[Innocent young man vs. top-tier succubus]
Set in the world of Jian'an Fantasy, this is the story of Tang Zhang and the Eldest Princess. An older woman-younger man romance, focused on their relationship.
In the fifteenth year of Jian Ning, an envoy sent by Xian'nan to Northern Liang had not sent word home for a long time and was suspected of treason. In his anxiety, Emperor Jian Ning married off the recently come-of-age Eldest Princess You Ning to Northern Liang under the guise of diplomacy, intending for her to spy on the court.
Four years later, the King of Northern Liang passed away, and the whole nation mourned.
Three years after that, You Ning's mourning period ended, and she prepared to return home in glory. But Qi'e suddenly staged a coup, ignoring You Ning's wishes, abducting his brother's wife and imprisoning and humiliating her for three years.
She was a princess sent away in a political marriage. She had never been close to the former King of Northern Liang, and she loathed Qi'e. Every day for three years, she thought about how to cut the treacherous usurper to pieces.
On the day of Qi'e's birthday banquet, she bribed high-ranking officials in Northern Liang, planning an assassination.
Everything was in place, and the moment was at hand, but a Jian'an envoy ruined her plan.
The envoy wore an official's robe of blue. He had refined features, with brows and hair as black as ink.
"Your Highness, Qi'e has always been close to our court. If he dies and his younger brother takes the throne, he will surely wage war against us. I beg Your Highness to think this through..."
He was so proper and rigid, so bound by old customs. And so she had to endure for a long time in that lightless hell, until she finally found an opportunity a year later to kill Qi'e herself.
In the eighth month of the fourth year of Guang An, her elder brother brought her back to her homeland.
The osmanthus was in bloom, and the autumn breeze was gentle. You Ning gazed at the vast procession and felt overjoyed.
After nine long years, she could finally go home.
But the moment she saw who was leading the procession, her smile froze.
The person who had come to take her home was none other than the refined blue-robed envoy.
"I, your servant Tang Zhang, welcome Your Highness back to the capital."
Their blood feud could never be forgiven. Remembering those dark, hopeless days, she clenched her teeth and swore revenge.
After returning to Jian'an, You Ning began a series of acts of revenge against him.
She deliberately occupied his residence and drove him out to live in the woodshed.
She used her authority as regent to coerce the Three Judicial Offices into making him personally oversee his father's execution.
He was the pride of the Marquis's household, yet she constantly teased, toyed with, humiliated, and tormented him.
She trampled the most elegant and lofty flower in the world into the mud, savoring the pleasure of crushing him beneath her feet.
The young man couldn't bear the humiliation, and their enmity was sealed. From then on, they clashed at every turn, determined to fight to the death.
One day, she finally grew tired of it all. After declaring a truce, she decided to marry any man she liked the look of.
When the young man heard, he rushed through the rain into the forbidden palace and cornered her against a palace wall, pressing close to her ear.
"Have you really grown tired of this body of mine, Your Highness?"
You Ning pushed him away, not in the mood to entertain him. She simply said, "I'm tired," and turned to leave.
But the young man refused to give up. He hooked an arm around her waist and humbly asked, "What must I do to seem new and exciting to Your Highness?"
You Ning smiled gently, her eyes full of malice.
"I want you to cast aside your self-respect and become my lover, a kept man at my beck and call."
Beneath the curtain of rain, she heard the rigid, proper young man, bound by old customs, turn red at the ears and slowly answer, "All right."
A guide to this story:
1. One-on-one. The heroine is not a virgin, while the hero is. The heroine has been married twice.
2. The heroine is rather unhinged. Read with caution if that bothers you.
Theme: I would give my life for my country
