Chasing the Deer, Claiming the Throne

One bottom, three tops. Everyone gets a seat at the table. | Four-way romance | An emperor as the bottom

When Gao Zhuoheng was ten, one sentence, "He's the young master of Governor Gao's household," was all it took. At the city's gate, where people struggled to stay alive, packed so tightly together there was no room to breathe, the masses lifted him over their heads and carried him inch by inch beyond the city walls.

If some people build their defenses with hatred and sharpen their blades with blood feuds, winning supremacy over the land and reaching the very pinnacle of power, then Gao Zhuoheng's will and perseverance came from all those hands, strong and weak alike, that had supported his back that day.

Fuzhou has fallen, and his old friends are dead. No matter how difficult the road ahead, he must keep going.

"I want to return to Fuzhou and bury my old friends. I also want to build great halls where the people can find shelter from the cold and rain."

[Overprotective fake-bone older brother]

The sliver of family affection he once fought so hard to protect now drives Gao Chengyi to the verge of madness with resentment.

He's my younger brother, but why does he have to be my younger brother?

My younger brother belongs to me. Mother gave birth to him for me!

"Brother, it snows in Longzhou as soon as autumn comes. You used to hold me while I slept..."

[Manipulative, sickly childhood friend]

Xia Xin presses his finger into his freshly bandaged wound, reopening it and soaking the white cloth in blood, then smears the blood on his outer robe. Limping weakly, he makes his way outside and gazes at Gao Zhuoheng, who is about to leave, pleading with resentment in his eyes.

"My lord, please spend just one night with me. Can't I keep you for only one night? I won't compete with Brother Chengyi for you. Please, stay with me, all right? My wound hurts so much..."

[Gloomy, devoted eunuch]

Eunuchs aren't worthy of love. Their master is the true dragon atop the ninefold palace. But only by standing beside him and being of use to him does Wen Xunmo feel like a real person.

"Director, the young prince is looking for you."

He takes off his ring, trims his nails until they're smooth and clean, and answers, "I'll be right there."

He is consumed by resentment and hatred: hatred for his maimed body, hatred for his lowly, despicable life.

Warnings:

The bottom is very powerful, a well-rounded powerhouse.

The story is told through a shifting camera, following whichever characters have a story to tell. It does not stay fixed on the bottom.

This is not exclusively for readers who want a bottom-focused story. Only a small number of scenes between the tops and bottom are told from the tops' perspectives, with the tops doting on the bottom. This isn't exactly a story where everyone is obsessed with him. That tag is included because of the romantic relationships. Everyone follows the lord in building up the country and respects, admires, looks up to, and reveres him. They don't see his face and start fantasizing about him. No side characters other than the three tops covet or spy on the bottom.

The romance has separate routes and endings, including a bad ending and a happy ending with all three tops.

The plot is more than seventy percent political intrigue, nation-building, war, and court affairs.

The prose is straightforward, but the logic behind the political intrigue, politics, and warfare will all be explained clearly.

Gao Zhuoheng: Zhuo is pronounced like "zhuo," and means to wash clean.

Gao Chengyi: Yi is pronounced like "yi," and means to support and uphold.

[An imaginary setting. The clothing may be imagined as Ming-style. All place names are fictional. If anyone from Fuzhou finds this awkward, I bow in apology. The place and personal names were chosen and combined for their appearance and sound.]

Theme: Be steadfast and resilient, and dare to lead the way for the world