I Think of Skylark

In Sang Ying's eyes, Chen Yi was an exceedingly fussy, overly particular person.

The first time they met, atop Jueyun Peak, the Crown Prince traveled with an enormous retinue, and every word he spoke seemed to carry a hidden meaning.

Yet he was born with an exceptionally refined and handsome face, and was known throughout the land as a gentle, gracious prince with the people in his heart.

Only much later did Sang Ying learn that Chen Yi's elegant charm and mild, upright demeanor were all an act. Beneath it lay twenty years of repressed, dark obsession.

He spun a vast, inescapable web, all to draw her into it.

[Little Scene]

At first--

Chen Yi stood atop the tower of the Forbidden Palace, his gaze skimming over the lithe figure that had just emerged from the Yunzhen Pavilion.

She was like a fish gliding through water, or a swallow in flight.

To her, the vast, imposing Forbidden Palace seemed as easy to enter as an unguarded place.

Chen Yi casually pulled off his jade pendant and tossed it aside, then turned and descended the tower, saying cheerfully,

"There has been a theft in the Eastern Palace. Have the Imperial Guards search thoroughly, and be sure to recover the jade pendant bestowed on me by Father Emperor."

Later--

The Huanxi Mountain Villa was filled with joyous celebration.

Chen Yi stormed into the bridal chamber like the King of the Underworld.

The little songbird he had painstakingly lured for so long was now lying on another man's wedding bed.

The groom, once a celebrated young master of the manor, now lay limp on the ground, every limb and bone broken.

Chen Yi leaned over him, his icy fingers gripping that delicate, lotus-like face. The agony coursing through his own meridians went entirely unnoticed.

"Yinyin, it's time to come home."

#Obsessive, sweet-on-the-outside-and-dark-within male lead x straightforward, soft girl#

#True prey x master hunter#

[Reader's Guide]

1. I'm terrible at blurbs. One-on-one romance, both leads' firsts.

2. The male lead has ulterior motives at first, then falls hard and gets exposed and face-slapped later.

3. There is another reason behind the groom in the little scene.

4. A partly wuxia setting, with mountains of author's own worldbuilding, written for my own enjoyment.

Theme: Tricks can't compare to sincerity.