Ying Yuan sneered, swung the long sword in his hand, and pointed the tip of the sword at the shrinking crowd: "I gave you a chance."

He walked closer and closer, and every step seemed to be stepping on the heart of the bandits, almost suffocating them.

"Your Majesty, spare my life! I have an 80-year-old mother and a three-year-old child..." A bandit cried, trying to win Ying Yuan's sympathy.

Ying Yuan stopped and looked down at him: "I also have an eighty-year-old mother." He paused, his tone cold, "It's a pity that she was killed by people like you."

There was a flash of knife, a head flew up, and blood splattered on the surrounding bandits, frightening them to death.

"Kill!" Ying Yuan gave an order, and the Qin soldiers behind him rushed into the mountain stronghold like a tiger descending from the mountain and started a massacre.

Screams, wails, and the sounds of weapons clashing intertwined together to form a bloody symphony.

Ying Yuan stood at the highest point of the village, watching all this coldly, without any fluctuation in his eyes.

……

Xiaoyue hid behind a big tree at the entrance of the village, secretly looking at the fire in the direction of the village, feeling uneasy.

She didn't know how Ying Yuan would deal with the bandits, nor did she know what to do in the future.

Just then, Ying Yuan's figure appeared in front of her.

"Ah!" Xiaoyue screamed in fright and stepped back repeatedly.

"You..." She looked at Ying Yuan, her eyes full of fear.

Ying Yuan walked up to her and looked down at her: "Are you afraid of me?"

Xiaoyue didn't dare to speak, she just lowered her head, her body trembling slightly.

Ying Yuan chuckled and reached out to touch her head: "Don't be afraid, I won't hurt you."

Xiaoyue raised her head and looked at Ying Yuan, her eyes full of confusion.

"I'm going back to the palace." Ying Yuan withdrew his hand, turned and left.

"Wait!" Xiaoyue plucked up the courage and called out to him.

Ying Yuan stopped and looked back at her: "Anything else?"

Xiaoyue hesitated for a moment and asked, "Your Majesty, will you...will you come back?"

Ying Yuan looked at her, a complicated look flashed in his eyes, and finally he just said lightly: "Maybe."

After saying this, he turned and left, his figure gradually disappearing into the night.

Xiaoyue stood there, looking at the direction where Ying Yuan went away, feeling mixed emotions.

……

Ying Yuan returned to the palace and went straight to the imperial study.

"Your Highness." Eunuch Li, the chief eunuch, bowed.

"Get up." Ying Yuan waved his hand. "Has anything important happened in the court recently?"

"Your Majesty, it's nothing serious." Eunuch Li replied respectfully, "It's just..." He hesitated for a moment, and then said, "The Prime Minister has requested to see you many times, saying that he wants to discuss the matter of establishing a queen."

"Establish a queen?" Ying Yuan sneered, "I am still young, why would I establish a queen?"

"But..." Eunuch Li wanted to say something but was interrupted by Ying Yuan.

"I have made up my mind. There is no need to mention it again." Ying Yuan's tone left no room for doubt. "Anything else?"

"No more." Eunuch Li lowered his head and dared not speak anymore.

"Go down." Ying Yuan waved his hand.

Eunuch Li bowed and left.

Ying Yuan sat alone in the imperial study, looking at the dark night sky outside the window, with a myriad of thoughts in his mind.

He thought of Xiaoyue's clear eyes, her fear and helplessness in the mountain village, and an inexplicable feeling welled up in his heart.

"Do I really just treat her as an ordinary woman?" Ying Yuan asked himself.

He didn't know the answer, nor did he want to find out.

He only knew that he was tired of this lonely life and he longed for someone to accompany him and share his joys and sorrows.

……

The next morning at court, Ying Yuan announced something that shocked the court and the public.

He wanted to establish a queen, and the candidate for the queen was the girl from the small mountain village, Xiaoyue. As soon as the news came out, the court was in an uproar.

The ministers submitted memorials one after another, urging Ying Yuan to revoke his decision.

They believed that Xiaoyue was of humble origin and low status and was not worthy of the position of queen.

What's worse, some even suspected that Xiaoyue was a witch who had bewitched the emperor.

Facing the opposition of the ministers, Ying Yuan just sneered: "My queen is decided by me, it is not your turn to comment."

He ignored the opposition and insisted on making Xiaoyue the queen.

A month later, a grand ceremony to enthronize the queen was held in the imperial palace.

Xiaoyue was wearing a phoenix robe and a phoenix crown. Under the gaze of everyone, she slowly walked up to the queen's throne.

She looked at Ying Yuan sitting on the dragon throne, her eyes filled with happiness and gratitude.

Ying Yuan looked at her, a faint smile appearing on his lips.

He knew that his life would undergo earth-shaking changes because of the appearance of this woman.

……

After the ceremony, Ying Yuan brought Xiao Yue to the imperial garden.

"Your Majesty, why do you want to make me your queen?" Xiaoyue looked at Ying Yuan with confusion in her eyes.

Ying Yuan looked at her, was silent for a moment, and then slowly said: "Because..." He paused, a cunning flashed in his eyes, "I want you to give birth to a baby for me."

Xiaoyue was stunned, then her pretty face turned red and she said coquettishly: "Your Majesty!"

Ying Yuan looked at her shy appearance and couldn't help laughing.

He hugged Xiaoyue in his arms and whispered in her ear: "I want you to give birth to many monkeys, forming a monkey army, and then..."

"Then what?" Xiaoyue asked curiously.

Ying Yuan whispered something in her ear, Xiaoyue's face turned even redder, her eyes full of surprise and...expectation.

"Your Majesty, you are really..."

Before Xiaoyue could finish her words, Ying Yuan kissed her lips.

In the imperial garden, the air is filled with the fragrance of flowers and the chirping of birds.

A perfect couple hugging each other tightly forms a beautiful picture.

……

However, at this moment, a black shadow suddenly fell from the sky and headed straight towards Ying Yuan and Xiao Yue.

"Be careful, Your Majesty!"

"Your Majesty, be careful!" Xiaoyue exclaimed and pushed Ying Yuan away.

A black shadow flashed by, and Ying Yuan felt a gust of wind blowing in his face, almost knocking him to the ground.

He steadied himself and looked carefully, only to see a man in black holding a sharp blade, standing in front of Xiaoyue.

"How dare you, you bold assassin, to assassinate me!" Ying Yuan shouted angrily, drew the sword from his waist and pointed it directly at the man in black.

The man in black said nothing and attacked Ying Yuan wielding a sharp blade.

Ying Yuan was a skilled martial artist, so why would he be afraid of him? He swung his sword and fought with the man in black.

The two men fought back and forth, swords flashing, and it was difficult to tell who would win for a while.

Xiaoyue hid behind Ying Yuan, watching the fierce fight between the two, her heart full of worry.

Although she didn't know martial arts, she could see that the man in black was very skilled in martial arts and Ying Yuan was probably no match for him.

Thinking of this, she couldn't help but become more worried.

At this moment, the man in black suddenly made a feint and turned to attack Xiaoyue.

Ying Yuan was shocked when he saw this and quickly turned around to save Xiaoyue.

But it was too late, the black-clad man's sharp blade had already pierced Xiaoyue's chest.

"Xiao Yue!" Ying Yuan exclaimed, flew over and held Xiao Yue in his arms.

Xiaoyue's face was pale, and a trace of blood flowed from the corner of her mouth. (End of this chapter)