BG
Ning Zhi, the youngest daughter of the Duke of Ning's household, excels in both the arts and martial pursuits.
Disguised as a man, she takes the civil examinations and wins first place, only to be exposed and thrown into prison by her childhood sweetheart. The world is unfair to women, and Ning Zhi refuses to accept it. She wants every woman in the land to live as she pleases!
She cannot forget the spirited smile of Young Master Xie in prison.
"Miss Ning, I'm here to take you home." He has bright eyes and pearly teeth.
When Ning Zhi is being courted by someone whose words and actions do not match, she rides in a jolting carriage to the Xie household to ask for marriage. If she is to marry, she will marry Young Master Xie, who has a pure and honest heart.
After the two marry, they witness the deaths and injuries of the battlefield, the desolation of the desert, and the fall of the capital.
When the imperial throne is set before Ning Zhi, she sits on it without hesitation. She reforms the laws, grants women more rights, and builds a lasting life with Xie Ruling.
These are all she asks for.
She cannot have one without the other: him and the throne.
Their marriage cards still hang in a temple outside the city. Only much later does she learn what Xie Ruling wrote.
On the wish charm, there was just one sentence: "I only wish my wife health and happiness, and that she may follow her heart."
*
Xie Ruling's name comes from Mount Ling. Its slopes are full of sheer cliffs, yet he climbed all over the mountain for the one he loved, without regret.
He had been in love with Miss Ning for a long time. He searched for thousand-year-old medicinal herbs for her, offended the emperor for her, and risked his life on the battlefield for her, but she already had a childhood sweetheart.
Everyone said she and the Ninth Prince were made for each other, leaving Xie Ruling no chance. All he could do was watch over her quietly.
He even kept a cat as aloof and noble as Miss Ning.
Then one day, Miss Ning traveled a thousand miles to the Xie household to ask for his hand in marriage.
"I came here to ask you to marry me." Her words startled him so much that he dropped the dried fish he was holding for the cat.
He stood there, unable to recover for a long time. Only when he heard Ning Zhi ask, "Young Master Xie, are you unwilling?" did he finally answer hesitantly, "It's not that I'm unwilling, it's just..." Before he could finish, Miss Ning accepted the marriage.
"I cannot have one without the other: you and the throne."
Reader's Guide:
* Both leads are devoted to each other and strong in their own ways. Inspired by the Tang Dynasty. He secretly loves her. Not a female-centric power fantasy. The dialogue contains no BL elements.
* The one-sentence summary comes from the Book of Songs.
--2025, 8.23
Theme: Cherish yourself, and dare to dream and act
