*Si Jingxing married Su Yang so he could establish a foothold in the eighteen realms of Cangze.
His original name was Sikou Jun. He was an ancient demon god who lost the Battle Against Heaven, and his primordial spirit was torn into two halves, one good and one evil. The evil half was sealed in the Nine Netherworlds, while the good half was guided into taking human form once more. That was Si Jingxing.
Only Si Jingxing himself knew that he was the evil half. So he temporarily sheathed his claws, pretending to be the benevolent will of an ancient god while waiting for his chance to act.
Without a suitable identity, he could barely get by in Cangze. So he set his sights on Su Yang, the little princess of the Dragon Palace. She was powerful, but softhearted and easy to deceive.
*Su Yang decided to divorce Si Jingxing because he accidentally killed her pet rabbit.
In fact, when the two married, the Matchmaker had warned them: one was a dragon and the other a tiger, and the two would fight like dragon and tiger. Their marriage would likely turn sour. But Su Yang had been blinded by love and refused to listen, insisting on marrying him.
According to the rules of the Dragon Palace, before a divorce they had to enter the "Dream of Reconciliation," assume new identities, and start over to repair their relationship.
In the dream, Si Jingxing wrapped his arms around Su Yang, guided her hand on the sword, and led her step by step until everyone had turned against her. He bent down to kiss away the tears at the corner of her eye. His cool fingers gripped her chin as he smiled and said, "With a heart this soft, how can you ever get anything done?"
When Su Yang woke, she finally saw things clearly. How could he despise her for being softhearted while taking advantage of that very softness to live off her?
That very day, their marriage contract was burned to ashes.
*As far as Si Jingxing was concerned, it wasn't time to divorce yet. He thought he could still salvage things.
So one day, Su Yang found a fluffy white little creature outside the Dragon Palace. She picked it up and studied it for a while. "Are you a tiger cub or a white cat? If you're the former, what a coincidence. You're the same species as my ex-husband. You can still run away while you have the chance."
The little white creature in her arms gave a humiliated little "meow."
*Later, his soul returned to his body, and he reclaimed his supreme status, yet he still couldn't sleep peacefully night after night.
He had clearly regained everything he wanted, but suddenly realized that none of it could compare to the way she had looked at him back then.
Si Jingxing watched the tip of her sword point straight at him, and saw the undisguised, surging murderous intent in her eyes. For a moment, he was dazed.
That pure, fervent love would perhaps never come again, no matter how desperately he begged for it.
**If you're interested, please save my new story, A Manual for Playing Along in the Eastern Palace~
*Xianchi died on the night of her wedding to the Duke's heir.
As her life came to an end, she looked back on it and realized it had all been like a dream of yellow millet.
Three years earlier, the Chi family had brought her back to the capital, then sent her to the Eastern Palace under an assumed name. She had lain low beside the Crown Prince, waiting for a chance to pull Ning Xun from his throne.
Under the Chi family's watchful eye, she had spent three years playing the role of Ning Xun's devoted lover, convinced she had never slipped up.
Except for the fleeting moments when she caught a glimpse of the sharpness in Ning Xun's eyes before he could hide it. It always made her start, as if he had known all along that she was merely a hidden piece on someone else's chessboard, and was only playing along with her for appearances.
After a great fire in the Eastern Palace, she completed her mission and married into the Duke of Zhenguo's household, only to die on her wedding night.
*Xianchi jolted awake in the carriage on her way back to the capital.
In her previous life, she had felt as if she were living in a fog, dragged forward against her will.
Now that she had a second life, she wanted to see every road beneath her feet clearly.
If so, she might as well stay in the Eastern Palace a little longer. It was only a matter of acting in front of Ning Xun. Once you've done it, the second time is easy.
*In her previous life, Xianchi had been kept in the dark and knew nothing of many things.
For instance, she didn't know that not long after her death, the new emperor had ascended the throne with an iron fist, and that he was none other than the Crown Prince who had supposedly died in the fire at the Eastern Palace three months earlier.
On the seventh night after her death, a snowy night, the new emperor stood alone, holding an umbrella over her grave all night.
Because once, on a snowy day in the Eastern Palace while waiting for him to return, she had muttered that she didn't like getting snow all over her. It made her cold.
