Plucking a Branch to Thank the Moon

Fuyu is currently being serialized. A gentle beauty x a younger wolfish man. Blurb below.

An accident led Song Yunzhi to marry Xie Chen.

The Xie family had deep roots, and among its young men, the third son, Xie Chen, stood out above the rest. Handsome beyond compare and as bright and noble as the moon, he was admired by many unmarried young ladies in the capital. Who would have thought the third young lady of the Song family would be the one to snatch him up?

Everyone said Song Yunzhi was lucky to have married Xie Chen.

Song Yunzhi disagreed. “What luck? It took a tremendous amount of effort to marry Xie Chen.”

Her concubine-born mother often drilled one thing into her: if a woman wants something, she should do whatever it takes to get it.

*

Xie Chen married Song Yunzhi out of a sense of responsibility. Even though the elders in his family looked down on her background, she was obedient and sensible, so he decided to keep her.

As long as she stayed quietly in the inner quarters, he was willing to live out their lives as a respectful couple.

Later, he realized that his little wife was not quite as he had imagined. Even his sister-in-law found an opportunity to complain about her to him, speaking with such earnestness that she warned him to be careful around Song Yunzhi.

Xie Chen paid her no mind, thinking his sister-in-law must be lying.

Until one day at a wedding banquet, he saw his usually well-behaved wife push the second young lady of the Wang family into a pond without batting an eye.

He frowned. Maybe there really was a bit of a problem.

*

Her scheme to get Xie Chen to marry her had been exposed after all.

But even after her loved ones were cleared of their wrongful accusations, she was still his wife.

Afraid Xie Chen would settle scores and implicate her family, Song Yunzhi finally took the divorce papers to him.

Xie Chen thought he understood Song Yunzhi, and he was quite pleased with how obedient she was. Gradually, he fell for this naive, adorable young woman.

But he never imagined that the wife who was always so gentle and innocent in front of him was a vicious woman who would stop at nothing to get what she wanted. Even her marriage to him had been part of a scheme.

She had married him only because of his status and influence, using him to achieve her aims.

When she handed him the divorce papers, he tore them up and gave her a cold look. “Now that you've finished using me, you want to throw me away?”

Divorce? Not a chance!

Reader's Guide

1. One-on-one romance, both leads' first relationship, happy ending, marriage before love.

2. A fluffy, lighthearted story. Don't expect the plot to stand up to close scrutiny.

3. The male lead is twenty-two, and the female lead is sixteen.

4. The dynasties and official titles are a mishmash. Please don't nitpick historical details.

Coming Soon 1: Fuyu

Xue Fuyu had been married to Xie Lian for ten years, standing by him as he went from an unpopular prince to the emperor who ruled the realm.

Over the years, she and Xie Lian had supported each other. Under his rule, the realm was peaceful and prosperous, and she thought they would go on like that forever.

She never expected Xie Lian's former fiancée, her cousin, to return as a widow.

Everyone said the emperor still held a torch for his former fiancée. At first, she didn't believe them.

Then one day she saw the two of them standing close together in the garden, talking intimately.

Only then did she understand that even after ten years together, she still couldn't compare to the love he'd felt in his youth.

*

After her cousin returned, Xue Fuyu noticed that Xie Lian often seemed distracted when they were together, and had grown impatient with their daughter, too.

Everyone outside the palace said that the fourth young lady of the Xue family was back, and the empress's position was in danger. After all, she was the one the emperor loved.

The empress dowager wanted them to rekindle their old romance, while the Xue family outside the palace said she had taken her cousin's place.

When she learned that Xie Lian intended to take a concubine, her heart finally went cold, and she resolved to leave the capital.

*

Ten years ago, Xie Lian had been forced to marry his cousin. After living with her for ten years, he had grown used to having her by his side.

Now he was no longer a boy who could be pushed around. He could make up for everything he'd missed out on before.

He should have been content.

But when his usually gentle wife coolly told him she would make way for her cousin, the usually composed emperor finally lost control.

He clutched her wrist with all his strength, like a dog on the verge of being abandoned. Eyes red, he rasped, “Cousin, do you really not want me and the princess anymore?”

