The Lady Lord Is Not to Be Trifled With (Matriarchal Society)

A composed, self-possessed noblewoman × a lovesick, delicate young man

Mu Shengruo likes Song Lanyu with wholehearted passion.

She refuses to agree to marry him, but he always finds a way to make her heart stir for him.

No matter how many times he runs into a wall, he keeps thinking that as long as Song Lanyu hasn't married a husband, he still has a chance to spend his life with her as her devoted partner.

But after a great fire, he survives, and somehow rumors begin spreading throughout the capital that the female head of the Song family has died.

In the pouring rain, he stumbles beneath an oil-paper umbrella and hurries toward the Song residence.

Song Lanyu is dead? He doesn't believe it. It can't be true. He has to see for himself.

But beneath the umbrella appears an unfamiliar, delicate face. Her complexion is a little pale, and she furrows her brow as she stops him.

She says she is a distant cousin from a branch of the Yun family, beyond the fifth degree of kinship. She has been to the Song residence and seen the body with her own eyes. His Majesty is there now, so he shouldn't go and cause more trouble.

Her manner is firm, her expression certain.

Mu Shengruo's fingertips tremble. The oil-paper umbrella falls to the ground, and he stands drenched in the rain, staring at the unfamiliar female noblewoman as all the color drains from his face.

The unfamiliar woman grips the umbrella handle tighter and tighter, wanting to say something, but in the end she presses her lips together.

At the time, Song Lanyu chose to keep the truth hidden.

Everything went according to the other plan Song's mother had made before her death, and all conflict was quietly brought to an end.

But Song Lanyu had misjudged herself, and she had misjudged Mu Shengruo's obsession.

One moment of carelessness, and she gave herself away.

Mu Shengruo stuck to her like a little shadow, convinced he knew who she was.

At the New Year's Eve banquet, Song Lanyu agreed to the marriage to get rid of him and avoid arousing Emperor Liu's suspicions.

She did her best to ignore how pale his face turned beneath the octagonal palace lantern.

Song Lanyu thought the young man would finally give up this time.

She poured herself a drink, never imagining that the perfectly good marriage arrangement would fall through!

One match, then another, the young man never gave up.

Song Lanyu cornered him in an alley, then angrily turned on her heel and left.

After that, Song Lanyu finally got some peace and quiet.

She thought she had escaped a minor nuisance, but inexplicably, a piece of her heart suddenly felt empty.

Her eyes instinctively sought the figure she both wanted and didn't want to see, and for the first time she felt out of sorts.

The second time, she reassured herself that her little shadow had finally given up. It was better for him and for her, so she should be happy.

But after half a month with no one chattering in her ear, Song Lanyu wasn't relieved at all. Instead, she was beside herself, wondering: Why hasn't that heartless little brat come looking for her yet?!

[Coming soon] The Young Lord's Misfortune (Female-Dominated Society)

A forgotten god × a young man who witnessed his own abandonment as a child, learned to disguise himself exceptionally well, and holds grudges

(A marriage arranged through relentless scheming)

The young man wore a veiled hat and nearly threw up blood on the spot. He lowered his voice, clenched his hand with all his might, and slowly spoke, fighting to keep his composure.

"May the heavens strike down anyone who ruins another's marriage."

Zhuohua sprawled over the fortune-telling stall, lazily listening to the beautiful young man complain tearfully, and raised a brow in amusement.

Struck down by the heavens? It would be like a tickle. She wasn't afraid.

Besides, this goddess was only doing it for his own good. That female noblewoman might look wealthy, but her future was full of misfortune, and she was destined to have no descendants. It could hardly be called a good match.

"Young lord, that female noblewoman has left. Could you pay for your fortune-telling now?"

Zhuohua muttered to herself, counting and calculating. Smiling faintly, she moved the bamboo basket for money closer, thinking, Merit +1. Now that she had an offering, her divine power could recover another level. Even her carefree smile took on a touch of warmth.

"Come again next time, young lord."

The beautiful young man’s fingertips trembled as he took out some silver and tossed it into the bamboo basket. His lips were pressed tightly together, and his veil hid his expression. All she could tell was that he seemed to be struggling to contain his excitement.

Zhuohua mulled it over. Watching his staggering figure hurry away, as if eager to leave, she shook her head. "How pitiful. I hope he hasn't seen through the mortal world and given up on everything."

She drew the bamboo basket back and set it beside her, her movements smooth and practiced. The female noblewoman tapped the table and smiled mischievously, her eyes glimmering like peach blossoms. "Still, gathering offerings like this is easy. I get some entertainment and recover my divine power. Two birds with one stone."

The female noblewoman fondled the offerings in the bamboo basket, spreading them out and gathering them up again, looking utterly pleased.

One-line summary: She breaks up matches and ends up drowning in romantic entanglements

Theme: Fate comes and goes, but you are in the fortune

[Coming soon] The Wife on the Beam (Female-Dominated Society)

Stealing a kiss was never Liang Xuanyu's intention. But day after day, she sat on the beam watching a handsome young man pore over account books and work on his abacus. She simply couldn't help focusing all her attention on his face.

Liang Xuanyu hugged her sword, a bit of foxtail grass she had picked up somewhere between her teeth, and shook her head regretfully. Who knew there could be such a boring young man in the world? She'd been perched on the beam for three or five days and hadn't seen him do anything besides read the accounts.

Liang Xuanyu sighed. Fortunately, the Qingfeng Hall master's selection lasted seven days, and she had already completed the tasks in the seven brocade boxes she drew. Without any surprises, she would have been selected and taken charge of Qingfeng Hall.

But, of all things, the rules for the traditional selection of a new hall master had changed. The next master would no longer be decided by who completed the tasks fastest. Luck would also count. Everyone would have a chance to randomly select seven boxes, but the tasks inside were of different levels. Everything depended on the luck of the draw.

