The Flaw in the Jade Bones

Princess An Yang, Li Miaoyi, was born into wealth and privilege. Spoiled and willful, she threw her weight around throughout the imperial palace, and no one dared oppose her.

The great families of the capital vied to curry favor with her. Only Zheng Huaixu, the second son of the Duke's estate, dared to sweep the pearl ornament from her hair with his sword tassel in public, scold her for her arrogance and shamelessness, and predict that she would come to a bad end sooner or later.

Who could have known his words would prove prophetic? On the day of the imperial hunt, the princess fell from a cliff and died, her life cut short.

When she opened her eyes again, she had become Cui Lingyan, Shengjing's foremost beauty and the eldest daughter-in-law of the Duke's estate. Three days earlier, the army had returned in triumph. In the depths of spring, she had already consummated her marriage with Zheng Huaizhou, the eldest son of the Zheng family.

And Zheng Huaixu, the man who had once clashed with her at every turn, now had to call her "sister-in-law."

She was still reeling when he came striding in. His jade pendant chimed softly, just as it had when he coldly told her, "You'll come to a bad end sooner or later."

Now that bad end had made her his brother's wife.

*

After his elder brother died in battle, he kept a proper distance from her, never daring to cross the line. But those boundaries were like paper lanterns, unable to withstand even the slightest breeze.

The loose strands of hair falling over her face as she bent to write, the furrow in her brow as she stood beneath the eaves listening to the rain, the slight tremble of her lashes when she called him "Second Brother": every little thing brought a fine ache to his heart.

He began to despise himself.

Yet each time their eyes met, he couldn't help wondering: had his brother and she once been just as intimate?

[Reading Guide]:

1. Soul transmigration and rebirth; the heroine is not a virgin, the hero is; happy ending.

2. The elder brother's death in battle is a lie, but his love for the heroine is real. When he returns later on, there will be a love triangle involving all three.

Theme: Jade bones become sharp after enduring frost