Springtime in the Phoenix Era

The second book, Little Double Mountain: gender disguise, marriage before love. Please add it to your library.

[Dreamily Slacking-Off Female Merchant X Ambitious Emperor]

The Hong E Chun family was one of the most prominent imperial merchant houses in Jiangnan, specializing in fine silks and brocades. Their young lady had been pampered and raised in luxury ever since she was a little girl. Apart from losing her mother early, she had nothing else to worry about. She only had to do whatever made her happy, since her younger brother would take over the family business once he grew up.

But an unexpected disaster struck. Her father was killed after falling victim to a scheme, leaving only the elder sister and her little brother to depend on each other.

Her father was dead, but the family business could not collapse. Hundreds of people depended on it for their livelihood, and other merchants were watching like hawks. Ru Yin glanced at her brother, who was still shorter than a table, sighed, and reluctantly picked up the account books.

She was only so-so at business, but she was clever! Ru Yin knew that relying on her alone would not only fail to keep the family business afloat until her brother came of age, but would also leave her unable to avenge her father's death.

Ru Yin's mind whirred, and she decided to head north to the capital. She would find a way to cling to the biggest thigh in the land, and use the most powerful man's influence to secure her family's lasting prosperity and avenge her father's terrible murder.

The emperor went for a stroll in the imperial garden, while Ru Yin huffed and puffed as she made a bamboo dragonfly;

The emperor went to visit his younger sister, while Ru Yin taught the princess to embroider;

The emperor left the palace and was surrounded by street thugs, when Ru Yin appeared as if from the heavens, swinging a wooden stick with impressive force...

The emperor looked at Ru Yin, who seemed to be everywhere by his side, and sensed something was amiss.

He sneered inwardly. She was surely another vulgar woman trying every trick in the book to climb into his bed.

The emperor had run out of patience and had no time to watch her put on an act, so he decided to catch her off guard and ask outright whether she wanted to climb into his bed.

By convention, Ru Yin should have blushed furiously, denied it over and over, then burst into tears and confessed that she could not help herself.

Who would have expected Ru Yin to answer with perfect composure, "Yes. I hope Your Majesty will take a liking to me."

In his twenty years of life, the emperor had handled countless thorny political affairs and seen countless slippery ministers, but he had never met a woman so shamelessly upfront about it.

Ru Yin prided herself on being clever and made plans with thunderous confidence. She had thought she had accounted for everything, but had forgotten to account for her own uncontrollable heart.

In the midst of feigned affection, she came to understand the emperor's kindness. Reading between his words, she began to grasp his feelings, then fell headlong into love and could never escape.

But how could a mere merchant hope to spend her life with the emperor?

After giving it long and painful thought, Ru Yin was consumed by guilt and decided she could not keep making the same mistake.

She confessed everything and begged the emperor to punish her, preferably by driving her out of the palace.

The emperor remained unruffled. Setting aside the memorial in his hand, he smiled at her. "What, you don't want to climb into my bed anymore?"

Before Ru Yin could answer, the emperor rose and came closer, a glimmer sparkling in his eyes. "Then I wonder, would the young lady's embroidered bed allow me to lie on it?"

- Set in an invented dynasty. Customs and culture are broadly inspired by the early Qing period. Men do not shave their heads. Please do not scrutinize the historical details.

- One-on-one romance, both leads are sexually inexperienced, happy ending.

- The second book in the Great Qi Dynasty series, following Rain on Washed Branches. Visit the author's profile to read it.

-------Little Double Mountain-------

[Clever and Charming Princess X General Who Endures Frost and Snow] Gender disguise / marriage before love / age gap / rugged hero

Princess Yongjia was born to a life of privilege, the youngest daughter of the emperor and empress. Beautiful and graceful as an immortal, she was the apple of their eye, their precious darling.

People throughout the realm also loved to speculate about which noble scion would one day win her hand.

Yet in the twenty-seventh year of Cheng'an, Wei Changfeng, a deputy general in Shoubei, launched a surprise attack on the Jie people's minor royal court with only a single horse for company. He took the Jie prince's head with one stroke, then returned to Shoubei unharmed. The whole nation was shaken. The emperor was delighted and promoted Wei Changfeng to the second rank, issuing an imperial decree to Shoubei to reward him for his achievements.

But the petition for a reward, sent at a gallop from the northern frontier, contained just one request: "I beg Your Majesty to bestow Princess Yongjia upon me, Helian Chiyi."

The court and the common people were thrown into an uproar.

How could a princess of such exalted status be sent to the northern frontier to marry a mere soldier?

The Cheng'an Emperor was so furious that his liver ached, and he raged in the Hall of Mental Cultivation for three days.

Princess Yongjia shut herself away and sat listlessly in her palace for three days.

Three days later, the princess entered the Hall of Mental Cultivation.

"I will marry him," Chiyi said. "The northern frontier is a strategic stronghold and the gateway to our realm. Wei Changfeng commands a great army, so I should go there to help guard it on behalf of my royal father. Besides..."

Chiyi's gaze darkened. "Yuezhao died under mysterious circumstances. I want to find out why she lost her life."

Three years earlier, the emperor had arranged a marriage for Wei Changfeng. But before the wedding could take place, Yuezhao suddenly died in Shoubei. Chiyi was determined to seek the truth for her friend.

The wedding date was announced to the world, but on the very day the red wedding decorations filled the imperial city, the Jie people launched an invasion. Wei Changfeng led his troops into battle, leaving behind only a letter of apology.

The Wei family had earned glory for generations, winning countless military honors. But twenty-four years ago, an old affair brought the family to ruin, leaving only Wei Changfeng.

By the time he became a second-rank general and a garrison commander at a northern frontier pass, commanding an army of thousands, he was still only twenty-seven.

At first, Wei Changfeng merely wanted the princess brought into the Wei family to ward off misfortune and prevent the previous generation's tragedy from happening again. He had no interest in what the princess was like, simply because her surname was Helian.

The Helian family owed the Wei family. A debt owed by a father must be repaid by his son. It was only right.

As for him, a man who had endured frost and snow, he had never dreamed of tenderness.

Until one day, his personal guard reported that a handsome young gentleman had arrived in Shoubei. He spoke with an impressive command of formal court speech, was exceptionally eloquent, and seemed learned beyond compare. The military adviser stroked his beard and mused that this man could be recruited as a counselor.

Who would complain about having too many strategists at his side? Wei Changfeng nodded without much thought, never imagining that from then on someone would so easily bewitch him, body and soul.

Later, he willingly bowed his head and followed the counselor's every order, becoming their foot soldier. Even his ever-present treasured saber became a toy to make the princess smile.

After twenty years of bitter cold on the frontier, Wei Changfeng had thought that his life would be nothing but mountains upon mountains of winter.

One man, one horse, a lonely shadow on a cold mountain. A broken string with no one to hear it.

Then he turned and discovered someone by his side, accompanying him as they crossed one mountain after another, each more expansive than the last.

Beyond Little Double Mountain lay an open plain.

Theme: Human will can triumph over fate.