The Wise Emperor and His Little Demon Consort

I may occasionally edit this to fix typos.

Devoted emperor VS delicate beauty, bound by fate, loving until death.

A fortune-teller once read their fortunes: "She can only outlive you by one day. As long as you live, she can live!"

"Second Miss Zhou, you will meet three men who determine your fate: first, a bandit; second, a hero; third, a scholar."

As a young girl, Jia Min, a noblewoman of Jinling, was abducted by a bandit. He told her, "You belong to me!"

Later, a hero entered the world. In distant Bingzhou, he rescued a little girl and traveled a thousand miles to bring her home. Along the way, the young hero cherished and pampered her as if she were a precious treasure.

On the day they parted, Jia Min couldn't bear to say goodbye. She asked him if he would forget her once he found someone else to love.

Zhao Kuangyin stroked her cheek and promised, "Jia Min, listen to me. No matter how much time passes, Brother Zhao will never love anyone more than he loves you!"

By the time she was a young woman, her beauty was unparalleled, while he had become the formidable general of the Northern Dynasty, a hero made for a beauty. He happily signed the marriage contract, and she shyly awaited their wedding, but then the third man appeared.

The crown prince of Jiangnan stole her away. With no other choice, he turned her betrothal gifts into a dowry and personally sent her off to be married.

Years later, Zhao Kuangyin ascended the throne and sent his army to conquer Jiangnan. The woman he had cherished all his life had gone from empress to captive.

They looked at each other. Jia Min was terrified, like a startled bird.

Zhao Kuangyin asked in a low voice, "Jia Min, do you still remember our engagement?"

After their marriage, Jia Min was pampered without limit and regained the innocent liveliness of her girlhood. She loved playing leaf cards, and whenever she played late into the night, her emperor husband always kept her company.

Though it was late, they still spent the night in the warm embrace of their bedchamber, nearly making him late for morning court.

Jia Min said softly, "From now on, I'll only play leaf cards during the day, so you won't have to stay up so late!"

A low chuckle sounded by her ear. "It's not entirely the cards' fault..."

Jia Min protested insincerely, "Then I won't keep pestering you anymore!"

"No!" Zhao Kuangyin frowned and flatly refused. "I want you to pester me. Not a bit less!"

Reading guide:

1. The characters' ages differ slightly from those of their real historical counterparts.

2. Four parts angst, six parts sweetness. The heroine is weak and the hero strong. The male lead gets more of the story's focus. He's purely devoted to the heroine, protective of her, and she's a sweet, innocent wife. Happy ending.

3. One-to-one, both leads are virgins. The heroine does something extreme to protect herself from being violated. The author isn't pandering to men, but simply doesn't want the heroine to get hurt. If this is a dealbreaker, please proceed with caution.

The next novel, The Bewitching Consort Never Repents, teaser:

A sweet girl with a mouth full of wicked talk VS a scheming, aloof beauty. A fake power play, one-to-one romance: they are properly married, yet must carry on in secret.

At sixteen, Lady Liu Man'er of Danyang is married off to Xiao Yan, the second son of the Xiao family of Lanling. He is the most handsome man in the Southern Dynasties, but cold-hearted and inscrutable. He once swore his love for her, making vows of eternal devotion, but then abandoned her and turned to his childhood sweetheart.

When the new emperor ascends the throne and massacres the imperial clan, the court is swept by a bloody storm. Just as the new emperor reaches for Liu Man'er, Xiao Yan forcibly marries her, bringing his childhood sweetheart along as well, so he can enjoy the blessings of having both a wife and a concubine.

After their wedding, Xiao Yan doesn't love her at all. He loves the concubine, who is supposedly tormented and framed by Liu Man'er every day, and punishes and abuses his wife in all kinds of ways to protect his concubine.

But the concubine is a spy sent by the new emperor to keep watch on the Xiao family. The couple deliberately pretend to be at odds so she will report more false information. From then on, Xiao Yan is forced to lead a double life.

In public: "A wicked, venomous woman who never repents!"

In private: "Man'er, are you all right? If you're angry, hit me..."

Liu Man'er shakes her head. "I'm just wondering what I should do in the next scene. If this is a forced-marriage story, shouldn't I be trying to escape every day?"

Xiao Yan: "Then run! I'll do things to you in our room every day, and everyone outside will hear. Better hide somewhere!"

Liu Man'er: "..."

So every night before Xiao Yan returns to their room, Liu Man'er makes sure to run away: beneath flowering trees, in the study, in the sword pavilion's music room, even on a lotus-picking boat or in the Rouge Well...

They never repeat a hiding place, and each one is more bizarre than the last. The longer they are married, the more secretive they become.

Liu Man'er can't help asking, "If we keep sneaking around like this, does that make us adulterers?"

Xiao Yan rolls his eyes. "I remember being properly married to you! Still, on a dark and windy night, being a pair of adulterers might not be so bad..."

The couple are both masterful actors, but the concubine is no pushover. She takes turns unleashing poisonous schemes, framing the principal wife at every opportunity, big or small, and even slips Xiao Yan an aphrodisiac.

Xiao Yan finally loses his patience and grits his teeth. "Get out of the way! Today, I'm going to kill her!"

Liu Man'er desperately stops him. "Don't go! If you kill her, where will we find another woman who's so easy to fool and so devoted to us that she'll work like an ox and horse?"

Xiao Yan is completely restrained and reluctantly gives up, sighing, "I may not be able to beat you, but I can outkiss you..."

Liu Man'er: "My husband is terrifying when he kisses me. I can't fight back!"

P.S. The male lead really is risking his life to act alongside the heroine. This young married couple protect each other. They want no fleeting romances, only a lifetime together.

Reading guide:

1. One-to-one romance, both leads are virgins, but there are many male supporting characters and a competitive love-triangle situation.

2. The leads become intimate while secretly married, so it doesn't count as premarital.

3. The male lead isn't perfect. He is somewhat cruel in his treatment of the concubine, who gets her just deserts. Please proceed with caution if this bothers you.

4. Happy ending.

Theme: Fear no hardship and persevere through every setback.