The Wrong Betrothal: Two Women Reborn to Rewrite Their Fates

In the Great Qi dynasty, the fates of the Su family’s two daughters are reversed, and their first lives end in bloodshed. The legitimate daughter, Su Mingyue, marries into a marquis household. When the heir dies young, she is branded a bringer of bad luck and suffers endless torment. The concubine-born daughter, Su Qingyuan, marries the impoverished scholar Liu Wenxuan, writes his work for him, and helps him rise to the rank of chancellor, while enjoying a life of wealth and glory herself. Bitterness and resentment eat away at Su Mingyue until, on Su Qingyuan’s birthday, she stabs her to death and then takes her own life.

In their second lives, both are reborn at fifteen, one month before their wedding dates are set. Su Qingyuan no longer wants to remain in Liu Wenxuan’s shadow, and Su Mingyue knows that marrying into the marquis household is a death sentence. Both want to switch matches. But their father is a stickler for the rules, their mother favors the legitimate daughter, and the marquis household values Su Mingyue’s status as a legitimate daughter. The path to switching matches is full of obstacles.

Su Qingyuan engineers an accident that sends Su Mingyue and Xiao Jingyuan into the water, making the match switch seem “only natural.” But Su Mingyue discovers that Xiao Jingyuan is faking his illness and is threatened by him. At the brink of life and death, the two reach an agreement, each getting what they need.

After the match switch succeeds, Su Qingyuan refuses to accept it and makes trouble for Su Mingyue at every turn. Su Mingyue thwarts her every time and makes Liu Wenxuan’s life difficult at every turn as well. As they work together, Su Mingyue and Xiao Jingyuan fall in love and join forces to expose a spy in the marquis household. Xiao Jingyuan wins a great victory on campaign, further strengthening the household’s power.

Without Su Qingyuan’s help, Liu Wenxuan reveals his true nature. He fails the imperial examinations and falls into bad habits, eventually losing his scholarly title. Trapped in the dilapidated Liu household, Su Qingyuan finally realizes she must carve out her own path. Su Mingyue, standing atop the marquis residence with Xiao Jingyuan, exchanges a smile with him and finds a new life.