Tales of the Han Dynasty

[Content warnings: Both leads are non-virgins. The male lead has a harem, and the female lead has an ex-husband. They both have children who are not the other's. Both have very low moral standards, so readers with strong moral sensibilities should proceed with caution.] [For fans of cute kitty stories, here's a recommendation: That Little Thing About Becoming My Ex-Boyfriend's Cat After I Died by Jiao Yunduo] [The author is currently in the thick of thesis season, so updates follow the rankings. Tuesdays and Wednesdays are usually a frantic race against the clock.] [After the leads meet, they become an exclusive couple.] “You are destined for greatness. You will give birth to an emperor.” It was only after her first marriage that Wang Zhi heard these words from a mad fortune-teller. They revealed the secret of the child in her womb, awakened her memories of a past life, and made her realize who she was in this life. A formidable woman who remarried a crown prince and went on to become empress, she was the second empress of Emperor Xiaojing of Han, Liu Qi, and the mother of Emperor Xiaowu, Liu Che. * Wang Zhi: (raising an eyebrow) Oh? I'm the mother of an emperor on the level of those rulers remembered for all eternity? * As the saying goes, if you don't feast from five cauldrons in life, you'll be boiled in five cauldrons in death. If she could reach the pinnacle of power, why not give it a try? * Liu Qi: (smiling) Then we're a perfect match. [A note for readers] *A ruthless, sharp-tongued, ungrateful yet capable ruler / an ambitious, shrewd empress who abandons her husband and daughter *Neither lead is a good person. They're a confirmed pair of villains, and their morals are the muddy current of feudal society. Readers with higher moral standards should proceed with caution. *The younger sister will not enter the palace, and her four sons will be written out of history. After the leads meet, they become an exclusive couple. That's the author's decision. *A parallel-universe Han dynasty, with light historical research. If you find anything that doesn't match history and the author hasn't researched, please treat it as an alternate setting or a deliberate choice made for the story. *The author is under a lot of academic pressure and doesn't want to deal with too much negativity. I've already included plenty of warnings. If anyone still gets upset and starts cursing in the comments, their comment will be deleted. *At heart, this is a pairing-focused story. Our villainous couple is locked in at 99 percent. No pitting either half of the CP against the other. I'll delete those comments on sight. *Liu Che and Chen Ajiao, and Longlü and Chen Jiao, are not couples here. I'm not comfortable with cousin marriages, so fans of these two pairings should stay away. [Don't say you weren't warned.] Theme: With a favorable wind to lift me, I'll soar into the clouds.