I Knew He Was a Fox in Disguise

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Resilient, sunny little-sunshine female official x aloof, scheming, foxlike powerful minister

Unaware she’s reeling him in, wooden-hearted girl x calculating, gorgeous fox

In the third year of Ningxi, the newly established dynasty introduced a system of female officials.

With a determination to restore the Cui family’s standing, Cui Chixing was fortunate enough to enter government service. At the time, the powerful court was firmly in the hands of her family’s sworn enemy, Zhao Mike.

He was arrogant and ruthless, so naturally Cui Chixing had no fondness for him.

But the power he wielded was simply too tempting. Hoping to use his influence to advance her career, she accepted his offer of cooperation.

At first, he lorded it over her and dismissed her plans out of hand. When she tried to root out corruption in the Ministry of Rites, he mocked her for being recklessly impulsive. When she showed compassion, he teased her for acting like everyone’s friend.

Later, he began interfering in everything she did, arranging her every move. He overhauled her plans, then led her step by step through her official duties. When she wanted to leave the capital to provide disaster relief, he vetoed and blocked her. Even every aspect of her daily routine and meals came under his influence.

Cui Chixing gritted her teeth and swallowed her anger, while her inner voice thundered: One day, she would take his position as chancellor!

To ensure her career went smoothly in the years ahead, she learned to flatter him with a sweet smile.

When he committed all manner of misdeeds, she went to the Buddha to beg forgiveness on his behalf. When he suffered through a life of hardship, she let him lean against her as he healed. When misfortune struck his family, she cried and cried, putting on a heartbroken show to soften his heart…

Until one day, he knelt before her and earnestly asked for her hand in marriage.

Events spiraled out of control. Faced with those bloodstained hands, Cui Chixing was terrified. She packed her belongings, requested permission to leave the capital, and vanished without a trace.

Two years later, on a rainy night, she had just ducked back into her tent and let out a sigh of relief.

The next instant, a blood-red marriage certificate was clamped over her mouth. Someone climbed onto her bed, and the space beneath the bed curtains suddenly felt close and feverishly hot.

“We were lovers once. Let’s talk this out…” She struggled with all her might, but a flickering shadow fell over her.

In the faint candlelight, the man’s striking features came into view. His thick, dark lashes brushed her damp forehead as he leaned down and whispered in her ear, word by word: “If we couldn’t share a bed in life, then we’ll share a grave in death. It’s not out of the question for me to drag you back and marry you in a ghost wedding.”

1v1, single-couple romance. Both leads are devoted in body and heart. Mutual healing. The heroine eventually becomes chancellor.

This is a purely historical romance, not fantasy. The cover is just because I thought the male lead had a foxlike personality, so I bought it.

Reader’s guide:

1. I’m bad at writing blurbs. This story is all about a slow, steady romance, bittersweet and sweet, simmering over low heat with the occasional stir-fry. The leads’ relationship is normal and harmonious, with a touch of slow burn. Later on, the male lead may go a little crazy due to insecurity.

2. The political intrigue is simple and has some gaps. It doesn’t take up much of the story, so don’t expect a professional political drama. There’s a bit of an ensemble cast, and the tone is light.

3. This is not a power fantasy about a strong female lead. The heroine makes mistakes and has moments of weakness, but she never loses the courage to change things. The couple is brave enough to keep living their lives.

4. An alternate-history mishmash of institutions and customs, with lots of authorial liberties. Everything serves the plot. Readers looking for strict historical accuracy should proceed with caution.

A change of pace: My upcoming novel, After the System Ties Our Red Strings Together, is below. Please add it to your collection!

Reluctantly clingy young lady who won’t take no for an answer x young general who uses the System’s help to force a marriage

Sweet, spirited Beagle girl x pure-hearted, tsundere oddball

After failing for the 108th time to win over the young master of the Bai family, Li Shuyu angrily went on a hunger strike. She fainted from starvation, and when she woke up, she found herself under the control of a strange creature called the System.

System: [Host, we’ve received orders from above. Your mission has been assigned: win over Pei Cheng, heir of the Pei family, within one year. Failure means your soul will be destroyed, with no chance of reincarnation.]

Who is Pei Cheng?

At seventeen, he broke through a thousand enemy troops on horseback and reclaimed all fifteen commanderies of the Northwest in a single campaign, earning a reputation as a young tiger general.

He had a face as handsome as a god, peerlessly beautiful, and countless noble young ladies were smitten with him.

Remembering his insufferably arrogant manner, Li Shuyu fainted again. Maybe it’d be better to just have my soul destroyed??

But to save her own life, Li Shuyu came up with a grand plan and decided to turn over a new leaf.

Step one: win him over at a poetry gathering. Instead, she accidentally presented him with a hairpin in a style meant for women, making him the butt of everyone’s jokes.

Li Shuyu buried her head in the blankets and sobbed: It’s over, it’s over, I’m dead!

System: [¯꒳¯ Congratulations, Host! You’ve gained 15% favorability!]

Li Shuyu: ?!

Step two: use the palace banquet to her advantage, then give him another bright red peony.

Li Shuyu watched the young man, whose face matched the flower’s color, and nodded with satisfaction.

System: [(˶ｰ`֊´ｰ) Host, your favorability has dropped to 10%…]

Li Shuyu: ?!

…

In the final month before the mission deadline, with death approaching, the last 0.1% remained stubbornly out of reach.

Li Shuyu wept in frustration. “It’s all your fault. If I hadn’t met you, I wouldn’t be dying. What will happen to my grandparents…?”

Pei Cheng smiled and bent down to say, “If you’ll call me that now, I can keep you from dying.”

Li Shuyu blinked, wrapped both arms around his, and pleaded in an unbearably clingy voice, “Brother Pei, please.”

The young man turned his face away, blushing like a peach blossom.

On the day she was supposed to die, the Pei residence was filled with wedding candles, and the red dragon-and-phoenix quilt twisted beneath them.

The girl, thoroughly ravished after a long night, panted, “This is the solution you came up with? If it doesn’t work, do you plan to become a widower after tonight?”

The man above her caught her wrists and smiled wickedly, kissing her damp cheek.

“The last 0.01%? Naturally, the one who issued your mission will help you make it up.”

One night a year later, the two of them had just finished a fight and tearfully made up.

The System’s voice rang out again: “Congratulations, Host. You have successfully completed the mission.”

Li Shuyu wailed in disbelief, “But I finished the mission ages ago!”

She turned and saw Pei Cheng let out a quiet breath. His expression relaxed, as if the weight on his heart had finally settled.

Wait… something wasn’t right! You had a mission too?!

Theme: Let me see your scars, and together we’ll face the road ahead with courage.