Scent of Green Plums

[Main story complete, currently fixing typos. Extra chapters will be updated irregularly.]

In her previous life, the Jiang family trusted the wrong people, and ended up with every member either dead or injured.

Fortunately, Heaven granted someone another chance to start over.

Only, the one who received this chance was not Jiang Fu.

*

Jiang Fu's elder brother was the Crown Prince's study companion, and thanks to him, His Highness often visited the Jiang residence.

Everyone said the current Crown Prince was an otherworldly immortal untouched by earthly concerns, but Jiang Fu didn't see it that way.

His Highness demanded the finest food, prepared to perfection. He insisted on wearing the latest fashions, without a single wrinkle, and never looked people in the eye. No matter what the matter, he would always offer the same cool assessment: "Acceptable."

Even the imperial consorts and princesses didn't live as carefully as he did.

The Crown Prince was of marriageable age and still unmarried, so choosing his Crown Princess was becoming urgent.

Her brother teased, "My sister's beauty rivals the rosy clouds and the moon. She's a perfect match for Your Highness's bearing."

The proud Crown Prince lifted his chin slightly and gave his usual verdict: "Acceptable."

Jiang Fu lowered her head, pretending to be shy, and secretly rolled her eyes.

He might not want to marry her, but she didn't want to marry him either.

The Crown Prince's bride selection was a grand affair, but Jiang Fu feigned illness to avoid attending.

Then her good-for-nothing brother ruined everything. He knew perfectly well she was pretending to be sick, yet he arranged for the Crown Prince to visit their home, where he walked right in on her.

The Crown Prince left with a dark expression. She couldn't help feeling uneasy, and her brother looked troubled too.

The bride selection came to nothing, and Jiang Fu breathed a sigh of relief as life returned to normal.

Until the first snow of the winter solstice, when she received a little snow cat sculpted by His Highness himself. He stood before her and awkwardly said:

"It's snowing today. Let's make up."

Jiang Fu stared blankly at the little cat in his hands. When had they ever quarreled? And what kind of relationship did they have that required making up?

Bonus scene:

The Crown Prince's insistence on the finest food, prepared to perfection

Jiang Fu excitedly brought Xie Wen a pile of black, unidentifiable objects to taste.

Xie Wen took one look and refused.

Jiang Fu sneered. "My father can eat it, and my brother can eat it. Why can't you? You're so spoiled! I can't marry a man this fussy."

Xie Wen gritted his teeth. "I'll eat it."

The Crown Prince's attire

Every time the Crown Prince was due to visit the Jiang residence, the Eastern Palace was at its busiest an hour beforehand.

A guard said, "His Highness is already handsome. He doesn't need any extra adornments. He just needs to look natural."

A young eunuch disdainfully curled his fingers into an orchid pose. "Don't listen to his nonsense. His Highness is already twenty-six, and still unmarried. They say clothes make the man, so His Highness must dress up properly."

A young palace maid wholeheartedly agreed. "The eunuch is right!"

In front of the bronze mirror, Xie Wen was half-convinced by their advice. "Will she really like this?"

Then he coldly slapped away the young palace maid's hand as she tried to pin a flower in his hair.

Two-faced, rebellious, well-read (loves romance stories) noblewoman / arrogant, narcissistic, fussy, pure-hearted Crown Prince

One-on-one romance, both leads' first time

Young Emperor and Empress

The female lead is the sole protagonist. A faux ensemble cast, not a romance-focused story from beginning to end.

Content warning:

The heroine has her own little schemes, and every character in the book has their own agenda. No one is perfect. If you can't keep reading, just drop it. Please don't curse me or the characters in the book, I beg you.

Discussion of the plot is welcome, but personal attacks are not, whether aimed at the author or the characters.

When Wen Ci was a child, she watched lots of romance dramas. Whenever a domineering CEO's mother threw five million yuan at the Cinderella heroine, the heroine would always refuse with righteous indignation.

Every time, Wen Ci wished she could take the heroine's place and stuff the five million into her own pocket.

After growing up, she never expected to actually date a rich man. Her boyfriend was handsome, wealthy, and incredibly generous!

The only problem was that he was too rich for Wen Ci to handle. When a delicate, fragile flower appeared at his side, Wen Ci broke up with him.

Then her boyfriend's mother came to see her and offered her ten million yuan to leave her son.

Wen Ci thought she'd hit the jackpot. Taking advantage of the information gap, she accepted the money, reminded the woman to mark it as a voluntary gift, then quickly blocked her boyfriend on WeChat and by phone.

With the money, Wen Ci enjoyed herself for quite a while and put the man out of her mind. When someone tried to set her up with a handsome guy, Wen Ci put on a solemn expression. "Sigh, my ex was such a terrible person. He hurt me so badly that I've got PTSD when it comes to men."

She turned around and saw her ex-boyfriend's livid face, and jumped in fright.

But she quickly recovered. They'd broken up, so who cared? He was the one who kept telling people she had chased after him!

Pah! Didn't everyone call her a desperate simp? Then she had every right to go around telling people he was a scumbag.

Her plans soon fell by the wayside as she was swept up in the joys of being rich. No matter how her ex-boyfriend tried to get back at her, she remained unmoved.

Until one late night, the QQ account she'd forgotten to delete started bombarding her with messages. Every picture showed the calico kitten she and her ex-boyfriend had raised together.

There were also voice messages from the man, pretending to sound pitiful:

"Come back. The kitten misses its mommy. It's about to cry little pearls."

Unfeeling woman / dramatic, clingy man who throws himself at her

Theme: Love life