She Never Wanted to Marry a Corrupt Official

A spoiled, uninhibited princess × a cold, untouchable mad-dog court official A second-chance romance after a troubled marriage | Childhood acquaintance | Size difference In the winter of Yongning Year 18, after the Guardian General died in battle, the emperor issued a decree to the general's residence, ordering the marriage of Chen Huaishuang, the general's legitimate daughter, to Lu Shangheng, the powerful chancellor. Chen Huaishuang had grown up in luxury, showered with affection. When she came of age, the emperor personally made her a princess. She was willful and uninhibited. Lu Shangheng, the current Left Chancellor, was a power broker, denounced by countless scholars and upright officials. It was said the two were at odds and had refused to see each other for years. So everyone in the capital waited to see them become an unhappy couple. As Chen Huaishuang left the palace after thanking the emperor for the decree, she happened to see Lu Shangheng on a snow-covered palace path. Five years had passed. He had lost his youthful spirit, and now wore a dignified purple official robe. His expression was cool and aloof, his eyes filled with the indifference of someone long accustomed to power. They exchanged no words. They passed each other in the snow, holding umbrellas. Chen Huaishuang suddenly remembered how she had waited for him all night in the snow five years ago, and how he had never come to see her. She thought he didn't care about her. They might as well be a respectful couple and find a chance to divorce. But Lu Shangheng brought her a lavish dowry. On their wedding day, he carried her into the bridal sedan, afraid the snow on the ground would dirty her hem. From then on, he loved and respected her every day, showing endless tenderness to her alone. On moonless nights, she would gently stroke his furrowed brow, unable to understand why he had once abandoned her, yet now clung to her so desperately. Later, as snow fell under a clear sky, he lifted her onto the desk and gently pressed his cheek against her neck. “I have loved Your Highness since I was young.” “Now that we are married, I ask only that we stay together, year after year, forever.” As a boy, Lu Shangheng lived in the Guardian General's residence and spent years by Chen Huaishuang's side. He planted pear trees for her, flew kites with her, and bought her favorite orange candies. He thought they could go on living happily like that forever. Until a winter night in Yongning Year 13. With his lapels soaked in tears, he burned every letter she had sent him, then silently left the general's residence. From then on, they had no contact. Five years later, he had become a high-ranking official with great power. At a banquet, he sat behind a curtain and overheard some noblemen talking about him and his wife. “I hear Princess Rong'an is spoiled. There's no way she'd get along with Lu Shangheng.” “A power-hungry man like Lu Shangheng is bound to end up alone. How could someone like him deserve a devoted marriage?” Lu Shangheng chuckled softly and turned the cup in his hand, picturing the way his wife had looked in his arms the night before. Half-asleep, she had reached out and wrapped her arms around his neck. “The court is full of unpredictable currents.” “Husband, hold my hand tight.” [Extra scene] It was cold today. On his way home from court, Lu Shangheng stopped to buy Huaishuang some date-paste pastries. When he got home, his wife was still curled up lethargically in bed. Huaishuang put her arms around his neck. “The pear blossoms outside are in bloom. I want to go see them.” He lifted his wife from the bed, draped a cloak over her, and carried her beneath the pear tree. Huaishuang lay quietly against his shoulder, pear blossoms falling into her hair. Lu Shangheng plucked a blossom from her hair. “I happened to hear a colleague say today that you and Lord Shen have been getting along very well lately...” Chen Huaishuang smiled and kissed his cheek. “Don't you know who I get along with?” 1. One-on-one romance, both leads are each other's first and only, happy ending. 2. Focus on the romance, with a little political intrigue. The female lead isn't perfect. 