Lin Wan is a concubine-born daughter of the Lin family in Qingzhou, whose spiritual meridians are blocked. Before she can even adjust to her new life, she is shoved into a bridal sedan and sent to the Northern Nether Palace to marry in place of her legitimate elder sister.
The young lord of the Northern Nether Palace, Xie Huai, is twenty-one, with unfathomable cultivation.
His only flaw is that he brings death to his wives.
None of his three former fiancées survived seven days. The betting houses in Qingzhou are taking wagers, and nine out of ten bettors think she won’t last three.
Lin Wan thinks her chances are slim, too.
Until, on their wedding night, she opens the door to the main hall and sees the young lord, rumored to be a merciless killer, curled up amid the wreckage. His parasitic poison has flared, his spiritual power is running wild, and dark purple patterns writhe along his arms like living snakes. His eyes are bloodshot, and he can no longer tell people from demons.
She pulls out the rusty packet of silver needles tucked in her clothes.
In her previous life, she spent six years preparing herbal medicine and learned pulse diagnosis from an old doctor for three years. This is the first time she has put those skills to use in this life.
Four needles later, the poison is under control.
“Who sent you?”
“Your fourth wife.”
Lin Wan leans against a pillar, steadying herself through the weakness brought on by losing a month of her life.
At least nobody knows that using that needle cost her a month of her own life.
Later, she realizes things aren’t so simple.
Everyone in the Northern Nether Palace has their own secrets. Even her elder sister back in Qingzhou sends a letter from a thousand miles away, with just one line written on it:
“Is he still alive?”
Lin Wan folds the letter and looks out the window. The lights have come on again in the direction of the main hall. It is the fourth attack tonight.
She looks down. The golden thread on her fingertip has dimmed another shade.
No matter how deep the waters of the Northern Nether Palace run, her spiritual meridians have only just opened, and she is at the first level of Qi Refining.
Surviving matters more than anything.
As for the man who grips her wrist and refuses to let go every time an attack strikes him...
Forget it. She’ll treat him first. They can talk about the rest once he’s cured.
