Bright as the Moon

Xu Yan couldn't understand why the young Crown Prince refused to become the heir when his bloodline was unquestioned and no other prince was vying for the throne. Then one day, the young Crown Prince got drunk and threw up all over himself. The usually unflappable Xu Yan was stunned when he saw the chest binder beneath the young Crown Prince's clothes.

Zhaoyang wanted to cast off her male identity and the burden of imperial power, and live as herself. But the emperor would not allow it.

Liang had only one crown prince. There were tigers at the borders and wolves within, while the emperor's health grew weaker by the day. Liang looked peaceful on the surface, but beneath it, the currents were already turbulent. The emperor knew that if Zhaoyang's identity were exposed, they would plunge into an abyss. He could not take the risk.

Zhaoyang thought she would have to endure this dark, joyless life until her dying day. Then one day, she realized she had fallen in love with a eunuch, and he loved her too.

The emperor ordered her to secretly have a child with her study companion. In tears, she asked,

"Chief Eunuch Xu, what should I do?"

"It's just a child, isn't it? I'll give you one."

"Y-you, how are you going to do that? Buy one from somewhere?"

Xu Yan said nothing. He simply guided her hand beneath his clothes.

"I have a secret of my own to tell Your Highness."

Later, when Prince Xuan joined forces with a neighboring country to invade, Xu Yan volunteered to serve as military supervisor for Zhaoyang's sake.

The army was soundly defeated. The supervisor was gravely wounded and lost in the snow, his fate unknown. Zhaoyang was thrown into disarray...

Between the empire and their love, what would they choose?