Page 98 of Empire's Curse

Muyang seemed unbothered by their entrance and continued to greet the rest of the guests who congratulated them in the same manner. Daiyu tried to keep up with the polite act, but it was hard when every other woman her age, or younger, was dressed like Yanlin—with the intention of upstaging her. They all batted their lashes at Muyang, giggled, and smiled as if to gain his favor. She hated the way they acted. Absolutelyabhorredit.

It was hard to keep a straight face when every other person was thinking about shoving her from where she sat. She could read it on their faces. The nobles wanted their daughters to be in her place. The daughters wanted to smite her where she sat. And the rest of everyone seemed to sneer down their noses at her, like she shouldn’t have been there in the firstplace.

At her own wedding.

The only thing that staved Daiyu’s anger was seeing Lanfen, Ran, Qianfan, and the rest of her family smiling cheerily and eating at one of the nearby tables. They were all dressed nicely, in clothes finer than they had ever owned, and they all seemed oblivious to the tensions and drama and gossiping around them. She could see their starstruck, awe-filled gazes at the sights they saw, at the dances and performances and music.

She wished nothing more than for them to continue to experience the luxuries of the palace and royal life without the negative bite of all the nobles. She was reminded once again why she was doing this, why she was putting herself in such an uncomfortable position.

“You don’t seem to like the festivities of our wedding.” Muyang rubbed her hand again, bringing her back to reality—back to him. “What troubles you? Is it the music, the dances? Or perhaps the stories being performed? What isn’t to your liking?”

Daiyu turned her body toward him, willing herself to ignore the people in her peripheral. “The wedding is just as grand and beautiful as I thought it would be,” she said, “and I have no problems with any of it. The décor is fabulous, the music is enchanting, the dances extraordinary. But … it’s the people that bother me the most.”

“The people?” He canted his head. “What about them bothers you?”

“Can I be fully frank with you?”

“Certainly.”

She didn’t know what brought upon this level of truthfulness from her, especially since she had resigned herself to dealing with her problems herself and not involving him, but she couldn’t hold back the thorniness she felt when she looked upon the nobles. Maybe it was because he held her hand so gently that she felt compelled to spill to him, but she quickly said, “I feel as though they don’t think I belong here. I’m not one of them and they know it. I can feel it in the way they look at me.”

Muyang was quiet for a moment, observing her with an unreadable expression.

“I probably sound silly,” she said with a short laugh. Maybe it had been a mistake to say that to him, to reveal that she was already buckling under the pressure of everyone’s gazes.

“No, I understand.” He grasped her chin gently and turned her face so she was looking directly at him. “Do you think these people like me? A usurper? They used to look at me the same way. But then I killed each and every one of them who dared to disrespect me, and soon, they were all bowing their heads at me.”

“But I’m not you.”

“Soon, all these people will call youYour Majesty. They will bow down when you walk by. They will whisper pretty nonsenses into your ear. They will seek your approval, your favor. And you will have to know who to trust and who not to. In my experience, it’s a good thing that you haven’t been enamored by the glamour of this place, by the glamour these people inspire and strive toward.” He grazed his knuckle against her chin ever so softly, the light touch sending a ripple of electricity through her flesh. “Remember this uncomfortable feeling. Remember their faces. Remember it all because theywillfall at your feet eventually, and you will have to remember how they treated youtoday.”

Daiyu found herself bobbing her head, her throat tight with unshed tears. She was afraid that if she spoke, her words would be strangled and she would weep. Not because the pressure was high, but because he understood. Because she wasn’t crazy to be feeling this uncomfortable, thorny feeling.

“I hate that on this auspicious day, your attention is driven toward these people,” Muyang continued, his gaze searching hers. “When it should be geared toward me and our union.”

“I’m sorry?—”

“Don’t apologize.” He pressed another kiss on the back of her hand, black eyes never straying from hers. “This is your first day of power, Daiyu.”

That power wasn’t because of her but only because she wasnow married to him. When she looked back at the hall, the tightness of her body didn’t ease in the slightest because she had no power of her own. Not here, in this den of vipers. Not among this court who would viciously tear her apart if Muyang wasn’t holding her hand.

But she was now married to the cruel emperor, and she planned to use that to her advantage. She could become their nightmare, she realized. She could become worthy of being the wife of the wicked.

34

The evening continuedlike it had before, with Daiyu feeling more and more uncomfortable as she realized she was drawing closer to the night of the wedding. It was only when the night progressed that she even allowed herself to think of what would happen next—and the thought filled her with another layer of dread and anxiety.

She had never been with a man before. Even with Heng, they had never done more than hold hands. And now she was expected to do so much more, for a man who had more experience than her. The thought alone sent her heart rate plummeting and a cold shiver took over her body.

“Let’s retire for the evening,” Muyang said at some point.

Daiyu wanted to throw up, but she nodded stiffly.

He rose from his seat, holding her hand as he did, and everyone in the room dropped down to bows as they walked through the hall. Daiyu could barely keep her head up, her mind swimming with what was to come. It wasn’t until they entered the less dense hallways that she felt like she could breathe again.

“Are you well?” Muyang squeezed her hand and she could only stare up at him with wide eyes. “You look pale.”

“Me? No, I’m fine,” she managed to sputter.

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