Sincere general × proud princess, both untouched!
Chu Jingyu once believed that childhood sweethearts who fell in love young would stay together for life.
The young general Lin Weixu, handsome in his fine clothes and mounted on his spirited horse, was the softest dream in her heart.
That year, beneath the snowy mountains, Lin Weixu planted a hundred acres of plum blossoms for her.
He said, "Jingyu, once I have won great military honors, I'll ask His Majesty for your hand in marriage."
She smiled like a flower, believing her whole life had been decided.
He taught her to draw a bow. He told her that wherever her arrow flew was where his heart would follow. She thought that arrowhead would one day point toward their wedding candles.
Then the flames of war between the two nations reached the border, and an imperial decree ordering a marriage alliance shattered all her dreams.
The enemy nation's Prince Huanwu, Yan Xuanrong, notorious for his ruthless methods, singled her out during peace negotiations.
She went from the most honored princess of Chu to the most dazzling entry on Yan Xuanrong's list of spoils.
On their wedding night, she resisted and knocked off her phoenix crown, but he simply smiled and picked it up.
"I have a whole lifetime to get to know you, slowly."
Her heart was dead, but she did not know that this man had already carved her into his flesh and bones.
She was the involuntary tenderness hidden in all his careful schemes, the soft blank space in the midst of his ruthless decisions.
He imprisoned her in a gilded cage, while she kept the man she loved in her heart. They tormented each other.
He knew nothing of romance and could only approach her in the clumsiest way: letting her wield power and keeping her safe.
From suspicion and distance to fighting side by side, ruling the empire together, and entrusting their lives to each other, he gave her the most intense love, while planting the deepest pain.
What happens when the ache of a childhood love meets the blazing heat of a love born of conquest?
When the interests of their nations stir up trouble once more, how will she choose between her former lover and her husband now?
She returns, and the mountains and rivers remain, but everything has changed.
This time, she will no longer be a pawn to be chosen. She will be the one moving the pieces.
[Content warnings]
1. The leads remain devoted to each other throughout their lives. The heroine is the primary wife in her first marriage, and the couple have children later on. There are concubine and consort-selection plots, all arranged by imperial decree, not by the male lead's choice. He does not cheat, and is faithful in both body and heart. He has no relations with any concubines!
2. This is a serious, realistic story. The complete ending has the male lead die, while the heroine carries on with strength. If you skip the final twenty chapters, you can consider it a story where the leads live happily together.
3. The nations, place names, and ethnic groups in this story are fictional. Official titles are borrowed from the Tang dynasty, so please don't nitpick the details.
4. The characters' actions and thoughts reflect the limitations of their era and do not represent the author's views. This story is entirely fictional. Any similarities are coincidental.
Core theme: The world does not always go as we wish, but we should still live passionately.
My Mentor Became My Lover
After the Cold Marquis's Heir Took Me by Force
Secrets of the Imperial Prison
Late Fragrance Beneath the Brocade Canopy (Reborn Twice)
Crossing the Xiaoxiang River
Ashes at Dawn and Dusk
The Top Merchant of Pingliang
Marry the Elder Sister
21+
The Retired Recluse
Above the Eternal Night
21+
The Powerful Minister's Soon-to-Die Mute Wife
Prisoner in the South, Wild Geese in the North
Where the Waters Flow
The Madam Is Ridiculously Powerful
Guanyin's Disciple
Court Scheming? It’s a Blackening-and-Regret Bonfire!
Snacks on Vermilion Bird Street
The Mad Heir Wants to Join Forces with Me
Late-Blooming Magnolia
The Song of the Pipa
They love and hate each other, inseparable.
Dear readers: This novel contains 222 chapters. The draft is automatically updated daily at 00:10. Comments are now available. Thank you sincerely to every friend who has supported me!
Xuan Rong: Awoo awoo awoo! Jing Yu: Zero, zero, zero (Affection level) If one person walks too fast and the other walks too slow, problems will arise.
Reading this, I've imagined another possible plot: if the Yan Emperor learned of Dai Dai's pregnancy at this point, the resulting chain reaction would have brought the entire story to a standstill, with no one surviving. 💔
"Women and petty men are the most difficult to deal with; if you get too close to them, they become disrespectful; if you keep them at a distance, they resent you." (From the Analects)
I strive to live, to journey through the years, and to meet you.
The two met in the summer and married in the winter, their real and virtual ages intertwined. Jingyu was 19-20 years old, and Xuanrong was 22-23 years old—both were at their prime.
Every word he uttered was a curse on his sister, every phrase a complaint against her. [Clown]
The squares in this chapter are all routi
Wishing our motherland prosperity and strength, and everyone a joyous National Day.