Synopsis
[Complete]
[This novel has a 60% anti-piracy ratio!]
Jiang Lingci is the legitimate daughter of the Duke of Ning's household. Her mother died when she was young. Sweet, gentle, and adorable, she is cherished by everyone in the household, but her popularity makes others jealous. They send someone to sell her to human traffickers.
After being passed from one person to another, she is eventually sold to Ningxiang Pavilion, a pleasure house in Suzhou, where she is trained as a "slender horse" for Yangzhou and subjected to relentless cruelty.
The once gentle and obedient girl becomes silent and withdrawn.
A few months later, she successfully escapes Ningxiang Pavilion. She happens upon the matriarch of the Jiang household while the older woman is out. Grief-stricken by the loss of her son, the matriarch adopts Jiang Lingci in her sorrow.
A fever robs her of the memories of her earlier years.
When she returns to the capital, it is time for her older brother to take the imperial examinations.
Jiang Lingci never imagined that she wasn't a Jiang daughter. That is, until an extraordinarily lavish carriage stops in front of the Jiang residence. The steward smiles and tells her that she is a daughter of the Duke of Ning's household.
Extra scene:
"I don't want to take my medicine." The girl looks at the dark, bitter liquid before her with wide, black eyes, then looks up at the man standing in front of her. He seems to radiate coldness, yet his eyes are incredibly gentle. Her porcelain-white face is full of resistance, and her brows knit tightly.
"If you take it, you can have another plate of pastries." The man furrows his sword-like brows too, but his eyes are tender as he gently makes the promise.
"I'll take it after lunch!" Seeing that the man won't budge, the girl tries another excuse.
The man can't help feeling helpless. Convincing Ci Ci to take her medicine every day is harder than going to war.
Extra scene 2:
At the age of thirty, Jiang Anyuan, Duke of Ning, lost his wife and daughter. With his heart turned to ash, he petitioned the emperor to send him to Liangzhou to guard the borders.
Eight years later, the Hu Kingdom submitted to the Great Zhou, and the emperor issued an order summoning him back to the capital.
Though he had no desire to return to a place filled with painful memories, his mother was still waiting at home, and his daughter was still missing. Jiang Anyuan returned to the capital with his eldest and second sons.
But at a palace banquet, he unexpectedly saw a young woman from one of the capital's newly prominent families who looked remarkably like his grandmother had when she was young. He was stunned!
Jiang Anyuan: That has to be my daughter!
Big Brother: That has to be my little sister!
The first time I saw you, I felt compassion for you. From then on, the rest of my life would have everything to do with you.
Reading guide:
1. The female lead has physical and psychological health issues, but she will recover.
2. The setting is fictional. The main plot is about healing and personal growth, with a romance as well.
3. The female lead is a Mary Sue, and the plot and its logic all revolve around her.
[Ongoing...]
Jiang Miaomiao grew up in a small mountain village with her grandfather, a great literary master.
It wasn't until high school that she left the little town on the Tropic of Cancer and moved in with her mother's friend, Aunt Xu.
She would always remember that afternoon, when a boy stood outside the school gates, holding an umbrella.
His clear, bright voice held a hint of lazy ease as he called her "Xiao Xiao," a smile in his eyes.
At Aunt Xu's suggestion, he called her "Xiao Xiao" without a care, while she earnestly called him "Big Brother."
But perhaps there was a touch of a young girl's feelings mixed in. When her unrequited crush came to nothing, she learned to let go.
--
Jiang Miaomiao always felt that she and Xu Shen could just about be considered childhood friends who had met later in life.
In other people's eyes, Xu Shen and Jiang Miaomiao were like a harmonious yet complementary pair of "siblings":
One was on a direct PhD track at Tsinghua University, distant and courteous, and independent in all he did. The other was terrible at science in high school, but gentle and well-behaved, a good girl through and through.
Their only thing in common was probably their stunning looks.
Xu Shen and Jiang Miaomiao's constant bickering looked perfectly harmonious to everyone else.
Just looking at Xu Shen's refined, radiant appearance was enough to make Jiang Miaomiao feel less like a stranger to this brother who had come into her life later.
But then Xu Shen asked in a mild tone, "Is this physics test out of twenty?"
Looking at the glaring red "20" on her paper, Jiang Miaomiao realized she still had a lot to learn...
--
Jiang Miaomiao went out to eat with an upperclassman, and Xu Shen brought along some classmates to follow right behind them.
They entered the restaurant one after the other.
He ordered at a leisurely pace, then added, "Send the sweet-and-sour ribs and salted egg yolk corn to table three."
Jiang Miaomiao's beautiful eyes swept over Xu Shen's table: ...
--
Xu Shen went to play basketball with his friends, and Jiang Miaomiao went along to have some fun at Aunt Xu's suggestion.
A group of boys battled fiercely for the ball on the neighborhood basketball court, while Jiang Miaomiao sat quietly off to one side and watched.
But Jiang Miaomiao really was cheering, "Go, Jiang Ting! Go, Jiang Ting!"
During halftime, Xu Shen seemed to glance at the girl out of the corner of his eye. He pressed his tongue against the roof of his mouth and let out a soft laugh.
Jiang Miaomiao looked up at him, lifted the corners of her mouth, then lowered her head again.
--
-- I am among the mountains and rivers, love is in the flowing waters, and you are in the clouds and mist. (Happily Ever After)
This was Xu Shen's three-line love poem.
Reading guide:
1. The male and female leads are not biological siblings. Their parents simply know each other.
2. Just enjoy the story. There's no need to read too much into it.
3. If you have thoughts about the plot, please comment civilly. Personal attacks are not welcome.
The blurb was written on 2021.8.29 and a screenshot has been uploaded.
Theme: Loving yourself is the beginning of a lifelong romance!
