The Female Lead Who Cross-Dresses as a Man Goes Too Far

***I also have a story coming soon, "It Turns Out She Was Only Repaying a Favor." Please add it to your collection. Blurb at the end.*** ***Blurb for this story*** Qi Yimei transmigrates into... the male lead of a political intrigue novel she'd recently read. Oh, and she's disguised as a man. With the plot about to follow its political intrigue storyline, Qi Yimei, a complete novice at court politics, decides to flee the main plot so she can safely make it to the ending. By a twist of fate, she becomes the sickly Sixth Prince's study companion. From then on, the two are bound together. People even start pairing them up, and the entire capital has a grand old time shipping them. She doesn't take it seriously. After all, spending every day with a beauty is pretty enjoyable, even if the beauty is a little too controlling... and a little clingy, too. The Sixth Prince, Yan Ciyun, has skin like snow, bright eyes, pearly teeth, and peerless looks. Because of an offhand joke from that carefree Qi Yimei, he earns the title of the most beautiful person in the realm, despite being a man. He hates the flirtatious Qi Yimei, who attracts admirers wherever she goes, so much it makes his teeth ache. She's sharp-tongued, fickle, and cunning, with not a single redeeming quality, yet he just can't let her go. When he doesn't see her during the day, he misses her; once he falls asleep at night, she invades his dreams. He has to keep her from flirting with yet another fox spirit, while also fighting his own shameful, wicked desires. Every day, he is torn by inner conflict, tormented by guilt, while she acts as though nothing is wrong, looking perfectly carefree. So why keep suppressing it!!! After faking her death, Qi Yimei is captured and dragged back. Looking at the Sixth Prince, who's completely lost it, she stammers, "D-don't come any closer... Let's talk this out... I-I am a man!" Yan Ciyun doesn't hesitate for a moment. He raises a hand and orders his people to fasten the thousand-pound lock, prepared long ago, across the courtyard gate. Qi Yimei (on the verge of tears), staring at the ornate, exquisite chains: I think I've taken this game too far. [Sickly, beautiful, scheming little jealous king VS slow-on-the-uptake, beauty-loving female study companion] Reader's guide: 1. The heroine has disguised herself as a man for ten years and likes beautiful people, but the only person she truly loves is the male lead. 2. The male lead is an ethereal beauty, sickly and beautiful, with a strong possessive streak. For the first part of the story, he believes the heroine is a man. The heroine is dense about romance and realizes her feelings late. 3. The heroine is one year older than the male lead. 4. Both are virgins. Told in flashbacks, a childhood-friends-to-lovers coming-of-age story. People's tastes vary, and writing isn't easy. No work can please everyone. Even classics have people who love them and people who hate them, let alone an unknown author like me. If this story really isn't your cup of tea, feel free to read something else. And especially if you're reading pirated copies, please have some decency. ***My upcoming story "It Turns Out She Was Only Repaying a Favor." Click into my profile to check it out.*** Yu Xiaoxi had been foolish for many years and had only regained her senses three years ago when disaster struck her family. Thankfully, her benefactor saved them, preserving the lives of all five members of her family. Yu Xiaoxi was overwhelmed with gratitude, but before she could repay him, she unexpectedly died. With her dying breath, she swore that because he had saved the lives of all five of them, she would repay him fivefold in her next life, serving him devotedly and returning his kindness. But when she closed her eyes and opened them again, she found herself in the body of Yu Hanxi, the woman about to marry her benefactor. Well... I mean, this chance to repay him didn't have to come quite so soon. She had actually been Yu Hanxi all along, a daughter of a noble family. Three years ago, a transmigrator had taken over her body, and with nowhere else for her soul to go, she had entered the body of the foolish Yu Xiaoxi. Now that the transmigrator had died unexpectedly and her soul had returned to the modern world, Yu Hanxi was finally able to return to her own body. Looking at the husband she'd gotten for free, she remembered the vow she'd made not long ago as Yu Xiaoxi. She gritted her teeth and decided to honor her promise, treat him even better than he deserved, repay him fivefold, and then leave with her duty fulfilled and divorce him. But her benefactor was a powerful man, beautiful and ruthless, and repaying him was no easy task. With no idea where to begin, she could only treat him even better, so much so that he began to suspect her motives. As his pale fingers closed around her throat, she looked into his cold, fierce black eyes. Her instinct for survival gave her a sudden idea, and she quietly explained, "I'm doing all this because... I like you." Later, when she had finally managed to repay all but one last favor, her benefactor held her fast against him. His crimson lips brushed her ear as he whispered coldly, "I want you to keep loving me... Even if it's an act, you will keep it up for the rest of your life." At a young age, Luo Fuming, Commander of the Xuanxiao Bureau, has risen to a lofty position. Beneath his pale, cold beauty lies an ambitious man who stops at nothing. The mere mention of him makes every official at court go pale, and people call him the Ghost of the Underworld. For political reasons, Luo Fuming marries Yu Hanxi, the eldest legitimate daughter of the Yu family. Even though Yu Hanxi is in love with the Grand Tutor, Luo Fuming doesn't care. They agree that as long as she cooperates with him, they will part on good terms once everything is settled. One day, she accidentally witnesses something she shouldn't have. He crushes the neck of the person in his hand and steps over a pool of blood. He thinks, unconcerned, that he probably can't let his nominal wife live. To his surprise, she doesn't panic or cry out. Instead, she calmly says that in this situation, she has a better solution than killing her to cover it up. Impressed by the woman's courage, he doesn't rush to take her life. Later, she repeatedly risks her life for him. He thinks that if she really loves him that much, perhaps there's no harm in letting her stay in his household. But when his wife, who has always smiled gently at him, hears this, her face turns deathly pale. That very night, she flees under cover of darkness. Only then does Luo Fuming understand that he is the one who has fallen in love, while she was only repaying a favor. Reader's guide: 1. Ruthless, cold, otherworldly, beautiful, and unhinged male lead VS heroine indifferent to romance, intent on repaying her debt and putting the past behind her. 2. Because of his unusual experiences, the male lead is genuinely insane and has no conventional sense of morality. Later, he goes mad with love. If that's not your thing, I hope to see you in my next story. 3. The heroine is a native of this world. A transmigrator took over her body for three years, but after returning to her own body, she regained her original memories as well as the transmigrator's memories from those three years, so modern expressions occasionally slip out. 4. Happy ending, both are virgins. Theme: Be honest with the people around you. It takes countless lies to cover up one lie.