[Not a wish-fulfillment story. Not a pure, exclusive romance. If that bothers you, don't read!]
In the fourth year of Yong'an, the emperor ordered a grand selection of consorts.
Li Wenyu entered the palace in a daze and became a Beauty. At first, she had no desires and only hoped to live out her days in peace.
But she never expected the emperor's special favor to make her fall for him. She wanted to win his favor only so she could stand by his side.
Who could have guessed she was nothing but a tool in the emperor's struggle for power?
Later, she became a casualty of the palace intrigues, her heart utterly broken.
Later still, the emperor said to her, "Lingyao, let's have a child." She only smiled faintly. "Your Majesty must be mistaken. I can no longer bear an heir."
Their story began with the emperor using her.
When he saw the soup she had sent him, he merely said, "It's just a little ploy to win my favor. No matter how much favor she earns, she's still only a concubine."
Later, during the Lantern Festival, he took her out of the palace in secret and brought her to the famous Anshan Temple in the capital to pray for a love-match charm. He wrote a marriage certificate for her and released river lanterns with her, wishing only for her to live a safe and happy life. He gazed into her eyes, his own gentle. "Though you are not my wife, you are more than a wife to me."
Later still, as he watched a young woman smile, he lost himself in thought. "When she smiles, she looks just like my wife did when she was young."
