I Want Both You and the Empire

Tang Qingyue is a former dynasty princess, confined in the palace's inner quarters.

To escape the palace and reclaim her homeland, she will stop at nothing.

At last, she gets her chance. The heir of Nanmi, held hostage in Donghuan, takes her with him as he flees.

As they escape, he carries her through the streets, his back rising and falling like a boat gliding over the water. Later, she gives him the name Mu Nanzhou.

*

Mu Nuofengjia wants to be the boat that carries her through life.

After they are injured during their escape, she saves him and hides him in an abandoned temple. Asleep with her head on his lap, she murmurs about revenge.

He sees that beneath her fierce mask lies a lonely soul with nowhere to belong.

He returns to Nanmi, seizes the throne, and leads his army to help her take revenge, devoting himself to being the boat that carries her through life.

But when the war reaches a stalemate, she makes a deal with an old acquaintance and tricks him into returning to Nanmi.

That person is nearing death. He stakes his kingdom on a gamble, hoping she will fulfill their dream of being together.

When he hears that she has ascended the throne and married, he stops sending her letters... What kind of boat was he? He was just a discarded pawn!

*

Three years later, the empress of Donghuan brings her army to Nanmi's borders, demanding that the King of Nanmi show himself.

The King of Nanmi calmly ignores her and leaves the capital for a grand ceremony in the mountains.

The bonfire blazes, the exorcism dance reaches its climax, and a host of ghosts and demons whirl about.

Someone forces their way through the mountain gate and is hauled in by guards wearing ghost masks.

The Ghost King leans close and says bitterly, "Have you no shame?"

She removes his Asura mask and replies gently, "None at all! And I want you to bring your kingdom and your people and marry me!"

The King of Nanmi turns and lights an incense stick, watching her with keen interest. "I happen to need a living sacrifice. You have one incense stick's time to run for your life..."

After using him and casting him aside, she still wants him and his kingdom?

He was once like a loyal, clingy dog, by her side through life and death, begging her to return with him to Nanmi and share all three meals and every season.

He has waited three years. This time, it's her turn to beg.

Reader's Guide:

1. A battle between male rivals, followed by the male lead's redemption arc.

2. Both male leads have substantial roles in the plot, but the romance is one-on-one. Everyone in the story is sexually inexperienced.

3. A reserved consort who plans a thousand moves ahead; a passionate heir, swift as a leopard; a beautiful and fierce princess seeking revenge.

4. An imaginary setting inspired by the Tang dynasty.

Theme: Remember the past, cherish the present, and prepare for the future.