Nangong Yue

Biodata

Feature	Details
Name	Nangong Yue (南宫月)
Alias(es)	Holy Maiden / Saintess of the Heavenly Desire Palace; Ming Yue (disguise) 28 29
Gender	Female 23
Affiliation	Heavenly Desire Palace; Nangong Manor 26 28
Occupation/Role	Holy Maiden of the Heavenly Desire Palace; host of a high-profile poetry gathering 23 28
First Appearance	Chapter 7 7

Background / History

Nangong Yue was the woman for whom Li Chen Zhou's former self called off his engagement to Princess Xuan Yi. His past devotion included risking illness to find plum blossoms for her and spending the Emperor-bestowed Nine Revolutions Soul Returning Pill for her favor. 7 20

By the time of the poetry gathering at Duke Zhen's Estate, she was covertly working with the Heavenly Desire Palace. She attempted to influence Li Chen Zhou through fragrance and zither music, then tried to prevent him from arresting Gu Wen, who was secretly the Skinner Zheng Ren. 23 24

Zheng Ren's interrogation exposed Nangong Yue's involvement in a scheme to infiltrate the Ministry of Revenue and divert Qing Province's disaster-relief funds. Rather than retreat after the scheme was endangered, she ordered its acceleration and arranged further obstacles for Li Chen Zhou. 26

When Jade Faced Fox was captured, Nangong Yue initially resisted a reckless prison break because the Brocade Guard's Imperial Prison was heavily defended. She later arranged for the Heavenly Desire Palace's Four Heavenly Kings to attempt a rescue, while personally approaching Li Chen Zhou as “Ming Yue” to seduce and poison him. Once exposed and captured, she traded information about the planned breakout for the return of her dagger. 28 29

After the Heavenly Desire Palace suffered major losses, Nangong Yue continued treating the sect as a means to an end rather than an institution to protect unconditionally. She described it as a “knife” that could be replaced when broken. 33

Before Li Chen Zhou departed for Jiangnan, she revealed her purpose for taking the eight hundred thousand taels of relief silver: using Heavenly Desire Palace trade routes to exchange it for grain and keep it from corrupt officials' granaries. She maintained that the aid must reach Qing Province's victims, while Li Chen Zhou warned that he would kill her if it did not. 44

Appearance

Nangong Yue is described as an exceptionally beautiful young woman whose cultivated charm makes her movements and expressions captivating. She is associated with an orchid-like fragrance and has been seen in both goose-yellow and plain white attire. 20 23 44

• Exquisite features and a naturally alluring presence. 23 29
• Often carries a jade pendant at her waist. 29
• Uses a veil while operating under the identity of Ming Yue. 29
• Her usual composed expression breaks notably when discussing Qing Province's starving victims. 44

Personality

Nangong Yue is calculating, politically minded, and ruthless when directing Heavenly Desire Palace operations. She considers the palace a useful tool, orders dangerous actions when necessary, and expects subordinates to carry out her plans without hesitation. 26 29 33

She is also proud and emotionally reactive where Li Chen Zhou is concerned. His refusal to defer to her, his arrest of Gu Wen, and his growing relationship with Princess Xuan Yi visibly humiliate and anger her. 24

Despite her willingness to employ criminals, poison, and deception, Nangong Yue believes corrupt officials and other targets of her network “deserve to die.” Her distress over Qing Province's famine suggests that her disaster-relief scheme is driven by genuine anger at the suffering of ordinary people. 44

Abilities & Skills

Heavenly Desire Palace Cultivation

Nangong Yue practices the Heavenly Desire Palace's seductive and desire-influencing arts.

• Her cultivated charm can captivate men at social gatherings. 23
• She uses zither music to stir desire in listeners and specifically targeted Li Chen Zhou with it. 23
• Her Alluring Bone Fragrance caused heat in Li Chen Zhou's dantian and nearly induced a qi deviation. 23
• Li Chen Zhou judged her weaker than himself after their direct exchange. 24 26

Poison and Deception

Nangong Yue uses covert identities and poisons to manipulate targets.

• Sent Li Chen Zhou rose dew that he identified as poison. 20
• Disguised herself as “Ming Yue” and attempted to poison Li Chen Zhou with a dagger. 29
• Attempted to use the Heavenly Desire Palace technique Golden Cicada Shedding Its Shell after being restrained. 29
• Her finger techniques were recognizable enough for Li Chen Zhou to identify her through her disguise. 29

Political Planning

Nangong Yue operates through intermediaries, hidden assets, and the Heavenly Desire Palace's network.

• Coordinated a plan to place Zheng Ren, disguised as Gu Wen, in the Ministry of Revenue's disaster-relief effort. 26
• Considered the political influence of Jade Faced Fox over two Heavenly Desire Palace Heavenly Kings when deciding whether to rescue him. 28
• Planned to convert stolen relief silver into grain through the sect's trade routes. 44

Equipment / Items

• Poisoned rose dew — sent to Li Chen Zhou in a letter. 20
• Poisoned dagger — used during her failed attempt to assassinate Li Chen Zhou as Ming Yue. 29
• Jade pendant — carried at her waist. 29
• Zither — used at her poetry gathering to channel her desire-influencing arts. 23

Relationships

• Li Chen Zhou — former object of his devotion and the reason his prior engagement to Princess Xuan Yi was broken; later becomes his adversary, though their confrontation over Qing Province reveals a measure of mutual understanding. 7 24 44
• Princess Xuan Yi — romantic rival who resents Nangong Yue for Li Chen Zhou's past devotion and remains alert to her influence over him. 7 20 23
• Nangong Wentian — her father; their relationship is strained by a resentment he says has lasted twenty years. 29
• Yan Ruyu — her master and the Palace Master of the Heavenly Desire Palace. 32
• Jade Faced Fox — Heavenly Desire Palace member whose capture forced Nangong Yue to weigh a dangerous prison-rescue operation. 28 29
• Zheng Ren / Gu Wen — Skinner operative involved in her disaster-relief-fund scheme; his interrogation exposes her connection to the plot. 26 44

Story Role / Major Arcs

Poetry Gathering and the Skinner Case

Nangong Yue hosts the poetry gathering at Duke Zhen's Estate, attempts to influence Li Chen Zhou with Heavenly Desire Palace arts, and intervenes when he arrests Gu Wen. Her failure to stop the arrest leaves her humiliated and places her disaster-relief operation at risk. 23 24

Jade Faced Fox Prison Break

Following Jade Faced Fox's capture, Nangong Yue balances the demands of the Heavenly Desire Palace's Four Heavenly Kings against the dangers of confronting the Brocade Guard. Her personal attempt to manipulate Li Chen Zhou fails, but she provides him the prison-break intelligence after he exposes her identity. 28 29

Disaster Relief Funds

Nangong Yue continues the relief-silver plan even after Heavenly Desire Palace losses. She ultimately tells Li Chen Zhou that she intends to redirect the silver into grain for Qing Province's victims, framing her actions as opposition to a corrupt system that would otherwise let the aid vanish. 33 44

Notable Quotes

“The Heavenly Desire Palace, in the end, is just a knife. When that knife can bring enough benefits, why rush to break it?” 33

“The people I, Nangong Yue, want to kill have always been those who deserve to die.” 44