Coming Soon 2: Pillow of Beauty

A rugged, powerful grassland man x a fallen beauty from the Central Plains (wolf and sheep pairing / size difference)

Shen Guining was born into a prestigious family. With skin white as snow and beauty like a flower, she was sought after by the noble houses of Chang'an.

But the court was corrupt, and one day her father was framed by a villain. Her entire family was exiled.

On the way to Liangzhou, they were attacked by bandits. She was captured by human traffickers and taken to the frontier.

Just as an old brothel madam took a fancy to her and wanted to buy her as a future star courtesan, a foreign man traded a ruby for her. Shen Guining became his slave from the Central Plains.

She had heard that foreign men took pleasure in tormenting women from the Central Plains. Terrified, she looked up at the tall, muscular man, able to make out the solid muscles beneath his clothes.

Crouched in a corner, she held up a dagger that could not hurt him in the least with trembling hands. Tears streamed down her face as she begged him to let her go.

His predatory eyes settled on her peerless face, and he smiled cruelly. “Dream on.”

-

Su Mu bought a slave from the Central Plains from some people there.

At first, the slave begged him every day to let her go. But why would he release prey he'd already caught so easily?

The trouble was, the slave was delicate. She couldn't carry heavy loads or lift a finger, and even washing clothes left her fingertips raw. She also had a habit of looking at him with red-rimmed eyes, all pitiful and pleading.

On the grasslands, the rule of survival had always been that the strong prey on the weak. In Su Mu's eyes, a little sheep as fragile as Shen Guining wouldn't last long on the grasslands.

But after he gave way to her time and again, the little sheep not only survived, she also grew bolder and bolder around him, until he forgot why he had bought her in the first place.

One winter night in the royal tent on the grasslands, the man reached out as usual and placed the girl's cold feet in his palms, slowly warming them.

At first, he thought he'd bought a slave he could order around as he pleased.

Later, he wished he could cradle her in his hands and never let her go.

Coming Soon 3: Tempting My Childhood Friend

Adorable, proud little lady x sinister big bad wolf

Shen Zhiyi was the legitimate daughter of a prestigious family, with a beautiful face. In the eyes of outsiders, she was dignified and proper, and she and the gentle, refined young master of the Lu family had been childhood friends.

Everyone in the capital assumed they were a perfect match, a destined couple who would eventually marry.

Hearing the rumors, Shen Zhiyi rolled her eyes. Since when had her petty, vindictive childhood friend become a refined gentleman?

Watching Lu Heng put on airs, she scoffed.

Lu Heng, for his part, couldn't understand when his spoiled childhood friend had become the model of a noble young lady in the capital.

Watching Shen Zhiyi put on a false show of gentility, he found her impossible to describe.

No one knew that these two seemingly harmonious and well-matched people loved undermining each other in private, and both tacitly agreed that the other wasn't good enough for them.

*

When it was time for her to find a husband, Shen Zhiyi took a fancy to the young master of the vice minister of rites. He was gentle and courteous, and blushed whenever he saw her.

She subtly hinted at her feelings and repeatedly dropped hints to her older brother that she liked reserved, gentle men.

Her brother slapped his chest with confidence and promised to take care of everything.

On the day the marriage was to be discussed, Shen Zhiyi stared wide-eyed at the figure standing before the elders, tall and straight as a pine. Who else could it be but the childhood friend she secretly couldn't stand?

When Lu Heng smiled at her with his usual gentle warmth, she stomped hard on her brother's foot just as he was about to claim credit.

*

In a secluded corner of the Shen residence, Lu Heng caught up with the sulking Shen Zhiyi and pinned her against a wall. Bending down, he kissed her deeply, then bit her as if to punish her.

His actions made Shen Zhiyi so angry her eyes reddened. She was sure he was still holding a grudge over the match she'd ruined for him and had come to torment her on purpose.

He really was petty!

Lu Heng chuckled and said hoarsely, “Zhinu, you're right. I hold a grudge.”

His voice held a faint smile, but beneath it lay turbulent, uncontrollable emotion.

“So you ruined a match for me back then. Now you owe me one.”

Theme: Be kind to others