The Alluring, Aloof Cousin Has Turned Dark

Cui Mingxi lost her parents when she was young. Seeking refuge with relatives, she became Shen Guian's "cousin."

Shen Guian was the young head of the Shen family and a high-ranking court official.

He was as pure and elegant as jade, but also rigid and dull. Fortunately, he treated his family fairly well.

She could barely read, had coarse manners, and was treated with contempt throughout the residence. There were even rumors that she was a spy for the Changming Sect. Only Shen Guian was willing to take time out of his day to teach her.

But her handwriting remained appalling, while she had a natural talent for painting. She had secretly painted many portraits of Shen Guian, but unfortunately lost the most explicit one.

That day, Shen Guian summoned her to his study. The missing portrait was unmistakably spread open among the copybooks on his desk.

The person in the painting was completely naked.

Cui Mingxi: "..."

Shen Guian's gaze was cool. "Why did you do this?"

Cui Mingxi: "If you're that upset... you can paint me in return."

That day, Cui Mingxi hugged a Buddhist scripture and spent a full ten hours copying it as punishment.

*

The people in the residence gradually accepted the "cousin young lady," reasoning that if the Changming Sect wanted to plant a spy, it wouldn't choose someone like her.

Just then, the "cousin young lady" disappeared. A secret order vanished as well.

*

Cui Mingxi thought she would never see her adoptive cousin again.

Until the day the mountain gate was besieged by a large force, led by none other than Shen Guian.

She knew better than to stay when the odds were against her, so she ran. But she accidentally fell off a cliff and woke up confined in the familiar residence, now a prisoner.

Unable to escape, Cui Mingxi pretended to have lost her memory, hoping to get away with it. Fortunately, Shen Guian was a gentleman of noble character. Perhaps seeing her as innocent and pitiful, he had no intention of pursuing the matter for now.

After several months living under someone else's roof, she finally got her chance when her younger foster brother from the sect came to rescue her.

On the night before she left, she drugged Shen Guian's cup, hoping to get revenge for the punishment she had received years ago. But instead, he pulled her into his bedchamber...

At dawn, she braced her aching waist and prepared to slip away. A hand clamped tightly around her wrist, leaving no room to break free. Shen Guian stared at her. "Where are you going?"

...When had he woken up?

Theme: World peace