Gentle and Chaste

(True Princess x False Princess)

On the day he returned to the palace, welcomed by a sea of people and escorted up golden steps and jade-paved paths, he stood atop the nine tiers of palace stairs, looking down at his trembling imperial sister kneeling below: the person who had taken his place for ten years.

Everyone knew that Princess Ning was capricious, ruthless, and overbearing. The blood of the first person to offend her had long since stained the golden bricks before Hanguang Hall and spread across the imperial road. Even after three days and three nights of scrubbing, traces remained.

The frail and gentle Princess Rouzhen surely wouldn't survive long in her hands. Especially since she was the one responsible for driving her out of the palace.

But people soon noticed that Princess Rouzhen's stipend and fief grew more generous by the day, while those who tried to bully her met inexplicable deaths in one way or another.

On the night of the palace coup, blades flashed outside, but within Hanguang Hall, the air was as warm and peaceful as spring.

Princess Rouzhen clutched the hem of her elder sister's splendid gown and whimpered, "Please protect me, Elder Sister."

Princess Ning lifted her chin with a fingertip painted red, her nail grazing the girl's delicate, soft skin. Her voice was cool and low: "Dear little sister, when have I ever not protected you?"

Later, with the situation growing dire, Princess Ning was ordered to "resume her male identity," while Rouzhen, who had long since been removed from the imperial clan, was also bestowed in marriage to Ning.

The emperor comforted her. "You are both women, so don't worry too much. Just put on a show for those people."

Since Princess Ning had to present herself as a man and could not carry a child for ten months, Rouzhen was entrusted with an important duty.

Every night, she had to meet with a royal kinsman chosen by the emperor. It became the moment she feared most.

Afterward, when she returned to the palace, she would always curl up in Ning's arms, seeking comfort in her misery and calling, "Elder Sister," over and over.

Ning stroked her dark hair and softly coaxed her. "Rouzhen's child will be my child, too."

"The two of us are one."

The male lead is a stunning beauty in women's clothes early on: noble, yet incredibly alluring, bewitching, richly beautiful and flamboyant, like a poisonous poppy. The male and female leads are more or less a version of the true-heiress/false-heiress trope, with no blood relation between them. Both know the truth from the very beginning.

Cover: k

Theme: Love