How To Survive as a Villain

At first, Tian Xiang wanted to ask him what had happened to make him this happy, but now she was hesitating to call for a doctor.

The buds of the daffodil had a light color and a fine fragrance. Xiao YuAn reached out and stroked the slender emerald green leaves with a smile: “It smells so good.”

Then he stood up, walked to the window, and said: “When the sun rises at the sea of clouds, the sky looks so blue!”

After taking a deep breath, he continued: “The breeze is slightly cool and comfortable!”

As he raised his eyes, looking at the plum blossoms in the courtyard which had not yet withered, he said: “A touch of red among the frost looks so stunning!”

Tian Xiang: “….Xiao Jun Wang, what’s the matter with you?!”

Xiao YuAn curved his eyes and replied: “I’m happy!”

Xiao YuAn praised all the things he could, even the flowers, plants, bottles and jars weren’t spared. But still it didn’t feel enough to express how happy he was, so happy that he even ran to the courtyard.

Today, General Chen was also persistently and tirelessly digging the pond. The pond had already taken shape, and Chen Ge was at the bottom, wiping sweat from his forehead with one hand resting on his hip, feeling a sense of accomplishment. Suddenly, a man came along. That man sat at the edge of the pond, which had just been formed, with one leg bent up and the other swaying freely. That man looked down at Chen Ge with a smiling face.

Chen Ge raised his head, smiled, and saluted: “Xiao Jun Wang.”

Xiao YuAn greeted him: “Hey, does General Chen know how to do the Yangge¹ dance?”

Chen Ge was visibly confused: “Da-dance what?”

Xiao YuAn replied: “Yangge, you don’t know? It’s fine, I’ll teach you. Lift your chest, stomach and hips. Raise your hands up and pinch your orchid fingers. Come on, don’t be shy, what’s wrong with a big man pinching his orchid fingers?! Then step your right foot on your left foot, twist your waist, twist it! Yes, that’s right! You’re a fast learner, General Chen!”

Chen Ge collapsed and touched his face: “Xiao Jun Wang, what’s the matter with you today?”

Xiao YuAn laughed: “Nothing, I’m just happy. Ah, dance and I’ll accompany you.” Xiao YuAn cleared his throat and began to sing: “Today is a good day~ All the things you want can come true~²! Hey, why aren’t you dancing?”

Chen Ge said: “Xiao Jun Wang! Weichen still has a pond to dig! Forgive me for not being able to accompany you!”

Xiao YuAn laughed out loud, and finally, let Chen Ge mercifully go.

Chen Ge breathed a sigh of relief. In order to avoid being punished again, Chen Ge hurried to finish today’s work so that he could go home as soon as possible.

In the end, on his way back, he saw several Ministers, who had just left the Morning Court. All of them seemed shocked. Some of them were running wildly, wanting to go back to their residence immediately to share the news with their families, while others were gathering together in twos and threes, screaming about what was going on.

Puzzled, Chen Ge grabbed a familiar Minister and asked: “What’s the matter? Did something big happen?”

As soon as the Minister saw that it was Chen Ge, he howled immediately: “General Chen! You’ve been taking care of an important business these days, and since you can’t come to the Morning Court for the moment, you don’t know! Do you know what His Majesty said this morning?!”

“What did he say?”

“Our Emperor is going to marry Xiao YuAn, the Monarch of the Western Shu Kingdom! The news will be announced to the whole nation today!!”

…

Half a month later, the Western Shu Kingdom and the Southern Yan Kingdom were united by marriage, and the two countries celebrated this unification.

At this point, the Four Kingdoms became one big nation.

Naturally, there were various rumors circulating among the people. Some said that the two Monarchs had to get married, in order to defend themselves against the foreign countries of the Western Regions. Some others said that the Emperor of the Western Shu Kingdom agreed to marry the Emperor of the Southern Yan Kingdom, because he was desperate to protect his country. It was even said that the Emperor of the Southern Yan Kingdom forcibly imprisoned the Emperor of the Western Shu Kingdom, forcing him to marry him.

As various rumors spread, one person would tell another, and the other would immediately spread a new version of the story.

