The Crown Prince’s Escaped Concubine

Nan Kang County Lady Xie Yunchu had adored Crown Prince Li Chiheng since childhood. But when she was nearly struck by a stray arrow at the hunting grounds and Li Chiheng watched without lifting a finger, Xie Yunchu finally saw things clearly and resolved to walk away.

Fate had other plans. Xie Yunchu was drugged with a strange medicine that left her flushed and feverish, her heart racing. Li Chiheng tricked her, claiming she had to sleep with someone to be cured, or else she would become a wanton woman. Terrified, she spent the night with him.

Li Chiheng promised to give her a proper title. A wish she had carried for years was finally coming true, and Xie Yunchu waited for her wedding to the Crown Prince with a heart full of joy.

Then, one day, after their lovemaking, with the bed curtains warm and fragrant, a bowl of contraceptive soup was brought before her. Heartbroken, she overheard Li Chiheng chatting casually with his trusted aide through the window: "She is flighty, not steady enough, and can't keep her mouth shut. The position of Chenghui is already more than she deserves."

A County Lady of the second rank, made a Chenghui of the sixth rank? Was that the title he had promised her? What an insult!

In an instant, all desire was gone.

**

Spring was drawing to a close, the wind warm, the gentle rain unending.

The weather was poor, and business at the Old Youzhou Hot Pot Shop was slow. Xie Yunchu was enjoying a rare half-day of leisure.

Resting her chin in her hand behind the counter, she chewed on her pen as she wrote one of Youzhou's best-selling bawdy stories. As she got caught up in it, her face lit up and she muttered, "You there, little thief! What have you stuffed in your robes? Let me have a closer look!"

A fan with plain ivory ribs suddenly lifted the door curtain.

A customer had arrived.

She raised her eyes and called out without thinking, "Hot pot, barbecue, and big-plate chicken. What can I get you..."

The last word caught in her throat.

The man stood in the dim light, with handsome brows and elegant eyes, his bearing as refined as jade. His smiling eyes were deep as a cold pool.

Xie Yunchu's legs went weak, and she sank to the floor.

The man walked over slowly, bent down, and reached out. His voice rang like cold springs striking stone.

"Young master, be careful."

Xie Yunchu suddenly came to her senses.

That's right! What was she afraid of? She was a "man" now!

1. Both leads are sexually inexperienced, happy ending.

2. The heroine is a native-born woman, while the supporting heroine is a transmigrator. Both are equally capable, help each other, and reject competition between women.

3. Clear-headed, resilient, studious noblewoman x affection-starved, suspicious, obsessive crown prince.

4. A push and pull of sweetness and heartache.

5. The heroine suffers early on. Do not read if that's not for you.

A preview of my upcoming novel, Please Let Go, Your Highness the Crown Prince. Blurb:

On the Lantern Festival, the curfew was lifted.

Fireworks blossomed like silver flowers, and she saw his jade-like face, radiant and brilliant. Drunk on the spring breeze, she gave the Crown Prince all the ardor in her heart.

Three years of youth in bloom earned her only a fall into Taiye Pool on New Year's Eve. He stood on the bank, watching coldly. The water chilled her to the bone, and her heart turned cold as well.

Jiang Fan'er finally understood: no matter how full the moon over the Eastern Palace grew, it was never hers to reach for. So she left for Lin'an.

Li Jingyan could not understand.

Born a crown prince, he was treated like a chess piece by the Empress and feared like a tiger by the Emperor. How much true affection was there in this world? He did not dare to trust it or accept it. What was wrong with cautiously testing her, step by step?

If she wanted to leave, let her. She was nothing to mourn.

Two years later, his cavalry smashed through the enemy camp, and he returned after claiming victory.

Amid the people's praises, he saw her kneeling for hours before the spirit tablet of the young general who had given his life for his country, weeping in anguish. Her slender waist was delicate as a willow in the wind, a sight to move anyone to pity.

Li Jingyan's gaze darkened.

In just two years, had she forgotten whose woman she was?

Then he would help her remember, one thing at a time.

The moon had hidden, and the stars had faded. The tomb chamber was cold and dark.

Jiang Fan'er was pinned atop a skeleton, the stench of decay filling her nose, the distance between them barely a handspan. The heat of him burned against her back. A sticky wetness trickled down her thigh and soaked the coffin.

His face twisted with rage, as if he had come from the deepest depths of the underworld. He ground out each word through clenched teeth.

"Don't you like him?"

"Answer me!"

"Choose him, or choose me!"

1. The male lead is sexually inexperienced. The female lead is not.

2. The male lead suffered because of his family of origin and is psychologically damaged. Feel free to discriminate against him; he will not be redeemed.

Theme: Reject feudal ideas and embrace a brighter future.