After I Was Widowed, My Late Husband Became Emperor

The story begins on October 26! Hope you’ll join us!

[Reunited after a breakup|Marriage first, love later, extra sweet|One-on-one|Both leads’ first loves|A ruthless hero who hides his darkness behind a gentle exterior]

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Years later, when Lin Qin looked back on the three short years of her marriage, she always regretted them.

She hated that she hadn’t treated Duan Zhisong better while she still had him.

Back then, she was a daughter of a powerful family born to a concubine. She believed her marriage had been arranged at her stepmother’s urging, and she was dissatisfied with a husband from a family in decline, especially one who was frail and ill.

So she was often cold to him. She never took charge of the household, and she was a careless, impatient wife.

Duan Zhisong died, but she found no happiness. Instead, she regretted everything.

The marquis who had repeatedly claimed to have admired her for years turned around and married someone else.

Her maternal family had backed the wrong side, and their powerful household fell overnight, wiping out generations of hard work.

As dynasties changed, the people were left in misery.

Lin Qin had fine calligraphy, but all she could do was sell paintings and calligraphy to scrape by.

Only then did she realize that those seemingly dull, uneventful days had actually been peaceful and content, all thanks to Duan Zhisong.

She had been living under his protection all along, yet had never cherished it.

Later, despondent and drunk, she returned to the house where they had spent those three years. Unable to resist the drink’s influence, she wept softly and said how much she missed him.

Unexpectedly, a man in splendid robes emerged from behind the ruins. He stared at her for a long moment, then asked only,

“He Bi, did you mean what you just said?”

He still called her by her childhood name, just as he had when he was alive.

With tear-blurred eyes, Lin Qin thought he was his ghost and nodded.

.

The next day, people gathered around Lin Qin’s calligraphy and painting stall.

The newcomers were imposing, dressed in military armor, with thick beards. One of them greeted her in a booming voice:

“Greetings, Your Majesty the Empress!”

Lin Qin: ...?

Her former husband, who should have been long dead, approached from the front in a dragon robe, stepped down from his carriage, and bent to kiss her fingertips.

It turned out his name had never been Duan Zhisong at all.

Lin Qin stared blankly as Wen Rongzhan, the new emperor whom everyone called ruthless and said had slaughtered countless cities, drew her into his arms. His once-elegant features had lost all their menace, leaving only tender affection.

“Didn’t you say you missed me?

Don’t be afraid. I’ve come to take you home.”

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1. The heroine’s name is Lin Qin, with Qin pronounced in the second tone. It evokes quietness and longevity, from the poem: “The kudzu grows long, spreading through the valley, its leaves lush and green.”

2. The heroine has a first love, who will have to suffer to win her back.

3. The hero loves only the heroine from beginning to end and won’t take other wives. He fell for her when he was still a nobody.

Blurb dated January 8, 2025. Plagiarism will be pursued.

(Still set in the Great Yong dynasty. This is a love story about the founding emperor and empress, the romantic history of Wen Qixuan and Si Yi’s ancestors. If you enjoy stories in the same series, don’t miss it!)

Theme: Cherish what you have