Blurb:
After the late emperor's death, the ambitious empress dowager and the regent who controls the court are at each other's throats, battling in the open and in secret.
The general, who commands a powerful army, must protect his elder sister, the empress dowager, and so becomes the lofty regent's foremost enemy.
At a grand banquet, the young general gets drunk and muddled, mistakenly embracing a "beauty." They spend a passionate night together. When he wakes in a lakeside pavilion, he discovers a silk handkerchief belonging to the regent beneath him.
The honest, forthright general goes to the prince's residence to apologize and take responsibility.
The regent, furious and humiliated at having lost his chastity, denies it outright and finds his nemesis even more unbearable.
Later, a pack of nonsense from the Imperial Observatory persuades the regent to give in and become the general's wife.
From then on, at court by day, the eloquent regent berates the tongue-tied general until he falls silent.
After court in the evening, the proud, dignified regent is bullied by the mighty general until all he can do is beg for mercy.
A few things to know:
1. Tsundere, sharp-tongued queen bottom X quiet, scheming, seemingly honest top
2. A dog-blooded marriage-before-love story.
3. Childbirth. (I just want to write about the regent working around the clock, and late at night, while he handles memorials, the general shows up holding a bawling baby, looking pitiful and helpless. The regent gives him a disdainful look and mutters under his breath...)
4. An alternate world with a mountain of invented details. Please don't overanalyze!
Theme: Those who love others are always loved in return.
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