Cloudlike Hair, Silky Sweetness

Shen Wanzhuan had a childhood sweetheart who grew up alongside her. He gave her the fleetest steed, rode with her under the setting sun over the desert, and brought her delicious snacks. His amber eyes always shone as he gazed at her tenderly.

But Shen Wanzhuan didn't like Yuan Che because... she was Han Chinese, and in her eyes, he was a barbarian. Though he was strong and agile, a peerless archer and rider, and unmatched in battle across Great Wei, she saw all of that as a sign of his rudeness.

Barbarians knew nothing of proper manners and did nothing but fight. That was what her grandfather had taught her. He... he was kind to her, but he didn't understand her at all.

On the night the emperor bestowed their betrothal, Yuan Che was so happy he couldn't sleep. He marched into Huanzhou that very night, conquering cities and capturing territory, and killing the enemy general on the battlefield. His triumphant dispatches raced all the way to the capital. All he asked was that Huanzhou's provincial capital be renamed Wan, as a wedding gift to her.

Shen Wanzhuan was awake that night too. She leaned against her mother's arms and cried until midnight, then ran alone to the hills behind the house to curse her unfair fate. She had fled again and again, but still couldn't escape being bound to him.

The next day, she had to hide her tear-swollen eyes, put on a false smile, and face the people around her who came to offer congratulations.

She didn't like him, but for now, she couldn't afford to provoke him. He was useful to her, and she couldn't let things turn ugly.

Perhaps Shen Wanzhuan's prayers were answered. On the day of their wedding, the court was thrown into turmoil, and an imperial decree banished her to a Buddhist temple. Overnight, the noble prince's consort became a prisoner.

In the quiet days at the ancient temple, she would sometimes think of the handsome childhood sweetheart who shone like the sun. From the few letters she received, she heard he had won yet another military honor, that the emperor had showered him with rewards and held him in high regard, and that everyone at court bowed to his authority.

But none of that had anything to do with her anymore.

Until one day, she heard that he had murdered the emperor, seized the throne, and bathed the entire capital in blood.

The temple's massive gates opened one by one before her. Blinding sunlight poured in as countless palace attendants and guards knelt on either side, trembling with fear. "We humbly welcome Your Majesty the Empress back to the palace."

Shen Wanzhuan blinked her beautiful eyes and picked at the vermilion polish on her fingertips in the bright sunlight. She cast a haughty glance over the trembling crowd prostrate at her feet and thought, critically, that he had come far too late. But with so many people begging her today, she could just barely forgive him.

Naive, haughty, and carefree heroine x scheming, love-struck hero

A childhood-sweethearts emperor-and-empress story. The heroine is both "stupid" and "wicked."

P.S. (A bit of a digression): A heroine doesn't have to be utterly perfect, virtuous, and faithful to deserve the hero's love. The hero is love-struck because loving her brings him emotional fulfillment and meets his own needs. Neither owes the other anything, so the heroine doesn't need to meet some equivalent standard to justify it. That's also why I've never liked the "chasing your wife to the crematorium" trope. If I don't like it now, I probably won't like it later, and it has nothing to do with the heroine's character or integrity.

I don't like writing about reformed playboys. When a scumbag is too awful, I lose interest even in torturing him. A promiscuous woman won't turn back either, and that's exactly what I like about her.

[Offstage Q&A]

Q: Would you marry a man you didn't like, even if he loved you very much?

Wanzhuan: His loving me is my achievement, not his. If you like Xi Shi or Diaochan, does that mean it's your achievement? Isn't it theirs? If it's my achievement, why should it factor into my decision? Unless the man has some other quality that makes me willing to marry him.

Q: Such as?

Wanzhuan: Money or power, of course! Why should I let someone love me for free?

Theme: The steadfast devotion of weathering storms together, true love that remains unwavering over the long years, and the noble character and steadfast integrity that guide how one treats others.