The Young Childhood Friend of the Aloof General

* Pre-release: "Seizing Zhao". "Zhaozhao, speak any louder and someone will hear you." Blurb at the bottom.

* The whole book costs only four yuan, cheaper than pirated copies! Blurb below:

[Sweet, clever childhood sweetheart vs. seemingly refined, aloof beauty, but actually a calculating, truly unhinged man]

Before her coming-of-age ceremony, Si Xingheng suffered a head injury and became the easy target of the young ladies of the capital.

She meekly scraped by in the marquis's household until her mother returned victorious and entrusted her to the accomplished young man next door.

She often brought her favorite pastries to watch Huo Qi ride horses and practice swordsmanship.

Rumors that the two were childhood sweethearts grew louder and louder, until she put an end to them herself:

"Brother Qi is good to me, and I'm good to him. Why would I have to marry him?"

Unexpectedly, after her mother died and her fellow disciples were slaughtered, she lowered herself to the dust, meek and timid, only for her half-sister to kick her into the lake.

What upset her was that she hadn't yet had a chance to let Huo Qi try the medicinal dishes she'd just learned to make.

When she opened her eyes again, she was fourteen once more.

Looking at the estate, where a storm was about to break, this time she hid behind Huo Qi, who had always seemed noble and unsullied.

A sharp crack rang out.

She slapped everyone who had bullied and humiliated her right across the face.

In the eyes of the world, Huo Qi was a dashing general, young and splendid in his armor. Yet he laid the most elaborate trap, one that spanned years.

He went to great lengths to stay by her side, hiding his surging love beneath his cool exterior.

"She's still young. There's no rush."

It wasn't until she put on a bridal gown to marry someone else over a few trivial matters he could have settled with a snap of his fingers that he realized that, all these years, he'd been nothing more than a kind older brother from next door.

With no other choice, he put on red robes, quietly slaughtered everyone at her wedding, and lifted her veil at the auspicious hour.

"A-Heng, whatever you want, I can give you."

Huo Qi taught his little beast a few clever tricks so she wouldn't end up in tears every time someone bullied her.

But at some point, she began to see right through him too, and would even use that sweet, aggrieved look to do ruthless, heartless things.

Huo Qi thought that his A-Heng had become a wolf in sheep's clothing, all because of him.

Reader's guide:

1. Both leads are each other's first and only, happy ending, one-on-one romance, no misunderstandings or melodrama, sweet and doting, with both firmly choosing each other.

2. The heroine is not stupid!! She's pretending!!

3. The hero is genuinely unhinged behind the heroine's back. His moral compass is set around her.

4. I only used historical figures I like as inspiration for a novel. This is not a biography of them, and I'm not qualified to write one. Please stop saying I've distorted history. If you can't stand fictional stories, here's a recommendation: Sima Qian's Records of the Grand Historian. I'm sure you'll like it.

***Pre-release blurb for "Seizing Zhao"***

Both leads are each other's first and only, happy ending, one-on-one romance.

"Zhaozhao, speak any louder and someone will hear you."

Song Ling, the emperor's younger brother, wreaked havoc in court for over a decade, imprisoning the emperor and committing countless atrocities. In the end, he died at the hands of the empress.

Cen Zhao plunged a razor-sharp dagger into Song Ling's chest and twisted the hilt to make him suffer, watching as the light in his eyes went out.

Unexpectedly, Cen Zhao was reborn on the day she first entered the palace and married the emperor.

She decided to live differently. If she didn't become empress, she wouldn't meet that man-eating devil.

The palace hall was just as she remembered, filled with blazing wedding candles and red silk as far as the eye could see. Cen Zhao lifted her veil and disguised herself as a palace maid.

But when she opened the doors, all she saw were bones and blood, heard cries of agony and despair, and the measured footsteps drawing closer.

She lowered her eyes in panic, only for a dagger to lift her chin.

The tip of the blade nearly pierced her throat. The man holding it glanced at her nonchalantly, blood at his lips, laughing in fury.

"Well, well, little empress. It's been a while."

The emperor was often unwell. Song Ling built up the prison system, purged his opponents, and treated everyone with a ruthlessness that defied life and death. Yet this man personally arranged the empress's coming-of-age ceremony.

On the day of the birthday banquet, with all the officials gathered, Song Ling dragged Cen Zhao into a secluded place and pinned her firmly against the dragon throne. His long fingers slid down from her waist as he spoke hoarsely.

"Sister-in-law, cry out any louder and the emperor will hear you."

Theme: A love where both sides pursue each other will always bear fruit.