[Gentle, down-on-her-luck little princess VS sharp-tongued, ruthless eunuch with power of the imperial seal]
"HE | possessive pursuit | devoted to each other"
*
In a single day, the palace fell and her world came crashing down.
Her useless father, the emperor, died, her foolish mother consort was buried with him, and an imperial decree ordered her to marry into another country.
The new ruler's hold on power was weak. So who really ruled the world?
Xie Wujiu.
Shen He decided to risk everything, without regret, whether she lived or died.
*
He was the chief eunuch of the Directorate of Ceremonial Affairs, pulling strings and manipulating the court.
Some said he had a human heart. Ridiculous.
Some claimed they loved him. Hypocrites.
Some wanted to cradle this handleless blade in their hearts, ever so carefully.
…What utter nonsense.
*
Until the day she knelt in the snow and ice and said, “I beg you to show me mercy, Lord Sealkeeper.”
As if possessed, he took the little cat who had wandered into his game under his wing.
She clutched his sleeve through tear-blurred eyes. “I don't want to marry into another country.”
Xie Wujiu bent down, brushed his finger across the corner of her eye, and asked in a low voice, “Then what do you want?”
Shen He summoned all the courage she had in her life. “…I just want a kiss from you, Lord Sealkeeper.”
*
He gave her power and taught her to protect herself, making a place for her by his side.
But she turned around and married someone else, taking refuge under another man's wing.
Xie Wujiu calmly deposed the new emperor, installed a young ruler, and took control of the empire.
And, while he was at it, dragged his wayward wife back home.
[Reading notes]
The second male lead is wonderful in every way, but the Lord Sealkeeper fights for her, steals her away, and kisses and embraces her.
And two little miseries save each other.
