At fifteen, Lin Wan was forced to enter the palace in place of her elder sister.
The emperor had no interest in her frail, delicate self. Still, he symbolically bestowed the title of Consort on her and gave her the prince Jiang Yan to raise as her own.
The first time they met, snow was falling thickly.
The boy stood alone at the doorway, without attendants. His clothes were old and thin, and he looked so wretched that he hardly seemed like a prince.
Only his eyes were strangely bright.
Lin Wan knew that Jiang Yan's birth mother was considered ill-omened. Even so, she couldn't help feeling compassion for him. "It's cold outside. Come in, quickly."
The gloomy boy raised his eyes to look at her.
After a long while, he stiffly called her, "Consort Mother."
At first, she had only invited him in to warm himself by the fire.
But that single call of "Consort Mother" stirred a little tenderness in her, and she did her best to treat the boy as if he were her own.
She gave him walnut pastries and made him sachets.
But little by little, he grew quieter and more withdrawn, and even the way he looked at her became sinister and frightening.
Only later did Lin Wan learn that he had long since believed the slander and mistaken her for the person who had killed his birth mother.
Later still, he wouldn't even call her Consort Mother anymore.
Heartbroken, Lin Wan volunteered to go to the imperial mausoleum to copy scriptures. The two did not see each other for years.
But when she next heard news of Jiang Yan,
he had raised an army in rebellion and murdered the reigning emperor.
When they met again, the man sat atop a tall horse in dark armor, his face stained with blood. He looked down at her from above, his eyes cold as icy stars.
She thought he was going to kill her.
But after everyone else had withdrawn, a flash of swordlight passed by, and Lin Wan felt only a chill as her clothes fell away in shreds.
Later, he imprisoned her in his bedchamber and humiliated her day after day.
"Not happy?"
Lin Wan clutched the quilt and hid at the head of the bed, her eyes red as she cursed him. "You're an animal, a pervert. Watch out, or Heaven will punish you!"
"Then what should I do?"
The man stood tall and elegant. He crushed the teacup in his hand, yet continued to smile gently. "A Li, I won't let you go again."
Only then did Lin Wan suddenly realize that believing the slander had been a lie, but being an animal was the truth.
He was her calamity.
It had already begun many years ago, on that snowy night when she invited him inside.
Scheming, gloomy heir x kind, silly beauty
[Cover artist: Paigu Xiaobao, officially licensed]
P.S. The male lead transmigrated here, and his views on love and marriage are modern. He observes traditional virtues, has a cleanliness complex when it comes to romance, and only loves the female lead, but he's got a thousand tricks up his sleeve. There are no ridiculous plotlines about using other people to rise to power. Apart from his romance with the female lead, he's a completely career-focused madman. He competes by fair means and doesn't use the female supporting characters as pawns.
P.S. The female lead entered the palace under another person's identity, and is actually younger than the male lead. He knows this. Her nickname is A Li.
P.S. Both leads are pure in body and heart. The only time the emperor tried to summon the female lead to his bed, the male lead sabotaged it. This will be explained in the main story.
Thesis: The empire is a dream; I pour a cup of wine to the moon over the river
