Beloved Empress

Once the Duchess made sure that her son is alright, she chats a little bit more with Mo Qi Qi before leaving the palace.

What Yang Shihan pulled today has escalated their rivalry to another level. Although Yang Shihan and the previous owner did not get along, the current Mo Qi Qi has not have any confrontation with her after arriving in this place. Mo Qi Qi does not want to become anyone’s enemy in the harem, but her trick this time was too despicable. If she dares to do it again, Mo Qi Qi will not tolerate her.

Ever since Jun Qian Che forced her that night, the distance between the two of them grew. They hardly meet back then, now even more so.

Although they don’t directly meet each other, Jun Qian Che will always sneak into Feng Yang Palace to secretly watch her.

The palace is grand and mysterious under the shades of the night sky.

Mo Qi Qi, who cannot sleep, goes out to the courtyard and paces around. The summer night is enchantingly quiet, the stars twinkle brightly in the sky, like bright diamonds. It’s a perfect night for fantasy.

The wind blows gently, causing the willow leaves to rustle.

She closes her eyes, enjoying the summer breeze. The breeze feels really warm, to the point where it can creep into one’s heart.

Mo Qi Qi savors the beautiful feeling by herself. When she closes her eyes, her other senses become sharper. She can hear a movement in front of her. She opens her eyes, only to see the figure of a man in a fluttering white robe, standing in front of her. That man possesses a peerless face, his eyes are warm. He looks like a celestial that has just landed from the sky, too good to be true.

"Yue Hen? What are you doing here?" she asks curiously, happy at the same time. He is her first and only friend in this place.

"I was worried about you, so I sneaked into the palace to see you. I was so worried that night, when the emperor suddenly came. I wanted to see you the day after, but His Majesty suddenly gave me a task that required me to leave the capital. I have only returned today. I knew I had to see you, my heart would not be at peace, otherwise. Did the emperor make things hard for you that night?" Jun Yue Hen’s eyes are full of worry.

That night is the night that she wants to forget the most. She does not tell anyone about it because she does not wish to be reminded of it. She does not want to worry Jun Yue Hen, so she smiles at him brightly, "Do I look like someone who has been through torture?"

Jun Yue Hen looks at her from head to toe before smiling, "Seeing you like this, I am no longer worried."

Mo Qi Qi pats him in the chest, "Don’t worry. Luck is with me. No one can harm me!"

When Jun Yue Hen looks at her, his eyes are full of affection and longing.

That look in his eyes makes Mo Qi Qi wants to run.

Jun Yue Hen suddenly gathers her into his chest and hugs her tight, "Qi Qi—-" His voice contains immeasurable amount of love and longing.

At this moment, a man in black is watching everything unfold from a large tree just outside Feng Yang Palace. His dark clothes blend in really well with the dark night. Seeing the two people inside the courtyard, fury and jealousy rises within him.

The stunned Mo Qi Qi regains her composure and quickly puts some distance between her and Jun Yue Hen, "What is wrong, Yue Hen? Did something happened to you while you were out of the capital?"

Jun Yue Hen smiles, "No, I am just too happy to see you doing fine. Sorry, I lost conduct."

Mo Qi Qi shakes her head, "It’s okay, we are friends, aren’t we? Sharing a hug is normal between friends." Perhaps, hugging someone of the opposite gender is scandalous in this era, especially towards the women. But Mo Qi Qi is from the modern era, a hug is nothing to her.

"Lets sit and chat!" Mo Qi Qi sits on a bench under a huge tree.

Jun Yue Hen sits next to her, chatting happily.

He tells her of the interesting things he encountered when he was out of the capital.

Mo Qi Qi fills him in on the latest updates inside the palace as well.

Jun Yue Hen looks at her curiously, "You teach the other concubines how to sing?"

When she sees that incredulous look on Jun Yue Hen’s face, she fakes an angry face, "What is that expression on your face, Yue Hen? Are you looking down on me?"

Jun Yue Hen shakes his head, "No, just I never heard Qi Qi singing before. I am curious."

Mo Qi Qi rubs her nose proudly before saying, "I am a very good singer. Would you like to hear my singing?"

Jun Yue Hen immediately nods, "Yes."

Mo Qi Qi clears her throat before saying, "Let me broaden your horizon tonight. What should I sing?" After contemplating a little, she happily says, "Let me sing a song titled ’You Makes Me Happy and Sad’.

Love until the end, overflowing water is hard to stop; love is unhurried, hate is unhurried

Why is it when I can no longer urge you to stay, that I think of your tenderness?

Give me concern for me to free myself from worry, share the worries with me

I’m waiting in deep, unending night; crying alone, suffering alone

I want to say, "I really love you"; I want to say, "I’ve wronged you"

Crying, you say our affinity’s already over; it’s hard to continue, hard to continue

Just please give me a little time, and give me a little regard

Don’t take everything away with you

Just please give me a little more space, and give me a little more tenderness

Don’t let me suffer like this

The kind of woman you are, letting me be happy, letting me be sad

Letting me be completely willing to give my everything for you."

