The Stolen Bride

The Grand Marshal Xie Shenzhi died saving the emperor. With his dying breath, he placed the hand of his sobbing niece in the emperor's palm and said weakly: “I have no regrets about dying. The only one I cannot stop worrying about is A Yue. I beg Your Majesty to treat her well.” The emperor promised to make A Yue his empress and place her above all the women in his harem. He closed his eyes with a smile. But three years after his death, the emperor and empress fell out. A Yue was deposed, and the emperor made the Consort Rong she hated most his new empress. The new empress was installed, and all the realm celebrated, while his poor little girl wandered madly through the cold palace, asking everyone she met: “Will you kill that dog of an emperor and avenge my Ninth Uncle?” By then, he had been dead for years and could no longer protect her. All he could do was gather his foolish little girl in his arms as the wind, whispering to her again and again: “A Yue, don't be afraid. Ninth Uncle is here.” He couldn't understand how the rose he'd nurtured with his very lifeblood could mean nothing at all in someone else's hands. Reborn That year, A Yue was fifteen. She had gone hunting with Li Mingqi, who was still a prince of the imperial clan. Her riding skills were poor, and she was left behind. Tired and hungry, she clung to her maid and cried. “W-why hasn't Ninth Uncle come to find me?” she sobbed to her maid. After a moment of silence, he crossed a thorn-choked forest and waded through a stream whose currents ran swift and dark, step by step making his way to her. He knelt on one knee, gently patted the head of the girl he had watched grow up, and tenderly wiped away her tears. “I'm sorry, Ninth Uncle is late.” * Emperor Yongyuan, Li Mingqi, had two regrets in his life. First, to seize power, he had killed the Grand Marshal, who had defied all opposition to help him ascend the throne. Second, the empress found out, turning a young couple into enemies on the battlefield, and he ultimately died at the hands of the empress who had feigned madness. Reborn, he decided to make amends for his mistakes. The Grand Marshal was a worthy minister; there was no harm in letting him hold power. Though the empress had killed him, he had wronged her first, so he would let bygones be bygones. This time, he would grow old with her! He put on the clothes she liked best, bought her favorite pastries, and happily went to find her Beneath the wisteria, Xie Shenzhi slept with a book in his hand. Xie Lingyue quietly approached, then bent down with great care and gently, tenderly kissed his forehead. Li Mingqi's eyes widened in shock, and the pastries in his hand were instantly crushed to crumbs. Damn Xie Shenzhi! When had he seduced his future empress?! * Xie Lingyue had a secret. She had stopped loving Li Mingqi long ago. She loved her Ninth Uncle, Xie Shenzhi. Pampered and willful VS chaste and restrained Reader's guide: Nine-year age gap; In their past lives, the male lead was inexperienced and the female lead was not; in this life, they are both inexperienced. The leads are not blood relatives. Theme: The land leaves behind its triumphs, and we follow in the footsteps of those who came before.