I Picked Up a Down-and-Out Crown Prince to Be My Husband

The orphaned “little beggar” has no parents and lives by gathering medicinal herbs in the mountains. When her beauty catches the eye of village bully Zhao Dahu, she risks venturing into a dangerous cliffside to gather herbs and unexpectedly rescues a handsome man named “Xiao Shan,” who is gravely wounded and near death. He claims to be a merchant, but is actually the crown prince of the dynasty, Xiao Yishan, who is being targeted by his own siblings. To evade his pursuers, he takes shelter with her while he recovers and gives her the name “Ling’er.”

As they live together in the mountains, the stern crown prince is drawn to her lively, resilient nature, and Ling’er falls for him too. But as the pursuers close in, Xiao Yishan’s identity is exposed. Forced to return to the capital and put down the rebellion, he leaves her a token and promises to marry her.

Ling’er is brought into the Eastern Palace, only to find herself trapped in a gilded cage. Court intrigues, the cruelty of noblewomen, and suffocating formalities overwhelm her. Worse, the mystery of her birth begins to unravel: the pattern on her baby swaddling cloth is linked to the former dynasty’s Luo family, who were implicated in a rebellion. His political enemies use this to accuse her of being a rebel, and Ling’er is thrown into the imperial prison.

Xiao Yishan risks his life to overturn the case and clear the Luo family’s name. Ling’er regains her birth name, Luo Xier. But she has seen through the court’s hypocrisy and yearns for the freedom of the mountains. On the eve of her investiture as crown princess, she carefully plans her escape.

The emperor is furious, and the whole nation is mobilized to find her. When Xiao Yishan finally corners her at the edge of a cliff, Luo Xier holds her hairpin to her throat. “I’d rather die in the mountains than be a bird in a cage!”

Who will learn to let go first, the former mountain orphan or the crown prince? And must true freedom always come at the cost of separation?