During the Shengfan era, with the Tianxiang Festival approaching, a headless man's corpse appears in the hands of a Buddha statue on Tianchang Terrace.
Five days later, in the death-cell prison of Changyang, guards drag out a condemned prisoner and force him to the ground. He raises his head, hair matted and clothes filthy, and sees a woman standing before him in a round-collared robe, a black sword at her waist and her hair tied neatly back. She tosses a jade token in her hand, glances at the man on the ground, curls her lip, and tells him he stinks.
Zhang Yunyao will never forget that day. Dragged out of the death cell, he hears Li Changting give a cold laugh and say beneath the blazing sun, "From now on, your life belongs to me. Whether your head stays on your shoulders is up to me."
The lighthearted version:
Li Changting transmigrates and becomes the youngest daughter in a general's household during the Shengfan era. Shengfan is a time when nations from all over come to pay tribute, and her father and brothers are all skilled in martial arts and hold important military posts. As a woman with a modern education, she naturally doesn't want to be cooped up at home all day, counting the days until she's old enough to marry someone. She starts practicing martial arts as a child and eventually enters the palace as a military official.
Palace intrigue? I can do that!
Martial combat? I can do that too!
As a woman focused on building a career and making her name in history, she seizes every opportunity to climb higher. With the festival approaching and a major headless-corpse case emerging, Li Changting rushes out at once, raises both hands, and shouts, "I'll do it! I'm the one for the job! There's definitely a sinister plot behind this!"
She seizes every opportunity, dragging a condemned prisoner out to put him to work for her. She pats the man's cheek and snorts. If he wants to live, he can be her dog and sniff out clues about the headless corpse!
Please note:
A career-driven, steady, highly skilled heroine x a deranged, highly skilled, composed hero
There are graphic descriptions and people will die. If you can't handle that, please stop reading. It's better for both you and me.
The male lead really has no powerful family background. He's only able to cling to the heroine's coattails and save his life by marrying up.
The heroine is career-focused. The plot comes first, with romance on the side.
The rest isn't planned yet. To be added.
Theme: Never give up that final glimmer of hope
