The Crow Eunuch

As everyone knows, most male birds, including crows, don't have external genitalia.

So when a male crow who had cultivated for many years took human form and entered the world, he filled a eunuch's vacancy.

From the daughter of a noble princess to a counterfeit who had been switched at birth, Zhao Wanqing lost her family overnight. The emperor pitied his childhood friend and made her a nominal consort, ensuring she would have food and clothing. But the original Zhao Wanqing had taken her own life with a strip of white silk.

When she opened her eyes again, a modern woman named Zhao Wanqing had taken over her body. Worried she might try to kill herself again, the emperor ordered someone to watch her every move without leaving her side.

When Zhao Wanqing ate, Eunuch Zhang watched.

When Zhao Wanqing slept, Eunuch Zhang stood guard.

When Zhao Wanqing bathed... Eunuch Zhang said, "I can't disobey the imperial decree."

Gradually, Zhao Wanqing began to feel something was off about Eunuch Zhang, who was supposed to be "keeping an eye" on her. After all, there were fake eunuchs in novels, so she...

Peeped at him while he bathed.

He really didn't have that thing. ()

But when spring arrived, Eunuch Zhang suddenly decided to sing at the top of his voice in a cracked, grating tone, kept presenting her with shiny little trinkets, and became almost obsessively devoted to combing her hair and making her bed.

This made Zhao Wanqing, who had only just relaxed, think of birds: offering gifts, building nests, preening... Weren't these typical courtship behaviors in male birds?

So this damn eunuch actually dares to pursue me?! As expected, men never behave themselves unless they're hanging on the wall, even if they've been castrated!

When the consort discovers the crow's true form:

Eunuch Zhang: You saw it? Only the dead keep their mouths shut. You understand, right?

Consort: ...Well, actually, I really am technically dead. ()

Fun fact: Crows have complex courtship behaviors, but mating lasts only a few seconds and occurs through cloacal contact. So although the hero is a fake eunuch, he's not much different from a real one, maybe even less capable (). And humans and crows are reproductively incompatible, so of course they can't have children.

All in all, it's a story about a fake eunuch who really isn't one. A silly, easy read.

Tagline: Opposites attract