Timid maid × world-weary censor / honest man × pure-hate warrior
Li Baozhu's father is a half-baked wandering fortune-teller who makes a living telling people's fortunes and reading their feng shui.
Once, he was hired to exorcise an official. The official drank his talisman water and promptly died.
Li Baozhu and her father fled in separate directions.
She escaped to the capital, saw that the Han household was hiring maids, and applied without a second thought.
Only after entering the Han household did she understand why few people were willing to work there, despite the generous pay.
The Han family's second son, Han Boyu, holds the highest position in the court.
But it seems that something happened to him on the battlefield in the past. His temper is eccentric, and he's driven away quite a few maids and servants.
He's twenty-six and still unmarried. Rumor has it that he was injured on the battlefield and is incapable of sex, which is why he has never married and his personality changed so drastically.
After hearing the rumors, Li Baozhu couldn't help clicking her tongue in amazement. What a shame that such a handsome man was supposedly impotent.
Li Baozhu is doing well in the Han household. Just as she thinks her days will continue like this, Han Boyu goes mad again.
He has a huge argument with his father, then points at her without thinking. "I'll marry her!"
Everyone around Li Baozhu steps back in unison.
Li Baozhu is left behind, wide-eyed. "Huh? Me?"
On her wedding night, Li Baozhu is shocked. Isn't this guy supposed to be impotent?
Just when Li Baozhu thinks she can settle down as the wife of a censor and live out her days doing nothing, an imperial edict shatters her dream.
"The Han family is to be exiled to Lingnan."
But that won't defeat Li Baozhu.
"We'll just start over," she says.
Bonus scene:
In the second month of working at the Han household, Li Baozhu notices something strange.
A box of pastries appears in her room every few days.
She asks around, but nobody claims them.
Since you shouldn't accept things from unknown sources, she takes them to the kitchen unopened every time.
Then one day, Han Boyu personally blocks her path and wordlessly hands her a jade bracelet.
"Don't return them from now on."
Li Baozhu freezes.
Wait, were all those things from Han Boyu???
But then she thinks, why would he give her things?
The only explanation is that Han Boyu is testing whether she'll pocket the household's property.
Her spirits instantly lift, and she declares righteously:
"Don't worry, my lord! Though I come from humble origins, I would never steal a single needle or thread from the household! I didn't eat a single one of those pastries. I handed them all over to the household accounts!"
She thinks she's given the perfect answer, but when she looks up, Han Boyu's face is dark.
His thin lips press tightly together. After a long pause, he grits out:
"Li Baozhu."
"Yes?"
"I hate that you're such a blockhead."
Both leads have had no prior partners. The male lead has a secret crush on the heroine. A sweet romance between an honest man and a pure-hate warrior.
The first part focuses on court intrigue. In the middle, they head to Lingnan to clear land and farm.
Theme: Persevere and strive
