This Thief Saint Seems Different

Scheming, suspicious, and flirtatious heroine x carefree, open-minded, and raffish hero

Disowned daughter of a noble family x dashing Thief Saint of the martial world

[Blurb]

At first, Lin Buyan was the envy of everyone in the capital, a heaven-blessed daughter of a prestigious family.

But was she truly a heaven-blessed daughter, a pawn in her father's hand, or a canary in her childhood sweetheart's cage? Perhaps only she knew.

Her maternal aunt, the only person in the world who truly cared for her, was gravely ill and near death. Wolves circled all around them. Just then, Lu Xingzhi, the “White-Clad Rat” known as the Thief Saint, volunteered to enter the game.

Lin Buyan didn't care about a person's bad reputation in the martial world when deciding whether to use them.

Rumors from the martial world, gossip among common folk: everyone was mired in the mud. Who could say what was true and what was false? Whether they were willing or not didn't matter, and neither did their hidden motives. They were simply getting what they needed from each other.

She wanted results.

She never expected that, amid the wind howling as she fell from a cliff, his figure would appear in the fleeting memories flashing through her mind.

She never expected that when the world's deadliest poison began to claim his life, she would touch his cheek with trembling fingers.

*

For the first dozen years of Lu Xingzhi's life, he was a lone leaf.

His family was slaughtered, he sought a master, and he wandered from place to place.

He laughed and said it seemed he had spent his whole life losing things, until Lin Buyan barged into his world.

The two went from using each other to understanding and embracing one another, while Lu Xingzhi's heart sank ever deeper.

When the poison reached his heart, Lu Xingzhi leaned against her shoulder. Ripples stirred within him, and the corners of his lips lifted ever so slightly.

In the end

Where the heart finds peace is home, and a moment there is worth more than half a lifetime.

*

“Fate is like swirling water, and people are like mayflies drifting with the current. But I will hide beneath the raging torrent and break free from my cage of constraints as everything around me is shattered. One day, you will stand among towering mountains, with murmuring streams in your arms, and find a place in the world to call your own.”

Reader's Guide

1. One-on-one romance, happy ending.

2. The setting is a mishmash of fictional dynasties, and the place names are made up on the spot. Don't read too much into them.

3. The treasures are mostly made up on the fly. If there's a reference or source, I'll mention it in the author's note. If not, it's invented.

4. I'll fix typos and awkward sentences from time to time. Enjoy reading, and please add it to your favorites!

The blurb was written on May 20, 2023, and has been screenshotted.

Theme: People have to rely on themselves to put food on the table.