Announcement: The male lead is not a virgin, while the female lead is. Please proceed with caution.
Pei Liangyu's mourning period for her husband has just ended. To avoid the sordid business of a younger brother taking his elder brother's wife, she urgently needs to escape the Prince of Fenyang's manor.
The Crown Prince has just lost his second Crown Princess. Desperate to shake off his reputation as a wife-killer, he wants to marry another noblewoman of distinguished birth.
They run into each other in the Empress Dowager's palace. Memories surface of their childhood antics, pulling each other's hair and telling on one another, but the moment they speak, they both change what they were about to say.
I come from the noble Pei family, with the Li clan of the southwest as my maternal relatives and the Shen clan of Shandong as my maternal aunt's family. The Prince of Fenyang's manor thinks highly of me, and the Empress Dowager is my great-aunt. Most importantly, I'm hard to kill. What do you think?
I've already lost two wives, and I have a son and a daughter, but I'm the future Son of Heaven. I can spare you from having to bow and scrape all the time. I'm hard to kill, too. Does that scare you?
They exchange a smile. Once they live under the same roof, they can settle their scores at leisure. Getting through the immediate crisis comes first.
"Zhen'er is the one I hold dear. I married you, Pei, only to stabilize the court and my household," the young Crown Prince declared with absolute conviction. "No matter how beautiful you are, it won't make a difference!"
Pei Liangyu heard this while drowsing beneath a wisteria trellis, fanning herself with a round fan. "Your Highness is quite right. Since this is all for the stability of the court, tell your Zhen'er to play fewer leaf-card games over at my place. I adore that Persian cat presented from overseas yesterday. Why not give it to me?"
"Zhen'er, she..." The Crown Prince was captivated by the hand slowly waving the fan. He cleared his throat, snatched the fan and took it in his own hand, stroking it twice before speaking in a husky voice. "What can I do? Your family is so influential that even I have to give way to you."
Warnings:
1. A widow whose betrothed died before the wedding pairs with a widower. The male lead is not a virgin, while the female lead is. The male lead has a son, a daughter, and a household of women. Liu Zhen'er in the blurb is not the male lead's unattainable first love. His unrequited love for the heroine goes on and on and on. The heroine is neither a lovesick fool nor a saint, and she has someone she once loved.
P.S. A woman whose betrothed dies before they marry is called a "prospective widow." For certain reasons, the heroine still marries into the family, so she has been married before. Blended families aren't all the same. According to the explanations I found, a marriage between two previously married people counts as a blended family even if only one of them has children.
2. The ranks in this story are mainly based on the Tang dynasty, with some changes and creative liberties. The capital's layout is based on a map of Chang'an during the Tang dynasty, also with some creative liberties. The imperial palace is a mishmash of palace names from different dynasties, so please don't scrutinize the historical details. Thank you.
References for this story include Xi'an, the Ancient Capital, Biographies of Chinese Empresses and Consorts, Chinese History on Maps, Fragrance and Adornment, A Treatise on Flower Arrangements in Vases, Flowers and Seasonal Customs, Chronological Tables of Major Events in Chinese History, Treatise on Superfluous Things, The Craft of Gardens, and more... to be added. Special thanks to Baidu, 22 Niang, and 33 Niang. Thanks to Anxue Advertising Technology on Taobao for the cover. They made three versions, and they all look great.
Completed works by the author:
The Official Career of a Concubine's Son
The Xie Family's Golden Hall (The Legitimate Youngest Son)
Coming soon from the author:
The Second Son
Xie Xuanhe woke up one day to find himself transmigrated as the legitimate second son of a marquis. His parents were devoted to each other, and he wouldn't have to inherit the title, so he thought he could coast through life on the success of his father and elder brother.
But things rarely go as planned.
His father was powerful, sure, but his brother was a disaster! A spoiled wastrel with no talent and poor character, doted on by their grandmother and impossible to discipline.
After their efforts failed, his parents decided to raise a new child themselves, determined to produce a successor they'd be satisfied with. Xie Xuanhe became that new project.
How long would it take to grow from the legitimate second son of a marquis into a qualified heir?
Xie Xuanhe grabbed his elder brother as he was about to leave. As the legitimate eldest son, why don't you turn over a new leaf and make something of yourself first?
Theme: Even in adversity, don't go with the flow. Meet challenges head-on, stand on your own, and you'll earn respect and happiness.
