[Currently drafting, please add to your collection to help me launch this novel]
Emperor Zhongxing had five sons. His youngest, Li Zhuyun, was precocious from childhood, as beautiful as ice carved from jade, aloof and uninterested in competing. He was the apple of his father's eye.
But Li Zhuyun knew this favor was ultimately a castle in the air. The crown prince was jealous of him, and once he ascended the throne, Li Zhuyun and his family would be doomed.
So Li Zhuyun decided to fight for the throne.
.
Wei Jing, the son of the Liaodong commander-in-chief, commanded an army of a hundred thousand and wielded immense power. The emperor feared the Wei family, so he appointed Wei Jing head of the Embroidered Uniform Guard and kept him in the capital as a hostage. But this gave Li Zhuyun an opportunity.
On the night of the palace banquet, the young man drugged Wei Jing's drink and climbed into his bed.
Three months later, a secret report about Li Zhuyun's pregnancy reached the palace. The emperor flew into a rage and sent him south to Jiangnan to investigate tax evasion, to keep the matter quiet.
Ten months later, Li Zhuyun gave birth to a baby boy in a temple.
A year later, Wei Jing saw the beauty holding a swaddled infant.
"Whose child is that?"
Li Zhuyun's gaze was distant. "Mine."
.
Once Wei Jing learned that the child was his, he threw propriety to the winds and started loitering at Prince Qing's residence every day.
That night, Li Zhuyun couldn't kick him out of bed. Instead, the wolf caught him by the nape and gently scraped his canine teeth against his skin.
"You're so young, Qing Nu, and you've already given me a child. How should I repay you?"
A cold glint flashed in Li Zhuyun's eyes.
"Wei Jing, I want your military seal, your person, and the empire."
"And I want you to be my dog, at my command."
There's both political intrigue and romance. The story has a fairly complex plot and is of medium-to-long length. The protagonist is somewhat of a beloved figure, but only the love interest has a one-way crush on him. The love interest pampers the protagonist.
The pregnancy won't last long.
This time, I really did use the Ming dynasty as a reference (wipes away tears). But I'm not a fan of any particular dynasty. Let's approach history rationally.
Theme: Take control of your own destiny
