A Hole Dug on a Whim, Left Unfilled

Explosive preview: Ye Yushu met Su Chenglin when they were both ten. At twelve, she said she would marry Su Chenglin. But what a twelve-year-old says can't be taken seriously, can it? Except Su Chenglin remembered it all too well. Then, when Ye Yushu was thirteen, she met the sixteen-year-old Lu Yiran. Little girls all go through a chuunibyou phase, dreaming of gallant heroes. So Ye Yushu fell hopelessly for the sight of Lu Yiran training on the military grounds in his armor. She even forgot about Su Chenglin, who had been by her side all along and whom she had once promised to marry. At seventeen, Ye Yushu decided to marry Lu Yiran. Lu Yiran had already come to think of Ye Yushu as his future wife. And so Su Chenglin, her childhood friend, was left green with jealousy. His own “fiancee” even asked him to grant her marriage to another man once he became emperor. Su Chenglin: “I'm no pushover!” Hot-tempered, feisty older cousin x scheming, domineering younger cousin They're both ticking time bombs. Let's see who can outlast the other. Su Chenglin: “If only Lu Yiran had never appeared.” Ye Yushu's inner monologue: Shut your mouth, I don't want to hear it! Heroine: Ye Yushu. Hero: Su Chenglin. Childhood-friends preview: The senior palace maid beside Ye Zhiyu straightened Su Chenglin's hem and led him, fresh from his lessons, to the lotus pond where Ye Yushu had arranged to meet him. The pond was cool and pleasant in the height of summer. Watching Ye Yushu in the distance, hiking up her skirts and dancing barefoot in the pond, the senior maid said to Su Chenglin, “The young lady is so charming. Your Highness should cherish her.” Su Chenglin: “...Mm.” Theme: It's time to choose between the childhood friend and the newcomer.