Your Beloved's Bones

[This one will update slowly. I'll finish the one next door first.]

Jiang Zhi thought the name "Ying Lianqing" had been buried in the fire that wiped out the Ying family three years ago.

She carried the injustice done to her entire family on her shoulders. The road ahead was destined to be treacherous, leaving no room for a single misstep.

So when she met her former fiance's younger brother, the boy who had followed her for four years, she pretended they were strangers.

People's hearts change easily, especially when he now held a high position, was cold and ruthless, and had the power of life and death in his hands.

The faint affection they shared as children had probably long since blown away on the wind.

How could she dare to take that gamble?

So even when he took several knife wounds saving her, covered in blood and collapsing to the ground, she didn't look back at him once.

When Cui An was nine, someone threw him into the water like a dog.

He was injured all over and could no longer struggle. Just before he sank into darkness, a hand pulled him out.

For the next five years, he gazed up at the bright moon, never daring to let anyone know.

Everyone thought Ying Lianqing and Cui Ji were made for each other. Everyone except Cui An.

The night before Ying Lianqing's coming-of-age ceremony, Cui An sneaked into her courtyard. Before everything was set in stone, he hoped he could make her change her mind.

Her answer was a pair of gentle, smiling eyes: "I'm going to marry him."

Later, the bright moon fell, sullied by dust. Watching the flames roar before him, he rushed in without a second thought, only to find a broken jade pendant.

So he shed his humanity and abandoned his dignity, climbing with all his might until he became a demon feared by the world.

He was already mired in filth, fallen into an abyss without end.

But that day, the crowd bustled and the surroundings were unbearably noisy. A woman's soft voice instantly soothed all the restlessness.

She stood there, gentle and serene, as clear and cool as ever, just like in years gone by.

Cui An suddenly felt that being a ghost wasn't so bad.

[Short scene]

Behind the green curtains, their breaths mingled. The man's burning breath was close enough to feel. Her fingertips trembled as she turned her head away.

In an instant, a cold flash streaked past, and blood dripped to the floor. The man dropped the dagger and fell from the bed. The flesh of his rough palm was mangled.

He knelt before the bed, leaning forward to brush the strands of hair clinging to her brow, but his eyes reddened first.

You can marry him,

but don't leave me behind.

I am already stained with dust and mired in mud. How could I dare entertain such delusions and sully the bright moon?

I ask only to be the soldier at your side, the blade in your hand, clearing the road ahead and restoring your good name.

A few things to know:

1. Clear-headed, clever heroine x brooding, loyal-dog hero. He is one year younger than her. Both are each other's first, and it has a happy ending.

2. The hero will suffer later in the story. Readers who are fans of the hero, be warned.

3. The setting is fictional, with invented customs and systems, and some elements inspired by the Ming dynasty. Please don't scrutinize the details.

Theme: Having seen the vastness of the world, one can still cherish the green of grass and trees.