The Chief Secretary’s Record of Doting on His Wife (Reborn)

[CP: Delicate Classical Beauty VS Ruthless, Iron-Fisted Statesman] Shen Yuan, the legitimate daughter of the Marquis's household, was as beautiful as ice and jade, with features like a painting. She was the most beautiful woman in Yangzhou Prefecture. After becoming engaged to Lu Chen, Earl of Kangping, she had a dream. In it, her husband neglected her because he had married her for her resemblance to her half-sister. Once the missing girl returned, Shen Yuan soon met a tragic end. Lu Zhiyun, Lu Chen's fifth uncle, was the Grand Secretary of the current dynasty, a powerful and ruthless statesman who also held the title of Duke of Zhenguo. Yet every month, he would visit her grave alone and sit there in silence. By then, Shen Yuan had been dead for many years. But unexpectedly, Lu Zhiyun never married. In the end, he personally went to the marquis's estate and married her spirit tablet. After being reborn, Shen Yuan refused to repeat the same mistakes, so she set her sights on this stern statesman. At a banquet in Shaoyuan Garden, the man, already past thirty, was mature and handsome. He wore crimson official robes, a leather belt, and a liang crown, carrying himself with solemn authority. Just as he was about to pass her, Shen Yuan deliberately let the handkerchief in her hand fall, hoping to use it as an excuse to approach him and test the waters. Lu Zhiyun never showed interest in women and hated the smell of cosmetics more than anything. Everyone was waiting to laugh at Shen Yuan. But to their surprise, the usually cold and stone-faced Grand Secretary picked up her handkerchief. His expression was indifferent as he said quietly, "Take it." No one knew that he had cherished this beauty for two lifetimes. *She's free to cling to him whenever she likes.* *He personally weaves a safe net for the beautiful, fragile butterfly, waiting for her to fall into his trap.* Bonus Scene 1: One day, Lu Chen was hit on the head by a street archway and recalled his past life. After Shen Yuan died, his heart was shattered, and only then did he realize who he truly loved. So Lu Chen went to the marquis's estate. He figured that, after breaking off her engagement, Shen Yuan would have trouble finding a husband, so he put aside his pride and asked for her hand again. The gentle Shen Yuan would surely accept. Just then, another procession of carriages carrying betrothal gifts stopped outside the estate, and the dignified Grand Secretary stepped through the vermilion gate. Lu Chen still didn't know that he was about to address his wife from his previous life as his aunt by marriage. Bonus Scene 2: Everyone in the Duke's household knew that Madam Shen Yuan was terrified of thunderstorms. Whenever it rained, her heart condition would flare up, and the usually composed Grand Secretary would grow anxious. The moment the weather changed, he would rush back to the estate. The statesman, normally immaculate and dignified, didn't care that his official robes were soaked through. He hurriedly gathered his delicate, heart-stricken wife into his arms. Lu Zhiyun pressed his forehead to the beauty's and softly soothed her: "Don't cry, Yuan'er. I'm back." He knew that he alone was the medicine that could save her. (1) One-on-one pairing and single-couple romance in both lives. In this life, the heroine falls in love after marriage; the hero's secret love comes true, and they rekindle their romance. (2) The hero first appears at 32, the heroine is 19, with a 13-year age gap. A sweet romance and a wish-fulfillment story. (3) The hero starts out at the top of his game. He's an obsessive, unhinged, ruthless man, but a complete wife-lover. (4) The scumbag second male lead gets a scorched-earth pursuit of his ex. He gets utterly wrecked. P.S. Content warnings are included in the author's note of Chapter One. [Synopsis revised for the fourth time on 2021.4.15. Screenshot saved to preserve the concept.] [Cover character design has been purchased for commercial use.] Next up: historical romance "A Cherished Beauty in My Arms." Please add it to your reading list~ CP: Elegant, sickly-sweet Prince Regent VS Warm and sunny amnesiac (1) The opera ended in the pear garden, and the beauty danced, sleeves fluttering. Gu Qilin picked up the fan she had dropped and toyed with it in his hand. His fingers were long and clearly defined, and he had an air of refined elegance. Everyone in the capital knew that Gu Qilin had supported the young emperor's ascension to the throne. He was the Prince Regent, generous on the outside but ruthless within, like a smiling tiger. The Prince Regent was always calm and self-possessed, but he alone harbored predatory intentions toward the Cheng family's daughter and forcibly broke up her engagement. Cheng Xueyi was about to marry the second son of the Minister of Revenue, but before the wedding, her betrothed took a woman as a concubine. The woman was already pregnant, and Cheng Xueyi's father also passed away. Misfortune came in droves. Cheng Xueyi hit her head in an accident and lost her memory. Everyone sighed that even a beauty of such breathtaking grace couldn't escape the twists of fate, and that she was destined to live a miserable life, trapped in the inner chambers. But when the Prince Regent married, the wedding ceremony was held with the highest honors. And Cheng Xueyi, whom everyone had pitied, now sat in a splendid phoenix carriage, about to become a princess admired by all. (2) The bandage on Cheng Xueyi's forehead was removed. She caught the unfamiliar, mild scent of aloeswood as Gu Qilin held her on his lap and looked down to examine her condition. Just awakened, Cheng Xueyi had a slight headache. She looked at Gu Qilin, searching his face, and called out hesitantly, "Husband?" Gu Qilin's eyes flickered in surprise. Then he concealed the deep possessiveness in his gaze and gently called her by her childhood name: "Jiaojiao, you kept me waiting." It was that hesitant "husband" that led him to give her a lifetime of devotion and exclusive love, in an era when men had wives and concubines by the dozen. (3) After they married, Gu Qilin fastened a cuff around Cheng Xueyi's slender wrist. Like a shackle, she couldn't take it off. Only each night, when the red bed curtains fell, would the man use a key to remove it himself. Later, Cheng Xueyi regained her memories. Remembering the man's ruthless ways, she conspired with her childhood sweetheart, the top scholar, to escape. She wanted nothing more than to flee far away, but Gu Qilin caught her with ease and personally cut off one of the top scholar's legs. The man remained elegant and unhurried as he wiped the blood splattered on the base of his thumb. Once his hand was clean, he gripped the beauty's willow-slim waist and cornered her against a mottled wall. The warmth Gu Qilin usually feigned vanished. A fierce, possessive look flashed in his eyes as he pressed his thin lips to her ear and coldly threatened, "Jiaojiao, do you still dare to run?" From the moment he clasped that cuff around her wrist, Cheng Xueyi was raised like a precious treasure in a luxurious yet safe golden cage. He protected and doted on her, but she would never escape him in this lifetime. Reader's Guide: (1) An alternate Song-Ming setting. Sweet, possessive romance. The hero is extremely obsessive, passionately in love and possessive, but faithful to his wife. (2) One-on-one pairing, single-couple romance, melodramatic sweet romance. Theme: Stay independent and clear-minded in marriage, and never give up the work you love.