The Green Jade Case

[A Beauty Gives Me a Brocade Sash, How Can I Repay Her but with a Jade Pendant] A story about investing in a bevy of beautiful young ladies x a loyal, ambitious male lead. Set in a time of turmoil. Serious drama with a sweet romance.

The day the imperial city was drenched in blood, the Prince of Yan pointed his sword at the throne.

To save his own life, the deposed emperor offered his clan's young cousin, the Lady of Jingling, who had already been widowed three times before her weddings, to the Prince of Yan as a concubine.

The Prince of Yan was ambitious and kept his distance from women. Everyone said the Lady of Jingling was doomed.

But when their eyes met, the beauty's hair was loose around her temples, and her eyes were filled with sorrow. The Prince of Yan calmly lowered his sword. "Very well."

Beneath his impassive expression, his heart raced beyond control. No one knew how long he had waited for this moment, from the first fleeting glimpse of her beneath Dingding Gate to raising an army and marching south in a time of turmoil, then entering the capital and taking the throne.

*

Later, the Prince of Yan deposed the emperor and took the throne himself, making Jingling his empress. He cared well for the people and treated the former imperial clan with kindness. The world praised the emperor and empress for their harmonious union.

But no one knew that their marriage had been Jingling's scheme from the very beginning.

As the daughter of a disgraced minister and a member of the imperial clan, her life seemed bleak and hopeless. To find a way forward, she chose him from among a group of talented young men just as he was about to depart for the frontier. Then beneath Dingding Gate, she gazed at him tenderly and gave him a handkerchief.

"Though this journey will be hard, Youyan is the land where dragons rise. General, you may yet achieve great things and ascend to the throne. I will wait for your return in my chambers, day and night, and pray for your success."

She used longing as silk and love as thread, weaving a close-knit net around him.

All it took was a gentle tug, and he willingly surrendered.

[Bonus Scene]

After ascending the throne, the Prince of Yan remained devoted to his wife. The six palaces stood empty, and he took no concubines. Women throughout the land were green with envy.

One of the people who had been close to the empress in the past took the opportunity of the Qixi Festival to enter the palace and ask her for tips on how to keep a husband in line.

As it happened, the emperor was drunk and was heading to the palace hall to find the empress and sober up. Before he arrived, a familiar, clear voice reached his ears.

"You want to know about that?" the empress said with a beaming smile. "The truth is, back then, I had my maids embroider a whole lot of handkerchiefs. I picked more than ten young men and gave one to each, encouraging them to make a name for themselves so they could marry me. But in the end, only this one made it to the throne..."

The emperor, eavesdropping outside the window: ...

#Riding the wind to soar into the clouds#

#I envy neither golden wine vessels nor white jade cups. I envy most of all the waters of the West River, which once flowed beneath Jingling City#

※ A stunning beauty who invests in a whole group of men x a loyal, ambitious man who thinks he was singled out for his exceptional discernment. Both leads are each other's first and only love, one-on-one romance. The female lead was widowed three times before her weddings, and the male lead was responsible each time.

※ The female lead is the daughter of a disgraced minister and a member of the imperial clan. Her identity limits her options, so she has to invest in a whole group of men and use them to take revenge. This is not a story about a strong, independent heroine.

※ First version of the blurb: August 2023. Full version of the blurb: March 15, 2025.

Theme: You gave me a quince, and I repay you with a jade pendant