(Faked Death + Ensemble of Young Characters + Disguised as a Man)
-Eight Years as Classmates, a Dreamlike Illusion-
"Lu Du'an, you're old, you know."
Jiang Chuyue has returned to the world where she once carried out her mission.
Her former husband, Lu Du'an, stands before her, sneering.
Thirty years ago, Jiang Chuyue was bound to the Gentleman-Making System, which tasked her with reforming Lu Du'an, a treacherous minister, into a true gentleman.
Born into a prestigious family, Lu Du'an became the top scholar personally selected by the emperor at eighteen. He entered the Grand Secretariat at thirty, and five years later became chief grand secretary.
He manipulated power and dominated the court for fourteen years, until the new emperor ordered the extermination of his entire clan. He died on a snowy day at the age of forty-nine.
When Jiang Chuyue arrived in his world, Lu Du'an's grandfather had just been dismissed from office, his father had died suddenly while serving in his post, and his mother had hanged herself at home.
Lu Du'an was twelve that year.
He calmly took care of the funeral, made arrangements for his grandfather, then set off alone for Baihe Academy in Qizhou to study.
To reform Lu Du'an, Jiang Chuyue disguised herself as a man and became his junior fellow student. She stayed by his side through his youth, gave him warmth, and gradually straightened out his twisted nature. She watched him make friends with good teachers and companions, and ultimately become a gentleman worthy of everyone's respect.
On the day Lu Du'an married her, Jiang Chuyue completed her mission and vanished from his world forever.
In his youth, Lu Du'an once met a blind Daoist priest who predicted that the first half of his life would be filled with hardship, the second half with glory, and that after seven cycles of seven years he would return to his hometown.
The priest's predictions later came true one by one. His grandfather became senile, his father died suddenly, his mother hanged herself, and a century-old clan collapsed in an instant.
Amid a snowstorm, he carried his grandfather on his back as he sought a doctor. Thinly clad and barefoot, with all hope lost, he saw the profligate Jiang Chuyue sitting in a carriage, reaching out to him with a smile and saying:
"Get in."
For many years afterward, he fought with all his might to climb higher, from Wu County to the capital. Every step was difficult, yet Jiang Chuyue was with him at every turn.
Then one day, Jiang Chuyue suddenly disappeared.
He asked everyone he could find.
Yet no one remembered her.
Beneath the red bridal veil, he found the letter Jiang Chuyue had left for him, and in the end, he calmly accepted what had happened.
For the next thirty-two years, he rose steadily, dominating the court and becoming The Outcast, second only to the emperor and above all others. Yet he could never find Jiang Chuyue again.
Eight years as classmates, a dreamlike illusion. Thirty-two years passed, and he walked on alone, hesitating at every turn. He waited in the snow for seven years, then another seven, until old friends had passed away and his hair had turned completely white. In the sixth seven-year cycle, on an autumn day, he finally waited for Jiang Chuyue to return.
But by then, he was already old.
[Content Warnings]
1. The story uses frequent flashbacks and retrospective narration, with an ensemble cast.
2. One-on-one romance, both leads are each other's only partners.
Theme: I meant to plant osmanthus and share wine with you, but in the end, it was nothing like the carefree days of our youth.
