It's Not Like We Have to Have This Child

Xu Xiayu was sick from birth, a renowned frail beauty. Marriage was ill-advised, and so was having children. She had already resigned herself to spending her life as an unmarried woman in her parents' home.

Who could have guessed the old emperor would suddenly play matchmaker and betroth her to Prince Yan, who commanded the imperial armies?

The night before her wedding, Xu Xiayu had a dream and discovered that she was the proud, sickly legitimate elder sister in a storybook. To secure her position after marriage, she invited her younger half-sister to live in her household, intending to use her as a surrogate and raise the child she bore as her own legitimate heir. In the end, her half-sister and husband developed feelings for each other, driving Xu Xiayu into madness. She died a tragic death, with no happy ending.

When she woke, Xu Xiayu fell into deep thought and decided that having a child was not something she absolutely had to do.

**

Prince Yan, Ji Liao, was born to a servant who washed feet. Though he was a prince, he grew up in poverty and was treated with contempt. When he returned from the borderlands with five hundred thousand troops under his command, he became the prince with the best chance of claiming the throne. Even the crown prince had to give way to him.

To curb his power, the old emperor deliberately arranged a marriage for him, choosing a woman rumored to be unable to bear children.

Ji Liao was about to refuse, but when he saw who he was to marry, he realized the match might not be so bad after all. If they had no children, they could adopt a few. He had so many brothers, after all. They could keep a few around just to sire children. How many could he possibly want?

After the wedding, Ji Liao began assessing his more than twenty brothers to see which ones were suitable for fathering children. Those who weren't were sent to join the late emperor.

The princes: (▼皿▼#) Don't you dare go too far!

PS: The male lead is decisive and ruthless, and a rough sort of man. He falls in love with the beautiful, frail female lead at first sight, sees her as a celestial maiden, and believes she should remain as pure and untainted as one. How could she be expected to bear children like an ordinary woman?

Theme: The future isn't set in stone. Dare to make a change!