The Thing in My Palm

[This isn't a substitute-lover plot; it'll be explained later. There will be a groveling pursuit, and it'll be a brutal one.] As an unremarkable concubine-born daughter of a Duke's household, Qi Baige always thought her life would be simple but happy. On a sunny day, she'd marry the top scholar she'd grown up with. But on the morning of her sixteenth birthday, she woke to find a man lying beside her. From then on, there were no sunny days in her life. Xie Chen once thought Baige was his to toy with, someone he could squeeze and manipulate as he pleased. Until the Lantern Festival that year, beneath brilliant lanterns and amid bustling crowds. In the clamor of celebration, he watched helplessly as the lovely figure in plain white leapt from a tall building. In midair, she spread her arms, her eyes gently curved, the hem of her pure white skirt reflecting a dazzling light, like she was taking part in a grand ritual. He knew she was embracing her sunny day. Scene One: Midsummer midnight, the air thick and still. The young woman stared at the person before her in panic, tears welling in her eyes. The man casually wiped the blood from the corner of his lips. His voice was low, his eyes cold, his smile faint. "Stop making trouble, or think about what will happen to that top scholar." Scene Two: On a snowy winter night, the newly appointed Marchioness of Dingyuan was weak from illness and in mortal danger during a difficult labor. Xie Chen stood all night before the gates of the Marquis of Dingyuan's residence, as snow fell all around him. No one knew that Xie, the Grand Secretary who held power over the court, had scoured the land for rare medicinal herbs and sought out renowned physicians everywhere to save the Marchioness, who lay sick in bed. In the icy snow, he thought, If she dies, I'll give her my life in exchange. A beautiful woman, gentle on the outside and strong within × a paranoid, cruel, and powerful official One-on-one romance + both leads are each other's first Completed work: Qing Dynasty transmigration, "The Years I Flirted with Old Kang" Upcoming xianxia melodrama: "Fallen Buddha", also known as "I Faked My Death After Ditching the Aloof Buddha" Luo Xiaoxiao is the lowest-ranking disciple in the Hehuan Sect, and the only one who's never been intimate with anyone. She's always been mocked for it. Her birthday wish at eighteen is to raise her cultivation as quickly as possible and prove herself through her strength. Then the Hehuan Sect's founder tells her that if she can make Jingzhao, the revered Buddha and beacon of righteousness in the cultivation world, break his vow of chastity, her cultivation will advance by leaps and bounds. So Luo Xiaoxiao sets out on the arduous path of disguising herself as a young righteous cultivator and seducing Jingzhao every day. · As a Buddha's chosen one born with an innate nature for Buddhism, Jingzhao is the hope of righteousness for the entire cultivation world. He never expected that one day he'd break his vows for a silly-looking young woman. Nor did he expect to go mad and fall into demonic cultivation after she died. A demonic cultivator who sets hearts ablaze and only wants to level up × an aloof Buddha forced to fall into demonic cultivation The author's profile has plenty of upcoming stories in all sorts of styles. Take your pick, and add one to your reading list if anything catches your eye! Theme: Only a love that offers respect and freedom can be beautiful and last forever.