The Phoenix in Troubled Times

Important note: This is an alternate historical setting! I will research as much as I can, and make things up where research proves difficult!

Jinfeng: a proud phoenix. In Chinese mythology, the feng is male and the huang is female. Here, it refers specifically to the "feng" in "dragon and phoenix," meaning... yes, the woman destined to become the empress. Hmm... is that a spoiler?

A heads-up for those at the front! The first volume is pure angst! Those with fragile hearts can start with the second volume... Well, I don't know if that will affect your reading experience.

Romance blurb:

Can a childhood love last a lifetime?

She met her. She lost him. Then she met him again.

She stopped wishing for love. She stopped wishing for happiness. She stopped wishing for a perfect life.

But he said he would make all her wishes come true.

You poor fool... Who?

Serious blurb:

In these chaotic times, who will rise to rule?

Today's guest at the banquet may be tomorrow's dust beneath the earth.

In an age when even the heroes and warlords are powerless, what can one woman do?

He said he would bring peace to the land. She said, I'll help you.

She looked at him, and he looked at something else.

Brilliant and cunning as a demon, yet she couldn't withstand that one sentence from him:

"Yingwu, you're wrong."

"Yes, I was wrong. Wrong for half my life. Wrong for an entire lifetime."

Additional notes:

1. Although this is an alternate history, most of the historical details are inspired by the Qin and Han dynasties. For things that are difficult to research or aren't covered, I'll use my imagination. I'll explain all of this in the author's notes.

2. This story has both sweet and angsty moments, but its overall tone will, barring any surprises, be "a needle hidden in silk." The style serves the characters, and the heroine is a gentle person (?).

3. This is basically the heroine's autobiography, so please don't pay too much attention to the CP question... Ah, that's a flag... Ahem, on to the next point.

4. The author believes there is no absolute right or wrong, good or evil, in this world, so please don't label the characters in the story as "protagonists," "supporting characters," or "villains." Thank you for your cooperation.

5. To reiterate, this is an "alternate history," so the author gets to decide what this era is like. Thank you again for your cooperation.