Caged Crane

Also known as: After My Enemy Died, I Fell for His Concubine

On the day Shen Que, Marquis of Changping, died, Xue He stood before his memorial tablet and wept bitterly.

She was exquisitely beautiful, and she looked just as beautiful when she cried. No one could help staring at her.

It was said that when Shen Que was alive, he adored this concubine, pampering her as if she were the most precious thing in the world and giving her everything she could want. Now that Shen Que was dead and Xue He was grieving so deeply, she must be a loyal woman who knew how to love.

Everyone thought so.

Until Li Xuanxu appeared.

A rising star in the capital, Li Xuanxu had a deep-seated grudge against Shen Que. The two had always clashed, and now that Shen Que was dead, Li Xuanxu showed up uninvited, carrying himself like a victor. The people of the Marquis of Changping's household ground their teeth in anger.

Li Xuanxu admired his enemy's memorial tablet, then noticed Xue He beside it.

A moment later, he held out his hand to her. Shen Que was dead, and she had no one to rely on. Why not come with him?

Xue He's sobbing paused for just an instant before she took Li Xuanxu's hand.

Li Xuanxu came from the Special Investigation Bureau. He was the emperor's attack dog: ruthless, vindictive, and more calculating than anyone could imagine. Countless people had met gruesome ends at his hands. Everyone couldn't help thinking that Xue He wouldn't live much longer. Yet no one expected her to thrive and become the apple of Li Xuanxu's eye.

At first, Li Xuanxu only took Xue He away so he could humiliate Shen Que in front of his memorial tablet. Later, he realized that somehow, he was the one being humiliated.

Xue He was born with a heart as cold as ice and snow. She was utterly indifferent, caring nothing for men and only for herself. To her, Li Xuanxu was no different from Shen Que. She could cry for Shen Que, and she could cry for Li Xuanxu, if he wanted her to.

Li Xuanxu heard this and spat out a few words through clenched teeth: "Thanks, but I don't need that."

When they were deep in the throes of passion, he would stroke Xue He's jade-like cheek and ask, "Who's better, me or Shen Que?"

Xue He would say nothing, just remain silent. When Li Xuanxu pressed her too hard, she would timidly reply, "You're both good."

That nearly drove Li Xuanxu out of his mind.

When he was ambushed and on the verge of death, Li Xuanxu thought of Xue He waiting at home and fought his way through a river of blood. He couldn't die yet. If he did, that heartless little thing would run off with who knows whom.

After surviving countless near-death experiences, Li Xuanxu finally returned home. The good news was, Xue He was still there.

The bad news was, Shen Que wasn't dead. He had come back.

Synopsis saved on April 11, 2025

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