I Became the Dark Moonlight After a Substitute Marriage

Sang Zhiwei is an unloved young princess. When her elder sister disappears, she is forced to take her place as the bride of Jiang Hemian, the man who was supposed to become her brother-in-law.

Everyone knows that Sang Nanxi, eldest daughter of Prince Ning, and Jiang Hemian, heir to the foremost aristocratic clan, were betrothed long ago. One is gentle and virtuous, the other cool and self-possessed. They are the talk of the capital, envied by all!

But no one knows that Jiang Hemian has also been the object of Sang Zhiwei's secret longing for four years.

On their wedding night, the red candles burn down, but Jiang Hemian never appears. Sang Zhiwei thinks he must have had something urgent to attend to and simply forgotten about the wedding.

She sees Jiang Hemian three days later, while being punished to kneel in the ancestral hall. He knows that her mother-in-law punished her for breaking the rules while waiting for him on their wedding night, but he merely sneers and pays no heed.

He coldly pours the nuptial wine onto the ground between them, drawing a clear line. "This marriage will last at most six months! For those six months, you are a wife of the Jiang family, not my wife!"

Sang Zhiwei's legs go numb, and she can barely hide her disappointment. But then she thinks that being able to stay by his side for six months is already enough to make her happy.

She keeps Jiang Hemian's words in mind and does her best to fulfill her duties as a Jiang wife. The elders who once despised her change their minds and accept her.

But Jiang Hemian remains unmoved, telling his friend, "She's manipulative. It makes me sick."

Hearing his words, Sang Zhiwei's eyes redden. She blames herself, thinking she must not have done well enough!

Until one day, Jiang Hemian is framed and drugged. Fearing for his life, Sang Zhiwei offers herself as the antidote.

But all she gets in return is the sight of Jiang Hemian walking away, his long robe trailing behind him. When they meet again, murderous fury flashes in his eyes as he presses a dagger to her throat.

"You stole a marriage contract and have no shame! Sang Zhiwei, you disgust me!"

Sang Zhiwei learns what it feels like to have her heart torn apart.

The six months are up, and her elder sister returns just in time. A smile appears on Jiang Hemian's face.

Sang Zhiwei quietly leaves, leaving behind only a divorce agreement and a note: Zhuzhu is letting her husband go. She only hopes her husband and elder sister will grow old together.

Jiang Hemian sneers, then tears her note to shreds.

Jiang Hemian hates Sang Zhiwei!

All because she used the emperor's promise, earned by risking her life to save the empress dowager, on their marriage contract.

After their wedding, she used all kinds of underhanded tricks to secure her position, until everyone in the household acknowledged her.

Watching Sang Zhiwei work diligently, Jiang Hemian changes his mind. He has no interest in romance, but if Sang Zhiwei can properly fulfill her duties as a Jiang wife, he can pretend their six-month agreement was never made.

But on the day he is drugged, he sees Sang Zhiwei rushing toward him through the haze, and for that instant, he mistakes her for Sang Nanxi.

When he comes to, he realizes it was Sang Zhiwei. A trace of relief rises in his heart, but after he regains his composure, he looks at her sleeping soundly beside him.

Overcome with guilt, Jiang Hemian wakes Sang Zhiwei and verbally abuses her. Seeing her tear-streaked face, he feels regret for the first time.

Six months later, Sang Zhiwei disappears!

At first, Jiang Hemian feels nothing. If Sang Zhiwei won't be a Jiang wife, there are plenty of noble ladies who will.

But when he sees that familiar, full-figured silhouette nowhere in the Jiang estate, he feels as though a piece of his heart is missing for the first time.

He thinks Sang Zhiwei must be unhappy with the way things are and is playing hard to get, trying to make him change his mind.

But three months pass, and there is still no sign of her.

Then he finds the journal she left behind. It records all the things she quietly did for Jiang Hemian, as well as the emperor's promise.

She had used the promise three years earlier, just to spare him imprisonment in the imperial prison.

At last, Jiang Hemian sees the sincerity of Sang Zhiwei's love. His hand trembles as he holds the journal, and he slowly walks into the darkness, sobbing uncontrollably.

He wishes he could kill the man he used to be!

Following the clues in her journal, Jiang Hemian soon finds Sang Zhiwei.

He stages a heroic rescue, hoping to make her willingly give herself to him.

But Sang Zhiwei shakes her head, looking delighted. "I can't! Zhuzhu is getting married again!"

When he learns that she's marrying his older brother, Jiang Hemian's face turns ashen. "He's no good! I won't let you marry him!"

Sang Zhiwei pushes him away and argues, "We're already divorced. We have nothing to do with each other! Even if he's not much, he's a thousand times, ten thousand times better than you in Zhuzhu's eyes!"

Jiang Hemian digs his fingertips into his palm. Ignoring Sang Zhiwei's struggles, he hides her away.

He would rather she hate him forever than have no place for him in her heart.

On the day of Sang Zhiwei's wedding to his older brother, Jiang Hemian dresses up to look like him and enters the bridal chamber.

"I'm him now, so Zhuzhu can marry me, right?"

Theme: Follow your heart