Read the blurb before you read the story to avoid trouble and surprises!
The bonus chapters are in the bonus collection on my profile. Feel free to check them out.
The emperor, Xie Yiqiu, is hot-tempered, ruthless, a scourge to his country, and cold-hearted. Though he has a harmless-looking face, he is a paranoid, sinister tyrant.
Li Nanhui, heir to the Qinggan principality, is trapped in the imperial capital. After being slandered by sycophantic corrupt officials, he is dragged to the execution platform. Li Nanhui has always been peerlessly graceful and admired by the people. As his execution draws near, a group of righteous men and women rise up in rebellion.
The tyrant Xie Yiqiu can only let Li Nanhui humiliate him.
After transmigrating into a book, Gu Shui becomes Gu Zhuo, a treacherous minister serving the villainous tyrant in the novel he wrote.
Gu Zhuo knows that as an obscure cannon-fodder character, he is doomed to die horribly. While there's still time, he does everything he can to help Li Nanhui from the shadows and form an alliance with him.
As one of Xie Yiqiu's ministers, he has no choice but to flatter him and act submissive. Behind the scenes, however, he strategizes and schemes, navigating between Li Nanhui and Xie Yiqiu.
Gu Zhuo thought he had the handsome face of a leading man in a period drama. He never expected to look so much like Li Nanhui!
And when he accidentally discovers that Xie Yiqiu and Li Nanhui were once a perfect pair, he is stunned. It turns out Li Nanhui was Xie Yiqiu's childhood friend, with whom he later became enemies, while Gu Zhuo was a substitute kept in the palace to suffer the humiliation meant for Li Nanhui!
☆
System: Host, please complete your System tasks strictly, enrich the story, and meet the readers' expectations.
Gu Shui: Is it possible I'm doing this for my own enjoyment? What the hell do I care about meeting readers' expectations?!
Gu Shui: What happens next in the plot? Tell me what my task is!
System: Is it possible that you're writing without an outline?
System: Congratulations, Host, you've obtained a golden finger! Also, sorry, you can't use it yet.
Gu Shui: ?
System: Congratulations, Host, you've completed the dressing-and-attending-to-someone task.
Gu Shui: ??
Gu Shui: The tyrant's country has fallen. The plot is complete! Can I go back now?!
System: Since you are the author, you still need to stay and fill in some of the plot holes you left behind.
Gu Shui: ???
☆Coming through! Watch out!
☆The protagonist is not a virgin. [This was clearly stated during serialization, so please stop bringing it up in the comments. The author doesn't want to explain it over and over again. If you can't accept it, just click away. It just means this book isn't for you right now (〃′o`). Also, the first line of the blurb says to read it first and check for things you might not like. That line has been there since serialization began.]
☆Entirely made up, set in an extremely fictional world!
☆Loyal substitute (truly loyal), sweet on the outside but dark within, growing stronger [top] x hot-tempered, sinister tyrant, a jerk at first but doting later [bottom]. Both prioritize their careers over romance. Love yourself before loving others. Tyrant emperor vs. treacherous minister, mutual deception, love and hate.
☆A normal System that never has unexpected mishaps (not).
☆Melodrama/political intrigue/not suited to any specific type of fan.
☆Contains the tiniest hint of fantasy.
☆A work written to fill in plot holes. Actual start date: 2022.5.15.
[Not a substitute story in the strictest sense. All the melodramatic plot twists are the result of System malfunctions.] HE
Cover art courtesy of artist Nicholas Ergou.
Theme: Fame and glory may lie thousands of miles away, yet my heart's concerns fit in a single cup.
Raising a Merfolk
The Rose Mute
I Transmigrated into a Matchmaking Story as a Guard, Only to Get Matched Myself
General, Can You Hear the Begonias Speak? (Reborn)
Locked 3
Let Me Cross Over to Those Bygone Days
Blind Minister
Collection of Ancient-Style Danmei Extras
Half-Divine Fox Demon
Locked 4
The Lame General
Locked 1
After reading it, I felt a lot of emotions. The emotional line is restrained and deep, the feelings of family and country are merged, the struggle against fate and the exploration of self. The author really and seriously describes the story of the rise and fall of a dynasty. Thank you for encountering this article.
"Shen" is a big thorn in the side of the author ~ It's so beautiful and I love it
Finished reading! Thanks for the limited fee! I thought the male protagonist would be the emperor haha At the beginning, when Xie was on the throne, there was always a feeling of being in a fog. After Gu figured out how to pull Li off, the plot started to flow smoothly. It was exciting!
Nice. I had felt that Li Nanhuai hated him too much. Although he was ambitious and capable, he was not suitable to be an emperor. Sure enough. In fact, I quite like Li Nanhuai. He can endure and kill. If you say that you have difficulties, then I will sit on the throne and see whether it is because of your lack of dedication or incompetence. It's a pity that even if he wanted to take revenge on the hundreds of people in the Li family, those people would not spare Qiu Yu. It's really a pity that he and Gong Shou clearly have the same fate. They are on the same path but cannot walk together. I hope there will be more plots where the attackers and the recipients feel sorry for each other next time. I am a local dog and I love watching it. Looking forward to new pitfalls from the author.
Nice. I had felt that Li Nanhuai hated him too much. Although he was ambitious and capable, he was not suitable to be an emperor. Sure enough. In fact, I quite like Li Nanhuai. He can endure and kill. If you say that you have difficulties, then I will sit on the throne and see whether it is because of your lack of dedication or incompetence. It's a pity that even if he wanted to take revenge on the hundreds of people in the Li family, those people would not spare Qiu Yu. It's really a pity that he and Gong Shou clearly have the same fate. They are on the same path but cannot walk together. I hope there will be more plots where the attackers and the recipients feel sorry for each other next time. I am a local dog and I love watching it. Looking forward to new pitfalls from the author.
After reading it, I really like the author's article, so I'm going to start a new one now.
I like this chapter the most, hehe
Thanks to the author for letting me see a novel with both writing style and literary talent. The writing is very smooth and the plot setting is reasonable. Grateful?
Congratulations on finishing it. It's a good read. It's been a long time since I've read such a wonderful article in one sitting.
The reason for the interruption in the past two days is firstly because the school was on vacation overnight due to the epidemic, so I hurriedly handed in all kinds of homework and packed up and went home. Secondly, it was because I was sorting out the outline of the final stage. I'm really sorry. Although not many people see it, it's better to say it.