[Unconventional dark-lotus reborn heroine VS aloof, devoted hero with a hidden dark side]
Traditional historical setting + no transmigration + palace and household intrigue + sweet romance + devoted couple
The heroine is incredibly clever and not driven by love.
Her birth mother died young, her eldest brother was killed in battle, and her father ignored her. Under the pretense that she needed time to recover from illness, her stepmother sent her to a country estate, where she suffered the cruelty and harassment of wicked servants.
When she was sixteen, the old emperor held a selection of consorts. Her stepmother hid a poisonous heart behind a pious face, while her bewitchingly beautiful legitimate elder sister wept and thanked her. Her father told her as he bid her farewell, “Just focus on winning the emperor’s favor and keeping him happy. The entire Xie family has your back. You don’t need to worry about anything else. I’ll clear every obstacle for you.” Her beloved promised to marry her as the Fifth Prince’s consort. Coaxed and deceived, she was sent into the imperial palace as a pawn, and endured everything for the glory of her family.
Then, overnight, the winds of fate shifted. They locked her away in a lightless dungeon. Her former lover sat upon the throne, her father rose ever higher, while she became a prisoner. On the fifteenth of every month, her legitimate elder sister took a drop of blood from her heart. Smiling sweetly, her sister said, “Little sister, tomorrow I’ll be crowned empress, the woman who rules the realm. The boundless glory you never got to enjoy, I’ll enjoy in your place. This useless pawn of yours should be removed from the board. Your maternal grandfather’s family, the Pingchang Earl’s household, all 153 of them, are waiting for you on the road to the underworld.” With her tongue cut out while she was still alive and a thousand arrows piercing her heart, she swore a bitter oath.
Heaven has eyes! The Xie family’s Ninth Lady has returned from hell! She will have her revenge, and she wants a share of the Great Wei dynasty’s power as well.
Gu Zheng’s motto: Hold on to Qingqing and never let go! I love her, and I’ll protect her at any cost! A mere share of the power isn’t enough for Qingqing. I’ll help you topple the throne itself!!!
A fictional setting