As luck would have it, Liang Xuanyu had been on a terrible streak lately. One after another, all seven boxes held the lowest-grade, D-class tasks!

Her only chance to turn things around was to save her opponent's target and claim victory.

Liang Xuanyu narrowed her eyes. She had no idea why such a handsome young man was listed in the most difficult, A-class task box for Qingfeng Hall, but she had already rescued everyone else and was just one step from victory. She couldn't slack off just because she was bored.

She had a mission to fulfill, and she had to become hall master.

Liang Xuanyu forced herself to stay alert and pinched herself, thinking the light of hope was just ahead. But after enduring all seven days, the hall sent word that since every candidate had failed to some extent, killing the handsome young man would now be the task that determined who became hall master.

Liang Xuanyu looked at the small paper slip in her hand. The foxtail grass fell from her mouth.

One-line summary: Between her career and love, Liang Xuanyu hesitates

Theme: You can't have both fish and bear's paw. Liang Xuanyu vacillates back and forth, but in the end she obediently gets wrapped around his finger.

[Coming soon] After Marrying the Imperial Prince, I Want to Divorce Him

Feng Zhaoyan had never fallen for anyone. The only time she paid attention to someone at a palace banquet was because of something he said.

"Every female noblewoman in the capital grovels and fawns. In my eyes, their sincerity is nothing but mud and rubble. Who cares about their flattery? I deign to lower myself only to toy with them, and you envy them for it? How ridiculous."

After that, whenever Feng Zhaoyan encountered this arrogant, high-and-mighty imperial prince at the endless stream of palace banquets, she made a point of keeping her distance.

But at some point, the lofty imperial prince began frequently attending flower-viewing parties, poetry gatherings, and elegant salons hosted by aristocratic families.

It dawned on Feng Zhaoyan that whenever she went somewhere, Mu Yan heng was sure to be there.

The bold, unrestrained imperial prince, so proud and haughty, was following her around and even declared that he had feelings for her!

Slightly tipsy, Feng Zhaoyan looked at the imperial prince as he pressed her aggressively, a hint of shyness showing, and found the situation amusing.

Their Highness treated love like a game. It seemed he had grown bored lately and decided to make her his next amusement.

If that was the case, she might as well see what he planned to do.

In the pavilion, a gentle breeze stirred and the palace lanterns swayed. Feng Zhaoyan lowered her eyes in amusement.

To her surprise, Mu Yan heng suddenly closed his eyes and rose onto his toes to meet her.

Feng Zhaoyan was caught completely off guard and forced to touch something soft. Then the noise around them erupted: a chorus of gasps and the scattered thuds of people dropping to their knees beneath the pavilion.

For the first time in her life, Feng Zhaoyan was publicly beaten with a rod, suffering such humiliation.

As each blow landed, under the weight of imperial authority, she thought of many things. Most vividly, she recalled how their imperial prince had scorned the female noblewomen of the aristocratic families that night.

Amid the faint sounds of mockery, Feng Zhaoyan lowered her eyes and suddenly smiled.

[Coming soon] I Broke Off a Black Lotus (Female-Dominated Society)

In front of the Fu residence, lanterns and decorations filled the courtyard. A wedding was near.

Fu Ciyu held an umbrella over the pitiful young man, soaked through by the heavy rain. Even after being deceived many times, she still couldn't bring herself to refuse him a handkerchief.

"What do you want this time?"

"I want you to marry me."

The young man looked up, the corners of his eyes red, and clutched the edge of Fu Ciyu's official robe so tightly that his knuckles strained.

Fu Ciyu had never expected to meet someone like him in her career as an official.

He was ruthless and cold-hearted, willing to do anything to achieve his goals. He lied constantly, tricked people into believing him, then discarded them without hesitation, as if he had been born without a heart.

She should never have had anything to do with someone like him.

But a murder case in Huaiyang County tied them together.

Fu Ciyu felt guilty, and he was so clever that the very first time they met, he caught her sleeve and looked up at her aggrievedly. "Fu Ciyu, could you help me get home?"

The Shangguan family was the foremost aristocratic clan in the capital. The gulf between the Cen family and the Shangguan family was like a chasm, and returning home would be incredibly difficult.

Fu Ciyu had no choice but to take him in for now and let him stay at her home while they made a long-term plan.

Assassination attempts came one after another, and rumors spread through the streets and alleys.

Fu Ciyu had no choice but to take leave and go into hiding with him.

The little con artist was delighted. He spent her money, ate the best food, and used the finest things. She didn't know how the Cen family had raised him, but he was even more pampered than the imperial princes in the palace.

Fu Ciyu often had her doubts, but whenever he looked at her with those shining eyes, she swallowed her questions.

Never mind. If she'd started helping him, she might as well see it through. All he wanted was to go home.

Shangguan Fei had never known anyone could be so easy to fool.

And this person was also his great enemy, the one who had beheaded him in his previous life.

Reborn, he was petty and determined to get even, no matter what.

As for returning to the Shangguan family, no excuse could be better for staying by her side.

He wasn't about to dodge the assassins by himself as he had in his previous life.

And Fu Ciyu, who had risen to prominence in her previous life and become the new emperor's favored official and a rising star at court, was clearly not to be underestimated.

He would keep her sweet and have her clear away every obstacle for him, then...

Kick her to the curb.

Tags: Court politics, aristocratic families, devoted love, reborn, happy ending, female-dominated society

Fu Ciyu Shangguan Fei

One-line summary: Fooled once, fooled every time

Theme: Don't make absolute promises. Leave yourself some room, or the face-slapping will hurt.

Theme: Keep your eyes open in all things, and when it comes to love, follow your heart.