Two years after the new emperor ascended the throne, the ministers and Empress Dowager finally succeeded in persuading him to agree to take an empress.
After much searching, the ministers settled on Wen Ran, the legitimate granddaughter of Grand Academician Wen.
Everyone in the Wen family looked worried.
On her wedding day, they surrounded Wen Ran and spent the whole night warning her to keep her temper in check, lest she bring trouble upon herself.
So every day, in addition to minding the rules and propriety and managing all the affairs of the imperial harem, she had to put up with the emperor's occasional troublemaking.
For instance, the emperor always wanted to chat just as she was about to go to bed. She would be so sleepy her eyes could barely stay open, and after a few words, he would leave.
Or, the emperor loved inviting the capital's noblewomen and young ladies to banquets in the palace for every major and minor festival. She would bustle about doing all the work, while he would stop by for a glance and then leave.
And then there were days when the emperor wanted to have someone's head chopped off at court. The ministers couldn't talk him out of it, so they all ran to her and asked her to "fulfill her duty as empress and advise him."
She wanted nothing more than to drag him over and beat him up herself, but for the sake of her family, she could only grit her teeth and smile.
Then she dreamed that she finally turned the tables and became emperor. Her dear husband, who was always causing her trouble, knelt before her with a bewildered look on his face.
She grinned wickedly. "Guards, throw him out! Make him go count rice in the imperial treasury!"
The emperor, still unable to process what was happening: "?"
Zhao Jingxi has been having strange dreams lately. In them, his gentle and charming empress becomes an emperor who spends all day picking fights with him.
And he becomes one of the empress's consorts, forced to live beneath her and powerless to resist. All he can do is endure the humiliation.
Every time he wakes and remembers the indignities of his dreams, he grits his teeth and tells himself he must settle the score with the empress today.
But every time he sees her, she is as warm and gracious as ever, and he can't help closing his eyes and clenching his fists. It's only a dream. I need to stay calm.
A wise emperor should not take out his anger on someone over a baseless dream.
So he keeps enduring it: awake, he treats the empress with mutual respect; in his dreams, he pits his wits against her.
Until one day, the empress in his dream actually tells him to attend her in bed...
When he wakes, Zhao Jingxi leans against his pillow and gazes at the faint light of dawn outside the window. Remembering the softness of her lips in his dream, he sighs.
I'm done for. I've fallen for her!
Meanwhile, Wen Ran pats her still-pounding chest.
That was close. I almost fell for him!
[Reader's Guide]
1. One-on-one romance, happy ending.
2. Reality and dreams alternate, with more real-life scenes later on.
3. The setting is fictional, as always. No historical accuracy intended.
4. Starts in 2023 (not sure which month yet).
5. Please, please add it to your favorites!
Theme: Dare to dream!
