The Princess Reigns Supreme

They first met at a send-off ceremony for students leaving to study abroad on government scholarships.

At the time, she was the beloved Golden Sparrow Princess, while he was an overlooked illegitimate son of a fallen noble family.

He stood at the edge of the crowd, watching in resentment as the place he had earned through tireless study went to his more favored younger brother.

She passed by in a golden carriage and stopped to innocently ask him why. The emperor was alerted, and his place was restored.

Later, on many a day and night when he was close to giving up, the hem of her gold-trimmed skirt would appear in his dreams.

The second time they met, the dynasty had fallen and their homeland lay in ruins.

He was a young officer who had returned from studying abroad. She was the last princess of a decaying, conquered nation.

The gilded cage had been dismantled, and the golden bird could no longer survive. She stood by the city wall, despairing and tearful, swaying on the brink.

He no longer had to suppress the vile desire in his heart. He pulled her down from her lofty perch.

From then on, he kept her in a golden house, hid away his golden bird, and imprisoned her for the rest of her life.

Theme: Never give up hope for life