Jiao Jiao

Jiaojiao was born with rosy lips and pearly teeth. She was brought to the palace as a child to play with the Crown Prince. No one ever said it outright, but everyone in the palace knew she was destined to become the future Crown Princess.

After a palace banquet one day, the Crown Prince was surrounded by lively company. By comparison, the Emperor seemed rather lonely, and Jiaojiao remembered the secret rumor that circulated in the palace.

The current Emperor had a hidden affliction: whenever a woman came near him, he would suffer terrible headaches. So even though he was nearing thirty, he had not a single consort in his harem to offer him comfort. That was why he had adopted the Crown Prince, a boy from the imperial clan, as his son.

Alone in the world, and nothing more.

So Jiaojiao often made clothes and shoes for the Emperor to show her affection. Whenever she saw him, she tried to make him smile with a few witty remarks. She knew the Emperor disliked women, so most of the time she would say only a couple of things before leaving.

Until one day, while playing hide-and-seek with the Crown Prince, the Emperor pulled her into his bed and hid her under the covers.

The Emperor sat up, tapping Jiaojiao's head lightly through the bedding. Jiaojiao listened as the Crown Prince answered the Emperor's questions. Curled up under the covers, she didn't dare move, doing everything she could to avoid touching the Emperor.

After the Crown Prince left, the Emperor lifted the covers and gently wiped Jiaojiao's forehead with a handkerchief. "Why are you sweating so much?"

Jiaojiao shuddered, hurriedly apologized with a bow, jumped off the bed, and ran away.

Not long after, the ministers submitted a petition requesting that the Crown Prince marry. The Emperor approved, but on their wedding night, the Crown Prince discovered that his bride was not Jiaojiao, but someone else. He was utterly shocked.

What he didn't know was that the Jiaojiao he had always thought about was now curled up on the great yellow bed in Zichen Hall, crying her eyes out, while the Emperor sat beside her, winding a sash around her ankle as he said:

"My sweet Jiaojiao, wouldn't it be better to love Me?"

Note: The heroine and the Crown Prince were childhood friends, but they were never in love.

2022/1/1

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