After that, he never made her wait again.
But he could never wait for her again, either.
*Little scene:
In her previous life, not long after Xianchi entered the Eastern Palace, she personally made plum blossom pastries and brought them to the study.
Ning Xun smiled as he accepted the food box, then guided her hand as they drew a winter-counting picture together.
After Xianchi returned to her room, she told her maid, "Bring me a damp cloth. I just touched something filthy."
In the study, Ning Xun didn't even look at the food box before tossing it to his confidant. "How could I dare eat anything of hers? Take it out and feed it to the dogs."
As it happened, Xianchi's maid saw the pastries being tossed out for the dogs and went back to report it. Xianchi only replied lightly, "Oh, I was planning to feed them to the dogs anyway."
In this life, Xianchi let quite a few days pass before remembering that she still hadn't brought Ning Xun any food. If the Chi family's spies saw her neglecting her duties, it might look as if she weren't trying hard enough.
But she had barely spent half an hour in the little kitchen and hadn't managed to make a single presentable plum blossom pastry because she was out of practice, when Ning Xun walked in. He casually picked up one of the many charred pastries, took a bite, and praised it without changing his expression: "Delicious." Then he took her hand and led her outside. "You've been kneading dough for a long time. Be careful not to hurt your hands."
Reader's guide:
1. The worldbuilding is entirely improvised, and there are tons of original settings.
2. Cultivation stages, in order: Qi Refining, Foundation Building, Core Formation, Nascent Soul, Deification, Void Cavern, Heartbreak, Great Ascension, Heaven's Invitation.
3. Weibo: @Jinjiang Xue Mantou. Hope you enjoy reading!
Theme: Seeking the good within.
Well... The reader has a God's perspective and knows the male protagonist's psychological activities, but the female protagonist knows nothing.
The heroine's pet died mysteriously, and she was also poisoned inexplicably. After that, she can still believe that the hero does not want to harm her. Is the heroine overconfident in her personality charm?
It was too blunt at the end... The author can't come back
Ah, I don't know what to say for a moment... The male protagonist's forced cleansing was too harsh.
It's over! In fact, I felt that the ending was a bit rushed, and it felt like the conflict between Yangyang and Si was handled too quickly. I prefer the ending of the author's previous article, which has an aftertaste that needs to be savored slowly.
Hmm... The male protagonist is miserable.
So what? What does this have to do with the heroine!
Well, the ending seems a bit rushed
I would just say that the so-called righteous path does some disgusting things. Talk. When the spiritual palace is opened, does the physical body also need to be opened? I'm really curious?. I have been curious since Xie Yan's book until now
... Don't know what to say.
That is, everything that hurts the heroine is done out of evil thoughts, but now that the abuse is complete, I always feel that I have not abused the person who hurt the heroine at all.
The marriage certificate was swapped but not divorced, it makes me sick just thinking about it
I thought the male protagonist turned into a cat to endure the humiliation, but it turned out that the female protagonist was manipulated in every way?
Well... The reader has a God's perspective and knows the male protagonist's psychological activities, but the female protagonist knows nothing. The heroine's pet died mysteriously, and she was also poisoned inexplicably. After that, she can still believe that the hero does not want to harm her. Is the heroine overconfident in her personality charm?
It was too blunt at the end... The author can't come back
Ah, I don't know what to say for a moment... The male protagonist's forced cleansing was too harsh.
It's over! In fact, I felt that the ending was a bit rushed, and it felt like the conflict between Yangyang and Si was handled too quickly. I prefer the ending of the author's previous article, which has an aftertaste that needs to be savored slowly.
Hmm... The male protagonist is miserable. So what? What does this have to do with the heroine!
Well, the ending seems a bit rushed
I would just say that the so-called righteous path does some disgusting things. Talk. When the spiritual palace is opened, does the physical body also need to be opened? I'm really curious?. I have been curious since Xie Yan's book until now
... Don't know what to say. That is, everything that hurts the heroine is done out of evil thoughts, but now that the abuse is complete, I always feel that I have not abused the person who hurt the heroine at all.
The marriage certificate was swapped but not divorced, it makes me sick just thinking about it
I thought the male protagonist turned into a cat to endure the humiliation, but it turned out that the female protagonist was manipulated in every way?