However, none of this mattered, since time will wear away the edges and angles of doubt, as well as washing away the sharp thorns of slander.

At this time, one of the protagonists of the spread rumors, the Monarch of the Western Shu Kingdom, was standing in front of his bed, decorated with a red veil, staring at two sets of wedding clothes: “What’s this?”

For the past few days, Tian Xiang had finally realized that Yan HeQing was sincere in his feelings for Xiao YuAn, so at the moment, she was smiling happily for the wedding: “A set of Phoenix-crown wedding clothes³, and a set of groom’s wedding clothes. His Majesty said that Xiao Jun Wang should choose himself! Xiao Jun Wang, you should choose the Phoenix-crown one! Look how beautiful the gold thread embroidery looks! Look how delicate and exquisite the Phoenix crown is!”

Xiao YuAn stroked his chin and thought for a moment. Then he stretched his hand to pick up the Phoenix crown on the bed, surprised at its weight: “It’s too heavy! If you fall, you’ll break your neck!”

Tian Xiang stood aside and covered her mouth as she laughed. Xiao YuAn carefully put down the Phoenix crown and picked up the big red veil on the bed. As he turned it in his hands two times, his eyes suddenly saw that in the corner of the red veil, their names were embroidered with golden thread.

Xiao YuAn couldn’t help but bend his eyes, fixing his gaze once again on the bed. Then he pointed to something as he took a deep breath: “Do I have to wear ‘that’ too?!”

Tian Xiang’s eyes followed Xiao YuAn’s finger and replied with a smile: “Of course! Naturally, it’ll look beautiful with the set of wedding clothes!”

What Xiao YuAn saw was a pair of Phoenix-headed shoes, with silver edges, golden Phoenixes and emerald patterns, of about three inches tall. Xiao YuAn picked up the Phoenix-headed shoes and stared at the soles of the shoes: “How can I wear such high shoes?! These shoes are supposed to be worn together with the Phoenix crown. The top will be too heavy and the bottom is too unstable! I’ll fall three times before I can walk a single step!”

Tian Xiang was slightly disappointed, as she asked in a small voice: “Then, Xiao Jun Wang, are you going to wear the groom’s wedding set?”

Xiao YuAn paused and asked: “Did the Emperor choose the Phoenix-crown set himself?”

Tian Xiang replied: “Yes, after the tailor came to measure you, His Majesty chose the pattern and the style himself, in order to keep it a secret from you.”

Xiao YuAn was silent for a long time. But then he suddenly clenched his fist, and with an expression as if he was about to die on his face, he shouted: “I’ll wear it! Yan HeQing, that man, would never admit defeat!!”

…

Outside the bedchamber, the pavilions, terraces and open halls, as well as the green tiles, vermilion ridges and corridors were decorated with lights and red lanterns with the double ‘happy’ word engraved on them.

All the Officials came to congratulate and celebrate with the people. The whole Imperial City was bustling and the Imperial Palace was illuminated with candles, with big red lanterns hanging everywhere.

If you stand on a high building, your eyes would be able to see the endless mountains, the sky full of stars and the bright moon. All this land was the Land Under Heaven⁴. No one knew at this time, but in ten years, due to the efforts of the two Monarchs, a prosperous period of time was welcomed.

While everyone was celebrating outside, inside the bedchamber was quiet and peaceful.

Yan HeQing, dressed in bright red wedding clothes, walked through the long corridor decorated with red gauze and lanterns on both sides, until finally, he stopped in front of the bedchamber’s doors. The gilded red door was decorated with the double ‘happy’ characters⁵ in golden powder. Yan HeQing looked at it for a moment and then slowly pushed open the bedchamber’s doors.

Inside the bedchamber, there was a congratulatory screen⁶, and behind that screen, was the man he longed for.

Yan HeQing walked around the screen, but his steps suddenly stopped.

Although he was wearing a Phoenix crown and dressed with finer wedding clothes, Xiao YuAn wasn’t sitting upright. His red veil was lifted, placed on the Phoenix crown, his left hand was supported against the side of the bed, and his legs were crossed as his whole body was slightly leaning back, while his right right hand was curiously playing with the pearls hanging from the Phoenix crown. When he heard the sound of footsteps, Xiao YuAn sat upright in a panic as he reached out to put down the red veil. However, after exerting too much force, the red veil fell directly on the ground.

