[Sweet-faced, dark-hearted scholar-general] x [Unhinged courtesan] [Size difference + age gap]
Tanner is a ravishing beauty, a courtesan raised to be sold.
Passed from hand to hand before finally being offered to the young general Pei Qizhi, she thought she had found a home.
After all, he was young and successful, handsome and distinguished. Though cold by nature, he treated her well, and he was a man of his word, a fine husband indeed.
At first, she only hoped for a little protection amid the chaos of war. Later, between the curtains, she lost her heart to him.
But when she was eighteen, he traded her for an official post.
On the day he entered the palace, riding in the imperial carriage, she heard him joking with his subordinates in a flippant tone: "She's just a plaything. In exchange for a hundred thousand troops, it's a bargain."
That night, Tan Ji, the emperor's favored consort in the palace of the capital, strangled the old, lecherous ruler. She met a gruesome end, her body never recovered intact.
When she opened her eyes again, the nightmare was over.
She was still in Gusu, and outside the door, the madam drew back the pearl curtain.
Tanner gazed blankly at the red, gold-embroidered bed curtains depicting mandarin ducks at play. In this life, she would never become that accursed courtesan and concubine.
And she would never meet him.
Everyone said that the powerful young general Pei Qizhi was famous for having no interest in women, but he had accepted a beauty offered by a salt merchant, bewitched by her looks.
She would mislead his political enemies, while he kept a beauty in his arms: two birds with one stone.
Pei Qizhi was perfectly satisfied.
Though she rejected him in every way she could, he took it for a woman's coy refusal.
He would simply wait until he returned victorious, then take his time playing with her.
Only when he saw her carrying a secret order into the enemy camp did he realize the truth.
This seemingly meek little songbird was actually a disobedient wildcat.
-
Later, Pei Qi, with his back covered in scars, leaned close to her and pleaded in a meek voice, "Tanner, won't you be a little kinder to me?"
But she stared into his eyes, each word filled with hatred.
"My lord, you must have mistaken me for someone else."
Reading notes:
1. One couple, both inexperienced, and no change of male lead.
2. The heroine is a sweet innocent flower. The hero is a rabid dog at first and becomes her dog later. Read with caution if that's not your thing.
3. Includes forced possession and a groveling redemption arc. If that's not your thing, don't read. Please don't leave hate comments, and no personal attacks!
Theme: You reap what you sow.
