Unwilling to Be a Concubine

Xiao Hong had three chances to change her fate in her lifetime.

The first came when the young master of the Marquis of Yongping's household visited the Fragrant House for the first time. She did everything she could to seduce him, and got him to buy her freedom and take her as a concubine. The other women in the house were green with envy.

She was only fifteen that year.

The marquis's wife was gracious and virtuous, and never made things difficult for concubines like her. Though the young master was a womanizer, he doted on Xiao Hong, spoiling her so much that, in her youth, she forgot her place.

The second chance came at a banquet in the marquis's residence. In less than a year, the young master had grown tired of her and casually gave her away to a guest as if she were a plaything.

Only then did she understand that everything she had was merely a gift bestowed by those above her upon those below. The beloved, in truth, owned nothing.

She fled the marquis's residence and stumbled into a military camp by mistake, where she nearly got herself executed. Just in time, the only female general in the Great Shun Dynasty rescued her. That was when Xiao Hong learned that there were women in this world who could rise above countless mediocre men through their own abilities! She enlisted in the army. The hands that had once embroidered now wielded blades and spears, and she became one of the countless soldiers of the Great Shun Dynasty. She fought on the battlefield, surviving among the dead for ten years. When she returned to the capital, the young marquis who had once treated her as a plaything had to bow and salute her.

Another ten years passed. The court had grown corrupt, and the barbarian tribes invaded. After driving back the enemy, she joined forces with the Prince of Zhenbei to overthrow the court. On the day their armies gathered in the capital, the Prince of Zhenbei draped a scarlet cloak over her shoulders. With affection in his eyes, he took her hand and said, "There has never been a queen who remarried, but after you, there will be."

She gazed quietly at the Prince of Zhenbei and smiled. "But I want to be emperor, too."

[Warnings]

A story of growth. The heroine's values and personality change with her life experiences. She starts out foolish and naïve, and only becomes clever after enduring many hardships.

There is no fixed male lead; they are all just passing figures. Readers who require every character to be sexually untouched, run for the hills.

Theme: Born human, one should strive to improve oneself.