My Husband Is A Stranger (BL)

The palace felt different tonight.

Rui had lived within these golden walls long enough to recognize the shift—something intangible yet unmistakable. A change in the air, a weight in the silence. The kind of stillness that came before a storm.

And yet, it was not war Rui feared. It was something much older, something lurking just beneath the surface of the world.

An Omen in the Night

Rui had retreated to the private study, seeking solace in ink and paper. He traced the delicate brushstrokes of an ancient text, one of the few remnants from his homeland that had survived the invasion. The words spoke of celestial beings—gods who once walked among men, shaping destiny with an unseen hand.

"When the conqueror and the captive stand beneath the fractured sky, the gods shall return to claim what was lost."

Rui frowned. He had read this passage before, but tonight, it sent a strange chill through him.

A sudden gust of wind extinguished the lantern beside him, plunging the room into darkness. Rui tensed. The palace did not suffer from drafts—this was something else.

Then, a whisper.

Faint. Indistinct. A voice that was not a voice, curling around him like mist.

His heart pounded. He turned sharply, but there was nothing there.

Just the shadows. Just his own reflection in the polished bronze mirror.

But for a fleeting moment, Rui could have sworn—his reflection was not his own.

The Emperor's Frustration

Li Yuan had not intended to seek Rui out tonight.

He had told himself to wait, to let Rui breathe, to let his own emotions settle. But patience had never been his strength, and the distance between them was beginning to bother him in ways he did not fully understand.

So he found himself striding toward Rui's chambers, only to stop just outside the door.

Something was wrong.

The energy in the air crackled like an impending storm, though the night sky was clear. Li Yuan had spent years on the battlefield—he knew when a presence was unnatural.

Without hesitation, he pushed the door open.

Rui was standing in the middle of the study, his back rigid, his silver hair catching the dim candlelight. He turned as Li Yuan entered, and for a split second, his expression was unreadable.

Not anger. Not fear.

Something else.

Li Yuan frowned. "What happened?"

Rui hesitated. Then, too quickly, he shook his head. "Nothing. A draft blew out the lanterns."

Li Yuan did not believe him.

He stepped closer, his gaze sweeping the room. "There are no drafts in this palace."

Rui's jaw tightened. "Then perhaps the gods disapprove of my presence here."

It was a careless remark, meant to dismiss. But the moment the words left Rui's lips, something in the room shifted.

A faint flicker of golden light, like embers catching the wind. Gone as quickly as it appeared.

Li Yuan saw it.

Rui had seen it too.

They both said nothing.

Instead, Li Yuan exhaled, the tension in his shoulders easing slightly. He would not push Rui for answers. Not tonight.

Instead, he reached out, fingers brushing against Rui's wrist. A fleeting touch, testing.

"Whatever it is," Li Yuan murmured, "you do not have to face it alone."

Rui did not pull away. Not immediately. But then he stepped back, putting distance between them once more.

"Goodnight, Your Majesty," he said quietly.

Li Yuan let him go. But his mind was already working.

Something was coming.

And for the first time in his life, Li Yuan wondered if even an emperor could fight fate.