Above the Jade Terrace

In the third year of Zhaoming, Xie Shenyun slaughtered the entire imperial clan and put a three-year-old child on the throne. Using an iron fist, she seized power and governed as regent, becoming the Inner Chancellor. A month later, the Marquis of Yan, Shen Shuangye, marched at the head of an army of two hundred thousand to protect the emperor and arrived in Chang'an. At the Qianqiu Terrace, he met the female chancellor who held the court in the palm of her hand. Spring sunlight illuminated the clouds. On the terrace, the woman was radiant as snow, her bearing sublime and lofty, like the moon hanging high in the heavens. She seemed never to have been touched by worldly dust, and no one dared gaze upon her with desire. No one knew that Shen Shuangye had once imprisoned Xie Shenyun deep within a tent, binding her wrists with a slender silver chain. Back then, Xie Shenyun was as cold and aloof as ever. She remarked casually, "What a pity. If it were me, I'd put it around your neck." [Please note] 1. A ruthless, power-hungry, unhinged beauty who will do anything to seize power x a scheming, calculating court official who stirs up storms. They love and hate each other, and both pursue the other. Both are inexperienced. Happy ending. 2. The female lead is a little bit of a universal heartthrob, but everyone wants her dead. 3. A cast of villains, with a bit of an ensemble feel. Everyone is career-driven and has eight hundred schemes up their sleeve, constantly trying to outact one another. [My next novel will be I Don't Know the One Beside My Pillow. Please add it to your collection!] Chai Yunsheng was born into poverty and knew from childhood that the gap between social classes was as vast as heaven and earth. Everyone told her she was fated to live that way, and that the only way to change her destiny was to attach herself to the powerful. Fortunately, she was blessed with great beauty and eventually married into a noble family. After several years of marriage, Chai Yunsheng remained childless, but the Duke's household needed an heir. Her mother-in-law wanted her husband to take a concubine, but he firmly refused, citing his deep affection for his wife. Then one day, Chai Yunsheng was accidentally exposed to a love potion. When she awoke, the man sleeping beside her was not her husband. Pei Xuanzheng was accidentally exposed to a love potion and spent the night with his friend's wife. The next morning, his friend caught them. Swallowing his humiliation, the friend begged him to keep the matter secret so as not to ruin his wife's reputation. A month later, however, that friend came to him with a request: he wanted Pei Xuanzheng to give his wife a child. Pei Xuanzheng was born into the prestigious Hedong Pei clan. Noble in status and upright in character, he had never before entertained such an outrageous request. But faced with his friend's plea, he concealed the deep darkness in his eyes and finally agreed. Years later, Chai Yunsheng looked at Pei Xuanzheng sleeping soundly beside her and thought: Men in this world are so shallow. They think women are weak, yet they never see the true face of the person beside them. Little did they know that she had never truly seen the person beside her either. For example, the first time Pei Xuanzheng saw her at the moonlit banquet all those years ago, he decided she was meant to be his. Content warning: 1. A calculating, cold-hearted, and ruthless female lead x a male lead who appears to be a refined gentleman but is actually dark and unhinged. Both are inexperienced. Happy ending, but the female lead and the second male lead are married and have been intimate. 2. I'll add more if I think of anything. Theme: Integrity is worth more than gold; honor shines through the ages.