Marrying the Eunuch Governor

[Please add my novel on the same theme, The Eunuch Longs for Me, to your reading list. Thank you!] Not long after Xie Yunzhi was reunited with her birth parents, they married her off to Shi Jingxiao, the Chief Eunuch of the Western Depot, as a disposable pawn. Shi Jingxiao was a powerful eunuch who held sway over the empire. He was ruthless and unpredictable, and everyone said she was as good as dead. To stay alive, Xie Yunzhi tread carefully, walking on eggshells. Every day, she even kept a little notebook to record his likes and dislikes. "Today, Eunuch Shi drank nine spoonfuls of sweet soup and only ate one spoonful of crab roe tofu. Looks like he likes sweet things." "Today, Eunuch Shi lingered beneath the gardenia tree when he came back. Maybe he'd like it better if I changed the flowers in the vase." "Today, Eunuch Shi's illness flared up again, and he even bit me. But that's all right, as long as he's okay." But the notebook she had hidden so carefully was discovered. Xie Yunzhi trembled as she looked at Shi Jingxiao's unreadable expression. Instead, he leaned back in his chair and said lazily, "If there's anything you want to know, just ask." Xie Yunzhi: ??? Shi Jingxiao had once been a dragon soaring in the highest heavens. Then one day, he fell into the mud, was trampled underfoot, and accidentally lost his sight. In his hour of greatest need, only a country girl didn't look down on him. She saved his life and even got into a furious argument with others on his behalf. Later, as he prepared to leave, the girl pressed her only silver hairpin into his hand. "I don't have anything valuable, so you should take it, brother." His eyes reddened, and he gently embraced her. "If I make it back alive, I'll come find you." Later, he had his bones scraped and his face remade, regained his sight, and became the most powerful eunuch in the land. Yet he could never find his little girl again. Until he discovered... Synopsis posted on April 17, 2022. Screenshot saved. Reader's guide: 1. The male lead is a real eunuch. A sweet, soft-hearted crybaby shou and a seemingly gentle but secretly dark, obsessive Chief Eunuch gong. Read with caution if this is not your thing. 2. One-on-one romance, both leads sexually inexperienced, bittersweet, happy ending. 3. Set in a fictionalized Ming dynasty. The author has invented plenty, so please don't nitpick the history. Completed novels: The Embroidered Guard's Cinnabar Mark Ran Away, The Crown Prince's Funeral Pyre After My Death, The Heir's Funeral Pyre After My Death ----- Upcoming novel: The Marquis's Eldest Daughter-in-Law. Please check it out! ----- [Rebirth + healing + domestic life + slow-burn romance] Also known as: After Becoming a Substitute Bride, I Healed the Sickly Heir For a few taels of silver, Huo Yaoguang was sold by her parents to the Yan family to become a substitute bride. The man she was to marry was Mei Shaoyuan, heir to the Marquis of Jing'an. Rumor had it that he was sickly, irritable, and gloomy, and that five previous fiances had died because of him. But when Huo Yaoguang heard his name, her eyes suddenly lit up. . In her previous life, her name had been Zhaodi. She drowned while trying to save her younger brother, who had fallen into the water. At the critical moment, Mei Shaoyuan jumped into the icy river and rescued her. When her parents scolded her, he stood in front of her and argued on her behalf. He even said, "You're a perfectly good girl. Why call you Zhaodi? From now on, your name will be Yaoguang." He stood with his head turned to the side, his tall figure making her heart skip a beat. So she didn't have to be Zhaodi. Later, she became a consort, but saw that the spirited young man of her past had become a demon crawling out of hell. She even watched him die a miserable death with her own eyes. Given another life, she resolved to protect this light and make it shine again. . Mei Shaoyuan was aloof and gloomy. Even after they married, he paid Huo Yaoguang no mind. But little by little, he noticed that the bitter medicine went down more easily, that a faint fragrance always chased away his nightmares, and that whenever his illness struck, someone would hold him close and whisper softly in his ear, "Don't be afraid." Then he saw the things he had casually discarded, stored away in a sealed box, and his gaze toward Huo Yaoguang began to change. One day, he cornered her against a wall, his eyes burning. "It was you." Huo Yaoguang stammered, "My lord, I don't understand what you mean." He took her hand, his warm thumb stroking the faint red mark, and smiled. "What a coincidence. Yesterday, I bit someone. Care to explain, madam?" Since you want me to be a star, then I'll be the brightest one, shining on you. -- Huo Yaoguang Reader's guide: One-on-one romance, both leads sexually inexperienced, happy ending, mutual healing, sweet romance. ----- Upcoming novel: The Marquis's Widowed Sister-in-Law. Please check it out! ----- [Domestic life + a guide to women's survival in ancient times + resisting indoctrination + girls helping girls. Read with caution if this is not your thing.] The third daughter of the Shang family was born to a concubine. Her childhood name was Zhaozhao, with the same "Zhao" as in Zhaodi. Her father didn't care for her, her mother didn't love her, and even the servants could kick her around. Shang Qingyu had just transmigrated into her body and looked up at the sky. What kind of nightmare