Yan HeQing: “……”

Xiao YuAn: “……”

Yan HeQing gently raised the corners of his mouth, and took a few steps forward. At this, Xiao YuAn’s cheeks and neck turned bright red. He wanted to bend over to pick up the red veil, but the Phoenix crown on his head was too heavy for him to move. He felt that if he were to lean down even for a little bit, he would fall.

Xiao YuAn was still pondering over how to bend down, when Yan HeQing had already walked to the bed to pick up the red veil for him.

Xiao YuAn was too embarrassed to look at Yan HeQing, so he simply lowered his head, stammering: “Yan, Yan-ge you, you’re here.”

Yan HeQing hmm-ed in response. As he leaned close to Xiao YuAn, he opened the red veil in his hand and slowly covered the two of them. The moment their lips touched, the red veil fell. As the candle flame flickered, the moonlight was bright and the love was everlasting.

As they were engulfed in the passion, they didn’t even notice that the red veil had slowly slipped off again.

When the kiss came to an end, Xiao YuAn lowered his head and rubbed his neck as he gasped slightly. The Phoenix crown was too heavy, so his neck hurt after having his head raised for a long period of time.

When Yan HeQing saw this, he whispered: “If it’s too uncomfortable, you can take it off.”

Xiao YuAn replied: “No, it’s alright! You, you don’t like it? If you like it, then I’ll wear it. I’ll wear it for you, so take a good look.”

Yan HeQing’s mouth raised in a faint smile: “It doesn’t matter, there’ll be many opportunities for you to show me in the future.”

When Xiao YuAn heard this, he also smiled brightly: “Yes, that’s also right!!”

That unrestrained smile, warm and moist as water, was just like the blooming flowers in Spring, and the bright moon of Autumn shining on Earth. It was like the stars brightly reflecting into Yan HeQing’s eyes, and engraved in his heart. ‘When I think of you, even for a brief moment, I want to accompany you for the rest of my life. If I had to put it in one sentence, it would be because I love you.’

‘As I always had, and always will.’

Ahhhhhhhhhh the end!!!!!

(´；ω；`)

After a year translating this novel, it’s so satisfying to finally reach the happy ending y’all have been waiting for ♥

This was the first novel I’ve ever translated, and it’s been so fun! Last year wasn’t a good year (for all of us really) so having this as a way of disconnecting with reality was quite helpful, and reading your comments has made my day every single time!

Thank you all for reading and supporting my translations!! ❀(*´▽`*)❀

I’ll take a week off from updating this novel, so I can focus on my other projects, and translate the extra chapters (build up a stockpile at least).

❤❤❤

–If you can and want to support Yiyiyi by buying her book, How To Survive As A Villain has a physical book (Chinese) available~ you can purchase it HERE.–

Footnotes

1. 秧歌 yāng ge; Chinese folk dance developed from a dance known in the Song Dynasty as ‘Village Music’ (村田樂 cūn tián lè). It’s quite popular in Northern China, and is one of the most representative forms of folk arts.
2. Lyrics from the song《好日子》(hǎo rì zi) “Good Day”, sung by (宋祖英 sòng zǔ yīng) Song Zuying.
3. 凤冠霞帔 fèng guān xiá pèi; A set of wedding clothes for rich women in Ancient China. Looks like THIS.
4. 天下 tiān xià; A Chinese term for an ancient cultural concept that denoted either the entire ‘geographical world’ or the ‘metaphysical realm of mortals’. In ancient China, ‘Tianxia’ denoted the lands, space, and area appointed to the Emperor by well-defined principles of order. The center of this land was the Emperor, forming the center of a worldview that centered on the Imperial Court, then went concentrically outward to major and minor Officials, common citizens, tributary states, and finally, ending with the “barbarians”.
5. It’s the combination of two symmetric characters 囍 = 喜喜 (happiness) as a symbol of good luck for marriage.
6. 贺喜屏风 hè xǐ píng fēng; Looks like THIS.