Gu Qing was given to Third Miss Lin Jiao as part of her dowry when Lin Jiao married into the Chengrui Marquis Estate.
Fifth Master Xue Sheng was abstinent and taciturn, with a cool, aloof nature. Soon after the wedding, he was posted away from the capital, leaving him and Lin Jiao living apart. Their affection for each other was thin.
Five years into the marriage, Lin Jiao still had no children. Though the Xue elders never said anything cruel, she couldn't help worrying. Madam Lin gave her some advice: "Rather than wait for Madam Xue to give him someone, you should take the initiative. Pick a few obedient, manageable maids, make them his concubines, and have them help you keep his affections."
Gu Qing was exceptionally beautiful, and Lin Jiao had always kept a close watch on her. With no other choice, and thinking of the future, she had to send Gu Qing to Xue Sheng. Lin Jiao kept reassuring herself that, given Xue Sheng's temperament, Gu Qing would likely suffer the same cold treatment.
That night, Xue Sheng removed the jewels from Gu Qing's hair and gently drew her into his arms, teasing her. "So, is this what you wanted?"
Gu Qing shook her head.
This wasn't the status she wanted, that of a bedchamber maid.
She wanted Lin Jiao to suffer until she couldn't go on, to be ruined beyond redemption. She wanted them to pay for their debts in blood.
A few notes before reading:
A locally rooted historical novel, slow-paced and focused on everyday family life.
None of the characters are perfect, and both leads have obvious flaws. The heroine schemes against others to achieve her goals, so she may resort to playing the victim. If you consider that "the heroine being abused," please click away.
The male lead is not a virgin. If you liked Fei's previous novel, where the heroine was not a virgin but the hero was, this one may make you uncomfortable. Fei wants to try writing all kinds of stories, so please understand.
Everyone has their own point of view and story. Foreshadowing and hidden circumstances don't mean someone is "making excuses for the male or female lead" or "whitewashing" them. Please don't judge the characters in this story by modern standards. If you can't accept that, feel free to click away. There's no need to leave a comment to let me know.
My next novel: The Imperial Princess (working title, subject to change)
Synopsis: In the nineteenth year of Zhanghe, the emperor's fifth daughter, Cheng'an, was married off to Li Yan, a powerful minister.
After the imperial decree announcing their marriage was issued, the two met outside the palace. They agreed to settle their romantic entanglements from before the wedding and do their best to become a model couple.
On their wedding night, Li Yan spent the whole night discussing affairs with someone. Cheng'an was unperturbed and, in the blink of an eye, summoned Zhu Heng, heir to the Marquis of Yongning, to her residence.
The next morning, Li Yan walked into Zhaoyue Hall in the Princess's residence at dawn. He parted the hanging curtain, and the first thing he saw was a pair of men's official boots patterned with clouds.
Li Yan raised his phoenix eyes slightly and smiled.
"Fifth Princess, you really are as interesting as the rumors say."
In the twentieth year of Zhanghe, the emperor died. Cheng'an wore mourning robes, with the thirteen-year-old Crown Prince's heir hiding behind her.
Torrential rain washed over the white marble steps before the Hall of Supreme Harmony. Cheng'an drew her sword from its sheath and glared at the man before her. "Li Yan, don't you dare!"
Li Yan chuckled. The rain could not distort his handsome face, as cold and flawless as jade. Clad in armor, he advanced step by step. Now that he'd come this far, of course he dared.
For the first time, sorrow appeared on Cheng'an's bold, carefree face. She turned her wrist and laid the blade against her own throat. "If you want to kill the emperor, you'll have to step over my corpse first."
The smile in Li Yan's eyes turned to unprecedented terror the instant the blade cut into Cheng'an's snowy skin.
He loved the way she was radiant, carefree, and spirited.
He had secretly sworn to protect her and keep her carefree for the rest of her life.
Had he ever said no to anything she wanted?
1. Neither lead is a virgin, and each has a few romantic entanglements. A few, not just one. An arranged-marriage-to-love story; the hero falls first.
2. Neither is particularly restrained or self-denying. Both are selfish hedonists.
3. The male lead is a treacherous minister and a rebel, not a good person. There may be a lot of palace drama. The heroine is bold and domineering, and has no idea what it means to be gentle and virtuous.
Theme: Your fate is in your own hands, if you are willing to strive for it.
I saw many people on Weibo saying that after Revenge is over, it won't look good, and they even used the word "bad ending", but I don't think that's the case. The recent Korean drama "Dark Glory" was released in its first season, and it was also about revenge. The male protagonist asked the female protagonist: What will you do after your revenge is over? Yes, revenge is a very hard process, and the heart is full of hatred. It is this hatred that supports people to persevere. So what should we rely on to promote life after revenge? I am very happy that the author gave Qingcheng such a good ending and explained how her heart, which is free and not wrapped in hatred, can be filled with other things. Although her initial persistence was a bit unkind, if Xue Sheng couldn't withstand such a test, how could he provide shelter for her riddled heart? This is good now, a good result in a worldly sense, very good.
Well. . . The heroine is still doing something
The male protagonist, who is a pure tool, only allows the female protagonist to love and hate, and the male protagonist will only be infinitely tolerant... The ancient structure and modern thinking start with the plot of feudal wives and concubines, but it turns out to be a modern love story. I like the author's design and plot, but such a blunt grafting would be better than simply letting it take its course, or the ending with more foreshadowing of emotional mutual help... A post-revenge story that is too hasty.
The fate of the Lin family was too light, and they harmed so many people. In the end, they became so "crazy". This madness was just the madness of the Lin family who did not want to face their own fate. She just did not want to face the fact that she had lost her position as the young mistress of the Xue family and lost her self-esteem because of her affair. The ending of Xue Sheng and Qingcheng is still very happy. Both people have made changes and efforts for each other.
The heroine is a bit pretentious! Not much to pay for a small family. It is best to settle down in the capital city. It is unrealistic to travel back and forth between the two places in ancient times.
Written with very modern thoughts
There is no sense of disconnection in this article if it is changed to a modern background. The plot direction is no different from the mainstream revenge and wife-chasing articles, but the author's ancient Chinese writing style is still good. You can make the readers read it without being too dramatic, but some places are too pretentious, the parallel use of three sentences, and some specious adjectives. I don't know if it is to avoid JJ's review, or if the words are not fully understood. In short, it reads strangely.
The first part is very compact, and the psychological description is also very delicate. The second part is a bit fast, but it has a beginning and an end. I hope the next one will be better.
Check out Wan Ting Chun after reading this book. After all, I still like the author's writing style. It's not easy to find a treasure author by accident. There are fewer and fewer people to see in Jinjiang now.
Generally speaking, the writing style is good and the story direction is good, but the details are not in place. The emotional connection between the characters needs to be strengthened. It is suitable to be read when there is a book shortage. The author can also read the works of some other excellent authors. Learn the inner feelings of the characters and how to better express them in the work.