The Caged Oriole

Lu Jie is the youngest Duke of the State since its founding, the emperor's most trusted right-hand man, and a celebrated guest whom all the prestigious scholarly families vie to court. He is handsome and refined, dignified and self-possessed, and has never taken a concubine into his household. One day, he attended a banquet at a subordinate's home. After a few too many drinks, he went to the rear courtyard to sober up and accidentally came upon her bidding farewell to her husband beneath the covered walkway. As dusk settled, she stood in the evening breeze. The wind lifted one corner of her pale blue skirt, revealing a slender, fair ankle. Her husband lowered his head to smooth her hair. She tilted her face up slightly, a smile at the corner of her lips, tenderness in every line of her eyes and brows. He watched for a long time from beyond the hanging-flower gate. So long that even his attendant noticed something was amiss and called softly, "My lord?" He turned his gaze away and said coolly, "It's nothing." But that night, he tossed and turned, unable to sleep. For the first time, he felt such a powerful desire for something. He wanted her. ~~ Bai Ying is a fisherman's daughter, blessed with breathtaking beauty. The powerful Duke of Zhenguo took one look at her and chose her for his household, making an exception by allowing her to bear his eldest son, and an even more extraordinary one by keeping her in the main residence. Everyone in the capital says she must have accumulated eight lifetimes' worth of good fortune to enjoy such blessings. Only Bai Ying knows that the man she loves is her childhood sweetheart, the husband with whom she shares a harmonious marriage. She is always looking for a chance to escape. P.S. A suffocating tale of possessive love and abduction. The male lead is not a good person. Theme: Never give up hope