The Blind Prince's Ugly Bride for Good Luck (The Beggar Empress)

Mutual salvation. [Gentle, sensitive little man of a male lead x ordinary, overweight beggar girl of a female lead]

During a devastating plague in Jiangnan, just as Qi Miao was about to starve to death, she spotted a blind fortune-teller by the roadside.

She was so hungry that she was dizzy, and the blind gentleman looked absolutely delicious to her. Before she knew it, she had walked over.

The refined, moon-bright man cast a divination for her, and she was sent to the palace to bring good fortune to the old emperor.

Qi Miao stuffed herself with delicacies from the imperial kitchen for a whole month before she began to worry whether the old emperor would make use of her.

As it turned out, His Majesty escaped death and summoned her after waking to bestow a reward. Supporting her round belly, her puffy little face trembling with fear, she stood before the imposing, aged emperor. Before she could speak, a eunuch announced, "I pity Prince Qi, blind and frail as he is, so I shall send this auspicious girl to his manor to bring him good fortune as well. Guards, take her away at once."

*

Once she arrived at Prince Qi's manor, she discovered that Prince Qi was the very same handsome, immortal-like blind fortune-teller from that day!

As it happened, he couldn't see, and he was so mild-mannered and kind. Qi Miao thought there was no way she believed that nonsense about bringing good fortune. Her mother and younger sister were still being kept in the brothel, so she might as well pretend this was real. After all, there had never been a case of a blind man regaining his sight.

She would serve and please this one man, then quietly escape once she had earned enough money. It was a good deal for her.

*

So Zhu Yunli endured the awkwardness each day as he watched the chubby girl sneak around, trying to seduce him with all sorts of clumsy, laughable tricks.

That's right, he was only pretending to be blind to avoid being dragged into the fight for the throne.

Later, even his tastes changed. He grew increasingly enamored with the girl's soft, rounded belly, and his favorite thing was to hold her close and pinch her cheeks.

When he discovered she was selling her jewelry to run away, the man stood smiling in front of the dog hole she'd dug. With a shadow in his eyes, he asked gently, "After all the sweet treats you've eaten at the manor, Miao Miao, don't you think this dog hole is a little too small?"

P.S. 1. The male lead is pretending to be blind. He is a hypocritical gentleman with an unhappy childhood. Later, he turns dark, imprisons his father, and kills his elder brother. His life is cruel and dark, except for the part with the female lead.

2. The female lead really is a beggar. She acts obsequious, but in truth she looks down on everyone, even the emperor. She trusts no one and only wants to save up enough to live an ordinary, comfortable life.

3. Later on, she is first made a consort. There is a forced-possession trope, but the story is mainly about mutual salvation.

Theme: Never give up, no matter how bad the hand you're dealt.