The Dark Lord Ye Tian Zi 夜天子 CHAPTER 9

 

Ye Tian Zi

CHAPTER 9
True Lies

Someone once said that jailers and prisoners are like wolves and sheep—there can never be friendship between them. What nonsense! Humans have emotions—what’s wrong with jailers? Jailers are people too, with desires, with loved ones!

Ye Xiaotian seemed to transport himself back to the Ministry of Justice prison, passionately lecturing the imprisoned officials, defending the jailers’ reputation: "Lord Yang was imprisoned three years ago, and I became a jailer three years ago. Since then, he often taught me divination, the principles of life..."

("The eyes govern land and home, clear and bright, all the same. If yin and yang wither to bone, parents’ wealth voids in vain.") "This was one of the 'Māyī Physiognomy' verses Lord Yang made me memorize. But never mind that. The point is, Lord Yang admired me. He said I had an extraordinary face, destined for a life of prosperity."

Ye Xiaotian continued: "That day, when the imperial decree arrived sentencing Lord Yang to execution the next morning, I brought him wine and side dishes. The cell was dark, rain poured outside. I lit a candle, and in its flickering light, Lord Yang wept uncontrollably..."

Magistrate Hu, Madam Yang, Steward Sanshou, and all the mourning guests listened dumbfounded as Ye Xiaotian rattled on at breakneck speed, utterly immersed in his performance like a dedicated actor.

With a sorrowful expression, Ye Xiaotian sighed: "Lord Yang said, 'Xiaotian, in these three years of imprisonment, old friends vanished, family abandoned me—only you remained my friend across generations. On my deathbed, there’s only one I cannot let go: my daughter. I entrust her to you. Will you accept?'"

At "old friends vanished, family abandoned me," Madam Yang’s cheeks flushed with shame, her head bowing—only to snap back up at the next words, her neck cracking audibly.

The hall fell dead silent.

Clatter—

A suona horn hit the ground, dropped by a startled musician. A chanting monk rubbed his bald head with a cymbal, looking around bewildered. The ethereally beautiful woman, previously weeping, now stared at Ye Xiaotian through tear-blurred eyes, stunned.

Ye Xiaotian gazed heavenward with a melancholic sigh: "I, Xiaotian, am lowborn and poor—unworthy of the Yang family’s noble daughter. But Lord Yang said this ordeal made him see through worldly illusions. A peaceful commoner’s life, he realized, surpasses any grand fortune..."

Growing more emotional, Ye Xiaotian lowered his head, eyes glistening—moved by his own fabricated tale.

Given Yang Lin’s strained marriage and his wife’s hatred for his beloved daughter, he’d surely known she’d be abused after his death. And Ye Xiaotian? Yang Lin had favored him, believed in his prosperous destiny through physiognomy. Thus... his dying wish, though bizarre to outsiders, made perfect sense under these circumstances.

Ye Xiaotian solemnly addressed Magistrate Hu: "Lord Yang—no, my father-in-law—also wrote in the letter that I must take his wife and daughter back to the capital to care for them. His final worry was family discord becoming a laughingstock!"

This addition was purely tactical—taking only the young beauty would leave her pining for her mother, breeding resentment. Better to take both. How much harder could one more mouth be to feed?

Magistrate Hu stared at the letter, then at Ye Xiaotian, his beard quivering speechlessly.

Old man, I’ve compromised! Ye Xiaotian screamed internally. I gave up the 500 taels and even agreed to remove your thorn! Don’t push me—mercy begets mercy!

Comparing the letter’s contents to Ye Xiaotian’s audacious lies, Magistrate Hu found the farce almost impressive. How does he spout such convincing nonsense with a straight face?

Deny it all? Tear the letter? Possible—but rumors would spread, tarnishing his reputation. If this were about inheritance, he might risk it. But with Ye Xiaotian demanding nothing and solving their problem, why refuse?

A flicker in his eyes, Magistrate Hu suddenly chuckled.

"The letter indeed says so," he declared, tucking it into his sleeve. "Eccentric as ever, my brother-in-law. But since it’s his dying wish, who am I to oppose? Sanshou, fetch the young lady."

Ye Xiaotian’s budding smile froze. "Young lady? She’s right here! Who else—?"

He whirled toward the bound beauty, who stared back in shock—her delicate features, even in dismay, radiating vulnerability.

What... what’s happening?
Revelation

Madam Yang, furious at the absurd "dying wish," protested: "Brother, this is outrageous! He must’ve been senile—"

Magistrate Hu cut her off coldly: "I’m not here as your brother, but as the county magistrate! This is an official ruling—hold your tongue!"

Foolish woman! he fumed. This is the perfect out! Must you force the boy to expose the will and humiliate us all?

Cowed by his rare sternness, Madam Yang fell silent.
The "Young Lady"

A toddling three-year-old girl entered the courtyard, her round cheeks like rosy apples. Clad in a patchwork "field robe" and mourning sash, she wrenched free from a scowling matron and sprinted to the bound woman, wailing:

"Mama! Mama! Bad people, let Mama go!"

She’d been kidnapped from their shabby alley home the day before, told her "lowly mother" wasn’t fit to mourn. Now, clinging to her mother’s leg, she sobbed uncontrollably—a sight that turned mourners away, hearts aching.

Ye Xiaotian’s jaw dropped.

"The Yang family’s... 'young lady'... is THIS?!"

His soul screamed: How was I supposed to know that old fossil’s "treasured daughter" was a snot-nosed toddler?!

In the south, men often took teenage concubines—but Yang Lin had been ancient, imprisoned for years. Ye Xiaotian’s mind defaulted to the beautiful "daughter" being the heir, not realizing she was the concubine mother.

Now, facing the weeping child, he wanted to howl:

Heaven, strike me dead! Why torment me so?!

Had he known earlier, he’d have spun a tale about Yang Lin gifting his concubine out of gratitude—a perfectly elegant solution. But now?

Staring at the snot-covered brat who’d need a decade before being marriageable, Ye Xiaotian felt his dreams shatter.

Translation Notes:

1. Cultural Nuances:

• "水田衣" (Field Robe): A patchwork garment symbolizing humility, often worn by children or         monks.
•  Physiognomy Quotes: Authentic Māyī Xiàngshù references, grounding Ye’s lies in "expertise."

2. Character Voices:

• Ye Xiaotian’s "Sincerity": His self-deluded conviction sells the lie, blending humor and tension.
• Magistrate Hu’s Pragmatism: His shift from shock to opportunistic compliance highlights bureaucratic cunning.

3. Pacing & Irony:

• The suona’s drop and the monk’s cymbal-rub add slapstick contrast to the high-stakes drama.
• The toddler’s entrance subverts expectations, turning Ye’s triumph into tragicomedy.

4. Key Line:

• "得饶人处且饶人" (Mercy begets mercy): A proverb underscoring Ye’s desperate negotiation.

Final Thought:
Ye Xiaotian’s "true lie"—grand, flawed, and utterly human—cements his legacy as a silver-tongued survivor. But fate, ever mischievous, reminds him: The best-laid schemes gang aft agley.

-- Translated by Xiao Gu Shi --

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