Chapter 18 — The Body, the Heart, and the Lie
"The body can lie...
...But the heart bleeds in silence. "
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After revealing to Liyan that he was not his brother... but his father,
The Emperor slowly returned to his apartments.
His step was calm.
But in him, his heart was pounding like a war drum.
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In the imperial chamber, bathed in the cold light of the moon,
Xīyue, his wife, stood straight, facing the window.
His thin silhouette was draped with a light, almost invisible fabric.
Her black hair slid over her shoulders like living ink.
She hadn't moved since he came in.
He looked at her for a moment, then whispered:
- "What a beauty... Even the moon looks pale next to you. "
Xīyue turned his head slightly.
"My lord is back. Have you finished... your discussion with your "brother"? "
He approached, put a hand on his bare shoulder, slowly stroked his skin.
- "It's been two months since you left the palace. I missed you. "
- "Me too... I missed you, Mysignor. "
But deep down, a more true voice spoke.
You can own my body... but never my heart.
My heart belongs to a man without power. A man without a throne...
A man I did not choose out of duty, but out of desire.
Know.
His name vibrated in every beat of his heart.
A few moments earlier, he was still here.
Here.
In this same room.
And now... it was the Emperor.
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The man the world called the Sun.
But which, for her, was only a shadow.
Blinded by the arrogance of power, he did not imagine that his empire could lie to him in silence.
He kissed her. Slowly, at the beginning.
Then he untied the fabric that covered her, made her fall on the bed.
He touched her, explored her, possessed her.
But her eyes remained open.
And in his eyes... there was only one name.
Know.
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She didn't scream.
She didn't struggle.
Because in this world, she did not belong to herself.
But in his heart, something had just changed.
A wall had collapsed.
And a flame... had just been born.
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When it was over, the Emperor fell asleep, exhausted, fulfilled.
Xīyue, she, remained awake.
Silent.
Fixed.
A tear rolled slowly down his cheek.
She looked at the moon and thought:
This world is cruel.
And I am chained to this bed... while my heart sleeps elsewhere.
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But what she didn't know...
It's that a look had seen her.
A look behind the interstices of the wall.
A look hidden in the shadows.
Without a breath.
Without a word.
?
He had seen everything.
And in his silence, a single thought resounded:
Something between Ken and Xīyue...
End of chapter 18