[Angsty Romance] [Rekindled Love] [Even If They Can't Get Back Together, They'll Force It] [A Melon Forced Off the Vine Can Still Taste Sweet]
On the day Fu Suiying married Xiao Yuanzhao, her former fiance, Xiao Yuanyi, was being transported in a prison cart. It rolled slowly down Zhuque Avenue, passing right by her wedding procession.
Sitting in the bridal sedan, she didn't dare lift the curtain.
Amid the jolting ride, she vaguely remembered the years before, at the Nian Gui Pavilion outside the city. The young man, about to leave for war in his armor, had looked at her with such earnest hope that the sincerity in his eyes had almost hurt to behold.
"I'll be gone for three years at the least, five at the most. A Ying, will you wait for me?"
Fu Suiying had answered, "I will."
But later, after the defeat in Jiangdong, Xiao Yuanyi abandoned the city and fled. When he was brought back to the capital in disgrace, Fu Suiying visited him in prison and said the first thing that came to mind:
"Xiao Yuanyi, I'm going to marry your elder brother."
It was the first time she had ever seen despair on Xiao Yuanyi's face.
Fu Suiying had betrayed him. There were no extenuating circumstances, no hidden reasons.
She thought she could never make amends for such a betrayal in this lifetime.
But she never imagined that five years later, at the mourning hall for her husband Xiao Yuanzhao, she would see Xiao Yuanyi again.
The Xiao Yuanyi of today commanded a powerful army and ruled his own territory. He was a feared butcher, so fearsome that even the emperor had to mind his mood.
Yet now, he looked at her with a cold, amused gaze. His sinister voice seemed to seep into her bones, making her tremble all over.
He said:
"Sister-in-law, it's been a long time."
**
Fu Suiying thought Xiao Yuanyi hated her so much that he would have to break her bones, flay her skin, and tear her to pieces to satisfy his grudge.
But he didn't kill her. Instead, he found another way to humiliate her.
In the cold silence of a spring night, beneath the warm hibiscus curtains, Xiao Yuanyi gripped her arm and ground her bones beneath his. Again and again, he crushed her sobs. Their foreheads pressed together as his voice, thick with bitterness and hatred, fell indistinctly against her ear:
"A Ying, you owe me this."
**
[Warlord General of a Turbulent Age x His Late Elder Brother's Gentle but Strong-Willed Widow]
1. The heroine is F and the hero is C. The heroine genuinely fell in love with someone else, so the hero truly hates her.
2. He both loves and hates her, and can't bring himself to do anything about it.
3. Neither lead is perfect. This is mainly written to satisfy the author's own tastes.
4. The early chapters feature a bitter romance and forced love. He's a bastard, so feel free to curse him out.
5. Happy ending.
Theme: Love can overcome any hardship.
