The Emperor's Regret

[No Second Chance After the Breakup]

From a patient, self-effacing Sixth Prince to the emperor,

Qi Yu had Ruan Yanyin, the second daughter of the loyal and industrious Earl's family, by his side through the darkest twelve years of his life.

She gave him her heart and stood with him through every hardship.

He promised her they would be together, just the two of them, for the rest of their lives.

It was only when the beloved only daughter of the Duke of Zhenguo entered the palace and was made Consort Shu

that Ruan Yanyin realized Qi Yu's vows were nothing but snowflakes lost in the dust.

That day, a bitter wind howled as heavy snow fell, and Consort Shu gave birth to the emperor's eldest son.

Everyone was busy congratulating the emperor. No one remembered the woman in the Cold Palace.

Qi Yu thought Ruan Yanyin, who had been by his side for twelve years, would stay with him forever,

until news came that she had passed away.

His eyes bloodshot, he held her in his arms. "Yanyin, don't go..."

But she never woke again.

It was widely said that the emperor's newly appointed empress came from humble origins,

but was deeply beloved and securely held her place as head of the imperial harem.

Only the empress herself knew she was favored simply because her features bore a seven-tenths resemblance to those of the late empress, who had died young.

Back then, no one could have imagined

that the usually composed and reserved emperor would stand all night outside the side room of a female physician who looked nothing like the late empress,

letting the drifting snow settle on his shoulders...

Content warnings:

1. Qi Yu is the male lead because he has a lot of scenes, but he gets reduced to ashes. The female lead fakes her death, and she has another official pairing.

2. A fictional historical setting. The plot takes precedence over logic.

Coming Soon 1: Marrying My Cousin Again [Both Leads Reborn]

Jiang Qinghe was a young lady from a family of scholars, with a celestial beauty and a clever, gracious nature.

After her parents died, her uncle took advantage of the fact that there were no sons in her branch of the family, colluded with the elders of the clan to strip her of her inheritance, and seized the property her father had bought.

Lost and helpless, Jiang Qinghe took her young sister to the capital to seek refuge with the Dowager Lady of the Marquis of Jining's household.

The Dowager Lady doted on them, treating the sisters like her own granddaughters. If not for what happened, when the time came for Jiang Qinghe to marry, the Dowager Lady would have arranged for her to wed the third son of the Right Vice Minister of the Court of State Ceremonial.

But fate had other plans.

On the day of the Dowager Lady's sixtieth birthday, Jiang Qinghe was set up and ended up intimate with Xu Huaishu, the heir of the marquis's household.

When everyone burst in, she was dazed and disheveled, clinging to Xu Huaishu and shyly calling him "Cousin."

After such a disgraceful affair, the marriage matches the Dowager Lady had arranged for the sisters were naturally canceled.

Her marriage to Xu Huaishu was a simple affair, without the three betrothal letters or six wedding rites. Afterward, their lives together drifted along in a daze.

The Dowager Lady was so devastated she could barely hold her head up, and she spent her days in gloom. She died only a few years later.

Her sister, Jiang Shuangjiang, suffered because of her too. Hounded by gossip, she eventually cut off her hair and retreated to a Buddhist temple.

When she opened her eyes again, Jiang Qinghe had returned to the age of sixteen.

The Dowager Lady was still in good health, and Shuangjiang was still innocent and carefree.

She was not yet the shameless vixen outsiders accused of climbing the social ladder through marriage.

She could still choose a different path...

Coming Soon 2: My Sister A-Yao

Female lead's perspective:

Three days after the wedding, the carriage slowly rolled into the alley. Shen Yao gently lifted the curtain to look outside.

High gray-tiled walls lined both sides of the alley, and her elder brother stood solemnly at the entrance.

Shen Yao let the curtain fall and smoothed her already neat collar.

When the carriage stopped, Cui Nian'an wrapped her in a cloak and helped her down.

Shen Yao blushed, lowered her head, and smiled faintly.

Qin Lin's gaze darkened. In a low voice, he said, "You're back."

Male lead's perspective:

Three days after the wedding, A-Yao was dressed in bright red. Her dark hair was styled in a falling-horse bun, and her pomegranate-flower earrings set with red gems made her skin look like creamy jade.

His little sister was graceful and elegant, while Cui Nian'an was as refined as an orchid and as handsome as jade. What a perfectly matched couple.

Qin Lin looked up. The spring sunlight glittered with a cold gleam, dazzling him.

Qin Lin suddenly remembered that night. He had drunk himself into a stupor and lain unconscious on his bed.

In a haze, someone had helped him out of his clothes, stained with filth, and wiped his face.

The person leaned down and gently touched the corner of his lips.

A faint fragrance of gardenias lingered in his nose, never quite fading.

The next day, pretending to be casual, he said to Shen Yao, "You're grown up now. It's time I found you an elder sister-in-law."

He only remembered that the chopsticks in A-Yao's hand had fallen to the floor with a sharp clatter.

Coming Soon 3: Cousin Meibao

In the twenty-fourth year of Jinghe, war ravaged the northwest, and the people suffered as they were driven from their homes.

The war cost Liu Luoying, the only daughter of the Liu family, both her parents.

When Madam Xu Wanxin of the Duke of Dingguo's household heard the news, she hurriedly arranged for the poor child to be brought to the capital.

Looking at the frail little girl, gaunt and timid, Xu Wanxin burst into tears before she could say a word.

That year, Luoying was ten.

In the twenty-ninth year of Jinghe, at the New Year's Eve family banquet, Liu Luoying met Zhou Yanqi, who had just returned to the capital.

Zhou Yanqi wore black. He was peerlessly handsome and carried himself with striking confidence. Liu Luoying couldn't help stealing a glance.

Noticing her gaze, Zhou Yanqi turned and flashed her a roguish smile.

Liu Luoying's face flushed. She curtsied and softly said, "Greetings, Cousin Yanqi."

That year, Luoying was fifteen.

The emperor passed away, and a nine-year-old ascended the throne.

The young emperor was narrow-minded, sensitive, and suspicious. He purged his rivals, distrusted his close officials, and feared the powerful aristocratic families. Even the Duke of Dingguo's household, loyal for generations, could not escape his suspicions.

To protect his household, the duke began to consider withdrawing from public life.

His first step was to call off the childhood engagement between Zhou Yanqi and the legitimate daughter of the Marquis of Yong'an, forcing him to marry Liu Luoying, who had lost both her parents and could offer the Zhou family no benefit.

That year, Luoying was seventeen.

Zhou Yanqi, heir to the Duke of Dingguo, had been sent by his father to train with the army in his youth.

He had seen much of the world and most disliked those who curried favor and put on a false front,

like his distant cousin, who was always flattering people to win his mother's favor.

So when his father forced him to marry Cousin Luoying, he was wholly unwilling.

He didn't know that Luoying didn't want this marriage either.

Theme: Sincere affection is precious.