“You love me so much? Then die for me.”
Reborn villainess / second male lead rises to the top / training a dog / male rivalry / ambitious woman in a chaotic age
Shen Yuanwai has a youngest daughter named Shen Yu. She is willful and unruly, throwing her weight around wherever she goes. She spends her days practicing with weapons in the manor, and her whip technique is exceptional.
Her cousin Xie Chuan, who came from the capital, is staying at the manor. She pays him no more heed than anyone else. Using their sparring sessions as an excuse, she often leaves him bruised and bleeding.
But she never imagined that Xie Chuan would rise to power along with his cheap father and become the crown prince.
The Shen family is confiscated and exiled. Xie Chuan takes her for himself, and she becomes the lowliest of servants.
Shen Yu glares at his lofty face, teeth clenched with hatred. If she ever gets above Xie Chuan again, she will make him suffer a thousand cuts.
*
After Xie Chuan drowns her, Shen Yu is reborn in the first year Xie Chuan is taken in by the Shen family.
As usual, she beats Xie Chuan until his head is covered in blood at the training ground, then has a servant bring him the finest wound salve at noon.
She strokes Xie Chuan's face and says, “You're so beautiful.”
The whips still fall on Xie Chuan after that, but now they land in more hidden places.
The usually aloof and noble Young Master Xie, Xie Chuan, lies at Shen Yu's feet, wagging his tail and begging for her favor. It's enough to break your heart.
The coup comes as expected. Shen Yu has arranged everything in advance and heads north with the Yulin Army. Before she leaves, her private soldiers look at Xie Chuan, whose hands and feet are impaired.
Shen Yu leaves them with a casual, “Kill him.”
She thinks that if Xie Chuan truly loves her, he won't mind dying for her cause.
*
[Male Lead's Blurb:]
Xie Changwei is left by his wet nurse at a country estate belonging to the Shen family, where most of the residents are distant relatives.
Later, the household can no longer spare him a bowl of rice, so he is sent to the Shen family residence in Bianliang.
They tell him his elder brother is there.
His elder brother, Xie Chuan, is proud and learned. He proves to be exactly as described, but doesn't care much for a younger brother he has never met, treating him with cool indifference.
One day, Xie Changwei goes to Xie Chuan's lodgings to find him, but through the window he catches sight of a radiant, lovely face.
His usually stern elder brother is kneeling before the young woman, diligently serving her.
The young woman's smile is bewitching, yet she carries the unquestionable air of someone in power. She holds his elder brother's head and slowly teaches him how to please her.
Xie Changwei doesn't sleep a wink that night.
Afterward, he goes to wait outside every day, diligently learning through that window.
He watches his elder brother's face, all the while thinking of taking his place.
* Reading Guide:
1. The setting is fictional, with countless liberties taken.
2. The heroine puts ambition ahead of morality. If you can't accept morally flawed protagonists, read with caution.
3. The male lead is pure in body and mind, and has a devoted-dog personality. Please don't read if that bothers you.
4. The heroine has both a career plot and a romance plot. The romance involves toying with the crown prince and the Fifth Prince, while the career plot is about becoming emperor. There will be a significant focus on her ambitions, so please don't read if that bothers you.
Theme: Never give up lightly.
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