Two Couples Come to the Dali Temple

[The main story is complete. Bonus chapters will drop at random...]

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The world is bustling, all for power and profit.

In the splendid capital, the Dali Temple investigates murder, punishes criminals, and protects the peace.

Dali Temple Chief Constable Zhou Zhitang and her husband, Dali Temple Minister Xu Nianshen, along with Dali Temple coroner Shen Qingqing and her husband, Dali Temple Vice Minister Gu Jinghuai, lead the Dali Temple staff in seeking justice for the dead and bringing the murderers to justice.

A highly skilled chief constable who gets things done and doesn't back down vs. a spirited young general turned Dali Temple Minister. A strong partnership, a marriage before love.

A highly skilled, kind-hearted, gentle coroner, Shen, vs. a germaphobic, timid, henpecked Dali Temple Vice Minister. Childhood friends who dote on each other.

A jumble of romance and friendship.

A comedic, ancient-style mystery set in a loosely imagined Song dynasty. A lighthearted, sweet, satisfying ensemble story. Both couples are each other's one and only.

Every story I start, I finish.

-- Blurb written on January 31, 2025, screenshot saved.

Reference book: Song Ci's The Washing Away of Wrongs

P.S. Updates are irregular, but I will never abandon the story.

Ongoing story: A Hard-Luck Couple's Struggle to Get By. Ladies! Please add it to your reading list. Here's the blurb (written on June 8, 2025, screenshot saved):

Song Tang transmigrates, and isn't even the daughter of a respectable poor family. Looking at her fair, delicate hands, she realizes this is what it means to start from nothing. She glances over and, thankfully, finds herself with a free laborer in the form of a fake husband. She'll reluctantly take him on as a worker. In an ancient era with backward technology and inconvenient transportation, she's determined not only to survive, but to live more freely.

Gu Shuang transmigrates as a penniless wanderer. Looking at his fake wife, who is in the same boat, he thinks things aren't so bad. Fortunately, he has a useful skill, which gives him a chance to scrape by and stick close to her. When he sees the look she gives him, he grins foolishly and tries to win her over. Of course he should cling to someone who can help him. He's no fool.

Song Tang has a dream: earn enough to support herself, lie flat, and travel around the mountains and rivers of the Song dynasty.

Gu Shuang has a dream: earn the bride price to marry Song Tang, pass the imperial exams, and serve the people in government.

Song Tang: "Gu Shuang, why don't you just marry the county magistrate's daughter? Then our little shop would have some protection."

Gu Shuang: "Song Tang, just give me some money to take the imperial exams. I failed last year because it was my first time. The second time will be familiar, right? Then I'll get you a noblewoman's title."

Reader's guide:

1. A slow-burn story. The leads support one another as they struggle to get by, then come to know, love, and stay by each other!

2. The leads truly start from nothing, with no golden finger. I only hope their values won't be assimilated or shaped by the feudal ideas around them.

3. A happy ending. The leads find joy in hardship and are content with what they have.

4. Hope you enjoy reading!

Theme: Love is beautiful, so cherish it