A Poor Pair of Honest Folk

Main story complete Li Su was just an honest, ordinary man. He'd been bullied and falsely accused since childhood, yet his parents and siblings called him heartless, unfilial, rebellious, and impossible to tame. They'd rather never have given birth to him. They wouldn't feed him or let him study. So Li Su dutifully obeyed. He cut ties with his family and cast aside their affection. He kicked his little brother, threatened his parents, then turned around and made a great general his adoptive father. From then on, he had food and clothes aplenty and studied alongside princes and nobles. But his classmates still looked down on him and bullied him every day. They spread rumors that he was a thief, passed off his assignments as their own, and wouldn't even let the person he liked speak to him. They also sternly warned him not to tell anyone. Li Su was honest and didn't make a sound, let alone protest his innocence. He simply joined forces with his equally proper and well-behaved beloved and stabbed the bully to death. That should make sure no one tells anyone now. Later, Li Su worked tirelessly for the court, led troops into battle, and reclaimed lost territory. He also hoped to marry Xie Xiangxu, his beloved, who was as true to his principles as he was, and even kinder. But the princes said his beloved was scheming and manipulative. The rumors in Andu called him a seductive fox, unfit to be a good match. Even Xie Xiangxu himself came to him in tears, saying he was a cruel and heartless man. Li Su didn't understand or agree. He could only hold Xie Xiangxu close, full of sympathy. His beloved must have suffered countless injustices, just like him: good people who got bullied. It was all because they were too honest. He'd already taken everyone else into consideration and done everything they told him to do, yet the people at court still thought he was an ambitious wolf plotting rebellion. Even the emperor wanted to force him apart from his poor, pitiful wife. They told Li Su that the emperor's word was heaven's will and must be obeyed, no matter what. Sigh. Li Su had always been the most honest and obedient. He could only do as he was told once more. He endured, bided his time, and laid his plans step by step, until at last he led his army into Andu Now he was heaven's will. A ruthless, power-climbing emperor of a top × a delicate, ailing beauty of a bottom Reader's guide: There is no pregnancy or childbirth in this story. No children, and the main couple aren't both tops. This is a story of growth and love. The leads save each other, and are emotionally and physically faithful. They'll love each other even in death. The characters are complex, and the author's character tags only show a very limited side of them. The first volume is frustrating, not pure wish fulfillment. Plot and romance are split fifty-fifty, with both angst and sweetness, so please check the content warnings. The anti-piracy protection is set to 70%, so feel free to skip ahead. Volume one: eight parts sweet, two parts sour. Volume two: four parts sour, six parts sweet. Volume three: seven parts sour, three parts sweet. Volume four: five parts sour, five parts sweet. Volume five: nine parts sweet, one part sour. Volume six: eight parts sweet, two parts sour. Volume seven: four parts sour, six parts sweet. The author heavily revised volumes three and four, so some comments may no longer line up. If you're not enjoying it, please don't force yourself to keep reading. Three heartfelt requests: Don't insult the main characters. Don't insult the main characters. Don't insult the main characters! The author will delete those comments. Don't share pirated copies. The author will pursue legal action and sue to the bitter end, whatever the cost. The setting is a fictional ancient society in a time of turmoil. Don't imitate the characters' actions in real life. Angels post fan art on Weibo, and the author takes commissions too. Please follow! Character art: Li Su and Xie Xiangxu: Today I Want to Drive a Tractor (shared with permission from a lovely reader) Qiuqiuren: Jiang Jiucha (commissioned) Little Animals: Names Are Hard (commissioned) Black-Hearted Fox Xie: Today I Want to Drive a Tractor (shared with permission from a lovely reader) A modern-day story with the same leads: The Poor Darling's Bodyguard Next novel: The General Says He Loves Me and Is Devoted to Me. I Believe Him. A Straight Man's Tear, Enough to Break His Majesty's Heart (sweet romance, the emperor is in denial) Lou Kaiyun was utterly loyal, but he commanded a powerful army and had a string of brilliant military victories. So the emperor didn't trust him, and the entire court thought he'd rebel sooner or later. When Lou Kaiyun was summoned back to the capital, he willingly handed over his military authority and showed the emperor concern again and again. At the suggestion of his advisers, he pored over ancient texts, scratching his head as he tried to write a memorial to personally assure the emperor of his loyalty. Since he couldn't make sense of the literary officials' flowery language, Lou Kaiyun simply copied whatever lines seemed heartfelt to him. In the end, he pieced together the best bits from the classics, scribbled and revised it, and submitted his work. The next day at court, he noticed the emperor looking at him strangely. It seemed His Majesty was finally reassured by his declaration. Lou Kaiyun dodged the emperor's gaze, hurriedly lowered his head, and fought to keep the corners of his mouth from turning up. All that late-night reading and revising had paid off! Yes, he was just that cautious and proper a subject. The general commands an army and has won too many military honors. I should never have let him live. But he actually wrote me a love letter. His language was affected, but his feelings were deep. He said he was utterly smitten with me and would never change, and vowed never to marry, but to devote his whole life to me. …Ridiculous. I don't believe him! So I watched the general. When he saw me, he was so happy he could barely stop himself from smiling, yet he never once looked up at me. He must be embarrassed. Sometimes I paid him a surprise visit. He'd laugh and joke around with other people, but the moment I arrived, he immediately became proper and restrained, fumbling about in a panic. He must have lost his composure at the sight of the person he loves. Another time, still unable to make sense of it all, I pretended to fall ill in the middle of the night and summoned him to the palace to care for me. He rushed over, travel-worn and grave, looking unexpectedly handsome as he fussed over every detail of my health. Sigh. He must have been terribly worried that I wasn't taking care of myself. He also treated me with great reverence. When I asked him to stay the night, he looked astonished and backed away again and again, stammering that he wouldn't dare. Naturally. I only said that because I felt guilty. I didn't really want him to stay. But the general said he was smitten with me and would never change. I believed him. Certain the emperor's suspicions had finally faded and that relations between ruler and subject were harmonious, Lou Kaiyun went about his days at ease, looking diligent in public and painting beauties in private. Then the emperor summoned him to the palace once more A slender, pale hand tentatively settled in his palm, then calmly rubbed against the callused hand hardened by years of wielding a blade. The emperor's expression stayed composed. “Although I don't love you, I can grant your affection. How about becoming empress?” Lou Kaiyun: … The emperor smiled faintly. Yes, he was surprised and embarrassed again. *The beauty he paints is the emperor. *One-on-one romance, around 150,000 characters, a purely sweet little treat (paws raised in promise). Let out a doggy yelp begging everyone to add this to their favorites~ Core theme: From the perspective of the Way, nothing is precious or base. From the perspective of things, each regards itself as precious and others as base. From the perspective of the common world, preciousness and baseness are not inherent.