(TN: Song- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vqTXMw9zdto )

(TN: Lyrics - )

When he hears that song, Jun Yue Hen takes out his jade flute and begins playing a song. Under the tree, the two of them beautifully complements each other, one singing, and one playing a song. It is a beautiful sight.

The man who is watching them not far away feels indescribable emotions filling his chest. He flies off, leaving the place. That man is none other than Jun Qian Che. After what happened that night, he does not know how to face Mo Qi Qi. In the end, he resorts to secretly watching her from afar every night. He did not expect to see this.

As he made his way back to Yu Jing Palace, his heart heavy with emotions, he has to acknowledge one fact: they looked good together. He has never seen Mo Qi Qi that happy. She was not pretending to be someone else when with Jun Yue Hen. She has never done that with him; sitting next to him and chatting properly. Everytime they meet, they would part in a bitter manner.

Mo Qi Qi, if you are that happy with Jun Yue Hen, why did you picked me back then? You must be regretting your choice so hard, right now.

What Jun Qian Che does not know is that Mo Qi Qi is only honest and genuine with Jun Yue Hen because she considers him her friend. That’s why she can go around joking with him. Jun Qian Che on the other hand, is the emperor. No woman will dare to be their real self in front of him.

Once the song ends, Mo Qi Qi turns to Jun Yue Hen, "You are a genius when it comes to music. This is your first time listening to that song and you are already able to play a tune to complement it." If he is born in the modern time, he will be a really famous musician.

Jun Yue Hen shakes his head, "In front of Qi Qi, I am nothing. I didn’t think you would be that good in singing. We have known each other all our lives, this is the first time I’ve ever heard you singing. You really impressed me. That song is beautifully written."

Mo Qi Qi looks at him earnestly, "To be honest, once you cannot back out of love and that love is going nowhere, one should learn to let go. Once you let you, your mind will no longer be troubled. Once you let go, you will realize that there are better things waiting for you out there. You no longer have to wait, it is not worth it." She purposely picked that song to tell him to let go of her. She cannot return his love, he will only get hurt.

How can Jun Yue Hen not understand the meaning behind her words? He smiles bitterly, "If one can let go so easily, it is not love that he has. Even if I am not destined to be with her in this lifetime, I only wish for her to live happily."

Mo Qi Qi smiles, "To tell the truth, even if some people cannot be life partners, they can still be great friends. There is no hatred and betrayal in friendship. One can live without love, but not without friendship."

Jun Yue Hen smiles warmly, suppressing the bitterness in his heart. He nods at her, "Qi Qi is right. Being friends for a lifetime is good enough." It doesn’t matter if I cannot get you. As long as I can protect you when you are weak, I will be happy.

Everything that needs to be said has been said, Mo Qi Qi does not wish to continue talking about this awkward topic. She changes the conversation, "There is something I need to ask you, Yue Hen. The same question I wanted to ask you the other night, when Jun Qian Che came and ruined everything."

"What is it? Go on and ask, Qi Qi. I’ll tell you everything I know," Jun Yue Hen looks at her with a pair of doting eyes.

"What happened during the day I fell from the viewing tower? Do you know what happened?" Nobody is willing to tell her anything about that incident. Her only hope is Jun Yue Hen.

Jun Yue Hen freezes at that question. He avoids the topic rather awkwardly, "Why do you suddenly ask me of that, Qi Qi? Did anyone say anything?"

"No one says anything. I noticed it on my own. Something must have happened that day. His Majesty gets really angry everytime the viewing tower’s fall is mentioned. I forgot everything and being the only one kept in the dark isn’t a very pleasant position to be in. I’m afraid, if I ended up angering His Majesty and have my head chopped off, I still wouldn’t know what I did to offend him. I need to know, Yue Hen. Please tell me," Mo Qi Qi grabs his arm imploringly. Judging from the look in his eyes, she knows he knows whatever transpired that day.

"This- Qi Qi- I, I am not very informed about what really happened—-" Jun Yue Hen stutters indecisively.

"You definitely know something! Just look at the way you stuttered! What happened that day, Yue Hen? Why won’t anyone tell me?" In order to get the answer, she ended up losing a woman’s most treasured thing, and even then, she hadn’t managed to get the answer. She is inconsolable.

"Qi Qi, that matter has passed. The emperor will not pursue the matter, just leave it be," Jun Yue Hen persuades her.

Mo Qi Qi persistently says, "No, I must know! I need to know what happened, or else, I will not be at peace! Please tell me, Yue Hen! I promise I will not tell anyone I knew it from you! You are my best friend, if even you are not willing to tell me, nobody will. I do not want to be ridiculed by Yang Shi Han without knowing why."

Jun Yue Hen hesitates for a while before nodding, "I will tell you, but promise me you will calm down."

Mo Qi Qi nods anxiously, "I promise I will not be impulsive! Hurry and tell me!"

Jun Yue Hen looks at her before solemnly saying, "His Majesty forbade anyone from talking about this. Otherwise, they will be sentenced to death."

Mo Qi Qi covers her mouth in surprise, "So serious? What is it? What happened?"

Jun Yue Hen hesitates a bit. He finds it hard to tell her this, "That day, the emperor caught you having an affair with another man in the viewing tower."