The Palace's Beloved

Wu Youxue was born with a bewitching beauty, charming and peerlessly gorgeous. The emperor bestowed on her the title of Beauty. On the night she was summoned to the emperor's bedchamber, the emperor suddenly died. Wu Youxue was implicated and was about to be buried alive with him. To survive, Wu Youxue risked her life to seek an audience with the Empress Dowager, only to run into the new emperor, Xie Jialan, a man of peerless beauty and cold indifference. She thought there was no hope for her, but unexpectedly, Xie Jialan pardoned her and even promoted her to Imperial Concubine Dowager. Not long after, she wanted to leave the palace, but just then the new emperor summoned her. She learned of his illness and recited Buddhist scriptures day and night for him. The new emperor's condition improved, but Wu Youxue found herself in a bind. If things continued this way, he might never let her go. In the end, with no other choice, Wu Youxue resorted to her last option: seducing Xie Jialan to make him hate her. With her graceful figure and alluring eyes shining with spring and autumn light, Wu Youxue gazed at the new emperor and tried to fall into his arms, looking utterly pitiful. The new emperor recoiled in disgust and said coldly, "Imperial Concubine Dowager Wu, have some self-respect." After a few twists and turns, Wu Youxue achieved her goal and happily entered a convent, thinking the two would never meet again. Who could have guessed that when she met her lover in secret, Xie Jialan would suddenly appear with soldiers... * Blurb from the male lead's perspective: Xie Jialan had always loathed women with vulgar, seductive looks. But that day, Wu Youxue knelt before him in plain clothes. Her jade-white skin and natural charm were impossible to conceal. He should have looked down on her and been utterly disgusted, yet he couldn't stop looking at her. For a moment, he was bewitched by her beauty and relented. Afterward, Xie Jialan came to dislike Wu Youxue even more. He looked down on her. She was nothing but a lowly, bewitching woman. So what if she was a good medicine for him? Xie Jialan calmly suppressed his restlessness and magnanimously chose to let her go. Until he learned that Wu Youxue had secretly given herself to another man and witnessed the intimacy between the "lovers." Xie Jialan could no longer keep up his calm facade. His gaze turned sinister, his blood ran hot, and every part of him screamed to seize Wu Youxue back and break her legs. [Bonus Scene] In the dim inner hall, candlelight flickered. Xie Jialan held Wu Youxue tightly in his arms. He lowered his head, and saw Wu Youxue weeping as she tried to endure the humiliation. Xie Jialan's Adam's apple bobbed. He couldn't help gripping her delicate chin and leaning close to her lips, his voice hoarse: "Tell me, who else do you want to seduce?" "How many other lovers do you have out there?" He scoffed. "However many you have, I'll kill them all." Notes: 1. The male lead is domineering and obsessive, a cold-blooded madman who takes what he wants. The female lead is strong, charming, and peerlessly beautiful. 2. Both leads are virgins. 3. This is writing practice. My skills are limited. 4. An old-school, melodramatic 'she runs, he chases' story (?). Let's see how it goes. Muah! 5. Entirely fictional, so please don't overanalyze the details~ 6. 80% of the book is behind anti-piracy protection, with the percentage decreasing later. Theme: Be brave in the face of adversity and keep moving forward