The Virtuous Empress Wasn't So Virtuous (Both Reborn)

Everyone says Song Qingyun's ancestors must have done something to bring them good fortune. Thanks to the late emperor's decree arranging her marriage, she went from being the daughter of a declining merchant family to a royal daughter-in-law overnight.

Because of that, Song Qingyun served Ye Wenci with boundless care and caution, staying by his side as he rose to become emperor.

But after the new emperor ascends the throne, the court is thrown into turmoil, and the consorts in the harem all have their own agendas. To help her husband, Song Qingyun has the consorts executed.

All she gets in return is a cold remark from Ye Wenci: "An unworthy empress deserves to die. I only married you because I had no choice!"

As he nears death, the new emperor sends her an edict deposing her as empress. Only then does Song Qingyun learn that if not for the late emperor's ill-advised matchmaking, the woman sitting on the phoenix throne would have been the new emperor's beloved!

Song Qingyun dies with hatred in her heart. When she opens her eyes again, she finds herself back in the year the late emperor arranged her marriage.

This time, Song Qingyun only wants a letter of divorce!

*

Ye Wenci is so cold-hearted that on the day of the empress's funeral, he merely glances at her before going to court as if nothing happened.

Rumors spread through the palace that the new emperor has no heart. Only the gods filling the Hall of Blessings know the truth: on the night the empress died, the cold-faced man knelt and wept all night. He even swore an oath to the gods, offering his life in exchange for hers.

After that, no one in the palace ever saw the emperor smile again. Until someone found the phoenix-tail bell the empress had left behind. The famously heartless emperor smiled as he held it, then burst into tears.

As time passed, Ye Wenci's health steadily declined. In the chilly Changning Palace, he often dreamed of the woman who used to follow him, calling him "Your Highness" in a sweet, soft voice. He kept murmuring, "Qingyun, don't leave me behind."

Only then did the palace attendants learn how deeply the emperor had loved her!

*

One day after being reborn, Ye Wenci finally discovers that Song Qingyun has always had a "white moonlight" in her heart...

The woman who once always yielded to him and treated him as her most precious treasure now ignores him and even openly asks him for a divorce.

Looking at that "white moonlight," who resembles his former self in some ways, Ye Wenci is filled with melancholy. Could it be that he himself was the "white moonlight's" substitute all along?

tips:

1. The male and female leads are both virgins.

2. HE

3. After the male lead ascends the throne, he has nothing to do with the consorts in his harem.

4. Updated daily.

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Upcoming second-chance romance of the same type: She Became the Dark Moonlight After Being a Substitute Bride

Sang Zhiwei is an unloved young princess. When her elder sister goes missing, she's forced to marry Jiang Hemian, who was supposed to be her brother-in-law.

Everyone knows that Sang Nanxi, the Prince of Ning's eldest daughter, and Jiang Hemian, the foremost scion of a powerful family, were betrothed long ago. One is gentle and virtuous, the other cool and reserved. They're the envy of the capital, a perfect match!

But no one knows that Jiang Hemian has also been Sang Zhiwei's secret obsession for four years.

On their wedding night, the red candles burn down, but Jiang Hemian never appears. Sang Zhiwei thinks he must have important business and simply forgot about the wedding.

She sees Jiang Hemian three days later, while being punished to kneel in the ancestral hall. He knows she was punished by her mother-in-law for breaking the rules while waiting for him on their wedding night, but he only gives a cold laugh and ignores her.

He pours the nuptial wine onto the floor in front of her, drawing a clear line between them. "This marriage will last at most six months! For those six months, you'll be a wife of the Jiang family, not my wife, Jiang Hemian!"

Sang Zhiwei's legs go numb, and she can't hide her disappointment. But then she thinks that being able to stay by his side for six months is enough to make her happy.

She remembers Jiang Hemian's words and does her best to fulfill her duties as a Jiang family wife. She even wins over the elders who used to hate her, and they accept her.

But Jiang Hemian remains unmoved, telling a friend, "She's manipulative. It makes her detestable."

When Sang Zhiwei hears him, her eyes redden. She blames herself, thinking she must not have done well enough!

Then one day, Jiang Hemian is framed and drugged. Fearing for his life, Sang Zhiwei uses her own body as the antidote.

But all she gets in return is the sight of Jiang Hemian striding away, gathering up his long robe. When they meet again, murderous intent blazes in his eyes as he presses a dagger to her throat.

"You stole my engagement and have no shame! Sang Zhiwei, you're disgusting!"

Sang Zhiwei learns what it feels like to have her heart torn apart.

The six months are up, and her elder sister returns just in time. Jiang Hemian's face lights up with a smile.

Sang Zhiwei slips away, leaving only a divorce agreement and a note: Zhuzhu is letting her husband go. She only hopes he and her elder sister will grow old together.

Jiang Hemian sneers, then tears her note to shreds.

Jiang Hemian hates Sang Zhiwei!

It's because she used the emperor's promise, earned by risking her life to save the empress dowager, to secure their engagement.

After their wedding, she used all sorts of despicable means to establish her place, until everyone in the household accepted her.

Watching Sang Zhiwei work so diligently, Jiang Hemian changes his mind. He has no interest in love, but if Sang Zhiwei can fulfill her duties as a Jiang family wife, he can keep quiet about their six-month arrangement.

But on the day he was drugged, he vaguely saw Sang Zhiwei rush toward him, and for a moment, mistook her for Sang Nanxi.

When he comes to, he realizes it was Sang Zhiwei. Jiang Hemian feels a little relieved, but once he has calmed down, he sees Sang Zhiwei asleep beside him.

Filled with guilt, Jiang Hemian wakes her and hurls cruel words at her. As he looks at her tear-streaked face, he feels regret for the first time.

Six months later, Sang Zhiwei disappears!

At first, Jiang Hemian feels neither sorrow nor joy. If Sang Zhiwei won't be a Jiang family wife, plenty of noblewomen will.

But when he sees that familiar, voluptuous figure is no longer anywhere in the Jiang residence, he feels a piece of his heart go missing for the first time.

He thinks Sang Zhiwei must be unhappy with the way things are and is playing hard to get, trying to make him change his mind.

But three months pass, and he still can't find any trace of her.

Then he sees the journal she left behind. It records all the things she quietly did for him, as well as the emperor's promise.

The promise had been used up three years earlier, solely to spare him the hardships of prison while he was in the imperial jail.

Jiang Hemian finally sees the sincerity in Sang Zhiwei's heart. His hand trembles as he holds the journal. He slowly walks into the darkness and breaks down sobbing.

He wishes he could kill his former self!

Following the clues in her journal, Jiang Hemian soon finds Sang Zhiwei.

He stages a heroic rescue, hoping to make Sang Zhiwei willingly offer herself to him in marriage.

But Sang Zhiwei shakes her head, looking delighted. "I can't. Zhuzhu is getting married again!"

When he learns she's marrying his older brother, Jiang Hemian's face turns ashen. "He's no good! I won't let you marry him!"

Sang Zhiwei pushes him away and argues, "We've already divorced. We have nothing to do with each other anymore! Even if he's not perfect, in Zhuzhu's eyes he's a thousand times better than you!"

Jiang Hemian digs his fingertips into his palm. Ignoring Sang Zhiwei's struggles, he hides her away.

He would rather have her hate him forever than have her heart hold no place for him at all.

When the day of Sang Zhiwei's marriage to his older brother arrives, Jiang Hemian dresses up to look like his brother and walks into the bridal chamber.

"Now I'm him, so Zhuzhu can marry me, right?"

Theme: Face your true feelings