The Jiang family is ruined, and Jiang Wulang, once as refined as the moonlight on a pine-covered mountain, is reduced to working as a male courtesan.
On a rainy spring night, someone drugs him. To escape being violated, he jumps from the third floor, breaking a leg and ending up covered in blood.
A figure beneath a red umbrella crouches in front of him and lifts his chin, clicking their tongue softly. “How dreadful. It'd be such a shame if a beauty like you died.”
Rain blurs his vision. Before he passes out, all he remembers are a pair of smiling, peach-blossom eyes.
-
Jiang Yuzhu breaks his proud spirit and becomes a woman’s secret lover, kept out of sight.
Jiang Bailu treats his wounds, provides him with food and clothes, and is so gentle it's almost unbearable.
But she keeps him confined to her courtyard, unable to take a single step outside.
“Jiang Lang, some little birds can't survive unless their wings are broken.” She leisurely teases the sparrow in its golden cage.
Jiang Yuzhu lowers his eyes, his whole body cold with anger. Beneath his sleeve, his nails dig into his palm.
He's certain that once the Jiang family is cleared of its charges, he'll be able to escape this cage.
-
Jiang Yuzhu endures hardship and carefully plans every step, finally living to see the Jiang family's injustice overturned.
At the same time, news arrives that Jiang Bailu has died. The courtyard gate stands open, and the road ahead is clear, with nothing left to stop him.
Jiang Yuzhu stands at the gate, only to discover in horror that he can't move a single step.
Jiang Bailu is gone from the world forever.
-
Only after changing his name and surname does he return to court.
On the day of the palace examination, the young emperor sits on the throne and raises a hand, gently telling him to rise.
The familiar voice strikes him like thunder from a clear sky.
He looks up in astonishment and meets those unmistakable, faintly smiling peach-blossom eyes behind the emperor's bead-strung crown.
“My dear subject, how have you been?”
Content notes:
1. One-on-one romance, both are each other's first, happy ending. The heroine is alive.
2. Fictional setting with extensive original worldbuilding. Women have a higher social status, but this is neither a matriarchy nor a story about female superiority.
3. The heroine has a fiance in name only. Read with caution if that bothers you.
4. Mainly from the male lead's perspective.
5. Includes pregnancy and childbirth for women. Please avoid if that bothers you.
6. Not suitable for readers who insist on historical accuracy.
2022.4.20
Theme: Flowers seen in a dream are not truly flowers
