.

Xu Rongqing was renowned for her dignified elegance, and her cultivation was impressive.

Who wouldn't like her?

But Lu Hengling found her terribly dull.

The righteous path was no fun, so at a young age, Lu Hengling became a notorious villain in the cultivation world and made a name for herself in the Demon Realm.

Yet Xu Rongqing kept showing up in front of her every day, insisting she would take her back to the sect.

Lu Hengling: ???

Why does everyone want to redeem me and keep me in line wherever I go?

Until the day Xu Rongqing killed her with her sword. In the underworld, Lu Hengling was so furious she wanted to point at her and curse her to her face.

Unexpectedly, when Lu Hengling woke again, she had returned to the days when she was Xu Rongqing's junior sister.

In Xu Rongqing's eyes, she was as naive and inexperienced as ever.

Lu Hengling's lips curled into a sinister smile as a brilliant plan took shape in her mind.

She would seduce this immortal of the righteous path and drag the exalted immortal down from her pedestal.

Before she could make a move, a universally adored junior sister joined the sect.

The junior sister was sweet-tongued and obedient, but for some reason, Lu Hengling took an instant dislike to her.

She watched indifferently as the junior sister stole Xu Rongqing's opportunities and magic treasures, and even schemed behind the scenes to destroy Xu Rongqing's engagement.

But even after Xu Rongqing was framed, imprisoned, and ruined, the junior sister still would not stop.

Suddenly, Lu Hengling no longer felt any pleasure in it.

This junior sister of hers, with a belly full of schemes, had gone too far.

*

Short scene:

On the night before Xu Rongqing's execution, Lu Hengling went to visit her in the dungeon. She was still dressed in white, elegant and immaculate.

The once lofty immortal was now shackled, her eyes vacant, with water rising to her waist.

Lu Hengling slowly approached, smiling as she lifted Xu Rongqing's chin.

Xu Rongqing turned her head to evade her, but felt warm breath brush her ear.

"Senior Sister," Lu Hengling said seductively, teasing her with a fingertip. "Tell me... if I cultivate with you right now, would that be taking advantage of you?"

Xu Rongqing's pale face suddenly flushed crimson. She stared at the woman before her in disbelief: the junior sister who had always opposed her

was willing to betray the sect and make an enemy of the entire cultivation world for her.

"When My Archrival Became My Concubine"

Xiao Xuanyi loved doing two things most.

First, sitting in a tree and throwing pebbles at the stiff little miss from the Yan family.

Second, watching Yan Qingshuang press her lips together in silence after being hit, still maintaining her proper composure.

Xiao Xuanyi disliked her, so she found all sorts of excuses to bully her.

Just as the decree from the capital arrived, Prince Anyang rebelled.

On the day the rebels slaughtered the household, Xiao Xuanyi hid among the corpses,

watching helplessly as Yan Qingshuang left the Xiao residence with her sword, calm and unafraid.

Her clothes were unstained with blood, her steps unhurried.

All twenty members of the family were dead.

Even Yan Qingshuang, that embodiment of grace and virtue who held the people in her heart, had joined the rebels.

Xiao Xuanyi's eyes shifted, filled with hatred.

She crawled back to the capital by the skin of her teeth, and three years later, at last, her wish came true:

she would torment Yan Qingshuang, her old friend, until she was broken.

*

Short scene 1:

"Write," Xiao Xuanyi said, kicking over the inkstone and glancing at her with a smirk. "Write, 'Your Highness, spare my life.'"

Yan Qingshuang lowered her eyes and knelt, carefully writing each stroke.

Xiao Xuanyi did not even look up. She stepped on the wet ink and ground her foot into it.

"Your handwriting is quite elegant," she said lazily, with a trace of disdain. "Your bones are much harder."

Short scene 2:

"You let me win at Luoshui."

"Yes."

"On the city wall, you let me force you to cut your hair, scar your face... and carve out your bones."

"...Yes."

Behind the screen, Xiao Xuanyi wept in anguish.

Yan Qingshuang had never seen Xiao Xuanyi show such weakness.

She had always been proud and carefree, a favored child of heaven.

But now her tears fell in great, heavy drops.

They fell into the dust, yet Yan Qingshuang felt

each one strike her in the heart. To her surprise, she wanted to cry too.

1v1, happy ending

Theme: I would be the rushes that support your ambitions upon the dais.