difficulty was this? One day, she was married to the legitimate son of the Marquis of Xuanping's household as a good-luck bride. Everyone was waiting to laugh at her. Her vicious stepmother said with a fake smile, "Zhaozhao, your husband may be sickly, but you're a concubine's daughter. Marrying him is already a great blessing, so you'd better learn to be content." Shang Qingyu replied sincerely, "Mother is right. I can hardly compare to Eldest Sister. She's so young and already enjoys the emperor's favor. In a few years, she may even be promoted to Imperial Dowager Consort. Your good fortune is still to come." . The Marquis's household was full of intrigue. Her proud and haughty mother-in-law, her difficult sister-in-law, and her husband's concubines all made life hard for her. Shang Qingyu sighed. All she could do was meet each challenge as it came, and rise from a low-born daughter to become the lady of the marquis's household. In the end, she remarried Lu Jichuan, the marquis's second son, now a powerful official. All of Jinling was in an uproar, and scorn and criticism poured in from every side. Her proud mother-in-law said, "My son's dying wish was this: Qingyu is virtuous and wise. She fulfilled her duties as a wife and treated the family with generosity and thrift. She is a matchless wife. I will have no regrets as long as she is free again." Her willful sister-in-law said, "An elder sister-in-law is like a mother. I, Lu Yuan, will give my brother's name to send her off to her new marriage!" When she first entered the marquis's household, her sickly husband shakily handed her a letter. "I know I won't live long. All I can give you is a letter of release. I hope that one day you'll find a good man." Shang Qingyu was stunned. She put the letter away, her heart full of conflicting feelings. Three years later, his words came true, and she really did become a widow. The man who had coveted her for years cornered her, closing in step by step. Shang Qingyu's face flushed. "Lu Jichuan, have you gone mad?!" The man's rough thumb stroked her red lips as he leaned close to her ear. "I have. So what?" With nowhere left to run, Shang Qingyu hardened her heart. Fine, then. She'd give in. Lu Jichuan: Bright as the moon, Zhaozhao's heart is tender. That is the true meaning of Zhaozhao. Synopsis posted on June 20, 2023. Screenshot saved. Reader's guide: 1. One-on-one romance, both leads sexually inexperienced. The male lead is the younger brother of her late husband. There is some angst. 2. While the female lead is still married to the second male lead, she always treats the male lead with proper respect. Her feelings for the second male lead are familial affection, respect, and gratitude, and she remains faithful to her duties as his wife. ----- Upcoming novel: The Minister's Wife. Please check it out! ----- (Contains coercive romance, amnesia, and a false substitute trope. The female lead does not love the male lead. Read with caution if this is not your thing.) Xuan Qingyi was beautiful and graceful, with eyes full of affection. She and her husband, Li Jinglan, were seen by everyone as a loving couple. But the emperor took a liking to her and forced her to become his consort. "I beg Your Majesty to show mercy and return my wife to me." Outside the imperial study, Li Jinglan knelt for three days and three nights. As Xuan Qingyi served tea, her hand trembled, and tears filled her eyes. Gu Shian gripped her chin. "You love him that much? Fine. Minister Li has shown contempt for his superiors and offended the imperial court. Give him fifty strokes!" Xuan Qingyi threw herself forward, her face stricken with grief. "How is this any different from murder? If you want to kill him, kill me first!" . Gu Shian was an emperor who had crawled out of a pile of corpses. He would stop at nothing to get what he wanted. When he saw that Xuan Qingyi looked like the woman he had long yearned for, he seized her without hesitation. He humiliated and tormented her, all to make her submit. But even with tears in her eyes, Xuan Qingyi refused to bow her head. That night, arrows rained down. He pushed her out of the way, and only when a blade pierced her chest did he realize that she was the woman he had been searching for all these years. He went completely mad! . After finding Xuan Qingyi again, Gu Shian became cautious and solicitous, even kneeling on the ground just to wipe the dirt from her shoes. But Xuan Qingyi wouldn't even look at him. Her expression was cool as she said, "What does it matter if I remember everything? I don't love you, and I never will!" The man on the ground paused. He clenched his hands tight, then slowly relaxed them. He raised his head with a gentle smile. "How careless of you to get your shoes and socks dirty." Synopsis screenshotted on September 22, 2023. Reader's guide: 1. The female lead is not sexually inexperienced; the male lead is. She doesn't love him. The male lead gets a bad ending, while the female lead gets a happy ending. The male lead has concubines, but has never touched them. 2. The male lead uses coercion in the beginning, then spends the later part trying to win his wife back. Contains amnesia and a false substitute trope. Read with caution if this is not your thing. 3. Set in a fictional dynasty. The author has invented plenty, so please don't nitpick the history. 4. The author loves melodrama, so please respect that (bows deeply). Theme: Heal each other and grow together