Palace Joy

(The story is complete. Previously titled Deep Palace.) Tyrant Zhou Heng holds a selection of consorts. Because of his reputation for cruelty, the great families are in a state of panic. The matriarch of the Jiang family doesn't want her daughter to suffer, so she swaps her concubine-born daughter, Jiang Li, with her elder sister, Jiang Shu.

After entering the palace, Jiang Li is always cautious, keeping a low profile and hiding her talents. She has never shown herself before Zhou Heng.

Zhou Heng's closest aides all know he is searching for someone, the girl in his dreams. He turns all of Chang'an upside down but still can't find her. Just as he's about to give up, he has another dream.

In the dream, it is still that same girl. She picks up the wine cup at his feet, drapes his cloak over his shoulders, and says gently, "Be careful not to catch a chill."

A gust of night wind sobers Zhou Heng.

In the middle of the night, the imperial palace is ablaze with lights. Every woman in the palace is summoned and lined up before Zhou Heng.

Looking at the figure kneeling before him, Zhou Heng carefully cups her face. A glimmer of dawn slowly lights his eyes, dark for so long, as he stares at her intently. "Don't hide from me."

Reading notes:

1. The main couple are each other's one and only.

2. The male lead's harem doesn't belong to him.

Please add my next story to your reading list:

My Sickly Bride Married into a Wealthy Family

Mo Furong of the Mo family is frail and sickly, and famously spoiled. The heir of the Marquis's residence arrives with an extravagant bridal procession and declares that he wants to marry her. He thinks her spoiled nature doesn't matter, since she won't live very long after he marries her anyway.

Feng Jian, heir to the Marquis's residence, is a notorious wastrel who treats money like dirt. Mo Furong thinks that marrying an idiot like him means she'll have plenty of money and he'll be easy to control. Married life is bound to be comfortable.

The two of them "love" each other deeply, until death do them part.

With the wedding approaching, Feng Jian, who is investigating a case, unexpectedly meets Mo Furong, who is reporting one.

One is vicious and ruthless.

The other is full of life.

Two days before the wedding:

Feng Jian said to Lady Feng, "It's snowing. Should we perhaps postpone the wedding..."

Lady Feng turned to him with a smile. "I've never seen you care so much about a girl before. Don't worry, Mother won't let your darling freeze."

Feng Jian: "..."

Mo Furong said to Lady Mo, "It's snowing. Should we perhaps postpone the wedding..."

Lady Mo said crossly, "What, do you want to go over there today? I've never seen anyone so impatient..."

Mo Furong: "..."

On the wedding day:

The aunts and gossipy older women wept with emotion. "At long last, these two lovers are together."

Feng Jian and Mo Furong, sitting on the wedding bed: I dug a hole once, and later I buried myself in it.

Feng Jian at first: I married her only to hang white lanterns.

Later, Mo Furong gave a slight cough in the night. Feng Jian scrambled out of bed and called for a doctor in the middle of the night. "My wife has caught a chill."

A cunning and calculating senior official of the Court of Judicial Review × a spoiled beauty who's no pushover.

"Sickly" is meant literally.

A love story that begins with marriage, with chaos in the early days and both falling head over heels later on.

(This story was inspired by the bonus chapters of After My Identity Was Exposed, I Became the Emperor's Favorite.)

Theme: With confidence and strength, you can break free from your cocoon even in adversity.