A Beauty's Schemes

My latest completed novel, A Jiangnan Beauty (The Ex's Redemption), is ready to binge. Blurb at the bottom. I, the legitimate daughter of a century-old Jiangnan family, have money and beauty. All I lack is a perfect husband. That day, I was visiting West Lake. As I crossed the Broken Bridge, I happened to catch sight of a young man in white, and fell in love at first sight. He looked at me too, smiling brighter than the spring sunshine. In the tenth year of Yuanhe, enemy troops broke through the city walls. He sat before the battle lines with his beloved concubine and wrote me a divorce letter: "The person you have taken hostage is no longer my wife." I never thought that the divorce letter I'd longed for would arrive at a time like this. I lifted the poisoned wine before me and smiled faintly at him. As he watched in horror, I slowly drank it down. The last time I looked at him, I couldn't understand why he was trembling and crying. I said, "Pei Yizhi, if I could live my life over, I would never cross that Broken Bridge." Years later, I settled by the South China Sea and became a sea lord, living a carefree, immortal's life. As for Pei Yizhi, I heard he had three thousand beauties in his harem and was making great strides toward becoming an emperor. (Cover art gifted by Bishui Gugu) *Content warnings* 1. One couple, both are each other's first. The harem beauties are just for show. 2. This novel has a tragic ending, and the ex's redemption comes too late. Read with caution! 3. The blurb is in first person; the novel is in third person. 4. Fictional history. Please don't nitpick the historical details. If you don't like it, feel free to leave. Currently updating: The Fragrant-Boned Beauty (The Ex's Redemption). Blurb: Cool, aloof Jiangnan beauty x proud young nobleman who's all talk, quick to get jealous, and doesn't care about offending anyone Su Jinyan, a Jiangnan beauty, was born with a fragrant beauty and peerless looks. To restore the family's place in court, her family sent her a thousand li away to marry into another clan. Her betrothed was Yuchi Jin, heir to the Jing Duke's residence, famed in the capital for his extraordinary bearing. It didn't matter. Whoever she married, she would make the best of it. Yuchi Jin looked down on marrying the daughter of a fallen clan, but she was fortunate enough to have a pretty face. It didn't matter to him either. Whoever he married, he could simply think of her as one more person to support in his household. He was young and didn't understand love. He was always pushing her boundaries, always assuming she would keep enduring things for the sake of her family. Until one day, he brought home his cousin, who had just lost both her parents, and told Su Jinyan that he planned to take a second wife. She smiled gently and agreed. At the time, he thought nothing of it. Later, she left him a divorce agreement and disappeared. * Little scene one: Yuchi Jin searched for Su Jinyan for a long time. At last, he heard that a wealthy woman in Jiangnan was holding a grand husband-seeking contest. He burst in, his eyes red, only to hear the matchmaker introduce her: "Madam Su is clever and capable, but she's had the misfortune of losing her husband young. What a pitiful background." Yuchi Jin's face darkened on the spot. He snapped, "Take my son and marry another man? Over my dead body!" Su Jinyan replied calmly, "You've got it wrong. I'm looking for a live-in son-in-law!" Little scene two: Everyone in the capital knew that Yuchi Jin, the Vice Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, was afraid of his wife. At a gathering with his colleagues one day, they teased him about it. Yuchi Jin had had a little to drink and protested helplessly, "Nonsense. My wife is as meek as a mouse when she sees me." As soon as he'd said it, he saw Su Jinyan standing in the doorway. After the gathering, the Vice Minister carried his bedding to sleep in the study of his own accord. *Content warnings* 1. We recommend starting from the beginning. In Chapters 1-24, the male lead comes around and gets his comeuppance, but the heroine isn't put through emotional torment. 2. One couple, both are devoted to each other. The male lead was never in love with his cousin. 3. Includes the melodramatic trope of a woman running away while pregnant. Read with caution if that's not your thing. 4. Fictional history, very fictional. Enjoy the story and don't argue over the details! Theme: Stay strong in hardship and never retreat in adversity. A brave woman is the most beautiful!