[Optimistic, easygoing princess of the former dynasty X gloomy, obsessive prince of the current dynasty]
In her previous life, not long after the dynasty changed hands, several former court officials came to Xu Qingwan's blacksmith shop and told her she was a princess of the former dynasty who had been lost outside the palace.
With people guiding and hurrying her along, she donned armor, went to war, and embarked on the road to restoring the dynasty.
She worked from dawn till dusk, exhausting herself with worry and effort. Her family was scattered and killed, but she succeeded in helping the so-called surviving prince of the former dynasty ascend the throne.
As it turned out, the heir was a foolish ruler. He rewarded her with a cup of poisoned wine and had her executed.
Before she died, she said, “This life was such a waste!”
When she opened her eyes again, she decided to forget being a princess. She wasn't doing it anymore!
Whoever wanted the job could have it.
Life was busy. Xu Qingwan picked up a fair-skinned young man and brought him home to help out.
Once he was back on his feet, perhaps he could even become her husband.
But as time went on, he started acting more and more strangely...
*
Xie Yongzhao was born beneath strange celestial signs.
His father, Prince Li, treated him like a sacrificial offering.
His childhood was like hell.
After Prince Li ascended the throne, everyone praised the new emperor as wise, generous, and benevolent.
He alone hated the new dynasty with all his heart.
That so-called generosity, that so-called benevolence...
They were just a beautiful new facade. Inside, everything was still rotten and filthy.
In his previous life, he found no release.
This time, while fleeing, he changed his route.
*
Xie Yongzhao knew he had returned carrying a deep-seated blood feud.
Yet a woman disrupted his plans. She was a blacksmith who swung a hammer by day, but at night she sewed him padded clothes.
She carried him up a mountain in search of medicine, going without sleep or rest for three days and nights.
When she drank, she talked nonsense. One moment she'd be laughing heartily, and the next she'd be sobbing, wiping her nose and tears all over his sleeve.
Countless times, he had thought about dragging her down into the abyss and sinking into hell together.
But from beginning to end, she stood in the light, pulling him along and refusing to let go.
She said to him, “Come up.”
*
Xu Qingwan always thought the boy she'd picked up was strange.
At first glance, he seemed obedient and hardworking.
But his eyes always held a gloom that wouldn't lift.
So she paid a little more attention to him, then a little more.
And then the boy couldn't bear to be apart from her...
*
The early part focuses on daily life among the common folk, and takes up most of the story. Later it shifts to court politics, with a little bit of warfare.
The male lead was disfigured in his previous life, so the female lead doesn't recognize him in this life, but he recognizes her.
Theme: Live the life you want.
