Crossing Back to the Journey's End

Noblewoman Wen Tang X treacherous, villainous official Lin Gui

Brave, scheming fox (the version who returns to the capital alone) X softhearted little rabbit (the corrupted version)

In the twenty-fifth year of Jinghong, the God of War guarding the northern frontier betrayed the country, shocking the entire realm. A Hanlin Academician refused to draft the edict condemning him and was treated as an accomplice, then executed.

That same year, Lin Gui, a Junior Minister of the Court of State Ceremonial, joined the Imperial City Office as its Commander. Once hailed throughout the Great Liang as a heaven-blessed prodigy, he became a royal lackey whose wicked deeds were cursed and spat upon by people from every walk of life. During the two years he served as a treacherous official, Lin Gui committed more crimes than could be recorded on bamboo slips.

An official like him would surely be torn apart and left exposed in the wilderness the day he lost power.

On her way back to the capital, Wen Tang met someone she thought might be able to help her. As long as he could be of use to her, she did not care who he was.

But Wen Tang never imagined that this person would be the notorious Lin Gui. Had she known, she probably would have gone straight back to the capital.

Later, she chose to work with Lin Gui to uncover the truth behind the treason case and clear her father's name.

The day her long-cherished wish was fulfilled, the court of Great Liang no longer needed a Commander with such a long list of misdeeds. The world no longer needed a sinner like him.

In the Ministry of Justice's prison, he asked Wen Tang, who had come to visit him, why she was still in the capital.

Wen Tang took off her cloak. In an instant, all he could see was the red covering her from head to toe. He saw the tender yet resolute look in the young woman's eyes.

Wen Tang wore a long red dress, her eyes shimmering with tears. "Let the sun and moon bear witness, Youzhi. From this day on, you and I are husband and wife."

After returning to An County, Wen Tang looked at Lin Gui in the kitchen and remembered his answer that day: even with only the slightest hope, he would do everything he could to return to her side.

Lin Gui had once seen a young woman in a void, carrying a world of light as she rushed toward him.

Across a boundless sea of people, she came only to save you.

Reading notes:

1. The setting is fictional.

My next novel will be I Draw Lots to Choose a Husband. The male lead is a descendant of a character from Return to the Crossing, but the two stories are not closely connected (important!).

Below is the blurb for a future novel. Please add it to your favorites (heart).

Concubine-born daughter Yan Qianxue, marrying for an alliance X down-on-his-luck young master Ning Shanglu

Once the most famous young master in Lin'an City, he saw his family brought to ruin in an instant. It was a heartbreaking sight.

The Yan family was on the verge of being promoted and moving to the capital, so they had to be cautious in word and deed. When Ning Shanglu came to break off their engagement, they naturally could not agree.

The Yan family had no shortage of daughters. Since none of them was willing to marry him, they decided to settle it by drawing lots.

On their wedding night, Yan Qianxue chose to become his wife in name and in truth. But the next day, she proposed that they divorce after a year.

Ning Shanglu was born into a prominent Lin'an family, but he could not enter government service. His family died in an accident on the way back to their hometown.

He knew why the Yan family had arranged the engagement in the first place and did not want to hold the young woman back in the future, so he went to break it off. But they refused.

On their wedding night, he gave Yan Qianxue the chance to choose. Yet the next day, he heard his new wife say she wanted a divorce.

A divorce? Impossible!

Much later, Yan Qianxue lingered by his side, thinking back to the days just after their wedding.

"Why do I feel like, even if I hadn't drawn the winning lot that day, you would have found a way to make that person be me?"

Ning Shanglu smiled at that and put an arm around the person beside him. "No. If you hadn't drawn the lot that day, it would have meant you didn't want to marry me."

He would never force her.

Reading notes:

1. The setting is fictional.

2. This novel is also called A Thousand Hairpins of Snow.

3. The male lead is a descendant of a character from Return to the Crossing. It can be considered a sequel, but the connection is not strong.

4. A simple, sweet story about falling in love after marriage.

5. Shanglu is a medicinal herb.

Theme: Love means choosing each other.