The Mute Empress

The mute Huo Wanjiang married Ling Yang, a deposed crown prince. A fallen man and a mute woman, banished to Lingnan, could hardly stir up trouble. Three years later, the exiled prince returned to Chang’an with his wife, defeated his enemies, and ascended the throne.

People said Huo Wanjiang was lucky. They had no idea how hard she had struggled to keep Ling Yang alive in Lingnan. At first, Ling Yang despised her and even wanted them to die together. Only after they reached Lingnan did her guileless devotion slowly win him over.

When his feelings ran deepest, Ling Yang once held her tight and promised between ragged breaths, “If I can stay with my A-Jiang and live as an ordinary man for the rest of my life, I’ll accept that.”

Later, he broke his promise. The mountains and seas of Lingnan could not hold back Chang’an’s golden-scaled dragon. He returned to the position that had always been his. The first thing Ling Yang did when he returned to Chang’an was bring his first love into the palace. Yet he told Huo Wanjiang that she was the only wife he would ever recognize.

Then Huo Wanjiang heard him pour out his longing to his first love and swear, “I won’t let you suffer, and I won’t allow a mute woman to trample you underfoot.”

An emperor’s heart cannot be warmed by someone who is less than whole. She refused to remain the empress of a heartless monster. Huo Wanjiang “died in childbirth” and escaped the cage that was Chang’an.

Unexpectedly, as soon as she “died,” the young emperor went mad, personally killing everyone who had ever bullied her. So what? It had nothing to do with her anymore.

Five years later, the emperor made a secret visit to Yunzhong and met a woman who looked just like someone from his past. Dazed, he called out, “A-Jiang.”

The woman turned around. Her voice was more beautiful than heavenly music. “You’ve mistaken me for someone else, sir.”

Ling Yang’s eyes reddened. He had almost forgotten that his A-Jiang couldn’t speak.