3. The leads have an eight-year age gap. The male lead is 28 and the female lead is 20 at the beginning. About the female lead being called “Your Highness”: this is a fictional setting with my own worldbuilding, and I don't plan to change it. If you can't accept it, please steer clear. Don't keep coming at me about it; it clearly says this is an alternate history. The female lead's status as a princess is also supported by the plot. Content warnings: The female lead can be a little cruel. The male lead is extremely unhinged and sometimes uses extreme methods to achieve his goals, though overall he cares about the country and its people. Readers with high moral standards for the leads may want to steer clear. Setting: A fictional world loosely inspired by the Ming dynasty. Official robes use Tang-style colors, with no restricted colors. The government structure combines elements from the early and late Ming dynasties. There is a Secretariat, an Eastern and Western Depot, and the Embroidered Uniform Guard. I've also made up a few things, so please don't nitpick the historical details! This version of the blurb was posted on May 8, 2026. My next book will tell Pei Ji's story, Snow Soaks His Brocade Robes. Here's the blurb. If you're interested, please add it to your library~ A cool, unfeeling physician × a tough, tender-hearted Embroidered Uniform Guard Picking up a man | Older male lead | He has a secret crush | Mutual healing | Size difference Xia Yunfei, daughter of Qinghe City's lord in the northern frontier, was renowned as a miracle doctor. Her medical skills had saved countless lives, but she was cold, indifferent, and difficult to get along with. The borderlands were in turmoil. While gathering herbs outside the city, Xia Yunfei found a bloodied man in the snow, dressed in prisoner's garb. He looked like nothing but trouble, but a jade pendant had fallen from his clothes. It belonged to her younger brother, who had died unjustly in the capital. She brought him back to the city, only to discover that he had been struck by a strange poison. When the Seven Sorrows Poison flared up, he gradually lost his senses, and no medicine could cure him. She couldn't break the poison's hold, and could only keep him alive for the time being. At first, the man seemed very obedient. Though he looked burly, he swept and cooked every day, and washed and folded the laundry. “Miss Xia saved my life. I'm just an ordinary man, so this is the only way I can repay you.” As time went by, Xia Yunfei really did come to think of him as an ordinary man. That is, until the flames of war reached Qinghe. With white cloth over his eyes, he struck with ruthless precision, every blow deadly. Covered in blood, he carefully lifted her by the waist and set her atop the city wall, afraid the bodies covering the ground might soil her clothes. Later, he returned to the capital in a splendid flying-fish robe, a Xiuchun saber at his waist. No one knew that after returning home, the decisive and ruthless Embroidered Uniform Guard would bury his face in a physician's neck, inhaling the scent of medicinal herbs clinging to her. “Miss Xia, have pity on me...” In the winter of Yongning Year 18, Pei Ji killed the ninth son of Prince Shun at the funeral hall of his dear friend Xia Chengyun. The emperor was furious, but considering Pei Ji's father's great military service, he sentenced Pei Ji to exile in Qinghe, never to return to the capital. Dressed in mourning clothes and shackled, he climbed into the prison cart, only to be ambushed in a blizzard outside Qinghe City. The assassins' blades were coated in a strange poison. Fortunately, the horse leading the way was intelligent enough to carry him all the way to the city gates. A woman saved him. When he heard her familiar voice, his heart skipped a beat. During the long years of the past, whenever nightmares tormented him because of his hatred, he would think of her. That day, he lay on a banyan tree, looking down through drunken eyes, when he saw a woman in a moon-white dress enter the courtyard. Her face was cool and lovely, a floral decoration on her brow. In the faint light, she looked like a goddess descending to earth. One glance was all it took. He could never forget her. His flying-fish robe was already in tatters, and his Xiuchun saber had rusted. He wanted to ask: Where was justice in this world? The Embroidered Uniform Guard was nothing but the imperial court's attack dog. 1. One-on-one romance; both leads are each other's first and only. 2. Not a wish-fulfillment story. They support each other, with a little political intrigue and a happy ending. 3. A cool, cold-hearted physician × a tough, tender-hearted, loyal Embroidered Uniform Guard. 4. A fictional world loosely inspired by the Ming dynasty. 5. Mutual healing. The female lead isn't perfect. She has a healer's compassion, but she isn't a saint. Theme: Be self-reliant and strong.